SQL Saturday Columbus

Wohoo!  I will be giving 3 sessions at SQL Saturday in Columbus and participating on the WIT panel.  I am sure I will be tired by the end of the day.  My sessions are:

• Build Your Own SQL Server Cloud
• Oh, no Disaster Strikes
• The 4-Hour DBA

Please come to see me

Somedays it is easier to blame the users

I believe that part of a DBA's job is to educate their users on proper SQL Server practices.  Today, I had a situation occur where a developer rolled out a database that nearly crashed its SQL Server, because every query had a where clause that contained a wild card at the beginning of the search string. 


WHERE product like '%widget%'


This meant that every call that used this pattern had to perform a table scan and caused all sorts of locking and crappy performance.  I was not happy.  


I started to write a "You are an idiot" email to the developer screaming about how stupid they were and why did they not use a full-text index.  I started to look through my SQL Server training materials for the section where I covered full-text indexes and realized that I had never written about this.   Now, should an experienced developer know that using a wildcard at the beginning of a search string is a bad idea? I think so, but I also had not done my job fully and trained the developer.  This is what I believe is called a teachable moment.  


Understanding database performance is not easy or everyone's databases would be super fast.  Before blaming someone else make sure that you have communicated what you expect of them first.  Then the next time they do something stupid, you are justified in flying off the handle.

Upcoming Speaking Events

I have submitted sessions for the upcoming SQL Saturday events in Columbus, OH and Indianapolis. I am looking forward to attending both events and hopefully will have the opportunity get back into speaking about my favorite topic SQL Server again.