Building Better SQL Server Databases

Most programmers just use a database as a simple container for storing information, without really understanding the impact that a good, or bad, database design can have on the performance of their applications. This session will change that, and show how you can design your SQL Server databases in a way that will make them scalable and more efficient. By taking a detailed look at database design, indexes, and common T-SQL mistakes, we will see how these things can have an impact on resources and performance. We will discuss tips for serving up data faster, as well as things that can slow your queries down.

In this session I will provide direct explanations that can be incorporated immediately into your daily development, without all of the overly technical DBA mumbo-jumbo. Regardless of your skill level or programming language of choice, if you use SQL Server this session is for you.

Managing Your SQL Server When You Don't Have A DBA

Not everyone has a full time Database Administrator on staff, and in many cases the responsibility of managing the SQL Server falls on you, the developers. But as long as the backups are running successfully you’re good, right? Not exactly. Your databases could be heading for trouble! Without proper tuning and maintenance, your database performance can grind to a halt.

Tailored to the “Non-DBA”, this session will show you how to configure your SQL Server like a DBA would, and why some SQL Servers default settings may be slowing you down. Discussing server settings, database configurations, and recommended maintenance, you will leave this session with the knowledge and scripts you need to help configure your SQL Server instance to fit your workload, and ensure that your SQL Server and databases are running smoothly.

Exploring The New JSON Features In SQL Server

SQL Server 2016 introduced built-in JSON support, with new features that allow you do things like store JSON text in database tables, read and modify JSON, format the results of regular SQL queries into JSON, and transform JSON objects into table format. In this demo heavy session we’ll explore the new JSON functions and T-SQL enhancements that are now available, and find out just what SQL Server can (and can’t) do with JSON.

SQL Server Hates You And I Know Why

Your SQL Server is not performing as well as it should be, is it? You know it should be faster, but SQL Server just refuses to cooperate. Even if you think everything is fine, I bet I can show you how to make it faster and more efficient. Whether it is server (mis)configurations, poorly written queries, or lack of proper indexing, it is highly likely your SQL Server databases are not performing as well as they could be. This session will equip you with the tools, scripts, and knowledge to gain insight into configuration and performance problems your SQL Server may be experiencing, and how to head off some problems before they start. We will discuss tips for serving up data faster, things that can slow your queries down, and take a look at how to tune your SQL Server like a DBA would in order to keep it happy.