A common SQL habit is to use SELECT * on a query, because it’s tedious to list all the columns you need. Plus, sometimes those columns may change over time, so why not just do things the easy way? But ...

I recently wrote a .NET web application for work. I always make a data access class with methods for getting data, but I usually just point the methods to stored procedures. This time, I decided to ...

Microsoft has just added support for query hints to Azure SQL Database, giving database administrators a powerful tool to manage the performance of ISV application code. Here's how it works. Database ...

Everyone wants faster database queries, and both SQL developers and DBAs can turn to many time-tested methods to achieve that goal. Unfortunately, no single method is foolproof or ironclad. But even ...

Part of the problem is that there is no magic bullet, and for almost every best practice, I can show you at least one exception. Typically, a developer finds his or her own favorite methods — though ...

Determine when to use stored procedures vs. SQL in the code Your email has been sent Tony Patton discusses the merits of stored procedures versus placing SQL directly in the code. Find out which one ...

In part 1 of my SQL Server 2022 features series, you learned about the improvements to the cardinality estimator component of query optimization. In this installment, you will learn about another ...