October 2006 - Posts

• Inside SQL Server 2005 -- The Errorlog

  Inside SQL Server 2005: The Storage Engine is just out, and I’ve already started getting feedback. A couple of people seem to be reading it cover to cover, and finding all kinds of interesting errors. Although there were technical editors reviewing my Read More... Posted Sunday, October 29, 2006 5:02 PM by Kalen Delaney | 2 Comments

• Geek City: Removing Single Page Allocations

  This post is not for the faint of heart. Read on at your own risk. It illustrates a change in behavior between SQL Server 2000 and SQL Server 2005 regarding how and when pages will be allocated one at a time. In my SQL Server Internals classes, I describe Read More... Posted Monday, October 23, 2006 7:05 AM by Kalen Delaney | 7 Comments

• Did you know? -- Altering the length of a fixed-length column

  You may be well aware that if you alter the length of a column to a larger value, that SQL Server doesn’t go through all the rows at the time you issue the ALTER. The ALTER is a metadata only change, and the actual movement of data doesn’t happen until Read More... Posted Friday, October 13, 2006 10:33 AM by Kalen Delaney | 14 Comments Filed under: rowsize, metadata, storage, ALTER TABLE

• Can You Trust Your Data? -- Untrustworthy Constraints

  I’ve had several metadata posts recently, all about SQL Server 2005. But yesterday, a colleague asked me a metadata question about SQL Server 2000. He wanted to know how to tell what constraints had been created with the NOCHECK option. This option tells Read More... Posted Tuesday, October 10, 2006 6:28 AM by Kalen Delaney | 11 Comments

• Inside SQL 2005: The Final Frontier

  Oops, I mean the Final Volume... Inside SQL Server 2005: Query Tuning and Optimization There is no rest for the weary. I will be turning in the outline for the 4 th volume of Inside SQL Server 2005 this week. This volume will be a collaborative effort. Read More... Posted Sunday, October 08, 2006 7:45 AM by Kalen Delaney | 2 Comments

• Trace Metadata

  All my good intentions to write a couple of posts a week are already down in flames. So I’ll post a couple of entries today. First, a followup to my previous post about the new catalog views. I admitted last time that I loved them, but I’ll admit now Read More... Posted Sunday, October 08, 2006 6:46 AM by Kalen Delaney | 4 Comments