You know how it feels like to stare at this for a very long time (I ended up having to wear eyeglasses because of it.) Better yet, try it. Just for 5 minutes straight without blinking. But staring at a computer monitor for a long time isn’t the real issue. It’s the confusion of trying to […]
PostResources: Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) for SQL Server DBAs
Last week at Live360, I have had the opportunity to deliver my workshop on Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) for SQL Server DBAs. The workshop was based on an online course that I am about to re-release. One of the things I like about delivering presentations is that I learn a lot from the attendees […]
PostThe Windows Server Failover Cluster Properties That We Almost Always Ignore
Have you been made aware of an item in your household that seem so common and familiar but that could have an impact in your safety? Like that little remote you tuck in the sun visor of your car to open your garage. In case you are not aware, someone might be able to hack open your […]
PostThe S.P.A. That Prevents Your Synchronous SQL Server Always On Availability Groups From Failing Over Automatically
This is a very common question that gets asked on the technical forums, newsgroups, social media, etc. when it comes to synchronous SQL Server Always On Availability Groups (AG): “Why did my AG not automatically failover?” Notice that I mentioned SYNCHRONOUS and not asynchronous. Only when Always On Availability Group replica databases are configured for synchronous commit […]
PostWhy We Need To Understand How Active Directory Affects SQL Server High Availability
But I’ll tell you what hermits realize. If you go off into a far, far forest and get very quiet, you’ll come to understand that you’re connected with everything. – Alan Watts – WARNING: There will be a ton of acronyms in this blog post. Make sure to keep your notebook handy for note-taking […]
PostVideo: Simplify Installation of a 2-node SQL Server Failover Clustered Instance on Windows Server 2012 (and higher versions)
I like writing step-by-step guides because they make good documentation for folks like me who keep forgetting how to do things. The guide makes the process repeatable and can easily be shared with junior members of your team. But with the different ways we consume information nowadays, written documentation does not suffice anymore. Besides, providing different […]
PostSo, You Think Your SQL Server Always On Availability Group Is Really Highly Available?
This is a question that I regularly ask those attending my high availability and disaster recovery presentations: is your SQL Server Always On Availability Group really highly available? Now, don’t get me wrong. I love the Always On Availability Groups feature in SQL Server (except for the price tag of an Enterprise Edition license.) But […]
PostInstalling, Configuring and Managing Windows Server Failover Cluster using PowerShell Series
Last year, I started writing an article that was supposed to be a series for Installing, Configuring and Managing Windows Server Failover Cluster using Windows PowerShell. The first of the series came out on July 2013 (which ended up being the last article I wrote for the year 2013 on MSSQLTips.com.) Since then, I’ve been involved […]