Trying New SQL Server Features safely takes a separate instance, a controlled data copy, and before and after measurements.
Row Overflow Data: Finding Rows That Spill Past 8,060 Bytes
Find row overflow data pages in wide SQL Server tables, identify large VARCHAR values and rows, and measure their extra read cost.
SQL SERVER – Another lesser known feature of SQL Server Management Studio 2012 – Guest Post by Balmukund Lakhani
Balmukund Lakhani shows another lesser known feature of SQL Server Management Studio 2012, hidden in the Connect to Server screen you see every day.
Estimated vs Actual Rows: The First Thing to Read in a Plan
Read estimated vs actual rows in execution plans, find where the first gap appears, and investigate statistics, parameters, and predicates.
Comparing Two Copies of a Table With CHECKSUM_AGG and HASHBYTES
Use CHECKSUM_AGG for a quick table-copy signal, then compare canonical HASHBYTES values and key ranges to locate real data differences.
LEN vs DATALENGTH: Trailing Spaces, Unicode Bytes and NULL
Compare LEN vs DATALENGTH for trailing spaces, Unicode, UTF-8, NULL, and MAX values before safely resizing SQL Server string columns.
GETDATE vs SYSDATETIME: Precision of the Current Time
Compare SYSDATETIME with GETDATE and UTC time functions, understand datetime rounding, and choose a clear timestamp type and clock contract.