Erik Darling and Kendra Little Rate SQL Server Perf Tuning Techniques
Dear SQL DBA
Erik Darling joins Kendra Little to rate different SQL Server Performance Tuning Techniques in episode 81 of the Dear SQL DBA podcast. We share our opinions of... (deep breath) Recompile hints, Query Store hints and plan forcing, CTEs, Resource Governor, the legacy cardinality estimator, Table Variables, Automatic Plan Correction, Batch Mode, index rebuilds, Hekaton, NOLOCK, page compression, partitioning, filtered indexes, columnstore, join hints, PSPO, indexed hints, indexed views, optimize for unknown, RCSI, adding more memory, restarting the damn thing, scalar UDFs, and Persisted...
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Power BI Performance Tuning with Eugene Meidinger
Dear SQL DBA
Eugene Meidinger stops by to chat about Power BI Performance Tuning with Kendra. We talk about the various engines and languages used in Power BI and big-picture strategies for getting performance from the start. Eugene then talks about the community of tools and techniques that can be used to dig in and solve performance problems in Power BI. Eugene's new Pluralsight course on Perf tuning Power BI launches on February 5th, 2024. The first 50 sales will be only $20. If you don't get one of those lucky spots, use code RACOONS to get 50% off. Find more of Eugene's content at sqlgene.com.
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Automated Deployments and the Art of the Database with Database Michael J Swart
Dear SQL DBA
In this episode, Michael J Swart joins the Dear SQL DBA podcast to talk about databases, automation, and how he’s come to illustrate some of the coolest blog posts ever to be written about data. Check out Michael’s art and blog posts at and explore his posts by illustration at .
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Jer and Kendar Explore Optimized Locking
Dear SQL DBA
SQL Server has a new feature that’s currently only available in Azure SQL Database: Optimized Locking. joins the podcast to talk through and nerd out on locks, blocks, and how to pronounce the acronym “LAQ”. Learn more about this feature online: from Microsoft Learn <– A much longer read on Microsoft Learn Kendra's
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Advice for Technical Leaders with Alex Robson
Dear SQL DBA
Ever wondered what it's like to be a VP or Director of Engineering? Kendra chats with Alex Robson about leadership in technology, what you can get out of coaching or an MBA program (should you be interested), and what makes a high performing team. We'll also chat about recommended content to hone your tech leadership skills. Alex Robson's site and blog: Alex's content recommendations for folks who want to think more about technical leadership: "I believe Camille Fournier and Will Larson are wonderful writers with invaluable insights and advice. For product thinking, I recommend folks read The...
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Erik Darling on Performance Tuning
Dear SQL DBA
SQL Server performance tuning expert Erik Darling joins the podcast today to chat about how good queries can go bad, how bad queries can get better, and the question on everyone's mind: if he was a database, what database would he be? This episode contains some mildly explicit language. Erik's blog: https://erikdarlingdata.com/blog/ Erik's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ErikDarlingData
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What's up with Tech Interviews in 2023? With Jeremiah Peschka.
Dear SQL DBA
Tech interviews are weird and wacky. How did they get this way, and how SHOULD they be? Jeremiah Peschka joins us to discuss.
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Data Roles: DBA, DBRE, and Data Engineer
Dear SQL DBA
There are lots of jobs for data folks. In this episode, I'm discussing three hot job titles: Database Administrator (DBA), Database Reliability Engineer (DBRE), and Data Engineer (DE) To see the venn diagrams I made for these roles, visit https://catalyzesql.com/blog/1/01/01/dear-sql-dba-data-roles-dba-dbre-de/
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When NOT to choose SQL Server to store your data
Dear SQL DBA
I wrote a blog post inspired by 's excellent suggested interview question, but I inverted it: When should you NOT choose SQL Server to store your data? My thoughts: * When you don't actually need a database * When you're not using structured data * When you want pure analytics, or something other than a workload involving OLTP * When you need to write to multiple nodes for a single database * When your team wants a PAAS solution (lil pedantic on this, the hosted versions are slightly different) * When your team needs a cheap solution What do you think? This podcast is available in blog post...
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Down Tools Week 2020
Dear SQL DBA
It's Down Tools Week at Redgate. I share what "Down Tools Week" is, what I'm working on this week, and why I think it's a terrific experience for fostering creativity, innovation, and teamwork. In closing I share some thoughts on variations of this kind of project which you might use in your own organization, whether you are a developer, DBA, or have another role.
info_outlineYou're a DBA, and your development team is all-in on doing DevOps, and they want to include the database. Should your DBA team limit the permissions or options for automation? Or should you instead re-think how your two teams work together? In this episode, Kendra discusses DevOps team topologies, the changing role of DBA teams in DevOps, and the opportunities available in creating communities of practice around database development.