SQL DBA Blog

Microsoft SQL DBA Blog

Published by Peter Whyte, an experienced SQL Server Database Administrator.

  • How to Silently Install SSMS

    This is a note on how to silently install SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) via command (PowerShell). SSMS is a tool most people use when working with SQL Server. If you need to install SSMS on multiple computers, you may want to use the silent installation feature for…

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  • How to Increase Maximum Characters Displayed in SSMS

    In this post I’m showing you how to increase the maximum characters displayed in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS). By default, the max number of characters displayed in a single column of a query in SSMS when outputting as text is 256 characters. This means sometimes if we…

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  • How to Delete Files in PowerShell

    This is a post on how to delete files in PowerShell, which will be useful when you need to delete files as part of a script in Windows. This post covers the following:> PowerShell: Delete a File> PowerShell: Delete a Folder> PowerShell: Delete Files in Subfolders Recursively PowerShell:…

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  • How to Add Columns to Tables in SQL Server

    This post contains a guide on how to add columns to tables in SQL Server, with tips and links to Microsoft Documentation along the way. As a SQL Server DBA, adding new columns to tables is a routine and simple task, often driven by evolving business requirements or…

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  • How to Create a New Firewall Rule with PowerShell

    In this bog post I’m sharing a guide on how to create a new Firewall Rule with PowerShell. We’ll create a new inbound rule using a PowerShell script for the local Windows Firewall, to allow SQL Server (port 1433). Script to Create a New Firewall Rule for SQL…

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  • How to Show Line Numbers in SSMS

    This post contains a quick guide on how to show line numbers in the SSMS query window. Useful if you want to see line numbers while you code. As well as general preference, enabling line numbers in SQL Server Management Studio is particularly useful when debugging an error…

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  • Add a Filegroup to a Database in SQL Server

    This post contains a demo on how to add a new Filegroup for a database in SQL Server. Most databases work well with single data/log files and do not need this. Adding filegroups to a SQL Server database can improve performance by distributing data across multiple disk drives…

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  • How to Check PowerShell Version

    This guide explains how to check your PowerShell version on a Windows computer using the $PSVersionTable command. Running the latest PowerShell version ensures access to new features and cmdlets. Some scripts may rely on commands not available in older versions, causing compatibility issues. We should keep it up-to-date…

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  • Disabling Change Data Capture in SQL Server

    This post contains a demo on how to disable CDC (Change Data Capture) in SQL Server 2022. The sp_cdc_disable_table and sp_cdc_disable_db in-built MSSQL SPs are what we should use to disable CDC in SQL Server which is explained more below. The sp_cdc_disable_table and sp_cdc_disable_db are the in-built MSSQL…

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Useful SQL DBA Posts

SQL Server Performance
– Get Full SQL Server System Info Fast
– Quick Performance Troubleshooting Scripts
– Identify Missing & Unused Indexes
– Get Wait Stats & Top Consuming Queries
– Get Exclusive Locks on Tables
– Get Last Node Blip in SQL Server FCI
Security & Maintenance
– Get Estimated Database Backup/Restore Time
– Get Last Database Backup Dates/Times
– Get Database Sizes & Space Used
– How to Get Table Sizes
– Get Index & Heap Fragmentation Levels
– Get SQL User Permissions and Roles
– Creating SQL Users on Availability Groups
– Audit Failed Login Attempts

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