What is the Error Log? SQL Server maintains its own error logs that contain messages describing informational and error events. These are simple text files stored on disk, but it’s best to view them using the facilities provided by SQL Server to prevent any SQL operations from being blocked by opening one of these files in a text editor. Also, the error log files can become quite large – SQL Server will stream the files into the Log File Viewer whereas notepad will open the file into a single buffer and consume a great deal more memory.

SQL Server Why I prefer surrogate keys instead of natural keys in database designMladen Prajdic put together a great article about using surrogate keys in database design. The best part is that a lot of bright people sounded off in the comments. Donald Farmer Discusses the Benefits of Managed Self-Service BI I spoke with Donald Farmer about this topic when I was at the Richmond Code Camp last weekend. This is an incredible topic that has a lot of promise for the future of Business Intelligence.

From the moment I started reading this book, I had a hard time putting it down. I read it far into the night. I read it waiting for oil changes, tattoos, and computer reboots. I re-read parts of it while I was still reading it. Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I took a lot away from it. Overview First of all, what is this book all about?

Have as many mobile devices with connectivity available as possible. Have a camera ready and charged. Charge everything every night. Even if it’s at 95% charge: charge it. Pick sessions that challenge you. Pick sessions you know nothing about. Make back up plans for sessions you want to see, just in case. Don’t make plans. Be flexible. Don’t trust the wi-fi. Pack light. Don’t be afraid to ask vendors for swag.

SQL SERVER Developers, use Profiler to profile yourself John Sterrett goes over how to use profiler to profile your own SSMS session. Toys and Tools Mike Hillwig put together a list of great SQL Server tools. The ABCs of Management Studio Shortcuts Glory be to keyboard shortcuts DEVELOPMENT ASP.NET MVC 2 Preview 2 New MVC hotness has been released. Yes, it’s a preview, but this contains some interesting features. Better get it while the getting is good!

I found out this morning that I am a SQL Server MVP. Well, I’m assuming that I’m a SQL Server MVP since that’s pretty much all I blog about. I actually found out via twitter when fellow inductee Brent Ozar re-tweeted Suzanna Moran. There’s a lot I could say about this, but most of it would be babbling. In the end, here’s what I’ve got: The last year and a bit of my life has been phenomenal.

SQL SERVER There’s a three part series (one two three) on migrating databases. I’m sure many people have been through this before. I know I have. About a week before these three posts were published. Ever wonder when you should use a filtered index and when you should use an indexed view? Yeah, I have too. The distinction hasn’t been all that clear (to me). Andrew Fryer clears that up a bit in this blog post.

That’s right. Here at PASS we’re working on ways to virtualize everything. Not only can we virtualize away your web server and SQL Server, but now we’ve found a way to virtualize your user group! We’re pleased to announce that PASS has several new Virtual Chaptersdedicated to providing you with the finest quality SQL Server content made with the freshest virtual ingredients available on the market today. So, what is a Virtual Chapter?

We all know that we’re supposed to check for missing indexes. But what about unused or underused indexes. How often do you check for those? My guess is that a lot of people don’t check for them. I know I didn’t… until Friday. It’s database migration season here in central Ohio, and in order to move databases to new servers, you need to physically copy files. To make that operation fast you want to copy as little data as possible.

SQL SERVER Distributed Queries – Remote Login Permissions and Execution Plans You can sometimes end up with SQL Server not generating good execution plans for remote queries. I just assumed that this was a problem with remote queries. Turns out that I was wrong and all you really need to do is give some specific permissions to the remote login. You learn something new every day. John Paul Cook : Script to create all foreign keys Let’s make some foreign keys!