Long Time Coming

With less than a week before the Richmond SQLSaturday event, I am finally getting this post done – maybe.

This is not just a one day event for me. No no! I will be presenting for three consecutive days on many things SQL Server related. The Virginia Tour 2016 really is more of a Richmond Tour 2016 (March 16-19) with all three days being presentations in the Richmond area.

The tour starts off with a visit to the Richmond User Group. You can find details on the evening and event on their website – here.

Here is a quick recap of the NSFW (Naked Sql: Fundamentals to Wisdom) session:

Ever feel like there are just too many layers with SQL Server? You peel off a layer and behold there is yet another layer. SQL Server is rather complex. The complexities can be rather frustrating from time to time.

Join this NSFW (not safe for whining) session as we strip SQL down to the bare bones. I will help you undress the complexities of a few of the basic SQL Server concepts. These concepts will include locks, principals, query directives and deadlocks.

In this session I will disrobe misunderstandings related to the aforementioned topics. I will show the different types of principals in SQL Server. I will also show various scenarios involving locks and deadlocks along with some of their effects with and without query directives. The goal is to better understand these topics and to hopefully stop using and perpetuating common mis-uses of terminology and common misconceptions about the technology.

This should be a light-hearted and fun session with a bit of NSFW learning. Just hope the censors don’t get to the slide deck first!

After the user group presentation to kick off the week, there will be an all-day encore on Friday. Friday is officially a part of the SQLSaturday event. You are welcome to come and participate in my all day workshop – Monitoring SQL Server with Extended Events. There is an event page with details for registering that you can visit – here!

Here is some of what I will be covering in day 2 of this Richmond tour:

Every good enterprising DBA has the prime directive of monitoring the SQL Servers under his/her jurisdiction. The last thing a DBA wants to hear is that there is a problem with a database under his/her purview from an end-user.

SQL Server has progressed over time to give better and better information to the DBA.  Much of this information can be used in a home grown solution to monitor SQL Server. With the constant increase in surface area from Extended Events, the power to build a home grown solution becomes more and more feasible while being limited only by the imagination of the enterprising DBA (or developer or data professional). This full day workshop will introduce you to an Extended Events based solution to achieve that home-grown monitoring goal.

This full day session on Extended Events will help prepare you to put this tool to immediate use as you walk back to your daily duties.  This workshop will teach you about Extended Events starting with the basics and moving through how to create XE sessions that will get the right data for you, while doing so with minimal impact.

You will be exposed to advanced troubleshooting techniques as we work through complex issues that are made easier through the use of XE.  Take advantage of this opportunity to dive into the world of Extended Events and learn how you can make best use of this tool in your SQL 2008+ environment.

This will be a fun day if for nothing else than it is about Extended Events and how to glean great information from your SQL Servers. That and we will keep it light. Just remember, the more you are involved in the workshop the better it will be!

After a brief break to grab some zzzz’s, I will be wrapping up this tour with the grand finale – SQL Saturday 486!!

Not only will I be presenting at this event, I have also volunteered.

I will have a short introductory style presentation about Extended Events. I intend to show a little profiler and a little Extended Events. As usual, I intend to keep the session light, fun and engaging. Here is a little more info on that session:

Extended Events were introduced in SQL Server 2008. With SQL 2014, we have seen a significant upgrade to this feature. Join me for a little adventure into the realm of extended events. We will discuss how to use extended events to aid in performance tuning and in day to day administration. We will also explore some background and the architecture of extended events. This is a fast paced session and will be a lot of fun. Attendees will be able to take back several sample XE sessions to help troubleshoot different issues and get to more intimately know their data/environment.

Then to cap the day, I will be helping to assist with the Wheel of Doom.

The name of the session sounds much worse than it really is. The premise is simple. Speakers and attendees are invited to submit a lightening talk style session with slide deck. Then attendees of the session can volunteer to spin the wheel and present whichever session pops up.

This session is to help people get over the nerve of presenting. It will be very light-hearted and entertaining. No judgement, no shaming, just have fun with it!