I have to admit. I am a little surprised at all the different opinions that were shared during the t-SQL Tuesday #30 from a couple weeks ago. Let me tell you why…

First I have to admit there are times when I look at a situation and I say to myself, what is the problem here. The solution appears to be so obvious to me that there can only be one reason that it is not in place, and that is because no one cares enough to make sure it happens. So how does this relate? The question I asked was do we need some sort of ethics code in our industry. To me the answer appeared to be so obvious that I was really surprised that we did not have one.

I have discussed the topic many times before with a number of people, there have even been some really good attempts as having a code drawn up. But I think for the most part most of the people that replied to the question either in the thread of this discussion, in person or on Twitter that if someone were to try to do this, it sure as heck would not be an easy thing to do. There were discussion on how to enforce, and how a small group of people could even determine a code of ethics for the whole industry. It was even mentioned what one person may feel as ethical another may not.

It sounds like of those people who did oppose it, were not doing so because they were not ethical, but because they were not sure how it could be managed or enforced. But a common theme that I did hear and see was the need for everyone to be ethical. Enough of hearing me blab about it, here is what the link backs have said.

SSWUG in a newsletter a while back discussing what some of the options are.

Mike Donnelly – I love this quote…. “If you need an ethics class or a signed code of ethics to help shape your behavior it is probably not going to change how you behave”

Rebecca Mitchell – A list of some of the Ethical issues she has had to work on.

Jonathan Gardner – A look at some cross over with the PMI code of Ethics.

Rob Farley – I like his companies view on this. “do the right thing by the other parties involved, even if it costs us money”.

Robert Pearl – The first post that had me looking at the question of what is considered ethical.

Tamera Michelle Clark – Your Company asks you to do something you consider un-ethical but they have no issue with it? This happened to me (a long time ago), and I understand all too well.

Jason Strate – Some really good arguments as to why we should not look at and industry wide ethics statement. A great post that was very well thought out, but now he is off performance tuning.

Airborne Geek – A different look at the same question.

So there you have it, I have talked to a few people and I even saw a couple links but I did not catch the link back so I cannot remember where they were. I can tell you that this ended up with some really deep discussions that took me in directions I did not think I would go. Have I changed my mind? Yeah I guess you could say that I did. For a long time I would have said yes I think we need an industry standard for ethics, but as I read through the opinions and had discussions I think I am going to stick to this idea.

I will have my ethics or if you will a set of standards that I will choose to live up to. I am sure you have yours as well. Thank you to everyone who participated.

I was in the first few months of my second database administrator job when the CTO told me that I needed to give the CFO direct table access into the database that I had designed.  Not 3 months later we were having a company meeting so the executive staff could explain to the company that the CFO had stolen our client list and was out luring our customers away.  Sound like a security issue? Not the way that I see it.

I had an ethics issue on my hands.   From that day in 1997 I have always had my eye out for ethical issues, and more importantly looking for ways we can police ourselves.  It does not take long for a new database professional to see that when you have access to data that there is going to be sensitive data in there somewhere.  The obvious ones are the HR databases, or the finical databases that reside on our SQL Servers.  But there are so many more areas that we need to look before we can get a good handle on how to solve these ethical dilemmas. Take a look at something that I posted a while back that threatened the security of the United States.  I cannot imagine that it would take long for an ethical person to say, “Really?”

A few months ago I had to get a security clearance, and pass the Security + certification so I could do a short contract with the Air Force.  As I was going over study material in a book I was supplied, I ran across a couple of short notes about ethics.  I followed a link or two and I ended up here.  When I first started to look at the list of ethics that they had listed, I was really impressed.  As I got deeper into what they were saying I became a bit concerned, however. The company that produced this is a corporation, not an organization that has the best interests for the industry as a primary goal.  I don’t believe there is anything wrong with being a for-profit, I know I work for one, and well, as an individual I am for-profit.  My issues with the code is the code itself appears to be pointed and making the company a profit, at least it does to me.  If that is the reason they sponsored the Code of Ethics, then well they violate their own ethics when they say:

“I will not advance private interests at the expense of end users, colleagues, or my employer“.

 So here is where that leaves us:

 For this month’s t-sql Tuesday question I wanted to highlight the need for Ethics in our industry.  Don’t consumers and business owners have to trust someone at some time with their data?  This month, take time to participate by talking about DBA ethics.  I really hope to see someone address topics such as:

          Should we have an ethics statement?

         Have ethics issues impacted you? What did you do about it?

         Security Audits: how do you police what you and others are doing in the database?

         Does a Code of Ethics mean anything to anyone? How do we as a community enforce a Code of Ethics?

         Do you have an issue with this Code of Ethics?

         What do you believe our Code of Ethics should say if we the SQL Server Community have one? 

Have fun, but take the time to dig deep and do some real soul searching.  I know with large number of really smart professionals that we have in our community we can think of something.  I will do up a summary once I have returned from my trip that week, but to be honest I hope this discussion goes on long after May 8^th.

As with each of the T-SQL installments I ask that you follow some basic rules.

Rules

         Your post must be published between 00:00 GMT Tuesday May 7th, 2011, and 00:00 GMT Wednesday May 8th, 2011

         Your post must contain the T-SQL Tuesday logo from above and the image should link back to this blog post.

         Trackbacks should work, but if you don’t see one please link to your post in the comments section below so everyone can see your work

Optional, but highly encouraged…

         Include a reference to T-SQL Tuesday in the title of your post

         Tweet about your post using the hash tag #TSQL2sDay

         Consider hosting T-SQL Tuesday yourself. Adam Machanic keeps the list.

I am a bit late this month for the April #Meme15 question. But after I started thinking about it and looking at the question, I found this to be useful for me at least so I thought I would go ahead and post it.

See there are a few really good #meme threads this month I think the question asked by Jason Strate (B|T), points to the other one called T-SQL Tuesdays that normally post around the second Tuesday of the month. The #meme15 was started and is hosted by Jason Strate and for the most part is related to the skills that a Database Professional needs that are not just technical. If you want to see this month’s question just click on the #meme15 logo, the question for this month was:

“What are ten blogs that you think other SQL Server professionals should be following but might not be?“

So, #meme15 I would like to introduce you to T-SQL Tuesday. Now granted I know that you understand each other for the most part, and to be honest I am not sure but you may have even met in the past. However, I wanted to point out that when I have a little extra time, and I am looking at the different blogs that are out there I came to the conclusion that there are just way to many really good ones to get the list down to just 10. So if I were talking to a new database Professional, and I was trying to point them in the direction of blogs that they must follow, I would have them start by following a T-SQL Tuesday topic that they really enjoyed. By the way, I would make sure that I recommend that Database Professionals follow #meme15 as well. I think there are a lot of Soft Skills here that are not taught anywhere else.

T-SQL Tuesday was started by Adam Machanic (B|T) and has a great participation ratio. The premise of T-SQL Tuesday that I like so much is the fact that it is hosted by someone different almost each month. This means that you get questions from a lot of different viewpoints. Some are from development, some from administrators. I have seen some BI questions and even a good second chance topic. I have to be honest and tell you that next month I am hosting T-SQL Tuesday and I have a question for the community that I am really passionate about. So I hope you have the opportunity to participate, and if you are not a blogger than I hope we have a lot of participation and this can bring a lot of information to you.

So, where does that leave us? Well one thing that I did when I learned I get to host a T-SQL Tuesday was to go out and find out all the past questions that have been asked, I didn’t want to ask a question that had already been asked. Then as I was looking at the past questions I thought, hey… I should jot these down; put them up on the blog.

What are the ten blogs I think you should follow; I think you should start here. I know there is a lot more than 10. But as you follow the links you will find the people that you like, and the topics that you like to read about. You can develop your own set of favorites and then you will be well on your way. I hope to see you come back in a couple weeks to see the next T-SQL Questions and answers. And if you want to see the question, well I hope to have it posted a week from today.

I have been placed on call for years, and there have been times where there is a declared on-call list, and then there are times when there was no such list.  But either way I have always been on-call (if something is wrong with one of my databases, I am there.  It’s my job, my career choice and my responsibility).  I actually like having an on-call list, because this is a defined set of time that I am not the first line of defense for looking at error messages.  Many people look at an on-call list and think “look at all this time I am having to work, change my plans, have my life impacted”.  I look at a defined on-call schedule as a, wow I only have to be working outside normal hours as a first level trouble shooting on these days.  Now I have all this time to go do whatever it is I want.  If there was no defined on-call schedule I would have to look at every single message and determine if it was a database issue, then I would have to determine what the action is.  If it is not a database issue I would just have to wonder if the person responsible for that area is going to look at whatever the problem was.    In other words, I like a clear definition of when I am the guy who is watching out for what may be threating, and a clear definition of when I can go camping in some remote location.

On a side note…

Maybe this is an old Marine thing coming out in my personality.  I want to know when I sleep someone has got my back,  so I will make sure when it is my time I will make sure others feel that same comfort.  I have been spending a lot of time lately trying to determine why I have certain opinions and where I developed them.

Really what I want to accomplish with this post is a fact finding mission of sorts. See, I have spent so many years on call, and the responsibilities of what I do while I am on-call has been pretty simple.  When I have been on-call the reasonability has always been that I will be the person who is the first line of defense for pages, alerts, and phone calls.  The more I think about this I don’t think that I am making the best use of my time.  Sure I may fix simple issues, or make sure that the servers are up and running.  But what can I, or what should I be doing to make this time that I am already spending on-call used to its fullest potential?  

I really am curious what others are being asked to do when they are on-call.  If you have time, please leave a comment and let me know, even if it is something that I have mentioned.

I have had some very simple requirements before. For example, at one time I was asked to make sure that I was checking my email twice a day, but this was well before the smart phones, and email following you around everywhere you go.  Now I just check email when my phone thing plays a random assortment of noises.  I know this is shameful to admit, but I really do still carry a pager like Steve Jones (T|B) has pictured on his blog this week (In all fairness, some of the places I go when I am not working can be a little out of cell area.  And, well, nothing will wake me like the screaming buzz from this pager).   

Something new I am going to try next week when I start the on-call shift for a week is keeping a log.  I am going to keep track of each time someone calls, or I get a page.  My goal with this is to make sure that I am completing issues and communicating the completion of these issues to the source.  So if I get a call from employee xyz that says they cannot search something in the database, I want to know when they called, who called, what I did, and when I let them know the issue was fixed.  The other thing that I hope to accomplish with this log is having a better timeline when it comes to doing a post mortem.  Sure, when I am troubleshooting something I keep notes and copies of the logs, but what tells me when an issue was reported, or when the “all clear” was given? 

I have learned over the last few years that the impression is so important, and in some cases the impression is more important than the facts.   Some people have just done a really good job at being able to explain what a technical problem is to non-technical people, but there are some cases when it does not matter that the whole server was covered in water from the custodian in the datacenter.  The customer only knew that the database was down.  Who would have guessed that water could short out one of those server things? 

So really I am curious as to what I am missing, even if it is not critical, just items that may make life easier.

When I came into the industry a number of years ago, I stumbled across some people that had the MVP title, but I had no idea what it was.  What I did know was that there were very few of them but I saw a lot of information from them.  I started asking questions, reading and watching.  I found quickly that like so many others I had some misconceptions as to what an MVP is.  I had talked to other non-MVP DBAs I know and you would be surprised at some of the beliefs that are out there.  This year on April 1^st I received my 4^th MVP Award, and I am just as honored today as I was when I first received the award. I could try telling you what the Award means to me, but I cannot find the words strong enough to explain it.   I could tell you how when I walk into the Mall teenaged girls run in my direction screaming my name like I was the lead singer of some boy band, but that would be a lie as well.  I could tell you how I walk down the hall at the PASS Summit and people part just so that we can walk down the path over to the special MVP Sitting area, but that is not close to accurate either.

So while I am on the mission of explaining to people what the MVP Award is, I figured I should tell you what it is not.

A Certification – The MVP Award is just that.  It’s an Award, think of it as a trophy, a thank-you that, depending on how you feel about it, sits right next to your bowling trophy.  For me the award sits high up on the shelf, higher than all others.  Now that is just me as I was raised with the mentality that the thing which would make me a man is the work I do.  For the record, I think viewing an MVP as a certifcation is the wrong mental attitude and could not be more far from the truth.  You don’t go take a test; you don’t get a pass/fail grade. 

We are experts in everything – I know this is hard to believe, and I think I understand why.  So many people are so good at this technology thing that they understand many aspects of it.  I can tell you that everyone has gaps.  I know nothing about Exchange; I have a hard time setting up my smart phone to check my email.  It just makes me mad and makes me want to toss it out the window of my truck.

Give you super human powers – Ok, so I hate to admit this, really I do…  But… this is true.  I no longer have hair growing out of my ears. When the award was handed to me during my black tie event,  I ripped open the envelope just to find out what my super human MVP power was.  I was hoping for the “grow the hair on your head”, but it looks like I had to sacrifice even the average ability to do that, so it could be awarded to others.  Maybe next year I can put in a request to change it. 

A free pass to act like a jerk- We just cannot do that. I think people who behave poorly are going to remove themselves from the perspective pool of renewals of the award.  Inherently, the award is given to people who help others learn the technology.  If all a MVP is going to do is be a jerk then it goes against the overall idea of helping people.  With that being said, as an MVP I do agree to an act like an MVP type of an agreement. This agreement is not a hush document; it is a way for Microsoft to say that you are not behaving in a manner that represents Microsoft and MCPs.  So if you have been waiting for your MVP award just so you can take a baseball bat to the rack of servers in the Datacenter then you need to skip the MVP and just go do what ya got to do.

The planning committee for the next version of SQL Server – I am sure this is the biggest surprise of this post.  We do not get to decide on what features are going into what product.  I am ready to shock you even more…  Microsoft is a company, and they are driven by offering a great product to companies.  Companies have needs, like being able to say they have redundant servers, and that their databases will be online 24 x 7 x 365.  The needs of the market have the biggest impact on a product.  If Microsoft does not provide what a business needs, then guess what? Someone else will.  With that being said, on occasion we offer input to Microsoft from what business are telling us they need. 

An MVP is all about the Forums – I know MVPs who go to the Forums rarely, but they sit in their basements working on books or they are doing newsletters or teaching classes organizing conferences.   There are many ways that MVPs contribute.  It is not a magic number of questions that need to be answered.  It is not who speaks at 40% of the SQL Saturday events.  It is all taken into consideration as far as I know.  

What is the MVP Award?

To me it is all about Microsoft saying “Thank You”.  They told me that they are awarding me with an honorable title that many before me have held and many after me will, too.  MVPs are people helping people.  If I did not have the award, would I stop helping people? No.  Did I want the MVP?  Yes. Do I know 100% who the MVPs are in the future; do we talk about that in our closed door club meetings? Nope.  But I do know what Microsoft has recognized in the past.  I watch enough of what’s going on with SQL Server, and I see who are well on their way to the MVP Award.  If our community is any sign of success then there is no limit.  Congrats to all the new MVPs and I look forward to the future.

Not a lot of time this week (working on taking the SQL Server 2012 certification exams), but I wanted to make sure this made it on the blog. Have you signed up for SQL Rally yet? TJay Belt and I are working on a pre-con together and we are having fun putting it together. TJay  (T|B) and I were talking about the interview question that they had presented us, and as we were going around about ideas on a Billboard I was thinking about this poster that you see attached. A quick discussion with my good friend Tom Roush and the poster became reality.

The other piece of news I have this week has to do with the Microsoft MVP Award. This is an award that one needs to earn each year. So each year on April 1^st, I sit around and worry if I will receive another award, yesterday I found out that I get to put my worries aside for one more year. Each time the award is handed out I spend some time looking to see who the new award winners. This April it looks like Jes Borland (T|B) received her first award. Of the large number of people I have met over the years working with SQL Server, Jes is one of those that left a long lasting impression. She is an active runner, and well, if you get a chance to meet her, be careful… she has a lot of energy. The other new MVP that I am aware of is Kendra Little (T|B). Both Jes and Kendra are great resources. If I missed any other new MVP’s I am so sorry, it is a little difficult to keep up with twitter sometimes and that is where I get the announcements from. Congrats to all the renewed MVP’s and all the new MVP’s.

Have you ever considered attending a pre-conference session? Do you know what you are going to get or know what one is? A Pre-Conference (pre-con) session is a deep dive session that lasts anywhere from a few hours to a whole day. Traditionally when I am talking to people about conferences I share with them that out of a 60 minutes session they should be looking for an introduction to a topic. Your goal should be to pick out keywords on a topic that you are going to want to research a bit more. In my 60 minute sessions I try to cover those keywords and some of the benefits or limitations to a topic.

In a Pre-Conference I think you should expect a much broader topic. Where in a 60 minute session you should expect to learn some of the in’s and out’s of “Always-On” or Database Mirroring. But in a Pre Con session you should not only learn about “Always-On”, but you may see it in a demo. You should have a much better understanding of a topic and be ready to put it into place once you return to the office.

At the SQL Rally TJay Belt (T|B) and I are going to be doing a pre-con that I would consider to be a little different. Rather than spending a lot of time talking really deep about technical topics in a how-to type session we are going to be trying to cross you over into the arena of Soft Skills. An example of what we are trying to accomplish can be found when reviewing the subject of backups. A technical session on backups will teach you all about the Backup Statement, what it means to truncate the transaction log and how to backup file groups. If you were to compare that to the session TJay and I are doing we would be talking about when and why you should choose a backup strategy, I would tell you all about my opinion that if you are responsible for a SQL Server and you cannot restore it, how you should lose your job. Now granted we are not going to spend a lot of time in Backups and Restores, but during our pre-con session we are going to make sure that approach that topic, then we will see where the questions take us. Still curios as to what you are going to learn?

This Pre-Con is designed to show you the many things that we have to do as DBA that are critical in our day to day lives as a DBA’s. Between TJay and I, I believe we have over 30 years’ experience doing this. Here is a list of some of the things that you can expect from the How to be a DBA – A Utility Database (click on the image for a link to the abstract to the session) Pre-Con:

• Checklists – These are such a critical part of life as a DBA. Did your databases backup, did they re-index, what about disk space? There is no way that we can compile a complete list of all the items that you should be checking on, however TJay is going to give you a really deep look into what you should be checking on and when. You should come out of this with a list of things that you want to check on your server, and when you should check on them.
• Utility Database – I am going to build off the checklist session that TJay is already going to have you thinking about. We are going to look at how to automate many of these and how you can build historical reports. This is going to be a very fast paced hour and a half, but don’t worry about keeping up. Scripts will be provided so remember to bring your thumb drives. If you have seen me do this session before, I can promise you that this is all new, the database that supports it remains the same but the data we are getting is all new.
• Data File Sizes – TJay is going to show you why you cannot just look at the amount of free space on your server and watch that to determine what your needs are for the future. You can track this, you can report on this information and you can forecast what your needs are going to be.
• Disaster Recovery Options – One of the most common questions that I see on the forums is all about what the best Disaster Recovery Plan is. I am not sure there is a more appropriate place for the “It Depends” answer. After looking at many options on how best to transfer information about this topic, I ended up determining that the best way to look at the answers here is to look at the questions. We will take a case study style look at to what is best for each company based on their requirements. As a group we will talk about these options, so if you are planning to take a little nap after lunch, I am sorry but I plan on keeping you very engaged with this discussion.
• Release Management – One of the most overlooked areas when it comes to databases in my opinion, what should you have before you make a change, and what is the best way of protecting yourself? TJay has got you covered for these questions.
• Documentation – TJay is going to finish up the day with a look at what documents you need to have, how to document your systems and what they should look like. This session changes on a regular basis and is a popular session whenever TJay teaches it. Learn from an experienced DBA on what shape your supporting documents should be in.

I hope you have a good understanding that this is going to be an intense session on how to be a DBA. I am sure that there will be a ton of SWAG that we will have to give away, in addition TJay likes to toss out candy before I consume it all. Hope to see you there and we promise we will do everything in our power to make sure that when you return to work on Monday, that you will have a few more items in your tool belt that will make you the office hero.

Why should you go to SQL Rally, SQLSaturday, SQLConnections, 24 hours of SQL PASS or any other SQL event? Here is why I go and will continue to go…

I have been trying to get my arms around the whole idea of what SQL Family means to me. If you search around you will see a number of posts about this topic, and it may sound a bit mushy, a little bit of reaching out and trying to understand your sensitive side. Since the whole topic of #SQL Family has started I have been walking around looking for specific examples of why I am so connected here. Now that we are coming up on the SQL Rally, I can clearly see a path for anyone to get involved with the SQL Family. You have seen these lists before, but I hope this is the first one like this:

• There is the technical aspect. The core for all of us being part of the community. If I have a question on how SQL Server works, there are so many places I can go where the #SQL Family will help me out.
• The community instructors are top notch. If there is something you don’t understand, email a speaker, and email a family member.

Now I am sure that you have seen many notes about the pre-mentioned points. But really there is only one way that I feel I can express what the #SQLFamily means.

• A couple years ago, I meet a young man who collected licenses plates. He is a great kid and I thought maybe someone on twitter related to SQL Server would bring me a plate from a different state for him. I sent one tweet that is all. All I asked for is if someone had an extra licenses plate. I have now collected more than 50 plates from people who were kind enough to bring them to me. I have plates from so many places that I am lost on what we still need. I cannot tell you how touched I am or how touched this young man is. This is my #SQLFamily.
• Just a month or so ago I was at an event, where someone had flown into town from outside the country. One night as a group he was walking back after some long hours of studying (ok maybe that is not the complete truth, but it doesn’t matter). Someone lifted his wallet out of his back, Credit Cards, Cash, ID’s all gone and I want to say he was close to 10k miles from home. If it were me I would have just messed my pants. But, his friends came together without him having to even ask. His room bill was paid, he had cash for the flight home, and people covered his meals. Granted he paid it all back when he got home, but this event did not ruin the event. He kept going strong.
• At the same event where a friend’s wallet was stolen, I found myself at a local watering hole. It was after a dinner type of a deal. I was standing there with a new friend of mine from Sweden, and his wife. We were just stopping by to kick back a drink and then we were headed back to the hotels. I am not sure what the heck happened, but we are listening to the SQL Karaoke. And a queen song came on. A couple guys that I am not sure who I remember were singing, and before you know it the whole place erupted with everyone singing so loud to the point where the floor was shaking. I am not sure I have seen much like that before. It was an awesome group of friends, having one hell of a time.

I could tell you a story of a dear friend who watched over my brother while his wife had brain surgery and he was alone. I could tell you all about how all of my writing has improved because a member of the community cared enough to take time to help edit my entries before I post them, I could tell you about a class I was teaching one day in Tucson when I looked up and one of my mentors came out of nowhere and was sitting in the back row. There are so many stories that I could tell you. I have not even scratched the surface, I have even more stories of how people have helped me technically over the last 15 years. It all comes down to this.

When I go to events like SQL Rally or the PASS Summit even the SQL Saturdays that I can attend, I am not seeing old friends. I am not meeting new friends. I am going to a #SQLFamilyReunion. Each time I meet new cousins, brothers and sisters. But these are the best kind, we learn from each other, we share with each other and we have a great time doing it. So while you evaluate if you want to go to the next event and maybe you are a little worried about meeting all these new people. I urge you to go. You will learn how others overcome obstacles, you will learn the new features, and you will take so many new family members home with you that the next time you are challenged with a something that you just cannot figure out. Technical or not technical, you can rely on your family.

PS.

I swear that as I site and write this post. I got this email. This is exactly why I consider this heading to an event or attending an online event to be critical. This is the best community around bar-none.

“Every so often I take a moment and just thank people that I look up to in the industry. People like you; Brent Ozar, Steve Jones, Kevin Kline, John Sterret, etc. have made my job so interesting and fun. I enjoy learning from you guys and just wanted to make sure I always show my appreciation to you all. A lot of hours go into what you all do and at times I know it can be taken for granted. I know you in particular have a lot of speaking engagements and whatnot. What you are doing has helped people like me further my career. Have a good one man!”

So, do you understand this whole #meme15 thing?  If not, here is the once over.  It’s a way for people to post entries on our blogs that all have one subject matter.  Most of the time it is a question, and we are posting our answers.  Other times is it just a group of people posting opinions about one topic or another.  Fellow SQL Server MVP Jason Strate (B|T) is the host of #meme15, and if I understand it correctly, most of the topics free us from the confines of the technical side of SQL Server and ask us to share opinions on other relevant topics.  This month’s question is all about social networking and how we use Facebook to help us balance our life.  I have been tossing this question around in my mind for a number of days.  To be honest I have been pretty much absent from Facebook for the last few months.

 When I started to use Facebook I really didn’t have any goals, I didn’t even think it was going to be around as long as it has been.  I am not sure why I joined it, but at first I was really glad I did.  I found it to be a great place to find old school mates and keep in touch with a number of professional friends.  Within a short period of time I was playing the random assortment of stupid games and entertaining myself. So my “friends” were really grouped into 4 categories:

• People I talk SQL Server stuff
• People I went to school with
• Family
• People that I meet while playing games

I never thought to organize my friends list, and I never thought of trying to keep my personal life separate from my professional life.  But as I have started to think about it, I am not sure I have much of a personal life.  I would say that 95% of my friends are people that I know from SQL Server activities.  Sure I have a couple people that I know from school that mean a lot to me, but SQL Server is where I spend so much of my time.  So much to the point where the more I think about it I think that my #SQLFamily is where my personal life is.  So, how do I balance?

Well if you look at my Facebook page, it should not take you long to see that my passion is all about Camping and SQL Server.  My closest friends are on the campground, to the point they are my family.  My balance comes from spending the time in my camper and at my second home.  Here before too long it will be my first home. 

I do find myself networking so much more at the events that I attend and I spend about 20 minutes a day on Twitter.  So to answer the question, I am not sure I use Facebook at all for balance.  If I want to network, I use LinkedIn; if I want to socialize I use in person events.  Twitter is used to keep up with most of my friends around the county. 

This post however, is to really lead into my next one. I have been debating talking about my #SQLFamily for months, and I think I have a few examples as to why I can now share how much it means to me.  

About a week or so ago I had posted a few thoughts on database mirroring in SQL Server and some of the considerations that should be reviewed before relying on it to be your failover solution. I love the features in mirroring and as I write this I am looking at how I can start using the new features in SQL Server 2012. However, as much as I would like to upgrade today, I need to run a full round of testing with the developers I work with to make sure everyone understands the behavior. The key part to any backup or HA/DR plan all lies in the testing and the planning that you do. However, if you do a bunch of planning without any testing, I am afraid you are likely to run into some issues. This is why I have created this post. There have been a few things that I have seen which are often missed with database mirroring.

Linked Servers

Problem – Over the years a bit of code has been developed to support Linked Servers. If you have a server named Server A and one of the stored procedures in one of the databases on that server link to a database on another server (Server B), you may run into an issue during a failover. Linked server information is a server level configuration, not database level, so the information about the linked server is not kept in any of the individual user databases.

Solution – This may sound like an over simple solution, but it is what it is. Make sure that you have all your user database external dependencies configured on both the principal and the mirror. The complexity increases when you have links referring to the mirrored solution.

External Dependencies

Problem – In like fashion to the linked servers, there are many external SQL Server items that may be relying on the name of the server to connect. When the mirror takes over from the principal, the server that was the principal is no longer hosting the database in an online mode. Even if there is a user database on the same server as the database that was failed over. These links/connection do not just change. This could include many items such as SSIS packages, SQL Mail and cross database queries.

Solution – The deeper we look at the considerations the easier I find it is to recommend SQL Server 2012. There are a number of things that you can do when it comes to making adjustments to the external dependencies you can create/configure these items on both servers and in turn enable or disable them depending on where a database is live at the time. Many of these issues are being addressed SQL Server 2012 with Contained Databases, Partially Contained Databases and Always On Availability Groups.

No matter the solution, that you choose to use the key to a successful DR solution is testing. I am not sure I can think of any critical process outside the technology that is not tested and then re-tested. This is why the military spends countless hours training and the local fire departments do disaster drills. The time to learn that your disaster plan is week in an area is not when the disaster happens.

I am really curious as to what you considerations you may have seen that I have not noted. Send me an email and I can add yours to this list.