This Piecemeal Restore Quiz asks what happens when a query reads a table whose filegroup is still offline. The answer is an error for that table only, while everything else keeps working. A tested script shows the error and then brings the last filegroup online.
SQL Server emergency? Email pinal@sqlauthority.com with URGENT in the subject line.
Rebuild Index Quiz: DROP and CREATE, DROP_EXISTING or REBUILD?
This Rebuild Index Quiz asks which way of refreshing an index stays usable and can pause and resume. The answer is ALTER INDEX with ONLINE and RESUMABLE turned on. A tested two-window script shows the pause and the resume.
XML Data Type Quiz: Which Method Returns a Plain Value?
This XML Data Type Quiz asks which xml method returns the customer name as an ordinary SQL value with a type you choose. The answer is value(). A tested script runs the methods on one order document and shows what each one returns.
MERGE Statement Quiz: What If Two Source Rows Match One Target?
This MERGE Statement Quiz asks what happens when two source rows match one target row. The answer is error 8672, and the whole statement fails. A tested script shows the error, the fix with ROW_NUMBER and the same change written as UPDATE plus INSERT.
Resource Database Quiz: Where Do the System Objects Live?
This Resource Database Quiz asks where SQL Server stores the definition of sys.objects and whether BACKUP DATABASE can protect it. The answer is the hidden Resource database. A tested script shows its version, its date and the system objects every database sees.
Create Constraints Quiz: What Does WITH NOCHECK Leave Behind?
This Create Constraints Quiz adds a CHECK constraint WITH NOCHECK to a table that already holds a bad row. The bad row stays, and the constraint is marked not trusted. A tested script proves it, shows what trust changes for the optimizer and lists four ways to create a constraint.
CHECKPOINT Behavior Quiz: What Lets the Log Be Reused?
This CHECKPOINT Behavior Quiz asks what lets SQL Server reuse transaction log space under the SIMPLE and FULL recovery models. The answers differ, and a tested script shows both. It also shows how one open transaction keeps the log from being reused.
SQL Server slow? Let's fix it together in about four hours.
In my Comprehensive Database Performance Health Check, you share your screen, I guide you, and we fix your biggest performance troublemakers. No passwords. No remote access.
You keep every script, and the know-how to fix it yourself next time.
Want your whole team to learn it?
My Practical Workshop has no PowerPoint, just live demos. My AI Enablement Workshop shows your team where AI saves hours, and where it quietly costs them.
Over 400 customers have worked with me this way, and not one shared a password. See all consulting options.