If you have a data warehouse and you frequently run queries using aggregate functions like SUM, AVG, COUNT, etc, you need to investigate columnstore indexes. I am going to show you some performance benefits that come from using this new (8 years old now) index type.
Continue reading SQL Server Columnstore Index Performance BenefitsSQL Server: Login Failed for user Error: 18456
Many times you have applications that need to have a SQL Server login instead of one that uses Windows authentication. So you create one, and then you try to login using the credentials and you get the dreaded: Login failed for user Error: 18456 error. Below I am going to show you one way that fixes the issue.
Continue reading SQL Server: Login Failed for user Error: 18456Quickly load data with Bulk Insert
Did you ever have a csv file that somebody wanted loaded into the database so they could do a quick analyses on it? You could create a SSIS project or use the SSMS import data task, but here is a nice quick and easy way to do it using TSQL.
Continue reading Quickly load data with Bulk InsertSSRS Repeat Header rows across the top.
How do you freeze the header rows on a SSRS report so it looks like Excel when you freeze panes and scroll down? Read on and find how easy it is.
Zero pad a string
If you have ever used Oracle and needed to create a string padded with zero’s, they have a nifty function called LPAD which allows you to do this easily. In SQL Server we need to create our own way.
Connect SSIS to MS Access ACCDB databases
Before Microsoft changed Access from .mdb file extensions to .accdb, SSIS would work right out of the box connecting to Access databases. Due to the new format, you now need to download additional drivers on any machine that runs the SSIS jobs. I am going to show you how to do it right now.
SQL Server 2019 New Feature — Msg 8152, Level 16, State 14 String or binary data would be truncated. Improvement!
There are all kinds of new features in the new version of SQL Server 2019. One of the ones I am excited about is the additional information you now receive be default when you try to insert data that is too long to fit into an existing field. In prior versions you would get the message below, but you would have no idea what row or field was causing the issue:
Msg 8152, Level 16, State 14, Line 5 String or binary data would be truncated.
Calculate Percentage of Total
When creating queries for a data warehouse, you may need to calculate what percentage of each customers portion is to the total. This can show you what percentage of total sales each customer makes up.
SQL Saturday Cleveland #930
Last week was the Cleveland edition of SQL Saturday. If you do not know what SQL Saturday is, you really need to follow this link: https://www.sqlsaturday.com
SSIS Add Filename During File Load
When loading files into staging tables using SSIS, it is often helpful to include the filename during the load so you can verify where the data came from. This is easily accomplished with a buried option which in my opinion should be better spotlighted called the Advanced Editor for modifying flat file sources.
Jim Salasek's SQL Server Blog 