SQL Server script to populate a table of sequential dates in multiple formats

I was writing lots of TSQL today for something I was working on, which in itself is a rather rare occasion since I do so much more infrastructure and architecture stuff nowadays. I needed to write a script to populate a table with a series of rows containing sequential dates. I had to create a… Continue reading SQL Server script to populate a table of sequential dates in multiple formats

Create automated PGP task in SSIS using GnuPG to decrypt files

Previously I wrote about my efforts to automate the decryption of files with SSIS using the gpg2.exe which comes as part of the GnuPG package. The original article is here SSIS Task to decrypt PGP files automatically However after deploying the working solution into production, to be run as a scheduled task, I found out… Continue reading Create automated PGP task in SSIS using GnuPG to decrypt files

Step by Step procedure for rolling upgrades to database mirroring for SQL Server 2008

Here’s something I was up to during the week. It’s a fairly mundane task, but despite that one which is very important, both to the client I was doing it for, and for most people generally who run this type of configuration. The databases I was working with were part of a true 24×7 configuration where any… Continue reading Step by Step procedure for rolling upgrades to database mirroring for SQL Server 2008

Tracing select statements on specific objects in SQL Server without using Profiler

I published a blog post with Basefarm last week about tracing select statements in SQL Server without using profiler. It demonstrates how to use SQL Audit (based on extended events) to record any select statements issues on particular tables over a prolonged time period in a scalable lightweight way. Although SQL Audit was designed as… Continue reading Tracing select statements on specific objects in SQL Server without using Profiler

Viking boat in Stockholm

There’s nothing particularly special about this photo apart from to say that i find it very evocative of my time in Stockholm. Quite what the Viking boat is doing I was never sure, but it’s just that it’s there that makes me think of Stockholm generally in that there always seemed to be something like this happening… Continue reading Viking boat in Stockholm