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Using SQL Test Database Unit Testing with TeamCity Continuous Integration

by Dave Green | 02 February 2012 |

With database applications, the process of test and integration can be frustratingly slow because so much of it is based on manual processes. Everyone seems to agree that automation of the process provides the answer to accomodating shorter development cycles, but... Read more...

SQL Cop Review

by Grant Fritchey | 19 January 2012 |

6 comments |

Static code analysis is used a lot by application programmers, but there have been surprisingly few tools for SQL development that perform a function analogous to Resharper, dotTest, or CodeRush. Wouldn't it be great to have something that can indicate where there... Read more...

SQL Test: Seeing Red Change to Green

by Rob Sullivan | 13 December 2011 |

4 comments |

Now that we have some very good test frameworks for SQL Server, particularly tSQLt, all that was missing was a way of running your unit tests from within SQL Server Management Studio, and 'seeing red change to green'. Now the wait is over, with the arrival of SQL... Read more...

SSMS Tools Pack 2.0

by Grant Fritchey | 26 October 2011 |

7 comments |

If you work with SSMS, you’ll know how frustrating it can be when tasks you perform every day aren’t part of the core features. Mladen Prajdic certainly did, which is why he developed his free SSMS Tools Pack. Now on its second version, Grant Fritchey explains the... Read more...

Implementing Checkpoints in an SSIS Package

by Robert Sheldon | 10 October 2011 |

1 comment |

Like any other application, an SSIS package can fail. Once the problem has been resolved, you'll usually restart the package, but if you implement SSIS checkpoints, then you have another option: you can restart from the point of failure. Read more...

SQL# (SQLsharp): A Review

by Grant Fritchey | 13 September 2011 |

14 comments |

Only the brave, and foolhardy, write production CLR routines if you can get the functionality already-written and tested. Whether you’re a DBA or developer, there are plenty of times when a CLR routine will save a lot of time, and occasionally provide new functionality. Read more...

Agile Techniques for developing SQL Source Control

by Richard Morris | 03 August 2011 |

In this interview, Stephanie Herr, Development Manager for SQL Tools at Red Gate, talks about the recent SQL Source Control development project. As a certified Scrum Master, Stephanie was keen to use Agile techniques throughout the development process, and she... Read more...

Brad's Sure Guide to SQL Monitor 2.3

by Brad McGehee | 10 June 2011 |

In this article, Brad McGehee takes you through everything you need to know to get the very most out of SQL Monitor 2.3. Using practical examples, he talks you through configuring and reporting to show how to get the most out of the software. Read more...

Fast and Free; SQL Scripts Manager's Script Generator

by William Brewer | 10 June 2011 |

4 comments |

When William produced his second article on the free tool 'SQL Scripts Manager', revealing that it worked just as well with PowerShell and Python scripts as it does with TSQL, he thought that would be the end of the series. Oh no; in response to feedback, comes a... Read more...

Life After Retirement: Replacing Visual SourceSafe

by John O'Neill, SourceGear | 31 March 2011 |

8 comments |

Source control systems aren't exciting, and they don't come less exciting than Visual SourceSafe. Developers continue to use it but Microsoft will soon be retiring the product officially. What's the best strategy then? TFS? Not if you are looking for the most... Read more...

The unnecessary evil of the shared development database

by Troy Hunt | 23 March 2011 |

15 comments |

One of the greatest pain-points in developing a database-driven application happens when the application is in source control,but the database isn't. When the development database is shared, the pain increases, and it is not alleviated by source control alone. Troy... Read more...

Supporting Large Scale Team Development

by Grant Fritchey | 16 March 2011 |

3 comments |

With a large-scale development of a database application, the task of supporting a large number of development and test databases, keeping them up to date with different builds can soon become ridiculously complex and costly. Grant Fritchey demonstrates a novel... Read more...

Continuous Integration for SQL Server Databases

by Troy Hunt | 01 March 2011 |

5 comments |

When it comes to the subject of putting databases into source control, Troy Hunt is no shrinking violet. “Database source control is no longer negotiable”. In this article, published originally in his Blog, Troy explains how to do Continuous Integration from a... Read more...

SQL Scripts Manager with PowerShell

by William Brewer | 17 February 2011 |

2 comments |

SQL Scripts Manager was released as a Christmas present to Simple-Talk subscribers. William Brewer then wrote an appreciation of the tool. Now, he reveals a secret:: It also runs PowerShell scripts, and hence, SMO. He has the scripts to prove it, though hopefully,... Read more...

SQL Scripts Manager: An Appreciation

by William Brewer | 22 December 2010 |

5 comments |

SQL Scripts Manager is Simple-Talk's present to its readers. William Brewer was an enthusiastic bystander when Red Gate involved the 'Friends of Red-Gate' in helping them design and contribute towards SQL Scripts Manager over the past few months. Here he gives his... Read more...

Foolproof Atomic Versioning of Applications

by Troy Hunt | 08 December 2010 |

7 comments |

Bad things tend to happen to developments where the scripts for the database layer are left out of source control. Now that we have the means to do it properly, there are many reasons to make the database an equal partner in the development process. Troy discusses... Read more...

Brad's Sure Guide to SQL Storage Compress

by Brad McGehee | 07 December 2010 |

7 comments |

SQL Storage Compress does just that, and encrypts as well, allowing the files associated with a live database to take much less file-space, and securing them from unauthorised access. Why would this be useful, and is it really a free lunch? Brad puts it to the test... Read more...

SQL Source Control - Less Pain for Red Jungle

by Michael Francis | 26 November 2010 |

As a dedicated 'twitcher', Michael's eye is caught by a 'tweet' from Red Jungle. In this case, it was not an exotic species, but a user of SQL Source Control who was pleased with the way that it had saved them considerable time in the development process. Out of... Read more...

Snapper's Sweet Source Control

by Corrin Lakeland | 12 October 2010 |

1 comment |

Corrin Lakeland's busy role as a Data Manager includes supervising the work of all database development. Although he was already a keen user of SQL Compare, the arrival of SQL Source Control came as a godsend to him. He explains why. Read more...

Brad's Sure Guide to SQL HyperBac 5.0

by Brad McGehee | 16 September 2010 |

3 comments |

In the second of a series of in-depth software reviews, Brad investigates SQL Hyperbac 5.0. This has always been thechoice of the gurus for backup software, but Brad now blows away the mystery and explains how it works; for it uses a simple but very clever idea to... Read more...

SQL Source Control: The Development Story, Part II

by Andrew Clarke | 02 September 2010 |

When creating SQL Source Control, the team had to make decisions as to which source control systems the tool would support, and needed to accomodate a range of different development practices. It also had to avoid the potential problems from the fundemental... Read more...

Brad's Sure Guide to SQL Virtual Restore

by Brad McGehee | 05 August 2010 |

16 comments |

In the first of a series of in-depth software reviews, Brad investigates a newcomer, SQL Virtual Restore. What does it aim to do? How does it achieve it? Why is it safe to use? What are the benefits? Brad aims to answer a range of questions fairly and squarely. Read more...

SQL Source Control - no more database development without it

by John Rummell | 03 August 2010 |

John Rummell had a problem that is shared by most database developers. How can one use SQL Server Management Studio to put source control files into a source control system such as SubVersion? The processes he tried were all error-prone and awkward to use. And then... Read more...

Product Review: Schema Compare for Oracle

by Bruce Armstrong | 23 July 2010 |

3 comments |

One of the more important tasks in the process of rolling out incremental developments to a multi-server production system is to double-check that all of the planned modifications, and nothing else, have been deployed. An Oracle expert, Bruce Armstrong, comes... Read more...

SQL Source Control: The Development Story

by Andrew Clarke | 22 July 2010 |

Often, there is a huge difference between software being easy to use, and easy to develop. When your pilot users tell you "by week three of any development project you've thrown out anything that takes time or just gets in your way", then it is time to be serious... Read more...

Redesigning Red Gate's SQL Server Performance Monitoring and Alerting Tool

by Andrew Clarke | 08 July 2010 |

It isn't easy re-designing a successful tool, but it is fascinating work. Andrew Clarke talks about the challenges with Tom Randle and Adam Walker, the user experience designer and usability test coordinator, behind Red Gate’s SQL Server monitoring and alerting... Read more...

SQL Server Intellisense VS. Red Gate SQL Prompt

by Fabiano Amorim | 18 March 2010 |

12 comments |

Fabiano Amorim is hooked on today's Integrated Development Environments with built-in Intellisense, so he looked forward keenly to SQL Server 2008's native intellisense. He was disappointed at how it turned out, so turned instead to SQL Prompt. Fabiano explains... Read more...

Who Tests the Tester?

by Andrew Clarke | 19 February 2010 |

It is scarcely surprising that it can take up to five years to release a new version of SQL Server when one understands the extent of the effort required to test it. When enterprises depend on the reliability of an application or tool such as SQL Backup, the... Read more...

SQL Search- The Search and the Sequel

by Bob Cramblitt | 02 February 2010 |

It started out as an experiment to try to explore different ways of creating a software tool that people would want. It ended up as a tool that Red Gate is giving away to the SQL Server community in return for the contribution to the project of so many of Red Gate's... Read more...

SQL Server Partitioning without Enterprise Edition

by Barry King | 10 December 2009 |

8 comments |

Table partitioning is a valuable technique for managing very large database tables. It has always been possible with SQL Server, even if slightly cumbersome. SQL Server 7.0 introduced partitioning through partitioned views: These were combined with constraints to... Read more...

Downloading Software: the SQL Prompt 4 Experiment

by Simon Galbraith | 18 September 2009 |

17 comments |

What is the best way for a Software vendor to get people to try out their tools? Is dialogue with the vendor support team an essential part of the trial? Or should the download process just be made as simple as possible? Simon Galbraith, joint-CEO of Red Gate,... Read more...

SQL Backup 6: Wind of Change

by Shawn McGehee | 03 August 2009 |

5 comments |

One could be forgiven for thinking that there is little more you can do with any third-party Backup software than just ...er... backup databases. It takes a DBA who has to use such software every day in a real commercial setting to appreciate the full implications... Read more...

Doing Schema Comparisons with Production Servers

by John O'Shea | 24 July 2009 |

1 comment |

There are usually strict rules against accessing production servers that generally apply even to the developers of the systems involved. John O'Shea comes up with a very elegant and versatile solution with Powershell that uses SQL Compare's ability to take, and... Read more...

Continuous Integration with SQL Toolbelt

by Roger Hart | 23 July 2009 |

1 comment |

Sometimes, you wish you had a tool to run a software development process exactly the way you need it to run. You click your heels together and then realise that you already have the means to do it. By combining tools that can work in command-line mode, or can be... Read more...

William Durkin, Serial Red Gate Beta Tester

by Bob Cramblitt | 09 July 2009 |

2 comments |

An interview with William Durkin. When he has the time, William finds it useful to work as a pre-release software tester. His most recent testing work was for Red Gate’s SQL Backup 6.0, just released this month. Read more...

Using the Filtering API with the SQL Comparison SDK

by Simon Cooper | 17 April 2009 |

Red Gate's SQL Comparison SDK provides a means to compare and synchronize database schemas and data from within your own applications, with a greater degree of control than the command line interfaces. Filters, introduced in V8.0, provide an easy way of limiting... Read more...

How to Identify Blocking Problems with SQL Profiler

by Brad McGehee | 13 March 2009 |

9 comments |

Many SQL Server developers and DBAs have, in the past, had their own favourite diagnostic Stored Procedures for investigating blocking issues, but since SQL Server 2005, it is a good idea to use the SQL Profiler for all but the most complex problems. This has a... Read more...

Using Operations Manager Reports to Validate Your Uptime

by Thomas LaRock | 09 March 2009 |

3 comments |

Operations Manager has a number of reports to help you monitor the uptime of your applications, but reporting can be difficult to learn until you understand all the different options, the different parameters possible, and the way the Operations Manager health model... Read more...

Good Wow / Bad Wow - The SQL Compare Development Process

by Roger Hart | 13 January 2009 |

1 comment |

Roger points out the difference between a good 'Wow!' and a bad 'Wow!', when uttered by users trying to find features in your tools. You really should listen to both kinds when you're developing your software... Read more...

Operations Manager: A Big Tinker Set

by Thomas LaRock | 28 October 2008 |

7 comments |

To illustrate the great possibilities of Systems Center Operations Manager 2007, Thomas shows how to create a Custom Monitor for SQL Agent Jobs, and concludes that Operations Manager is nothing more than a big tinker set with all the pieces available to make your... Read more...

Using Powershell to Generate Table-Creation Scripts

by Robert Sheldon | 04 October 2008 |

12 comments |

For all of us who learn best by trying out examples, Bob Sheldon produces a PowerShell script file for SQL Server that can be used in either SQL Server 2005 or 2008, has error handling and prompts for user-input, is easily extended and, does something useful. He... Read more...

SQL Response: The dim sum interview

by Richard Morris | 30 September 2008 |

7 comments |

Richard Morris met David and Nigel of the SQL Response team, in a dim sum Restaurant in Cambridge. They had just finished a new Red-Gate product called SQL Response. Away from the office, they described the fourteen month software project that had been dominating... Read more...

SQL Response: Choosing Our Words Carefully

by Brian Harris | 17 September 2008 |

6 comments |

Historically, the profession of "technical author" emerged from the nascent aerospace and technology industries following the war, and brought with it a military-style rigidity of approach to standards and formality. But documenting (and putting words into) software... Read more...

SQL Response: Does Everything Need a Name?

by Brian Harris | 17 September 2008 |

1 comment |

Our overriding goal at Red Gate is to make our software more usable by "doing whatever works". That means to do whatever users are most likely to instinctively understand. As we analyse and consider every use of language in our applications, this sometimes leads me... Read more...

Ziggurats, Batman and the Town Crier

by Brian Harris | 19 August 2008 |

1 comment |

We asked Brian for a description of the Help System for the software he's working on and ends up quoting Blake's poetry, discussing town criers, Ziggurats, security guards and the BRAD signal. Read more...

SQL Toolbelt 2008: Predominantly an Engineering Task

by Richard Morris | 18 August 2008 |

1 comment |

The conversion of the Red-Gate tools to be compatible with SQL Server 2008 might not seem, on first impression, the most interesting or creative project ever undertaken by the company. However, the two people most involved in the project were adamant that it was a... Read more...

Installing SQL Backup on Multiple Servers using SQL Multi Script

by Jason Cook | 06 June 2008 |

3 comments |

Jason Cook shows you how you can use SQL Multi Script to install or upgrade your SQL Backup server components across the network in one go, rather than installing the components manually for each server. Read more...

A Prompt Use for XSLT

by John Spears | 02 June 2008 |

1 comment |

John Spears, of the SQL Prompt team at Red-Gate, Shows us how easy it is to use XSLT to transform an XML file such as the SQL Prompt snippets, to print it out, or share snippets across a development team. Read more...

Using SQL Data Generator with your Unit Tests

by Ben Hall | 15 April 2008 |

Ben Hall, one of the team who wrote SQL Data Generator, has gone on to develop ways of using it to provide test data for a wide variety of Unit Testing requirements. Whether you use NUnit, XUnit, MbUnit or MSTest, you can now lay your hands on as much data as you need. Read more...

Towards a Better Beta

by David Connell | 31 March 2008 |

6 comments |

David Connell describes how the team that developed Red-Gate's SQL Data Generator tool came to realise that database developers and DBAs already knew what they wanted for their test data. The team wanted to use the Beta version of the program to get a clear message... Read more...

The Database From Hell

by Arthur Fuller | 19 February 2008 |

19 comments |

In which Arthur Fuller comes to the aid of a friend who is doing his best to administer The Database From Hell, and manages to set up a reasonable test database with which to solve some of the headaches that only a 65 million row, 600 column, table can cause. Read more...

SQLTAC A workhorse for database chores

by William Brewer | 03 February 2008 |

2 comments |

In which William Brewer, our software reviewer, goes through the spectrum of emotions whilst using SQLTAC until deciding that, quirks and all, it is very useful. He ends up feeling that the world of Software Tools will be enriched by this maverick offering, one... Read more...

Audit Crosschecks

by William Brewer | 24 January 2008 |

In this short article, the second of a 2-part series, William suggests a solution, using SQL Data Compare 6.1, for providing an independent cross-check of database transactions to determine whether they have been retrospectively altered. Read more...

SQL Data Generator: A Case Study

by Steven Sanderson | 07 January 2008 |

4 comments |

Steve Sanderson wonders why he no longer fliches at the thought of the laborious task of stocking his test databases with lashings of convincing test data. Its because he's managed to get a preview copy of the Beta SQL Data Generator. Read more...

The SQLCMD workbench

by Robyn Page and Phil Factor | 07 January 2008 |

26 comments |

Robyn and Phil feel strongly that there are two striking features in SSMS that extends its usefulness dramatically. The first is the Template, and the second is the powerful functionality hidden by those strange words 'SQLCMD Mode'. Here they try to demonstrate how... Read more...

SQL Refactor and the Table Splitting Headache

by András Belokosztolszki | 31 August 2007 |

3 comments |

SQL Refactor is well-known as a way of formatting, and beautifying, SQL Code from within SSMS, but few users seem to be aware of the Table-Splitting wizard. This wizard is explained by another, András Belokosztolszki. Read more...

Discovering Security Uses for SQL Compare

by András Belokosztolszki | 06 August 2007 |

2 comments |

Much of the security of SQL Server is implemented as part of the database schema. This provides some bonus uses for SQL Compare. Andras, the architect of SQL Compare v 4, 5, and 6, tells how. Read more...

Custom reports in Management Studio, using the Performance Dashboard

by Greg Larsen | 18 July 2007 |

28 comments |

If you are using SSMS and SQL Server 2005 sp2 You've probably tried out the database reports that are available in the Performance Dashboard, and decided how useful they are, but did you know that you can create your own dashboard reports? Read more...

Using SQL Backup

by William Brewer | 20 June 2007 |

10 comments |

William Brewer describes the role of SQL Backup in an enterprise SQL Server maintenance plan. Read more...

The Simple-Talk SQL Prettifier

by Phil Factor | 22 May 2007 |

26 comments |

Tired of struggling through dull, monchrome SQL, C# and VB code in website blogs and forums? Then check out the all-new Simple-Talk code prettifier! Read more...

Database Documentation Using SQL Doc

by Robert Chipperfield | 26 January 2007 |

3 comments |

Robert Chipperfield is a member of the development team at Red Gate Software. In this article he describes the key features of Red Gate's new database documentation tool, SQL Doc, and provides insight into the development process and some of the design philosophies... Read more...

The Ultimate Excuse Database

by Phil Factor | 15 January 2007 |

3 comments |

Is your IT project in trouble? Do you need to create a smokescreen so that no-one can pin the blame on you? No problem! Marvel at Phil Factor's versatile use of T-SQL functions in creating the "ultimate excuse database" and then start generating your excuses... Read more...

A Database Development Model Using SQL Compare

by Richard Mitchell | 19 December 2006 |

3 comments |

Richard Mitchell and Steven Davidson describe how they used Red Gate's database schema-comparison tool, SQL Compare, to develop the latest version of red-gate.com Read more...

Towards the Self-Documenting SQL Server Database

by William Brewer | 01 December 2006 |

7 comments |

William Brewer investigates an unsung hero in SQL Server, extended properties, and shows how to use them to create self-documenting SQL Server databases. Read more...

Faster Database Development with SQL Refactor

by András Belokosztolszki | 07 November 2006 |

20 comments |

Insights into SQL Refactor, a groundbreaking refactoring tool for SQL Server databases, from its architect and lead developer, András Belokosztolszki. Read more...

SQL Bundle 5: the developer's perspective

by Tony Davis | 17 May 2006 |

2 comments |

Last month saw the release of the SQL Bundle 5. Here, some key members of the Red Gate development team offer insight into some of the major new features, and the technical challenges they faced in implementing them. Read more...

SQL database control and deployment

by Default Administrator | 16 August 2005 |

2 comments |

SQL Bundle Developer Edition helps building company customize installation and upgrades of key SQL databases. Read more...

Attack of the predatory sales force

by Simon Galbraith | 15 July 2005 |

Low-cost software is almost always a better solution, but if you must purchase the high-cost stuff, don’t get caught with blood in the water. Read more...

Trends in the SQL Server market

by Simon Galbraith | 17 May 2005 |

2 comments |

Brad McGehee interviews Red Gate’s marketing director about his thoughts and views on major trends in the SQL Server market. Read more...

Return on investment

by Phil Basham | 13 April 2004 |

2 comments |

How to justify the purchase of a new software development tool. You might believe the benefits are obvious, but others can easily view such a purchase as little short of indulgence. Read more...

Take emotion out of software purchasing decisions

by Simon Galbraith | 13 October 2003 | Not rated yet

Do you find indecision each time a purchase decision needs to be made, a requirements analysis can help you provide your boss with information to choose the right software development product. Read more...

An automated solution for migrating database structures

by Simon Galbraith | 11 April 2003 |

Migrating database changes from the development database to the testing, staging, and live databases poses plenty of challenges. Learn why using an automated tool is the best way to deal with these challenges. Read more...