SQL DBA Blog

Blog Posts

  • Joining a Windows Host to a Domain

    This post contains a demo of joining a Windows Server onto a test Domain, which I created in my previous post (Installing Active Directory on Windows Server 2016). Joining a Windows Computer to Active Directory Domain Services is required in 99% of Corporate environments, and is usually a…

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  • Installing Active Directory on Windows Server 2016

    This post contains a demo installation of Active Directory Domain Services on Windows Server 2016. It follows a previous post for a series of test lab configuration posts. Microsoft docs on installing AD on Windows Server can be found here: Install Active Directory Domain Services Configuring a Windows…

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  • Installing Windows Server 2016 with Hyper-V

    This post contains a demo of installing the Windows Server 2016 Operating System on Hyper-V. To install the Hyper-V Role on Windows 10, see this guide from Microsoft Docs: Install Hyper-V on Windows 10. There are two parts to this one:> Create a new Hyper-V Virtual Machine> Install…

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  • “Windows could not start the SQL Server”

    The “Windows could not start the SQL Server on 127.0.0.1” is a generic error message when the SQL Server service cannot start-up. Windows Event Viewer will give you the actual error, and from there you can troubleshoot the reason for failure. SQL Server 2019 evaluation period expired in…

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  • “Index was out of range” SQL Server Management Studio

    If you try to change the order of steps in an Agent Job within SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), you may encounter the error “Index was out of range. Must be non-negative and less than the size of the collection. Parameter name: index (mscorlib)“. This error can occur…

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  • “Content from the website listed below is being blocked.” Windows Server

    The Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration is a feature that helps protect your computer from malicious websites and other online threats. When you open Internet Explorer on a Windows Server, you’ll likely be prompted with this message: Content from the website listed below is being blocked by the…

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  • Creating a Linked Server for a PostgreSQL Database

    This is a post on how to create a Linked Server to a PostgreSQL database. In my previous post, I created a Linked Server to another SQL Server instance. This time, it’s a link to a Postgres database. I recommend checking out my other post for pre-requisite information…

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  • Creating a Linked Server to SQL Server

    Linked Servers in SQL Server allow you to query external databases, such as remote SQL Server instances, Oracle, ODBC or MS Access databases. It provides easy query access to another database server for users, however it’s not the most efficient ways to do it. The following steps should…

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  • Database Growth Events in SQL Server

    When a database file reaches its maximum allocated size, a growth event is triggered to expand the file and allow for more data storage. The size of these growth events can be configured in the database options or by using the ALTER DATABASE statement, as demonstrated below. Properly…

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  • Setting Maximum Database File Sizes in SQL Server

    Configuring maximum database file sizes in SQL Server is often considered a safeguard or tactical measure rather than a primary strategy. Ideally, you want your databases to grow as needed, without arbitrary limits. However, there are situations where capping database sizes becomes a practical necessity. Why Set Maximum…

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Useful SQL DBA Scripts

Performance
– Quick Performance Troubleshooting Scripts
– Get Current User Activity & Blocking
– Get Wait Stats & Top Consuming Queries
– Get Database Sizes & Space Used
– Identify Missing & Unused Indexes
High Availability
– Get Always On Availability Group (AAG) Latency
– Get Mirroring Status & Latency
– Get Replication Latency
– Get Last Node Blip in SQL Server FCI
Maintenance
– Get Estimated Database Backup/Restore Time
– Get Last Database Backup Dates/Times
– Get Index & Heap Fragmentation Levels
– Get Table Sizes in SQL
Security & Auditing
– Get SQL User Permissions and Roles
– Creating SQL Users on Availability Groups
– Audit Failed Login Attempts

Categories

– AWS
– DBA Stories
– Linux
– MySQL
– Other
– Postgres
– PowerShell
– Redshift
– SQL Server
– Windows Server

Tags

Always On Availability Groups (AAG) (3) Certificates & Encryption (3) Change Data Capture (CDC) (2) Database Admin (71) Database Backups & Recovery (12) Database Mirroring (2) Deleting Data (1) Error Messages (4) Git Commands (5) Importing & Exporting Data (2) Linked Servers (3) Linux Admin (2) Logging & Monitoring (1) Measuring Databases (10) Microsoft Patching (2) PowerShell Scripts (1) SQL Server Agent (4) SQL Server Database Files (1) SQL Server Data Types (2) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) (14) SQL Server Network Connectivity (2) SQL Server on Linux (1) SQL Server Patching (2) SQL Server Performance (5) SQL Server Permissions (1) SQL Server Processes (5) SQL Server Replication (1) SQL Server Scripts (12) Windows Admin (21) Windows Authentication (2) Windows Automation (1) Windows Events (2) Windows Firewall (4) Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) (20)