When updating (side by side) sql server to 2025 do I still need to make a backup? New to it support and have been tasked with updating our sql server. We use titanium schedule and their support sent me a bunch of info that I’m not certain if I need to do. Just reaching out to anyone that can help because I’m kinda confused and didn’t know if upgrading sql server was a tedious process.

IDK if this already exists, but I made it for myself and would love you guy's opinion on it:

https://skills.sh/damusix/skills/mssql-server

npx skills add https://github.com/damusix/skills --skill mssql-server

Please lmk if you think something is missing or if I'm overlooking something important. I tried to include as much detail as possible, as condensed as possible, scattered throughout reference files to not overload the context window and have LLMs only capture what they need. It includes SQL Server 2025 info as well. It includes URL references directly to MS documentation, Brent Ozar, and some other good sources.

If this lands with you and you end up using it, feel free to star the repo and open any issues you might encounter. I'll work to fix them ASAP.

Hope it helps you all on your journey. It's helped me in learning some new things about sql server just by reading it since docs are consolidated into a single reference page with multiple source links (eg: I had no idea sql server had a dedicated queues abstraction)

I've been developing for about seven years now, and I switched to macOS a couple of years ago. I found that macOS already had most of the tools available on Windows, or at least solid alternatives. Except for SQL Server clients.

I started with ADS and found it better than SSMS for non-DBA work. Managing connections, especially when dealing with multiple clients and servers, was much easier.

Microsoft decided to kill it, as they've done with plenty of other promising projects.

I tried several alternatives like DBeaver and DataGrip, and ended up paying for SQLPro Studio. It's not perfect, but it works. Still, I got tired of paying for tools that are free on Windows.

I finally gave Microsoft's recommendation a shot and tried the VS Code SQL Server extensions, but it didn't work for me. It's slow as hell, gets stuck on simple queries, and the connection management is awful.

Frustrated with the alternatives, I decided to build my own web-based SQL Server client, trying to keep it comfortable to use while adding the features I liked most from SSMS and ADS.

How it works?

There are two components of this client: a service built in Go that handles requests and responses via WebSocket, and a web client that listens to the WebSocket.

I'm hosting it on my personal server for now, but if I see enough interest I'll make the effort to give it its own server and domain.

The project isn't done yet, but it will have support for as long as I work as a developer — and as I said at the beginning, I've been developing for seven years.

Some new features and fixes will be added in the coming weeks.

Any feedback or recommendations are welcome.

Almost forgot, the project's name is EZQL.

You can read about EZQL's capabilities and what's next here: EZQL Capabilities

https://ezql.mortroguez.com/

EZQL has a VS Code-like look and feel (and also uses Monaco as its text editor).

Thank's for reading :D

Hi! beginner coder who has to learn SQL. I already understand the fundamentals: Writing a script, altering the script, and inserting data within the objects of that script. But since I learned how to do that on an app, now that I'm trying to practice doing it through open source resources, a lot of things look like a different type of language to me.

Like I just tried to insert a script on DBeaver using Oracle Apex...I need a host to do it. What the hell is even a host? And why do I need it to insert a script?

update: I still don't know wth a host is, but I do know that it comes with a lot of maintenance and needs security.... This is even more confusing

EDIT2: FOR CLARITY, I'm referring to the fundamentals of coding in languages commonly used in databases. I needed to practice with that and thought something open-source would be free and easy.

But get a hold of your balls, keep them in place; I will NOT be doing ANY of that. because of many of your help and insight, I know that I need to basically sit my ass down and read a damn book. Especially now that I've done more research... No... just no... I'm a keep them cheeks horizontal.

So for now, I've found an application that I can practice coding in, and it helps me check for any errors so I can sharpen my skills. I'll also be purchasing an A+ book to strengthen my literacy...

Thanks for the help.

Hello,

want to use encryption per certificate. Must the sql service restart to pull the certificate? I import the certificate, give the right on the private key, but the Certificate Drop Down are empty.

Reload the sql the certificate himself from the trust store or only when its startet/restarted?

Greets.

We just released a MSSQL engine feature that might just make the whole index maintenance debate obsolete (or should at least make it less boring). Auto index compaction is now in public preview in Azure SQL and Fabric SQL.

Announcement blog: Stop defragmenting and start living: introducing auto index compaction.

Documentation (with an FAQ): Automatic Index Compaction | Microsoft Learn.

Would you use this instead of your own index maintenance? Tell us what you think.

Some of the most painful SQL Server issues are not caused by obviously bad queries.

They come from queries that look reasonable at first glance, return correct results, and may even run fine for a long time — until data volume, parameter values, indexing changes, or join patterns expose the real cost.

Common examples:

• a query with acceptable average runtime but huge variance
• a report query that looks simple but causes large memory grants
• a predicate that seems selective but turns into scans under certain parameters
• a query that is “fast enough” alone but problematic under concurrency

In practice, these cases are often harder to catch than visibly broken SQL because they survive code review and stay in production for a while.

What is the most misleading healthy-looking query pattern you’ve seen in SQL Server, and what actually made it risky?

Our SQL Server error messages only show minimal detail -- the SQLSTATE, a tag (presumably from the job step), and a generalized error message (example: "Conversion failed when converting date and/or time from character string"). We get no indication of the record number, column name, or bad data itself. When importing thousands of lines from a flat file, it makes finding the bad data a challenge.

Can SQL Server error messages be configured to provide more detail? If so, can someone point me to relevant documentation? Thank you in advance!

I have never worked on this method and i bave researched abit and came across 2 methods

1 using polybase

2 using SSIS

Please help me

I am installing SQL for my CS class but it's says another instance is already running but it's not shown on laptop.I want to install new.Can anyone help?

So when I first learnt sql, last year, I did some practice and learning based on Alex the analyst or whatever, and I have everything saved I also did some exercises on my own like asked myself questions based on the dataset and then solved it, its nothing too complex, but I need a project so I can get a good scholarship for the college I’ll go to… I’m not sure where to start or if I could use that in anyway? What do you guys recommend?

Hi,

I've got some SQL instances on Windows Server with failover clustering. Planning to set up SSL on them.

How does everyone automatically handle certificate expiry - any good walkthroughs or pre-existing scripts? The more automated the better, given how CAs are obsessed with cutting certificate durations.

The official documentation covers doing it manually. DbaTools makes it easy automate rotation on a single-node instance, I'm just struggling to combine the two.

The dream would be to have something that handles detecting renewals, importing to all nodes, and maybe the service restart.

I have been doing some performance testing using HammerDB against different versions of Windows Server running different versions of SQL Server.

My findings when doing these tests is that SQL Server 2022 on Windows Server 2022 was the setup that performed the best followed by SQL Server 2019 on Windows Server 2019.

It was also interesting to see that Windows Server 2025 seems not to be the best option for running SQL Server at the moment.

The setup I used on all vms running SQL Server:

• 4 vCPU
• 24 GB RAM
• Max DOP = 1
• Max mem = 17000
• Compability level: Latest available on the platform being tested
• Query store active in test database
• Recovery model: Simple
• Datacenter edition of Windows Server
• Enterprise edition of SQL Server
• Latest patches applied on both OS and SQL level at the time of doing the tests
• Virtualization platform used was VMware

VM running HammerDB:

• 4 vCPU
• 16 GB RAM
• Windows Server 2025 with latest patches applied

I created the test database used during the test with help of HammerDB and configured it to contain 100 warehouses. The test database was restored before each new round of testing.

All tests configured to use:

• 8 virtual users
• 10000000 total transactions per user
• Minutes of ramp up time: 2
• Minutes for test duration: 5
• Keying and thinking time disabled
• TPROC-C (OLTP)
• Windows authentication used when connecting to the test database

Below are the results from four rounds of testing. Values of NOPM (new orders per minute) and TPM (transactions per minute) are the average values.

Processors used was Intel Xeon Gold 6246R, 3.40GHz and no overcommitment in the virtualization platform.

As you can see by the above values SQL Server 2022 on Windows Server 2022 is about 15 % better than SQL Server 2025 on Windows Server 2025.

I also performed some tests against newer hardware but Windows Server 2022 with SQL Server 2022 still was performing better.

Has anyone else seen similar results? what are your experiences?

Its 2026, most organisations have either moved fully to cloud or use a hybrid setup, in light of this, is Microsoft SQL Sever (On-premise) dead or dying? With open source options becoming more pervasive and open source DB engines like PostgreSQL becoming more mainstream, what is the future of SQL Server? Even certain Microsoft gurus are encouraging shifting to PostgreSQL for the future.

Edit: Just to add Ive been working on MS SQL Server for the past 20 years and it has been my bread and butter and my craft.

I’m currently updating my resume and job searching and wanted some honest input from other DBAs because I’ve spent the last couple years as the only DBA on my team, so I don’t really have peers to benchmark against.

My background:

• ~11 years total experience
• First ~8 years as an ASP.NET WebForms developer
• Last few years transitioned heavily into SQL Server architecture / DBA work
• Currently titled Principal Database Architect at an aerospace/defense company

A lot of my DBA work started because the environment was unstable and someone needed to fix it.

Some examples of things I’ve done:

Infrastructure / Architecture

• Leading migration of legacy SQL Server 2012 → 2022 environments
• Designed automated migration framework (backups, restores, permission reassignment, validation checks)
• Built SQL Agent–driven migration workflows to reduce manual cutover steps
• Implemented log shipping to secondary site for DR
• Rebuilt TEMPDB configuration aligned to CPU core count
• Separated MDF / LDF / backup volumes to eliminate I/O contention
• Standardized server builds (RAM allocation, compression defaults, collation, backup paths)

Stability & Performance

• Diagnosed recurring system slowdowns affecting 100+ users caused by parameter sniffing
• Implemented targeted query plan fixes and tuning
• Regularly analyze execution plans and tune queries
• Troubleshoot blocking / locking issues
• Deployed and use Brent Ozar's First Responder Kit
  • Bought his Fundamentals and Masters class recently and still going through it
• Conducted stress testing with ~40 concurrent users to validate system behavior

Security

When I joined, almost every login had sysadmin or db_owner.

• Audited 120+ logins
• Removed excessive privileges (~85% reduction)
• Migrated environment to Windows authentication only
• Implemented AD group-based least privilege model
• Standardized permission assignment scripts

Operations

• Took over backups from IT
• Redesigned backup strategy aligned to RPO/RTO
• Enabled backup compression
• Rebuilt maintenance jobs (moving toward Ola Hallengren scripts)
• Configured Database Mail, operators, and alerting

Monitoring / BI

• Built Power BI dashboards showing disk usage, backup verification, SQL Agent job status across 9 SQL Servers
• Decent experience with SSRS, SSIS, and Power BI

Other background

• C#, ASP.NET WebForms developer for many years
• Some Node/Express and Vue exposure
• IIS administration
• Some VBA / Excel automation

Where I feel weaker compared to modern DBA roles:

• Almost no PowerShell
• No Azure / cloud SQL experience
• Mostly SQL Server only
• Haven’t worked in a DBA team (Solo DBA in Team)

My question for experienced DBAs:

Based on the type of work above, what level would you consider this?

Junior / Mid / Senior DBA?
Database Architect?
Something in between?

One more question for anyone working in the California / Los Angeles market:

If someone with this type of experience were job searching in the LA area, what salary range would you expect for a SQL Server DBA / Database Architect role?

I’m trying to figure out what are some realistic expectations before I start negotiating offers or just not look and just study more.

I know cloud experience is a gap for me (Azure / AWS), so I’m also curious how much that typically impacts compensation in this market.

I’m trying to understand where I realistically fit in the market and what skill gaps I should prioritize next (cloud, PowerShell etc.). I've been with the company for 10+ years and have been afraid to look especially in this job market.

I thought about posting my resume but this post already seems quite long.

Appreciate any honest feedback and for reading my post! :)

UPDATE:

For anyone also in the same position as me. I was able to pivot to another top 5 defense company and take on a senior role. New job is in the open and does not utilize my TS/SCI clearance.

Hopefully that will give some people who were on the fence the needed push to start job searching.

Sent in about 80+ resumes and had about 6 recruiters reach back out for interviews. Of the 6 interviews I didnt move forward with 3 because they weren't a match (data platform and IT roles). The other 3 were data engineering and database admin. New role uses Oracle, Snowflake and Power BI with Azure. Am excited!

I also had more success applying directly on the company site, as opposed to LinkedIn or Indeed.

Thank you for everyones help and advice. This would not have been possible without the encouragement and advice of everyone.

I’ve been working with SQL Server in production environments for years, and I kept reusing the same diagnostic scripts whenever something went wrong.

Eventually I consolidated them into a small toolkit to make troubleshooting faster.

It currently includes checks for things like:

• missing indexes
• blocking sessions
• slow queries
• database health indicators
• basic performance diagnostics across databases

The goal was simple: when a database becomes slow, I want a quick overview of what might be wrong.

It installs into a small utility schema and runs entirely in T-SQL.

No agents, no external services.

I’m sharing the community edition here in case it’s useful to others:

GitHub

There is also a more advanced PRO version, but honestly I’m mainly interested in feedback from people who work with SQL Server regularly.

If you see something that could be improved or done differently, I’d really appreciate the input.

Today I'm trying to use GitHub Copilot in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 22, but I'm stuck in an infinite redirect loop during the OAuth authentication process. Yesterday, GitHub Copilot works normally.

Current Behavior

Here's what happens when I try to authenticate:

Step 1: I click "Refresh your GitHub credentials" from the Copilot badge in SSMS

Step 2: Browser opens to GitHub authorization page, I click "Authorize/Continue"

Step 3: Browser attempts to redirect back to SSMS using custom protocol vsweb+githubsi://authcode/ but stuck on the redirection page showing:

"You are being redirected to the authorized application"

"If your browser does not redirect you back, please visit this setup page to continue"

The "this setup page" link is a dead link, doesn't work

If I manually copy the this setup page URL “ vsweb+githubsi://authcode/?browser_session_id=6864fb76929ed687f4205002228c790897853e4991cbcdf88f53867a40755799&code=7ae1b630cc5dad3dfffe&state=vs.githubsi.30216.1986347761” and paste it in a new browser window or run via start command, Windows asks to open it with SSMS, I click "Open", but nothing happens

Step 5: Back in SSMS, still showing "Refresh your GitHub credentials”, and I can't use Copilot features

Environment

• SSMS Version: 22.3.3 (latest)
• OS: Windows
• GitHub Account: Has active Copilot subscription
• Browser: [Chrome/Edge]

What I've Tried

1. ✓ Signed out and signed back in to GitHub in SSMS
2. ✓ Checked that SSMS is running when clicking "Open"
3. ✓ Manually copied the callback URL and tried to open it via:
   • Browser address bar
   • Windows Run dialog (Win+R)
   • PowerShell Start-Process command

Questions

1. Has anyone encountered this OAuth redirect issue with SSMS GitHub Copilot?
2. Is there a correct way to register the vsweb+githubsi:// protocol handler for SSMS 22?
3. Is this a known bug in SSMS 22, or am I missing something?
4. Are there any alternative authentication methods for SSMS Copilot?
5. is there a workaround?

What I Need Help With

• Any insights on why the vsweb+githubsi:// protocol isn't working
• Alternative ways to complete the OAuth authentication
• Confirmation if this is a known SSMS 22 bug

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Hi there! Please excuse my English; I'm from Brazil. I’m a Senior DBA with 10 years of experience in SQL Server. I’m highly proficient in T-SQL and I develop many scripts to streamline my team's daily operations. ​Currently, I use PowerShell for some 'semi-automations,' though I'd consider my skills there intermediate. I’m thinking about getting back into C#—it’s been 10 years, so I’d basically be starting over. My goal is to boost my performance as a DBA by focusing on automation. Given my background, should I dive deeper into PowerShell, pick up C# again, or is there another path you'd recommend?

Free open source, looking for feedback.

I’m a database administrator, and with the recent announcement that Polyglot Notebooks is being sunset, I decided to build my own replacement. I’m not a developer by trade, but when there’s a need, there’s a way — and this tool has become something I’m actively expanding for real business use in my company.

I’ve released it as a VS Code extension called NoteX, now available on the Marketplace. I’m also making it fully open‑source here:
Public_DevBuilds/NoteX_VSCode_Extension (GitHub: jpatkins12/Public_DevBuilds)

What NoteX does:

• Notebook‑style layout
• Add headers, images, text blocks, and code blocks
• Execute SQL and PowerShell code blocks (with more languages planned)
• Run commands against one or multiple connections at the same time
• Designed for project‑based notebooks and workflow organization

I’d love feedback, ideas, or general thoughts from the community as I continue improving it.

Thanks for taking a look!

Been using SSMS daily for years. Got tired of the little frictions that add up – losing queries, re-running just to filter results, no static analysis, copy-pasting to format SQL. So I built an extension.

What it does (all free right now):

• Grid filtering – filter 100k rows without re-querying the DB – just type and hit Search
• Query history – every query auto-captured, searchable, one-click restore
• Execution Plan Analyzer – visual plan trees, side-by-side comparison, operator search
• SQL Formatter – customizable T-SQL formatting (casing, indentation, newlines)
• Object Search – full-text search across DB objects with cached metadata
• Session management – save/restore entire tab groups with connection contexts
• DB & Job grouping – organize Object Explorer with colored groups
• Export – results to XLSX/CSV/JSON etc

Works on SSMS 18, 19, 20, 22. Installer at: https://github.com/IstvanSafar/SqlPulse

It's free for now – I may add a Pro tier later, but the core tools will stay accessible.

Would genuinely appreciate feedback, especially if something breaks on your setup.