Just released, and only weighing in at 490 pages.  You didn’t have anything better to do over the Thanksgiving weekend, did you? ;)

Get it here.

Brief Description

This 490-page document covers the essential phases and steps to upgrade existing instances of SQL Server 2000 and 2005 to SQL Server 2008 by using best practices. These include preparation tasks, upgrade tasks, and post-upgrade tasks. It is intended to be a supplement to SQL Server 2008 Books Online.

Overview

A successful upgrade to SQL Server 2008 should be smooth and trouble-free. To achieve that smooth transition, you must devote plan sufficiently for the upgrade, and match the complexity of your database application. Otherwise, you risk costly and stressful errors and upgrade problems. Like all IT projects, planning for every contingency and then testing your plan gives you confidence that you will succeed. But if you ignore the planning process, you increase the chances of running into difficulties that can derail and delay your upgrade. This document covers the essential phases and steps involved in upgrading existing SQL Server 2000 and 2005 instances to SQL Server 2008 by using best practices. These include preparation tasks, upgrade tasks, and post-upgrade tasks.

• Chapter 1 gives an overview of the technical issues and decisions that are involved in an upgrade to SQL Server 2008, as well as recommendations for planning and deploying an upgrade.
• Chapter 2 addresses issues related to upgrading to SQL Server 2008 Management Tools.
• Chapters 3 through 8 focus on upgrade issues for SQL Server relational databases.
• Chapter 9 addresses upgrading to SQL Server 2008 Express.
• Chapters 10 through 14 focus on upgrading to SQL Server 2008 Business Intelligence components: Analysis Services, Data Mining, Integration Services, and Reporting Services.
• Chapter 15 addresses the implications of upgrading to SQL Server 2008 for other Microsoft applications and platforms.
• Appendix 1 contains a table of allowed SQL Server 2008 version and edition upgrade paths.
• Appendix 2 contains an upgrade planning checklist.

I was just reading through the SQL Server 2008 Compliance Guide that was just released, and it actually has some great information on taking advantage of the new features as part of your GRC program.  Transparent encryption, policy-based management, auditing reports… good stuff!

Get it here.

I know I have fallen woefully behind in my blogging… for some reason I thought it would be a good idea to sign up for 18 college credits while working full time, which has left me precious little time for things I once enjoyed, like blogging, sleep, or remembering my kid’s names.

Good times.

In any case, I just threw my blog RSS feed at Wordle, which created the awesome image below.  I wonder what types of things I’m interested in? ;)

When browsing around on the Internet today, I ended up on one of those “your computer is running slow, you should buy my fake speeder-upper program!” sites. 

This particular site has decided that registry errors cause all sorts of problem, including (but not limited to) HARDWARE FAILURE WITH YOUR IPOD OR SPEAKERS.

How is this even legal?!?!?

Good grief…