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• SQL SERVER – How to Set Variable and Use Variable in SQLCMD Mode

  - by Pinal Dave

  Here is the question which I received the other day on SQLAuthority Facebook page. Social media is a wonderful thing and I love the active conversation between blog readers and myself – actually I think social media adds lots of human factor to any conversation. Here is the question - “I am using sqlcmd in SSMS – I am not sure how to declare variable and pass it, for example I have a database and it has table, how can I make the table variable dynamic and pass different value everytime?” Fantastic question, and here is its very simple answer. First of all, enable sqlcmd mode in SQL Server Management Studio as described in following image. Now in query editor type following SQL. :SETVAR DatabaseName “AdventureWorks2012″ :SETVAR SchemaName “Person” :SETVAR TableName “EmailAddress“ USE $(DatabaseName); SELECT * FROM $(SchemaName).$(TableName); Note that I have set the value of the database, schema and table as a sqlcmd variable and I am executing the query using the same parameters. Well, that was it, sqlcmd is a very simple language to master and it also aids in doing various tasks easily. If you have any other sqlcmd tips, please leave a comment and I will publish it with due credit. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Server Management Studio, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology Tagged: sqlcmd

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• SQL SERVER – Effect of Collation on Resultset – SQL in Sixty Seconds #026 – Video

  - by pinaldave

  Collation is a very important concept but often ignored. I have often seen developers either not understanding this or ignored it – this is plain wrong. In simple word we can say Collation is the language or interpreting done by SQL Server. Well, in today’s SQL in Sixty Seconds we are going to observe how collation affects the resultset. Today’s blog post is inspired from my earlier blog post SQL SERVER – Effect of Case Sensitive Collation on Resultset. I strongly encourage you to read this earlier blog post for sample code as well additional explanation related to the concept shared in today’s SQL in Sixty Seconds. Here is the code used in the video. USE TempDB GO -- Sample Data Building CREATE TABLE ColTable (Col1 VARCHAR(15) COLLATE Latin1_General_CI_AS, Col2 VARCHAR(14) COLLATE Latin1_General_CS_AS) ; INSERT ColTable(Col1, Col2) VALUES ('Apple','Apple'), ('apple','apple'), ('pineapple','pineapple'), ('Pineapple','Pineapple'); GO -- Retrieve Data SELECT * FROM ColTable GO -- Retrieve Data SELECT * FROM ColTable ORDER BY Col1 GO -- Retrieve Data SELECT * FROM ColTable ORDER BY Col2 GO -- Clean up DROP TABLE ColTable GO Related Tips in SQL in Sixty Seconds: SQL SERVER – Effect of Case Sensitive Collation on Resultset Example of Width Sensitive and Width Insensitive Collation Collation and Collation Sensitivity – Quiz – Puzzle – 6 of 31 Change Collation of Database Column – T-SQL Script Find Collation of Database and Table Column Using T-SQL Default Collation of SQL Server 2008 Cannot resolve collation conflict for equal to operation If we like your idea we promise to share with you educational material. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: Database, Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL in Sixty Seconds, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Server Management Studio, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology, Video

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• SQL SERVER – Question to You – When to use Function and When to use Stored Procedure

  - by pinaldave

  This week has been very interesting week. I have asked few questions to users and have received remarkable participation on the subject. Q1) SQL SERVER – Puzzle – SELECT * vs SELECT COUNT(*) Q2) SQL SERVER – Puzzle – Statistics are not Updated but are Created Once Keeping the same spirit up, I am asking the third question over here. Q3) When to use User Defined Function and when to use Stored Procedure in your development? Personally, I believe that they are both different things - they cannot be compared. I can say, it will be like comparing apples and oranges. Each has its own unique use. However, they can be used interchangeably at many times and in real life (i.e., production environment). I have personally seen both of these being used interchangeably many times. This is the precise reason for asking this question. When do you use Function and when do you use Stored Procedure? What are Pros and Cons of each of them when used instead of each other? If you are going to answer that ‘To avoid repeating code, you use Function’ - please think harder! Stored procedure can do the same. In SQL Server Denali, even the stored procedure can return the result just like Function in SELECT statement; so if you are going to answer with ‘Function can be used in SELECT, whereas Stored Procedure cannot be used’ - again think harder! (link). Now, what do you say? I will post the answers of all the three questions with due credit next week. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, PostADay, Readers Question, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Function, SQL Puzzle, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Stored Procedure, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQLServer, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Take the Quiz for a chance to win a Quadcopter Drone – Brain Teasers

  - by Pinal Dave

  It has been a long time since we ran quiz. So let us get ready for a quiz. The quiz has two parts. You have to get both the parts correct to win Quadcopter with Camera (we will call it drone). We will be giving away a total of 2 Quadcopters. The quiz is extremely easy and I will ship the Drone anywhere in the world where Amazon will ship it. Let us jump directly to the quiz. Please complete all the three questions of the contest.  Contest Part 1: Brain Teasers There are two questions for you in this part of the contest. Question: There are two 7s. How will you write select statement with a single operator that returns single 7? Hint: SELECT 7(Answer)7 Question: Write down the shortest code that produces 1 without using any numbers in the select statement? Hint: SELECT (Answer) Contest Part 2: Download and Activate Rapid SQL Question: Download and Activate Rapid SQL. Hint: You have to download and activate Rapid SQL. If you do not activate Rapid SQL, you will be disqualified for the contest. Why take risk, let us start! That’s it! Just answer above questions in the following comments area, in following format. Remember: Use comments area right below the blog to take participation in the contest Answer before June 5, 2014 midnight GMT. The winner will be announced on June 8. The winner will be selected randomly from all the valid answers. All the valid answers will be kept hidden till June 5, 2014. There will be a total of two winners. The contest is open for any country of the world where Amazon ships products. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Puzzle, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL

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• SQL SERVER – Introduction to PERCENTILE_CONT() – Analytic Functions Introduced in SQL Server 2012

  - by pinaldave

  SQL Server 2012 introduces new analytical function PERCENTILE_CONT(). The book online gives following definition of this function: Computes a specific percentile for sorted values in an entire rowset or within distinct partitions of a rowset in Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Release Candidate 0 (RC 0). For a given percentile value P, PERCENTILE_DISC sorts the values of the expression in the ORDER BY clause and returns the value with the smallest CUME_DIST value (with respect to the same sort specification) that is greater than or equal to P. If you are clear with understanding of the function – no need to read further. If you got lost here is the same in simple words – it is lot like finding median with percentile value. Now let’s have fun following query: USE AdventureWorks GO SELECT SalesOrderID, OrderQty, ProductID, PERCENTILE_CONT(0.5) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY ProductID) OVER (PARTITION BY SalesOrderID) AS MedianCont FROM Sales.SalesOrderDetail WHERE SalesOrderID IN (43670, 43669, 43667, 43663) ORDER BY SalesOrderID DESC GO The above query will give us the following result: You can see that I have used PERCENTILE_COUNT(0.5) in query, which is similar to finding median. Let me explain above diagram with little more explanation. The defination of median is as following: In case of Even Number of elements = In ordered list add the two digits from the middle and devide by 2 In case of Odd Numbers of elements = In ordered list select the digits from the middle I hope this example gives clear idea how PERCENTILE_CONT() works. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Function, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQLAuthority News – We’re sorry… … but your computer or network may be sending automated queries. To

  - by pinaldave

  I use multiple browser many times when I am working with multiple projects simultaneously. Often I use Google Reader to read few feeds. Recently, I faced the following error and this error will not go. I even restarted my computer and rebooted my network. I am confident that my computer does not have viruses or malware, I could not tackle this error. When I opened Google Reader on another browser, it worked fine. Finally, I found the solution and I want share it with all of you. Error We’re sorry… … but your computer or network may be sending automated queries. To protect our users, we can’t process your request right now. I removed the cookies of Google Reader with the name ‘reader_offline’ as displayed in image below. Once I remove the above mentioned cookie, I could login perfectly fine in Google Reader. I think this message from Google was misleading and inaccurate; however, the solution is easy enough. I just wanted to share this quick tip with everyone who is facing such an issue. Reference : Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQLAuthority News, T SQL, Technology Tagged: Google

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• SQL SERVER – Function: Is Function – SQL in Sixty Seconds #004 – Video

  - by pinaldave

  Today is February 29th. An unique date which we only get to observe once every four year. Year 2012 is leap year and SQL Server 2012 is also releasing this year. Yesterday I wrote an article where we have seen observed how using four different function we can create another function which can accurately validate if any year is leap year or not. We will use three functions newly introduced in SQL Server 2012 and demonstrate how we can find if any year is leap year or not. This function uses three of the SQL Server 2012 functions - IIF, EOMONTH and CONCAT. When I wrote this function, this is the sortest function I ever wrote to find out leap year. Please watch the video and let me know if any shorter function can be written to find leap year. More on Leap Yer: Detecting Leap Year in T-SQL using SQL Server 2012 – IIF, EOMONTH and CONCAT Function Date and Time Functions – EOMONTH() – A Quick Introduction Script/Function to Find Last Day of Month  I encourage you to submit your ideas for SQL in Sixty Seconds. We will try to accommodate as many as we can. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: Database, Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL in Sixty Seconds, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQLServer, T SQL, Video

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• SQL SERVER – Disk Space Monitoring – Detecting Low Disk Space on Server

  - by Pinal Dave

  A very common question I often receive is how to detect if the disk space is running low on SQL Server. There are two different ways to do the same. I personally prefer method 2 as that is very easy to use and I can use it creatively along with database name. Method 1: EXEC MASTER..xp_fixeddrives GO Above query will return us two columns, drive name and MB free. If we want to use this data in our query, we will have to create a temporary table and insert the data from this stored procedure into the temporary table and use it. Method 2: SELECT DISTINCT dovs.logical_volume_name AS LogicalName, dovs.volume_mount_point AS Drive, CONVERT(INT,dovs.available_bytes/1048576.0) AS FreeSpaceInMB FROM sys.master_files mf CROSS APPLY sys.dm_os_volume_stats(mf.database_id, mf.FILE_ID) dovs ORDER BY FreeSpaceInMB ASC GO The above query will give us three columns: drive logical name, drive letter and free space in MB. We can further modify above query to also include database name in the query as well. SELECT DISTINCT DB_NAME(dovs.database_id) DBName, dovs.logical_volume_name AS LogicalName, dovs.volume_mount_point AS Drive, CONVERT(INT,dovs.available_bytes/1048576.0) AS FreeSpaceInMB FROM sys.master_files mf CROSS APPLY sys.dm_os_volume_stats(mf.database_id, mf.FILE_ID) dovs ORDER BY FreeSpaceInMB ASC GO This will give us additional data about which database is placed on which drive. If you see a database name multiple times, it is because your database has multiple files and they are on different drives. You can modify above query one more time to even include the details of actual file location. SELECT DISTINCT DB_NAME(dovs.database_id) DBName, mf.physical_name PhysicalFileLocation, dovs.logical_volume_name AS LogicalName, dovs.volume_mount_point AS Drive, CONVERT(INT,dovs.available_bytes/1048576.0) AS FreeSpaceInMB FROM sys.master_files mf CROSS APPLY sys.dm_os_volume_stats(mf.database_id, mf.FILE_ID) dovs ORDER BY FreeSpaceInMB ASC GO The above query will now additionally include the physical file location as well. As I mentioned earlier, I prefer method 2 as I can creatively use it as per the business need. Let me know which method are you using in your production server. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL

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• SQL SERVER – Where Can YOU Get My Books – SQL Server Interview Question and Answers

  - by pinaldave

  Earlier month I released by third book SQL Server Interview Question and Answers. The focus of this book is ‘master the basics’. If you rate yourself 10 out of 10 in SQL Server – this book is not for you but if you want to learn fundamentals or want to refresh your fundamentals this book is for YOU. Earlier I was overwhelmed by love you all have shown to this book on release date leading our three digit inventory to run out of stock. Read detail blog post about the subject over here A Real Story of Book Getting ‘Out of Stock’ to A 25% Discount Story Available. Well, we learn the lesson from the experience and have made sure that the inventory does not run out any more. Since then we are now available on multiple outlets. Pretty much anywhere in USA and India the book is available. Additionally, where ever Amazon ships internationally. I have created dedicated page where I have listed where one can avail this book from Details of SQL Server Interview Question and Answers. Even though I keep on getting common question like – where one can get this book. You can get this book from: USA: Amazon India: Flipkart | IndiaPlaza | Crossword In India now you can walk into any crossword store and ask this book, if they do not have it, you can ask them get one for you. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Best Practices, Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Documentation, SQL Download, SQL Interview Questions and Answers, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, SQLAuthority Author Visit, SQLAuthority Book Review, SQLAuthority News, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – New SQL Server 2012 Functions – Webinar by Rick Morelan

  - by Pinal Dave

  My friend Rick Morelan is a wonderful speaker and listening to him is very delightful. Rick is one of the speakers who can articulate a very complex subject in very simple words. Rick has attained over 30 Microsoft certifications in applications, networking, databases and .NET development, including MCDBA, MCTS, MCITP, MCAD, MOE, MCSE and MCSE+. Here is the chance for every one who has not listened Rick Morelan before as he is presenting an online webinar on New SQL Server 2012 Functions. Whether or not you’re a database developer or administrator, you love the power of SQL functions. The functions in SQL Server give you the power to accelerate your applications and database performance. Each version of SQL Server adds new functionality, so come and see Rick Morelan explain what’s new in SQL Server 2012! This webinar will focus on the new string, time and logical functions added to SQL Server 2012. Register for the webinar now to learn: SQL Server 2012 function basics String, time and logical function details Tools to accelerate the SQL coding process Tuesday June 11, 2013  7:00 AM PDT / 10:00 AM EDT 11:00 AM PDT / 2:00 PM EDT Secret Hint: Here is something I would like to tell everyone that there is a quiz coming up on SQLAuthority.com and those who will attend the webinar will find it very easy to resolve it. Register for webinar Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: Joes 2 Pros, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• Big Data – Learning Basics of Big Data in 21 Days – Bookmark

  - by Pinal Dave

  Earlier this month I had a great time to write Bascis of Big Data series. This series received great response and lots of good comments I have received, I am going to follow up this basics series with further in-depth series in near future. Here is the consolidated blog post where you can find all the 21 days blog posts together. Bookmark this page for future reference. Big Data – Beginning Big Data – Day 1 of 21 Big Data – What is Big Data – 3 Vs of Big Data – Volume, Velocity and Variety – Day 2 of 21 Big Data – Evolution of Big Data – Day 3 of 21 Big Data – Basics of Big Data Architecture – Day 4 of 21 Big Data – Buzz Words: What is NoSQL – Day 5 of 21 Big Data – Buzz Words: What is Hadoop – Day 6 of 21 Big Data – Buzz Words: What is MapReduce – Day 7 of 21 Big Data – Buzz Words: What is HDFS – Day 8 of 21 Big Data – Buzz Words: Importance of Relational Database in Big Data World – Day 9 of 21 Big Data – Buzz Words: What is NewSQL – Day 10 of 21 Big Data – Role of Cloud Computing in Big Data – Day 11 of 21 Big Data – Operational Databases Supporting Big Data – RDBMS and NoSQL – Day 12 of 21 Big Data – Operational Databases Supporting Big Data – Key-Value Pair Databases and Document Databases – Day 13 of 21 Big Data – Operational Databases Supporting Big Data – Columnar, Graph and Spatial Database – Day 14 of 21 Big Data – Data Mining with Hive – What is Hive? – What is HiveQL (HQL)? – Day 15 of 21 Big Data – Interacting with Hadoop – What is PIG? – What is PIG Latin? – Day 16 of 21 Big Data – Interacting with Hadoop – What is Sqoop? – What is Zookeeper? – Day 17 of 21 Big Data – Basics of Big Data Analytics – Day 18 of 21 Big Data – How to become a Data Scientist and Learn Data Science? – Day 19 of 21 Big Data – Various Learning Resources – How to Start with Big Data? – Day 20 of 21 Big Data – Final Wrap and What Next – Day 21 of 21 Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: Big Data, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL

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• SQL SERVER- Differences Between Left Join and Left Outer Join

  - by pinaldave

  There are a few questions that I had decided not to discuss on this blog because I think they are very simple and many of us know it. Many times, I even receive not-so positive notes from several readers when I am writing something simple. However, assuming that we know all and beginners should know everything is not the right attitude. Since day 1, I have been keeping a small journal regarding questions that I receive in this blog. There are around 200+ questions I receive every day through emails, comments and occasional phone calls. Yesterday, I received a comment with the following question: What are the differences between Left Join and Left Outer Join? Click here to read original comment. This question has triggered the threshold of receiving the same question repeatedly. Here is the answer: There is absolutely no difference between LEFT JOIN and LEFT OUTER JOIN. The same is true for RIGHT JOIN and RIGHT OUTER JOIN. When you use LEFT JOIN keyword in SQL Server, it means LEFT OUTER JOIN only. I have already written in-depth visual diagram discussing the JOINs. I encourage all of you to read the article for further understanding of the JOINs: Read Introduction to JOINs – Basic of JOINs Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Joins, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Plan Cache and Data Cache in Memory

  - by pinaldave

  I get following question almost all the time when I go for consultations or training. I often end up providing the scripts to my clients and attendees. Instead of writing new blog post, today in this single blog post, I am going to cover both the script and going to link to original blog posts where I have mentioned about this blog post. Plan Cache in Memory USE AdventureWorks GO SELECT [text], cp.size_in_bytes, plan_handle FROM sys.dm_exec_cached_plans AS cp CROSS APPLY sys.dm_exec_sql_text(plan_handle) WHERE cp.cacheobjtype = N'Compiled Plan' ORDER BY cp.size_in_bytes DESC GO Further explanation of this script is over here: SQL SERVER – Plan Cache – Retrieve and Remove – A Simple Script Data Cache in Memory USE AdventureWorks GO SELECT COUNT(*) AS cached_pages_count, name AS BaseTableName, IndexName, IndexTypeDesc FROM sys.dm_os_buffer_descriptors AS bd INNER JOIN ( SELECT s_obj.name, s_obj.index_id, s_obj.allocation_unit_id, s_obj.OBJECT_ID, i.name IndexName, i.type_desc IndexTypeDesc FROM ( SELECT OBJECT_NAME(OBJECT_ID) AS name, index_id ,allocation_unit_id, OBJECT_ID FROM sys.allocation_units AS au INNER JOIN sys.partitions AS p ON au.container_id = p.hobt_id AND (au.TYPE = 1 OR au.TYPE = 3) UNION ALL SELECT OBJECT_NAME(OBJECT_ID) AS name, index_id, allocation_unit_id, OBJECT_ID FROM sys.allocation_units AS au INNER JOIN sys.partitions AS p ON au.container_id = p.partition_id AND au.TYPE = 2 ) AS s_obj LEFT JOIN sys.indexes i ON i.index_id = s_obj.index_id AND i.OBJECT_ID = s_obj.OBJECT_ID ) AS obj ON bd.allocation_unit_id = obj.allocation_unit_id WHERE database_id = DB_ID() GROUP BY name, index_id, IndexName, IndexTypeDesc ORDER BY cached_pages_count DESC; GO Further explanation of this script is over here: SQL SERVER – Get Query Plan Along with Query Text and Execution Count Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Optimization, SQL Performance, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL Tagged: SQL Memory

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• SQL SERVER – 2012 RC0 Various Resources and Downloads

  - by pinaldave

  Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Release Candidate 0 (RC0) Microsoft SQL Server 2012 RC0 enables a cloud-ready information platform that will help organizations unlock breakthrough insights across the organization. Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Express RC Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Express RC0 is a powerful and reliable free data management system that delivers a rich set of features, data protection, and performance for embedded applications, lightweight Web Sites, applications, and local data stores. Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Semantic Language Statistics RC0 The Semantic Language Statistics Database is a required component for the Statistical Semantic Search feature in Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Semantic Language Statistics RC0. Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Release Candidate 0 (RC0) Manageability Tool Kit The Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Release Candidate 0 (RC0) Manageability Tool Kit is a collection of stand-alone packages which provide additional value for Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Release Candidate 0 (RC0). Microsoft SQL Server 2012 PowerPivot for Microsoft Excel 2010 Release Candidate 0 (RC0) Microsoft PowerPivot for Microsoft Excel 2010 provides ground-breaking technology; fast manipulation of large data sets, streamlined integration of data, and the ability to effortlessly share your analysis through Microsoft SharePoint Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Database, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Documentation, SQL Download, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – 2012 – Summary of All the Analytic Functions – MSDN and SQLAuthority

  - by pinaldave

  SQL Server 2012 (RC0 Available here) has introduced new analytic functions. These functions were long awaited and I am glad that they are here. Previously when any of this function was needed people use to write long T-SQL code to simulate that and now no need of the same. Having available native function also helps performance as well readability. In last few days I have written many articles on this subject on my blog. The goal was make these complex analytic functions easy to understand and make it widely accepted. As this new functions are available and as awareness spreads we should start using the new functions. Here is the quick list of the new function and relevant MSDN site. Function SQLAuthority MSDN CUME_DIST CUME_DIST CUME_DIST FIRST_VALUE FIRST_VALUE FIRST_VALUE LAST_VALUE LAST_VALUE LAST_VALUE LEAD LEAD LEAD LAG LAG LAG PERCENTILE_CONT PERCENTILE_CONT PERCENTILE_CONT PERCENTILE_DISC PERCENTILE_DISC PERCENTILE_DISC PERCENT_RANK PERCENT_RANK PERCENT_RANK I also enjoyed three different puzzles during the course of this series which gave clear idea to the SQL Server 2012 analytic functions. SQL SERVER – Puzzle to Win Print Book – Functions FIRST_VALUE and LAST_VALUE with OVER clause and ORDER BY SQL SERVER – Puzzle to Win Print Book – Write T-SQL Self Join Without Using LEAD and LAG SQL SERVER – Puzzle to Win Print Book – Explain Value of PERCENTILE_CONT() Using Simple Example This series will be always my dear series as during this series I had went through very unique experience of my book going out of stock and becoming available after 48 hours. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Function, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Download Free eBook – Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2012

  - by pinaldave

  Database Administration and Business Intelligence is indeed very key area of the SQL Server. My very good friend Ross Mistry and Stacia Misner has recently wrote book which is for SQL Server 2012. The best part of the book is it is totally FREE! Well, this book assumes that you have certain level of SQL Server Administration as well Business Intelligence understanding. So if you are absolutely beginner I suggest you read other books of Ross as well attend Pluralsight course of Stacia Misner. Personally I read this book in last 10 days and I find it very easy to read and very comprehensive as well. Part I Database Administration (by Ross Mistry) 1. SQL Server 2012 Editions and Engine Enhancements 2. High-Availability and Disaster-Recovery Enhancements 3. Performance and Scalability 4. Security Enhancements 5. Programmability and Beyond-Relational Enhancements Part II Business Intelligence Development (by Stacia Misner) 6. Integration Services 7. Data Quality Services 8. Master Data Services 9. Analysis Services and PowerPivot 10. Reporting Services Here are various versions of the eBook. PDF ePub Mobi Amazon Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: Database, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Download, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Demo Script – Keeping CPU Busy

  - by pinaldave

  Recently face very interesting situation, during presentations at event, I was asked very famous questions: “My CPU is very high all the time, how can I reduce it?” This is very interesting question and there are many answers and a single blog post is not good enough to justify this subject. I presented few situation to the person who asked the question. The member of the audience who asked question came to me afterwords and asked me few detailed questions. To answer him, I quickly wrote query which simulate high CPU. Here is the script which I wrote which increased CPU from 10% to 80%. I was wondering if there is any similar script which can simulate high CPU usage. If you have share with me and I will publish with due credit. Here is my script for the same: USE AdventureWorks GO DECLARE @Flag INT SET @Flag = 1 WHILE(@Flag < 1000) BEGIN ALTER INDEX [PK_SalesOrderDetail_SalesOrderID_SalesOrderDetailID] ON [Sales].[SalesOrderDetail] REBUILD SET @Flag = @Flag + 1 END GO   Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Fix: Error: Compatibility Level Drop Down is Empty

  - by Pinal Dave

  I currently have SQL Server 2012 and SQL Server 2014 both installed on the same machine. My job requires me to travel a lot and I like to travel light. Hence, I have only one computer with all the software installed in it. I can install Virtual Machines but as I was able to install SQL Server 2012 and SQL Server 2014 side by side, I just went ahead with that option. Now one day when I opened up my SQL Server 2014 and went to the properties of the my database, I realized that the dropdown box for Compatibility level is empty. I just can’t select anything there or see what is the current Compatibility level of the database. This was the first time for me so I was bit confused and I tried to search online. Upon searching online I realize that if I was not the first, there are very few questions on this subject on various forums as well as there is no convincing answer to this problem online. That means, I was pretty much first one to face this error. See the image of the situation I was facing. Now I decided to resolve this issue as soon as I can. I spent a few minutes here and there and realize my mistake. I had connected to SQL Server 2014 instance from SQL Server 2012 Management Studio. Hence, I was not able to see any compatibility related settings. Once I connected to SQL Server 2014 instance with SQL Server 2014 Management Studio – this issue was resolved. Well, simple things sometimes keep us very busy. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Error Messages, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL

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• SQL SERVER – Cleaning Up SQL Server Indexes – Defragmentation, Fillfactor – Video

  - by pinaldave

  Storing data non-contiguously on disk is known as fragmentation. Before learning to eliminate fragmentation, you should have a clear understanding of the types of fragmentation. When records are stored non-contiguously inside the page, then it is called internal fragmentation. When on disk, the physical storage of pages and extents is not contiguous. We can get both types of fragmentation using the DMV: sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats. Here is the generic advice for reducing the fragmentation. If avg_fragmentation_in_percent > 5% and < 30%, then use ALTER INDEX REORGANIZE: This statement is replacement for DBCC INDEXDEFRAG to reorder the leaf level pages of the index in a logical order. As this is an online operation, the index is available while the statement is running. If avg_fragmentation_in_percent > 30%, then use ALTER INDEX REBUILD: This is replacement for DBCC DBREINDEX to rebuild the index online or offline. In such case, we can also use the drop and re-create index method.(Ref: MSDN) Here is quick video which covers many of the above mentioned topics. While Vinod and I were planning about Indexing course, we had plenty of fun and learning. We often recording few of our statement and just left it aside. Afterwords we thought it will be really funny Here is funny video shot by Vinod and Myself on the same subject: Here is the link to the SQL Server Performance:  Indexing Basics. Here is the additional reading material on the same subject: SQL SERVER – Fragmentation – Detect Fragmentation and Eliminate Fragmentation SQL SERVER – 2005 – Display Fragmentation Information of Data and Indexes of Database Table SQL SERVER – De-fragmentation of Database at Operating System to Improve Performance Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Index, SQL Performance, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology, Video

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• SQL SERVER – 2008 – Unused Index Script – Download

  - by pinaldave

  Download Missing Index Script with Unused Index Script Performance Tuning is quite interesting and Index plays a vital role in it. A proper index can improve the performance and a bad index can hamper the performance. Here is the script from my script bank which I use to identify unused indexes on any database. Please note, if you should not drop all the unused indexes this script suggest. This is just for guidance. You should not create more than 5-10 indexes per table. Additionally, this script sometime does not give accurate information so use your common sense. Any way, the scripts is good starting point. You should pay attention to User Scan, User Lookup and User Update when you are going to drop index. The generic understanding is if this values are all high and User Seek is low, the index needs tuning. The index drop script is also provided in the last column. Download Missing Index Script with Unused Index Script -- Unused Index Script -- Original Author: Pinal Dave (C) 2011 SELECT TOP 25 o.name AS ObjectName , i.name AS IndexName , i.index_id AS IndexID , dm_ius.user_seeks AS UserSeek , dm_ius.user_scans AS UserScans , dm_ius.user_lookups AS UserLookups , dm_ius.user_updates AS UserUpdates , p.TableRows , 'DROP INDEX ' + QUOTENAME(i.name) + ' ON ' + QUOTENAME(s.name) + '.' + QUOTENAME(OBJECT_NAME(dm_ius.OBJECT_ID)) AS 'drop statement' FROM sys.dm_db_index_usage_stats dm_ius INNER JOIN sys.indexes i ON i.index_id = dm_ius.index_id AND dm_ius.OBJECT_ID = i.OBJECT_ID INNER JOIN sys.objects o ON dm_ius.OBJECT_ID = o.OBJECT_ID INNER JOIN sys.schemas s ON o.schema_id = s.schema_id INNER JOIN (SELECT SUM(p.rows) TableRows, p.index_id, p.OBJECT_ID FROM sys.partitions p GROUP BY p.index_id, p.OBJECT_ID) p ON p.index_id = dm_ius.index_id AND dm_ius.OBJECT_ID = p.OBJECT_ID WHERE OBJECTPROPERTY(dm_ius.OBJECT_ID,'IsUserTable') = 1 AND dm_ius.database_id = DB_ID() AND i.type_desc = 'nonclustered' AND i.is_primary_key = 0 AND i.is_unique_constraint = 0 ORDER BY (dm_ius.user_seeks + dm_ius.user_scans + dm_ius.user_lookups) ASC GO Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.SQLAuthority.com) Filed under: Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Download, SQL Index, SQL Performance, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Installing AdventureWorks Sample Database – SQL in Sixty Seconds #010 – Video

  - by pinaldave

  SQL Server has so many enhancements and features that quite often I feel like playing with various features and try out new things. I often come across situation where I want to try something new but I do not have sample data to experiment with. Also just like any sane developer I do not try any of my new experiments on production server. Additionally, when it is about new version of the SQL Server, there are cases when there is no relevant sample data even available on development server. In this kind of scenario sample database can be very much handy. Additionally, in many SQL Books and online blogs and articles there are scripts written by using AdventureWork database. The often receive request that where people can get sample database as well how to restore sample database. In this sixty seconds video we have discussed the same. You can get various resources used in this video from http://bit.ly/adw2012. More on Errors: SQL SERVER – Install Samples Database Adventure Works for SQL Server 2012 SQL SERVER – 2012 – All Download Links in Single Page – SQL Server 2012 SQLAuthority News – SQL Server 2012 – Microsoft Learning Training and Certification SQLAuthority News – Download Microsoft SQL Server 2012 RTM Now I encourage you to submit your ideas for SQL in Sixty Seconds. We will try to accommodate as many as we can. If we like your idea we promise to share with you educational material. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: Database, Pinal Dave, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL in Sixty Seconds, SQL Query, SQL Scripts, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology, Video

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• MySQL – Introduction to User Defined Variables

  - by Pinal Dave

  MySQL supports user defined variables to have some data that can be used later part of your query. You can save a value to a variable using a SELECT statement and later you can access its value. Unlike other RDBMSs, you do not need to declare the data type for a variable. The data type is automatically assumed when you assign a value. A value can be assigned to a variable using a SET command as shown below SET @server_type:='MySQL'; When you above command is executed, the value, MySQL is assigned to the variable called @server_type. Now you can use this variable in the later part of the code. Suppose if you want to display the value, you can use SELECT statement. SELECT @server_type; The result is MySQL. Once the value is assigned it remains for the entire session until changed by the later statements. So unlike SQL Server, you do not need to have this as part the execution code every time. (Because in SQL Server, the variables are execution scoped and dropped after the execution). You can give column name as below SELECT @server_type AS server_type; You can also SELECT statement to DECLARE and SELECT the values for a variable. SELECT @message:='Welcome to MySQL' AS MESSAGE; The result is Message -------- Welcome to MySQL You can make use of variables to effectively apply many logics. One of the useful method is to generate the row number as shown in this post MySQL – Generating Row Number for Each Row using Variable. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)Filed under: MySQL, PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL

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• SQL SERVER – Removing Leading Zeros From Column in Table

  - by pinaldave

  Some questions surprises me and make me write code which I have never explored before. Today was similar experience as well. I have always received the question regarding how to reserve leading zeroes in SQL Server while displaying them on the SSMS or another application. I have written articles on this subject over here. SQL SERVER – Pad Ride Side of Number with 0 – Fixed Width Number Display SQL SERVER – UDF – Pad Ride Side of Number with 0 – Fixed Width Number Display SQL SERVER – Preserve Leading Zero While Coping to Excel from SSMS Today I received a very different question where the user wanted to remove leading zero and white space. I am using the same sample sent by user in this example. USE tempdb GO -- Create sample table CREATE TABLE Table1 (Col1 VARCHAR(100)) INSERT INTO Table1 (Col1) SELECT '0001' UNION ALL SELECT '000100' UNION ALL SELECT '100100' UNION ALL SELECT '000 0001' UNION ALL SELECT '00.001' UNION ALL SELECT '01.001' GO -- Original data SELECT * FROM Table1 GO -- Remove leading zeros SELECT SUBSTRING(Col1, PATINDEX('%[^0 ]%', Col1 + ' '), LEN(Col1)) FROM Table1 GO -- Clean up DROP TABLE Table1 GO Here is the resultset of above script. It will remove any leading zero or space and will display the number accordingly. This problem is a very generic problem and I am confident there are alternate solutions to this problem as well. If you have an alternate solution or can suggest a sample data which does not satisfy the SUBSTRING solution proposed, I will be glad to include them in follow up blog post with due credit. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Function, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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• SQL SERVER – Contest Winner – What Next on SQL in Sixty Seconds – Poll Result

  - by Pinal Dave

  A few days ago, I have asked a question on this blog. The question was - What would you like to see in the next episodes of SQL in Sixty Seconds. The poll is still active and posted over here: SQL SERVER – Poll – What would you love to see in SQL in Sixty Seconds? The contest was to suggest the next item of SQL in Sixty Seconds and vote for the your choice of subject. There have been plenty of votes to this contest, however, there were only 4 comments to this blog post. Hence, selecting a winner was very simple. Result of Poll It is very clear from result, most of the people would like to watch Performance Tuning subjects. I will continue to build video on this subject in future. Contest Winner Now is the time for the winner of the contest, who left comments on the blog. The winner is Raelyard. Here is the comment which he has left on the blog. raelyard please reach out to me via email and I will send you the gift card. Current Contest Here is the contest which is currently running on this blog. You can take part in the contest and can win a Drone. SQL in Sixty Seconds Here are few of the episodes of SQL in Sixty Seconds, which you can watch. We will have more episodes of SQL in Sixty Seconds from next week which are focused on performance. Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com)Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Video

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• SQL SERVER – Microsoft SQL Server 2014 CTP1 Product Guide

  - by Pinal Dave

  Today in User Group meeting there were lots of questions related to SQL Server 2014. There are plenty of people still using SQL Server 2005 but everybody is curious about what is coming in SQL Server 2014.  Microsoft has officially released SQL Server 2014 CTP1 Product Guide. You can easily download the product guide and explore various learning around SQL Server 2014 as well explore the new concepts introduced in this latest version. This SQL Server 2014 CTP1 Product Guide contains few interesting White Papers, a Datasheet and Presentation Deck. Here is the list of the white papers: Mission-Critical Performance and Scale with SQL Server and Windows Server Faster Insights from Any Data Platform for Hybrid Cloud SQL Server In-Memory OLTP Internals Overview for CTP1 SQL Server 2014 CTP1 Frequently Asked Questions for TechEd 2013 North America Here is the list of slide decks: SQL Server 2014 Level 100 Deck SQL Server 2014 Mission Critical Performance LEvel 300 Deck SQL Server 2014 Faster Insights from Any Data Level Level 300 Deck SQL Server 2014 Platform for Hybrid Cloud Level 100 Deck I have earlier downloaded the Product Guide and I have yet not completed reading everything SQL Server 2014 has to offer. If you want to read what are the features which I am going to use in SQL Server 2014, you can read over here. Download Microsoft SQL Server 2014 CTP1 Product Guide Reference: Pinal Dave (http://blog.sqlauthority.com) Filed under: PostADay, SQL, SQL Authority, SQL Documentation, SQL Download, SQL Query, SQL Server, SQL Tips and Tricks, T SQL, Technology

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