Mat Stephen's SQL Server WebLog : SQL Server 2005

Free SAP Customer Workshops "How Microsoft Runs SAP" Munich on February 7, 2006 and in Brussels on February 9, 2006.

Mat_Stephen — Wed, 04 Jan 2006 18:37:00 GMT

These courses rarely come to Europe - so if you're interested be quick!

From the blurb:-

We would like to invite you to attend the upcoming SAP Customer Workshop about How Microsoft Runs SAP. The same session will be held in Munich on February 7, 2006 and in Brussels on February 9, 2006.

The heart of Microsoft's worldwide operations runs on SAP. Please choose the most convenient location for you and join us for the day to hear from our SAP Services team experts about how they run and manage a global deployment of SAP across 89 countries and for 60,000 employees. This real world, non-marketing workshop is designed to give you insight into Microsoft's experiences choosing, implementing, rolling out, and maintaining our global SAP system. Both the technical aspects and the business/functional aspects of the implementation will be addressed.

For a preview of Microsoft's deployment of SAP, please read the case study at:
http://www.microsoft-sap.com/casestudies/Microsoft_Case_Study.doc

Enterprise customers considering SAP will want to send their business and IT decision-makers. SAP customers and partners implementing R/3 will benefit from Microsoft's technical, business and project management key learnings. The content of this seminar-style workshop will cater to both business and technical participants. In past workshops, customers have also found this to be a good opportunity to exchange experiences with other workshop participants.

   • Keynote: SAP, The Software That Drives Microsoft
   • Best Practices: Change Control & Leveraging Technology
   • Technical Architecture
   • SAP BW and Reporting Strategy
   • SAP .NET Extensions and Mendocino

February 7, 2006:

Kempinski Hotel Airport München
Terminalstrasse Mitte 20
85356 München

Tel. +49 89 97 82 36 40
Fax. +49 89 97 82 36 13

February 9, 2006:

Sheraton Brussels Hotel & Towers
Manhattan Center
3 Place Rogier
1210 Brussels, Belgium

Phone (32) (2) 2243111
Fax (32) (2) 2243456

Registration is limited to 150 people on a first-come first-serve basis, so please register early!

To register visit:

https://www.wellsregister.com/sap/customer/cityselect.asp

Phone: +1 206-706-3225
E-mail: SAP@WellsRegister.com

Business casual.

This is a free all-day workshop. Registration and cancellation are mandatory.

We look forward to seeing you in Munich or Brussels !

SQL 2005 Metadata Samples Toolkit and whitepaper now available

Mat_Stephen — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 20:14:00 GMT

Reposted 10/1/06 to include in 'free tools' category

I'm constantly asked "what's Microsoft doing about metadata and do we have a solution."

In the old days (SQl 2000 and 7), Microsoft provided Meta Data Services, a platform designed to help tools and applications manage metadata and information models more effectively. It included the Open Information Model (OIM). A core model of sharable and reusable type descriptions. Microsoft worked with the Meta Data Coalition to publish the Open Information Model as an industry metadata model standard. Initially it was warmly received. However, soon after, a second set of companies in the Object Management Group proposed the Common Warehouse Metamodel (CWM) as a second standard for metadata. Metadata was everywhere!

But the excitement over cross-industry metadata models eventually wore off. For a variety of reasons, ISVs started to move away from industry-wide models and focused on point-to-point mappings between products (primarily focusing on XML-based exchange). The Meta Data Coalition merged with the OMG and cross-industry metadata modeling efforts have been stalled for several years. The world discovered Enterprise repositories and cross-product metadata models are very hard to integrate into existing computing environments (lots of custom applications and tools) and require lots of care and feeding for effective deployment and maintenance (i.e. lots of consulting).

So, Meta Data Services was deprecated in SQL 2005.

With SQL Server 2005 XML is every where, its used to describe all the really useful objects in the product stack. Consequently the possibilities to satisfy many of the needs, that metadata repositories are touted to solve, can now be easily solved by reporting off the XML that describes so many of the key components used in (Microsoft SQL Server) data warehousing (ie used by SSIS, SSRS and SSAS). The important aspects are data lineage, data dictionaries, auditing and impact analysis.

We are very pleased to announce the first incarnation of the "SQL Server 2005 Business Intelligence Metadata Samples Toolkit" http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=11DAA4D1-196D-4F2A-B18F-891579C364F4&displaylang=en. Along with the associated whitepaper http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=182BD330-0189-450C-A2FE-DF5C132D9DA9&displaylang=en it should now be possible to satisfy many of your metadata needs - simply and essentially for free!

The whitepaper also describes the importance of the new Extended Properties that can be applied to objects within the database - these can be used to store all sorts of business information including the all important data lineage and data definition.

New Performance Troubleshooting Guide for SQL2005

Mat_Stephen — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 13:12:00 GMT

Many things have changed with SQL 2005, correspondingly we have to change the way we think about troubleshooting performance problems. The most significant change is the advent of the new Dynamic Management Views (DMV), these are going to take some getting used to and this article helps significantly. There’s some really good stuff around identifying blocking, something that plagues most of us at sometime or other – well worth a read if you’re responsible for day to day running of a SQL box.

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/sql/2005/tsprfprb.mspx

New SQL 2005 code samples available

Mat_Stephen — Mon, 02 Jan 2006 20:15:00 GMT

I guess now the pressure is off to release the product we'll see more useful samples comming out of corp; here's a link to the latest December update:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/sql/downloads/samples/default.aspx

Feature Pack for Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - November 2005

Mat_Stephen — Mon, 28 Nov 2005 20:47:00 GMT

Overview

The Feature Pack is a collection of standalone install packages that provide additional value for SQL Server 2005. It includes:

Latest versions of redistributable components for SQL Server 2005
Latest versions of add-on providers for SQL Server 2005
Latest versions of backward compatibility components for SQL Server 2005

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=d09c1d60-a13c-4479-9b91-9e8b9d835cdc&displaylang=en

Get the facts about deploying and using Microsoft® SQL Server 2005TM

Mat_Stephen — Fri, 25 Nov 2005 01:09:00 GMT

Our launch roadshow, here in the UK, was totally over subscribed. So here's another chance to gem up on the plethora of new capabilities.

Experts from Scalability, DevelopMentor, and Solid Quality Learning will present practical, real-world information in three tracks covering administration, development and business intelligence Register NOW www.sqlmag.com

You've got to be quick!

Slides from the SQL Server Launch in Birmingham UK

Mat_Stephen — Thu, 10 Nov 2005 13:32:00 GMT

During, what I hope was viewed as a successful day, many people asked where they could find the slides for the technical sessions.
You will be able to find them @ http://www.microsoft.com/uk/launchtour2005 - but you may have to wait a couple of days before they actually get loaded.

Hope those of you attended enjoyed the event. Wow - I found it incredibly hard work - three sessions on the trot - thought my brain was going come detached from my mouth.

TechNet Briefing: What's NEW in SQL 2005 - Analysis Services & Data Mining

Mat_Stephen — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 14:42:00 GMT

Here's a little self publicity for gig I'll be doing in December:

To register please go to https://msevents-eu.microsoft.com/cui/EventDetail.aspx?culture=en-GB&eventid=118761637

05 December 2005 18:30 - 05 December 2005 21:00 (GMT) GMT, London
Welcome Time: 18:00
Language: English

Microsoft Ltd

Chicago 1
Building 3
Microsoft Campus Thames Valley Park Reading Berkshire RG6 1WG
United Kingdom

General Event Information
Products: SQL Server.

Recommended Audience: Business Professional, IT Professional and Partner.

Session Abstract: Get Ready for SQL 2005! - This session will explain the benefits of the new Unified Dimension Model (UDM) that underpins the On-Line Analytical Processing (OLAP) component of SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services. The UDM represents a radically new approach to OLAP, seeking to combine the best aspects of OLAP with the best of aspects of On-Line Transaction Processing (OLTP). This session will compare and contrast the OLAP engine in SQL Server 2000 with the UDM and explore the new architectural possibilities it offers. Also covered will be an introduction to the new data mining algorithms which will show how they can be employed to gain competitive advantage.

Its not SQL but it is amuzing

Mat_Stephen — Mon, 24 Oct 2005 12:19:00 GMT

Some people around here (in the UK) just have too much time on their hands, check this out for a little light entertainment.

http://msexp.streamnavig.com/msexp/player.asp?e=E9999&s=9999_en_w&f=9999_en&uid=00011C7758813ADF&lng=en&cou=uk

Changing Job

Mat_Stephen — Thu, 06 Oct 2005 16:52:00 GMT

It is with sadness that I have to announce that I am changing jobs and moving back into my old role as a Product Specialist, working with our Enterprise customers in a pre-sales capacity.
Alas, I won’t have as much time to blog now, but I’ll do my best to share interesting SQL info as I come across it.

UK SQL User Group Presents: "Concurrency in SQL Server 2005, Kalen Delaney Full Day Seminar: 18th Oct 2005."

Mat_Stephen — Wed, 28 Sep 2005 15:18:00 GMT

Tony Rogerson of the UK SQL User group has asked me to advertise this event. I think it will be of general interest but also of interest to people migrating or thinking of migrating from Oracle. And remember you've still got three days to enter the Oracle migration competition @http://www.sqlserverchopper.com/Rules.aspx.

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Concurrency in SQL Server 2005, Kalen Delaney Full Day Seminar: 18th Oct 2005.

http://www.sqlserverfaq.com?eid=61

Failing to design an application with concurrency in mind, and failure to test an application with the maximum number of expected simultaneous users is one of the main causes of poor application performance.

In this seminar we will look at the concurrency enhancements made in SQL Server 2005, based on a technology called row-level versioning (RLV). RLV provides a new isolation level called Snapshot Isolation that allows readers of data to not be blocked by writers. The seminar will compare the new isolation level with the previous ones and provide guidelines as to how to determine which isolation level is appropriate for your needs, and what application changes might be necessary to achieve the level desired.

In addition to new locking behaviours, we will discuss the way that RLV increases the concurrency potential of other features of SQL Server 2005, including online index rebuilds and multiple active results sets.

In this seminar you will learn:

How and when to use the new Snapshot Isolation to achieve better locking behaviour and greater concurrency.

How Row Level Versioning improves the concurrency of other SQL Server operations.

How to tune your database to allow the maximum use of Row Level Versioning and how to monitor the resources used.

SQL Server 2005 Technical Overview blogcasts

Mat_Stephen — Tue, 27 Sep 2005 17:38:00 GMT

New SQL Server 2005 Technical Overview blogcasts from the States

Demo 1-1 Using Object Explorer    http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo1.asx

Demo 2-1 Using Queries and Scripts  http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo2-1.asx
Demo 2-2 Using Solution Explorer  http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo2-2.asx

Demo 3-1 Securing SQL Server with the Surface Area Configuration tool http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo3-1.asx
Demo 3-2 Using SAC.EXE to Export and Import Surface Area Configurations http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo3-2.asx

Demo 4-1 Understanding User-Schema Separation http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo4.asx

Demo 5-1 Using SQL Agent Proxies http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo5.asx

Demo 6-1 Configuring Database Mail http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo6-1.asx
Demo 6-2 Sending and Checking E-mail http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo6-2.asx

Demo 7-1 Using Mirrored Backups http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo7.asx

Demo 8-1 Using SQL Profiler   http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo8-1.asx
Demo 8-2 Generating a deadlock  http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo8-2.asx
Demo 8-3 Analyzing deadlock using SQL Profiler  http://www.microsoft.com/winme/0509/25037/SQL-01_Demo8-3.asx

OLAP, Darwin and Evolution

Mat_Stephen — Tue, 20 Sep 2005 02:59:00 GMT

Edited 21st Sept 05 to include picture of herbarium sheet.

In my article 'Business Intelligence (BI): The way it is without the blah blah', I mention that I was aware of some exiting research using the SQL Server OLAP engine, the results of which where hopefully about to hit Nature magazine. I couldn't say anymore at the time for fear of jeopardising the conclusions' debut in Nature (If Nature isn't first to publish, it's not in Nature). I claimed this research would demonstrate OLAP, as a technology, can be used as a useful tool in fields well beyond those fenced in by the concept of Business Intelligence. Well this research has indeed made it to the hallowed pages of this erudite organ; if you are prepared to pay the fee, you can find it here 'What Henslow taught Darwin' @ http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v436/n7051/index.html#Feature.

The article doesn't single out SQL Server per se, but I can assure you, as someone who is in touch with one of the authors, Analysis Services OLAP engine made a significant contribution to the research mentioned. Hopefully follow up material from the authors will document how OLAP was used. Apparently there's so much interest in this story there's even talk of a film!

Let me give you an abstract to show how SQL Server Analysis Services OLAP has contributed to mankind's understanding of its own history and the study of biology therein.

Darwin was a student (1829-31) of Professor John S. Henslow of Cambridge. Henslow is well known for arranging Charles Darwin's berth on the good ship HMS Beagle, the ship that took Darwin to the Galapagos islands. The Galapagos islands are where Darwin discovered 'Darwin's Finches', birds that had 'evolved', by appearance and behaviour, to such an extent that Darwin had to question whether they were different varieties of the same species, or different species altogether. In pursuit of the answer to this question, Darwin formed his seminal concepts that became the backbone to On the Origin of Species.

In the shadow of the afore mentioned article, we must now understand that it was Henslow who had first recognised variation in species, and that it was this recognition and the desire to seek its verification that put Darwin on the Beagle. Furthermore, it was the fidelity of Darwin to fulfil this ambition, with its incumbent rigours in procedure, that ultimately lead him to break free of the creationist shackles that had hindered his mentor, and from which, sadly, his mentor would never be freed.

The research in this article covers 10,172 plants collected by Henslow. By creating an OLAP cube to analyse the sheets of paper holding these plant samples, the researchers show that Henslow organised his documentation by none other than the variation he observed to be within the limits of species variation. Nobody is known to have attempted this before. It is of the stuff that makes a good film that we can now visit his herbarium at Cambridge and see, with newly enlightened eyes, how the plants within it have been carefully arranged to illuminate this most potent observation; a place where, hitherto, this brilliant enlightenment has been so shrouded in the dark silence of ignorance.

Below, courtesy of the authors, is an image of one of Henslow's herbarium sheets: Phleum arenarium. Eight numbered individuals are arranged in order of increasing height. Plants 1-5 were collected 3rd June 1829 at Mildenhall, Suffolk by J.S. Henslow. Plants 6-8 were collected in June 1822 at Liverpool by W. Wilson.

Database Mirroring won't make RTM

Mat_Stephen — Fri, 16 Sep 2005 18:54:00 GMT

Edited 20/9/05 to correct typos

As Paul Flessner says in his letter http://www.microsoft.com/sql/2005/productinfo/letter.mspx Database Mirroring won't make it in the RTM (Release To Manufacturing) release for SQL 2005. It will be there for people to test using a trace flag, but Microsoft has not declared it tested enough for production.

We do expect to see this feature go live sometime in the first half of next year.

Also Express Manager is being revamped. Its going to get its own Visual Studio lite appearance - also to come in the first half of next year.

SQL Server Integration Services Samples - Including Fuzzy Logic

Mat_Stephen — Thu, 15 Sep 2005 19:27:00 GMT

At a recent Technet presentation, someone came up to me and asked me if I could post my Fuzzy Logic sample package to my Blog. I confess I haven't got round to wrapping it all up, but now it looks like I'm off the hook as one has been supplied with the samples that come with the product.

Here's the complete list of samples (as it is today)

Installing Sample Integration Services Packages - Provides instructions on installing sample packages from the stand-alone Microsoft Windows installer.

Calculated Columns Package Sample - Demonstrates how to use the Aggregate and Derived Column transformations to compute values and write the results to a file.

Capture Data Lineage Package Sample - Demonstrates how to get lineage information about data, add it to the data flow, and write the source data and the lineage information to a table.

Process XML Data Package Sample - Demonstrates how to extract data from an XML data file by using an XPath operation, convert the data to a flat-file format, and insert the data into a text file.

Data Cleaning Package Sample - Demonstrates how to clean data by applying exact and fuzzy matching of new customers to existing customers, and how to identify duplicate customers by using fuzzy grouping.

Execute SQL Statements in a Loop Package Sample - Demonstrates how to run SQL CREATE TABLE statements in a loop, evaluate and clean data values, and insert data into tables.

Execute Process Package Sample - Demonstrates how to use the Execute Process task to run an executable that expands a CAB file, read the expanded data, and insert the data into a table.

SMO Tables DBCC Package Sample - Demonstrates how to enumerate the user tables in the AdventureWorks database by using SMO, use a Script task to retrieve the schema and table names, put the names into two variables, and use an Execute SQL task that executes a DBCC CHECKCONSTRAINTS command using the two variables.

AWDataWarehouseRefresh Package Sample - Demonstrates how to refresh the AdventureWorksDW data warehouse from the AdventureWorks OLTP database.

Synchronizing Adventure Works DW Partitions Package Sample - Demonstrates how to automate the synchronization of partitions between relational and Analysis Services databases by using an Integration Services package. The sample package uses the Script task and the Analysis Services Execute DDL task, and illustrates the use of the ASSL and AMO technologies."