When working with SQL Trace, one of my biggest frustrations has been the limitations that exist in filtering.  Using sp_trace_setfilter to establish the filter criteria is a non-trivial task, and it falls short of being able to deliver complex filtering that is sometimes needed to simplify analysis.  Filtering of trace data was performed globally and applied to the trace affecting all of the events being collected.  Extended Events introduces a much better system of filtering using...(read more)