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#PASSSummit2020 part 2: My first full day #PASSSummit #PASSVirtualSummit

I'm writing this midday during my first full day of PASS Summit. I want to note that this is my first full day, since I didn't participate in the pre-cons (which are an extra fee) on Monday and Tuesday. As I write this article, I'm sitting in on Kevin Kline's presentation on data governance. In … Continue reading #PASSSummit2020 part 2: My first full day #PASSSummit #PASSVirtualSummit

The Streisand Effect

The beatings will continue until morale improves.

This is a post from my friend, Greg Moore, with whom I share an alma mater in common (in my case, a graduate alma mater). There is currently a looming crisis there, and I’m reblogging Greg’s post to 1) voice my disgust and displeasure at the school, 2) let the world know about what’s going on, and 3) serve as a warning.

greenmountainsoftware

I had originally planned on a slightly different topic for this week’s blog, but an email I received from my alma mater last night changed my mind.  First, a little background. I’m a 1990 graduate of RPI in Troy NY, a fact I’m quite proud of. Second, lately there has been a growing controversy over the shape and direction of the school administration, led by Dr. Shirley Jackson.  Let me say that I find Dr. Jackson’s credentials impressive and many of her initiatives have led RPI into the right direction for the 21st Century.

But (and you knew that was coming), all is not rosy in Troy (especially today as I write, it’s a dreary, cloudy day).

So let’s back up a bit though and discuss the Streisand Effect. Originally and mainly the effect refers to bringing unwanted attention to something by trying to suppress access to information in…

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Are You Patched?

Reblogging this from my friend Steve Jones. This is too important to not share.

Voice of the DBA

It’s been a few weeks since the Spectre/Meltdown bugs were announced for most CPUs. Microsoft has been working hard to build patches, and they’ve provided fixes for Windows and SQL Server. Other manufacturers have released fixes for other platforms, though I wouldn’t be surprised if more patches are coming. We put together a page at SQLServerCentral with information and links, and if you haven’t checked it out, you should.

If you haven’t patched systems, patch them ASAP.

This is a bad bug, affecting many CPUs, across multiple architectures, and includes potential issues with virtual machines. The guidance and conversations I’ve heard from various vendors is that many of them aren’t completely sure of all the potential risks or attack vectors, but they are worried that customers will leave this vulnerabilities open in the future. Since this affects hardware, it’s entirely possible that an exploit could read memory from other applications…

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The Migration Checklist

I am working on a future presentation regarding checklists. I saw this post from my friend, Steve Jones, and I figured it was worth a reblog (not to mention that I can refer to this for my reference).

Voice of the DBA

One of the things I always recommend is that when you upgrade a SQL Server instance, you perform a side by side migration to a new host instead of an in-place upgrade. My main concern is risk. While the upgrade process is fairly smooth, I still have hiccups installing SQL Server at times, and for a live server, the last thing I want to do is have to uninstall SQL Server and reinstall an old version.

Apart from the risk, I also think an upgrade is a great time to refresh hardware. If you’re paying for the latest bits, I’d spend a little more for newer hardware if I can. The cost usually isn’t much compared to SQL licenses, especially these days with hardware being very cheap and powerful. New hardware also gives me a staging place to test the migrations, without disturbing the existing system.

Planning the migration across…

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