Microsoft's SQL Server toolbox is a morass of acronyms, from SMO to SSMS to SOS, and differentiating one from the other can be a challenge. I recently caught up with Vicky Harp, lead program manager ...

Microsoft recently updated SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) with support for Visual Studio 2012, improved LocalDB functionality and new SSDT Power Tools. SSDT, if you're unfamiliar with it, is a ...

Having recently set up an old desktop as a dev machine in order to avoid trashing my main computer with evaluation software (don't get me started), I decided it was time to try out Visual Studio 11 ...

On Tuesday Microsoft announced the release to manufacturing for SQL Server 2012 as well as an "evaluation version" for download, with general availability coming April 1. With this release, Microsoft ...

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I've been playing with the new SQL Server Data Tools, and I'm impressed by the way Microsoft has gotten the product out for review and is improving it with user-requested functionality. I've been ...

In this second delve into data cleanliness (read the first, How clean is your data?, here), we’ll test-drive the data profiling tool provided with Microsoft SQL Server. Other profiling tools have ...

The daily routine of an IT professional remains largely reactive. A lot of time and budget is spent responding to tickets, limiting the time that we spend creating systems that drive growth and ...

With Extended Support for SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2 ending in July 2019, to be followed six months later by the end of Extended Support for Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 in January 2020 ...

Microsoft continues to make positive strides in the world of open source. The company once considered open source software to be an anathema, but now it’s common for Microsoft to pull software ...