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Friday, June 26, 2015

Microsoft Offers Azure SQL Data Warehouse for Limited Preview

Microsoft is cracking the door to its cloud data warehouse. The Azure SQL Data Warehouse is now ready to accept data from customers in limited use cases.

Azure SQL Data Warehouse, Microsoft's cloud-based data repository offering, is available as a limited preview, the company announced yesterday.

Read more http://www.eweek.com/cloud/microsoft-offers-azure-sql-data-warehouse-for-limited-preview.html

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Ex-Microsoft chief rolls elastic-SQL challenge to Amazon Redshift

SQL Server, with Windows and Office, helped make Microsoft. The database sits in a $13bn business unit and while Microsoft’s server products grew 11 per cent – $1.7bn last year – that was driven primarily by sales of SQL Server.

The man who paved the path was Bob Muglia. A 24-year Redmond veteran, he was SQL Server’s first product manager and led the server and tools business.

That was until 2011, when he was elbowed out by ex-CEO Steve Ballmer in a disagreement over strategy for the server and tools business.

Also, the 2008 DATAllegro acquisition, to build a Netezza-like appliance, had proved to little and too late for Microsoft as the market had moved.

Read http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/06/24/snowflake_muglia_elastic_sql/

Friday, June 19, 2015

26 free helpful tips for SQL Server monitoring

Have you ever been caught out by a performance problem with SQL Server? Do you want to start monitoring your databases, but aren’t sure where to start? Do you need to know which problems to look for – and how to spot them?

Then this series of 26 free tips is for you - it covers every aspect of SQL Server monitoring, including CPU, IO, memory, backups, tuning, capacity planning, and common errors.

Plus, when you sign up, you get a free copy of our 30-page guide, 8 Steps to Effective SQL Server Monitoring.

And, if you're ready to start monitoring right away, grab a free trial of SQL Monitor, our web-based monitoring and alerting tool, for insights into your servers' performance right out of the box.

1. Sign up for 26 free helpful tips on SQL Server monitoring

SQL Server Backup and Restore cover
  • Free email series with 26 free tips, ideas, and articles on SQL Server performance monitoring
  • Includes worked examples, practical advice, and covers the hows and whys of SQL Server monitoring
  • Plus, get a free copy of Eight Steps to Effective SQL Server Monitoring when you sign up

2. Start monitoring today with a free trial of SQL Monitor for real-time monitoring and alerting

SQL Monitor box
  • Real-time SQL Server performance data and alerts
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  • See your servers' top 10 most expensive queries
  • Automatically plot performance baselines
  • Discover problems before anyone else notices

Sign up now and get a free copy of 8 Steps to Effective SQL Server Monitoring, a 30-page guide to the basics

Thursday, June 18, 2015

SQL Server 2016: Dynamic Data Masking

Row-level security is great for all or nothing decisions, but there are times when users need access to a subset of the data. For example, the last four digits of a credit card or social security number. This can be done at the application level, but that leaves room for error. You only need to forget the mask one time to leak sensitive data.

SQL Server 2016 attempts to address this with a feature called Dynamic Data Masking. When a column is created with a mask, it defaults to returning only the data exposed through the mask. There are three types of masks currently available:

Read more at http://www.infoq.com/news/2015/06/SQL-Server-Masking

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Who is a DBA

WHO IS A DBA? A database administrator (DBA) directs or performs all activities related to maintaining a successful database environment. Responsibilities include designing, implementing, and maintaining the database system; establishing policies and procedures pertaining to the management, security, maintenance, and use of the database management system. To make long story short A DBA is the backbone of  any mission critical system.

check whether the list is correct.

http://sqlindia.com/who-is-a-dba/

SQL Server 2016: Row-Level Security

A common criticism for SQL Server’s security model is that it only understands tables and columns. If you want to apply security rules on a row-by-row basis, you have to simulate it using stored procedures or table value functions, and then find a way to make sure there is no way to bypass them. With SQL Server 2016, that is no longer a problem.

Read more at http://www.infoq.com/news/2015/06/SQL-Server-Row-Level-Security

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

How to Load Data From PDF file in SSIS

This is the question some one asked today. I haven’t done this but I can remember I read this some where. So thought of digging this today.

Some forums are suggesting a product.

http://www.datawatch.com/monarch-is-back/

Out of the box, Datawatch Monarch can work with a wide range of report formats including PDF, XML, HTML, text, spool and ASCII files. Access data from invoices, sales reports, balance sheets, customer lists, inventory, logs and more. The system is easy to use, allowing you to quickly select a file and automatically convert it into structured data for analysis.

Following blog includes how to import several types to SQL Server.

http://sqlage.blogspot.com/2013/12/ssis-how-to-import-files-text-pdf-excel.html

Following blogspot also have lot of links

http://www.forumarray.com/ssis-data-flow-source-component-to-read-a-pdf-file-226359

Following blog is the most relevant one for me. http://sql31.blogspot.com/2013/03/how-to-load-data-from-pdf-file-in-ssis.html

This users script task and you have the option of customizing it.

SQL Server 2016: Always Encrypted

SQL Server 2016 seeks to make encryption easier via its new Always Encrypted feature. This feature offers a way to ensure that the database never sees unencrypted values without the need to rewrite the application.

Read more at http://www.infoq.com/news/2015/06/SQL-Server-Always-Encrypted

Saturday, June 13, 2015

We Need Only Three Hadoops, And Maybe Three Systems

Enterprises like choices, they abhor vendor lock in, and they like the options that open source gives. But at the same time, too many choices fragments markets and doesn’t allow for the cultivation of larger vendors that can afford to take on the big problems. You need a balance between large enough to scale and so large as to be too overbearing, or sometimes, in the antitrust sense, to be abusive.

With the Hadoop Summit sponsored by Hortonworks going on this week and some tectonic changes in the systems market that have been going on for some months now, we are pondering how this all fits together given the current state of both Hadoop and the systems markets.

Read more http://www.theplatform.net/2015/06/11/we-need-only-three-hadoops-and-maybe-three-systems/

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

How to Use SQL Server’s Extended Events and Notifications to Proactively Resolve Performance Issues

DBAs need access to timely, detailed information in order to act, rather than information that requires further investigation. Read this paper and learn how to leverage event notifications and extended events to monitor in SQL Server, and discover how to these tools enable you to act on issues and avoid outages.

http://www.mssqltips.com/whitepaper.asp?id=34

Thursday, June 4, 2015

What is Coming in SQL Server 2016 for Business Intelligence

Over the past few years we did not hear anything from Microsoft about SQL Server on-premises business intelligence enhancements. The extended cricket-chirping silence left us speculating about the future of Reporting Services, Analysis Services and other key technologies that are being used today to power critical decision making solutions. Good news, the waiting and wondering is over. Microsoft recently announced significant SQL Server on-premises upgrades in numerous presentations at both //build and Ignite conferences. Here are a few of my top take-away points from a BI professional perspective.

Read more http://sqlmag.com/blog/what-coming-sql-server-2016-business-intelligence

How to Dramatically Decrease Data Warehouse Load Times with Memory-Optimized Tables

Nice article on Memory Optimized tables in Data warehousing.
Read more at http://sqlmag.com/sql-server-integration-services/how-dramatically-decrease-data-warehouse-load-times-memory-optimized

New Couchbase Release Bridges SQL-NoSQL Database Worlds

NoSQL database vendor Couchbase has developed a SQL query language that will help developers with SQL expertise -- and there are millions of them -- build enterprise web, mobile and Internet-of-Things applications that run on the Couchbase Server. Couchbase is previewing the new N1QL (pronounced "nickel") language at its Couchbase Connect user conference in Santa Clara, Calif., this week. The company also is previewing a beta of the 4.0 release of Couchbase Server at the event.

Read more at http://www.crn.com/news/applications-os/300077012/new-couchbase-release-bridges-sql-nosql-database-worlds.htm