The Bit Bucket

One change that was applied to Azure SQL Database a while back, and is coming in SQL Server 2025, is the use of ANSI string concatenation operators.

SQL Server has been using the + sign as a string concatenation operator since the early days, but that’s the same operator that’s used for numbers, and it’s not the ANSI standard. You’ll find that other database engines like PostgreSQL do not use + to join strings together; they use the || operator. I’ve been writing quite a lot of PostgreSQL lately, and avoiding using + to concatenate strings is always a challenge for my coding muscle memory.

2025-11-26

This is a post in the SQL Interview series. These aren’t trick or gotcha questions, they’re just questions designed to scope out a candidate’s knowledge around SQL Server and Azure SQL Database.

Section: Administration Level: Medium

Question:

A developer in your team has observed that your database servers are very I/O bound. He thinks the I/O is simply too slow.

What he’s suggesting is that you replace all use of temporary tables with table variables. His argument is that they are memory-based instead of disk-based and that this should help to reduce the I/O load. Your applications make heavy use of temporary tables, and most have large numbers of rows.

2025-11-25

I recently listened (via Audible) to Simply Said: Communicating Better at Work and Beyond by Jay Sullivan. I was going to read it, but I figured, given the topic of the book, it would be good to hear the author read through it. (I prefer books where the author reads it, not a hired voice actor).

Content

I was surprised by the content. I really expected it to be a book that predominantly covered topics on speaking clearly and well, but it tackles far more than that. It’s about many different forms of communication.

2025-11-24

I recently received a review copy of SQL for Data Analytics: Analyze data effectively, uncover insights and master advanced SQL for real-world applications by Jun Shan, Haibin Li, Matt Goldwasser, Upom Malik, Benjamin Johnston from my friends at PackT. It is the fourth edition of this book.

Authors

Jun Shan is a principal cloud solution advisor.
Haibin Li is a lead predictive modeler. He was a technical reviewer for the third edition of this book.
Matt Goldwasser is Vice President and head of AI and Data Science for Global Distribution at T.Rowe Price.
Upom Malik is a data science and analytics leader.
Benjamin Johnston is a senior data scientist for a leading data-driven MedTech company.

2025-11-23

During a recent consulting engagement, I was asked about how to use column-based encryption in SQL Server. In this article, which is the second part of a two-part series, let’s explore how to get started using column-based encryption.

In the previous post , I provided background information about encryption and certificates.

If you’re not very familiar with these technologies, you should read that previous post before this one.

Encryption Technologies in SQL Server

Way back in SQL Server 2005, Microsoft introduced an amazing array of technologies. I suspect that many SQL Server professionals aren’t aware of just how many technologies were introduced in that release. It’s not surprising that professionals are still learning about a number of these technologies, even 20 years later. In particular, questions regarding certificates, keys, and column-based encryption still draw blank responses from most SQL Server professionals.

2025-11-22

I receive a lot of email. Most of it is relevant to me, or at least was at some point.

Dodgy brokers

That’s not the case for all my email though. A while back, I started receiving lots of email offering me things as a recruiter. But I’m not a recruiter. However, dodgy companies have included me in a list of recruiters for some reason, and then rent out access to the list to other companies in some way.

2025-11-21

I recently received an early release review copy of Azure Data Fundamentals: A Guide to DP-900 Certification and Beyond by Michael John Peña from my friends at O’Reilly.

Background

Over the years, I’ve taken a large number of Microsoft certification exams. I’ve also helped to write many of the exams. Therecd are people who’ve taken more than me, but not many. This book is designed to help you pass the DP-900 exam. I did take that exam long ago and thought it was a reasonable exam.

2025-11-20

SSMS has the ability to work with different encodings when you are opening or saving files.

When you use File and Open, note that beside the Open button is a drop-down arrow:

The Open With option leads to this:

 

In that screen, you can choose an existing value or click Add to add another program that you want to use for opening files of that type:

As an example, you might want to use a different XML or JSON editor.

2025-11-19

During a recent consulting engagement, I was asked about how to use column-based encryption in SQL Server. In this article which is the first of a two-part series, let’s explore the technologies involved and how to get started with using column-based encryption. Next time, we’ll continue with using these technologies for column-based encryption.

Encryption Terminology

Encryption is the science of hiding secrets. Information that needs to be protected (often called plaintext) is converted (or encrypted) to a form (often called ciphertext) that is difficult for another person to read within a reasonable period of time.

2025-11-18

It was great to catch up with Simon Sabin today and to have him on another SQL Down Under podcast.

Simon is the founder of Sabin.io where he revolutionizes the data practices of his clients.

Simon has a track record spanning diverse sectors like finance, retail, insurance, and motor sports and is recognized as a data expert. I’ve known Simon for a long time. He was a Data Platform MVP from 2005 to 2024, and a fellow member of the Microsoft Regional Director program.

2025-11-18