Grant Fritchey

Pro SQL Server 2012 Practices is an anthology of high-end wisdom from a group of accomplished database administrators who are quietly but relentlessly pushing the performance and feature envelope of Microsoft SQL Server 2012. With an emphasis upon performance—but also branching into release management, auditing, and other issues—the book helps you deliver the most value for your company’s investment in Microsoft’s flagship database system. Goes beyond the manual to cover good techniques and best practicesDelivers knowledge usually gained only by hard experienceFocuses upon performance, scalability, reliabilityHelps achieve the predictability needed to be in control at all times

Troubleshoot slow-performing queries and make them run faster. Database administrators and SQL developers are constantly under pressure to provide more speed. This new edition has been redesigned and rewritten from scratch based on the last 15 years of learning, knowledge, and experience accumulated by the author. The book Includes expanded information on using extended events, automatic execution plan correction, and other advanced features now available in SQL Server. These modern features are covered while still providing the necessary fundamentals to better understand how statistics and indexes affect query performance. The book gives you knowledge and tools to help you identify poorly performing queries and understand the possible causes of that poor performance. The book also provides mechanisms for resolving the issues identified, whether on-premises, in containers, or on cloud platform providers. You’ll learn about key fundamentals, such as statistics, data distribution, cardinality, and parameter sniffing. You’ll learn to analyze and design your indexes and your queries using best practices that ward off performance problems before they occur. You’ll also learn to use important modern features, such as Query Store to manage and control execution plans, the automated performance tuning feature set, and memory-optimized OLTP tables and procedures. You will be able to troubleshoot in a systematic way. Query tuning doesn’t have to be difficult. This book helps you to make it much easier. What You Will LearnUse Query Store to understand and easily change query performanceRecognize and eliminate bottlenecks leading to slow performanceTune queries whether on-premises, in containers, or on cloud platform providersImplement best practices in T-SQL to minimize performance riskDesign in the performance that you need through careful query and index designUnderstand how built-in, automatic tuning can assist your performance enhancement effortsProtect query performance during upgrades to the newer versions of SQL ServerWho This Book Is ForDevelopers and database administrators with responsibility for query performance in SQL Server environments, and anyone responsible for writing or creating T-SQL queries and in need of insight into bottlenecks (including how to identify them, understand them, and eliminate them)

Apply the new Query Store feature to identify and fix poorly performing queries in SQL Server. Query Store is an important and recent feature in SQL Server that provides insight into the details of query execution and how that execution has changed over time. Query Store helps to identify queries that aren’t performing well, or that have regressed in their performance. Query Store provides detailed information such as wait stats that you need to resolve root causes, and it allows you to force the use of a known good execution plan. With SQL Server 2017 and later you can automate the correction of regressions in performance. Query Store for SQL Server 2019 helps you protect your database’s performance during upgrades of applications or version of SQL Server. The book provides fundamental information on how Query Store works and best practices for implementation and use. You will learn to run and interpret built-in reports, configure automatic plan correction, and troubleshoot queries using Query Store when needed. Query Store for SQL Server 2019 helps you master Query Store and bring value to your organization through consistent query execution times and automate correction of regressions. What You'll LearnApply best practices in implementing Query Store on production serversDetect and correct regressions in query performanceLower the risk of performance degradation following an upgradeUse tools and techniques to get the most from Query StoreAutomate regression correction and other uses of Query StoreWho This Book Is ForSQL Server developers and administrators responsible for query performance on SQL Server. Anyone responsible for identifying poorly performing queries will be able to use Query Store to find these queries and resolve the underlying issues.

Identify and fix causes of poor performance. You will learn Query Store, adaptive execution plans, and automated tuning on the Microsoft Azure SQL Database platform. Anyone responsible for writing or creating T-SQL queries will find valuable the insight into bottlenecks, including how to recognize them and eliminate them. This book covers the latest in performance optimization features and techniques and is current with SQL Server 2017. If your queries are not running fast enough and you’re tired of phone calls from frustrated users, then this book is the answer to your performance problems. SQL Server 2017 Query Performance Tuning is about more than quick tips and fixes. You’ll learn to be proactive in establishing performance baselines using tools such as Performance Monitor and Extended Events. You’ll recognize bottlenecks and defuse them before the phone rings. You’ll learn some quick solutions too, but emphasis is on designing for performance and getting it right. The goal is to head off trouble before it occurs. What You'll LearnUse Query Store to understand and easily change query performanceRecognize and eliminate bottlenecks leading to slow performanceDeploy quick fixes when needed, following up with long-term solutionsImplement best practices in T-SQL to minimize performance riskDesign in the performance that you need through careful query and index designUtilize the latest performance optimization features in SQL Server 2017Protect query performance during upgrades to the newer versions of SQL ServerWho This Book Is ForDevelopers and database administrators with responsibility for application performance in SQL Server environments. Anyone responsible for writing or creating T-SQL queries will find valuable the insight into bottlenecks, including how to recognize them and eliminate them.

Every day, out in the various online forums devoted to SQL Server, and on Twitter, the same types of questions come up repeatedly: Why is this query running slowly? Why is SQL Server ignoring my index? Why does this query run quickly sometimes and slowly at others? My response is the same in each case: have you looked at the execution plan? An execution plan describes what's going on behind the scenes when SQL Server executes a query. It shows how the query optimizer joined the data from the various tables defined in the query, which indexes it used, if any, how it performed any aggregations or sorting, and much more. It also estimates the cost of all of these operations, in terms of the relative load placed on the system. Every Database Administrator, developer, report writer, and anyone else who writes T-SQL to access SQL Server data, must understand how to read and interpret execution plans. My book leads you right from the basics of capturing plans, through how to interrupt them in their various forms, graphical or XML, and then how to use the information you find there to diagnose the most common causes of poor query performance, and so optimize your SQL queries, and improve your indexing strategy.

Queries not running fast enough? Tired of the phone calls from frustrated users? Grant Fritchey’s book SQL Server 2012 Query Performance Tuning is the answer to your SQL Server query performance problems. The book is revised to cover the very latest in performance optimization features and techniques. It is current with SQL Server 2012. It provides the tools you need to approach your queries with performance in mind. SQL Server 2012 Query Performance Tuning leads you through understanding the causes of poor performance, how to identify them, and how to fix them. You’ll learn to be proactive in establishing performance baselines using tools like Performance Monitor and Extended Events. You’ll learn to recognize bottlenecks and defuse them before the phone rings. You’ll learn some quick solutions too, but emphasis is on designing for performance and getting it right, and upon heading off trouble before it occurs. Delight your users. Silence that ringing phone. Put the principles and lessons from SQL Server 2012 Query Performance Tuning into practice today. Establish performance baselines and monitor against them Troubleshoot and eliminate bottlenecks that frustrate users Plan ahead to achieve the right level of performance

Beginning SQL Server 2012 Administration provides the essential skills and knowledge needed to begin a successful career as an SQL Server database administrator. It’s an ideal book for those new to database administration, as well for those moving to SQL Server from other database brands such as Oracle and IBM DB2. SQL Server is more than just a database. It's situated within a larger context that includes solutions for reporting, for integrating data from other systems, for business intelligence and analysis, and more. Beginning SQL Server 2012 Administration paints the big picture to help you understand SQL Server’s place in the grand scheme. Then you’ll move into the nuts and bolts of installing the product, learning the management tools at your disposal, creating your first database, and maintaining that database in an ongoing state of readiness. Beginning SQL Server 2012 Administration goes beyond teaching just the core competencies of effective database administration. You will also learn the latest trends in SQL Server such as virtualizing and consolidating of servers, and using SQL Server in the cloud as a service. Administrators experienced on other platforms will find insight from comparisons of key features between SQL Server and other platforms. Beginning SQL Server 2012 Administration lays an excellent foundation for success as an SQL Server database administrator. Provides the essentials of successful SQL Server administration Covers the latest trends such as virtualization and cloud computing Paints the big picture of Microsoft’s data platform

Beginning SQL Server 2008 Administration is essential for anyone wishing to learn about implementing and managing SQL Server 2008 database. From college students, to experienced database administrators from other platforms, to those already familiar with SQL Server and wanting to fill in some gaps of knowledge, this book will bring all readers up to speed on the enterprise platform Microsoft SQL Server 2008. Clearly describes relational database concepts Explains the SQL Server database engine and supporting tools Shows various database maintenance scenarios

SQL Server 2008 Query Performance Tuning Distilled presents a direct trouble–shooting methodology for identifying poorly-performing stored procedures and queries, isolating the causes of that poor performance, and fixing the underlying problems. Each chapter is dedicated to one of the top causes of poorly performing queries and shows methods for identifying and dealing with the problems in that chapter's domain. Emphasis is always put upon or placed upon practical methods that you can put to immediate use in your day–to–day work. SQL Server 2008 functionality, tips, and tricks are emphasized in each subject area. Emphasizes the practical. Does not bury readers in theory. Gives readers practical techniques to immediately apply in their daily work. Dedicates a chapter to each of the most common, performance–related problem areas.

Execution plans show you what's going on behind the scenes in SQL Server. They can provide you with a wealth of information on how your queries are being executed by SQL Server, including: - Which indexes are being used, and where no indexes are being used at all. - How the data is being retrieved, and joined, from the tables defi ned in your query. - How aggregations in GROUP BY queries are put together. - The anticipated load and the estimated cost that all these operations place upon the system. Grant Fritchey's book is the only in-depth look at how to improve your SQL query performance through careful design of execution plans. Sample chapters of the ebook have garnered stunning reviews, such as: "All I can say is WOW. This has to be the best reference I have ever seen on Execution Plans in SQL Server. My hats off to Grant Fritchey" Jonathan Kehayias.