Author: stevestedman

Welcome to our in-depth look at the Database Health Monitor, a vital tool for ensuring the smooth operation of your database systems. In today’s data-driven world, maintaining the integrity and performance of databases is critical for businesses of all sizes. Whether you’re managing a small application or a sprawling enterprise system, unexpected downtime or sluggish performance can lead to significant losses. This overview will walk you through the core features and benefits of the Database Health Monitor, shedding light on …

Database Health Monitor Feature Overview Read more »

In the world of database management, maintaining optimal performance is an ongoing challenge. One crucial aspect that often gets overlooked is the management of indexes. While indexes can significantly enhance query performance, having too many of them can lead to issues when it comes to inserts, updates, and deletes. In this blog post, we’ll explore the delicate balance of index management and discuss strategies to identify and remove unnecessary indexes without compromising system stability. The Dilemma of Too Many Indexes …

Dangers of Removing Indexes Read more »

Exclusive January Promotion: Get 12 Months of Managed Services for the Price of 10 Happy New Year! To give your databases the strongest possible start this year, we’re running our biggest offer of the year: Sign up for SQL Server Managed Services any time in January and receive 12 months of full-service support for the price of just 10.That’s an immediate 16% savings locked in for the entire year. Claim Your 12-for-10 Offer Before January 31 Why This Is the …

Kickstart The Year with Peak SQL Server Performance – 12 Months for the Price of 10 Read more »

When troubleshooting SQL Server Performance, it’s common to wonder why Database Health Monitor includes both the What Is Active report and the Open Transactions report. At first glance, they might seem to provide similar insights—but in reality, they highlight very different aspects of what’s happening inside your SQL Server. What Is Active — See What’s Running Right Now The What Is Active report is designed to give you a real-time look at what SQL Server is currently working on. It …

Understanding the Difference Between the What Is Active and Open Transactions Reports in Database Health Monitor Read more »

Indexes are one of the most powerful tools for improving query performance in SQL Server, but they can also become a major source of overhead if they are not managed. Database Health Monitor helps you understand index behaviour with three focused reports: Most Used, Unused, and Inefficient. These reports help you identify which indexes are helping, which are wasting space, and which are costing more than they return. Real-time vs Historic views Database Health Monitor gives you two complementary ways …

Unlock Index Insights with Database Health Monitor: Most Used, Unused, and Inefficient Reports Read more »

Database Health Monitor: A Lean DBA Tool for Speed and Efficiency When I think about Database Health Monitor, speed is one of the first things that comes to mind. From the start, I designed it as a performance improvement tool, and I often describe it as a lean-style solution. The timing was intentional—while studying lean principles, I began building Database Health Monitor. Those ideas of efficiency and eliminating waste naturally shaped its foundation. Built for Fast Multi-Server Management Every feature …

Database Health Monitor: A Lean DBA Tool for Speed and Efficiency Read more »

When you’re responsible for keeping SQL Server running smoothly, it’s not always easy to see how performance changes over time. The Performance History Instance Report in Database Health Monitor helps you do exactly that, it gives you a clear visual history of how your SQL Server instance has been performing, making it easier to spot trends, find bottlenecks, and understand what’s really happening under the hood. A Clear View of Instance-Level Activity The Performance History report tracks a range of …

Visualizing SQL Server Performance with the Performance History Instance Report Read more »

When SQL Server performance dips, TempDB is one of the first places to check. The TempDB Allocation report gives you clear, historical visibility into how TempDB space is used so you can spot issues before they affect users. See what’s happening inside TempDB TempDB can be considered SQL Server’s “scratch pad.” It is used by nearly every workload on your server, but until now understanding how that space was being used often required digging through DMV queries or relying on …

Introducing the TempDB Allocation Report in Database Health Monitor Read more »

SQL Agent Jobs are the backbone of many database maintenance and automation tasks, ensuring critical processes like backups, index maintenance, and data imports run smoothly. However, keeping track of job performance and identifying failures or bottlenecks can be a challenge, especially in environments with numerous jobs running on tight schedules. Without a clear, visual representation of job history, database administrators often find themselves sifting through logs or writing complex queries to uncover patterns or issues, which can be both time-consuming …

Visualizing SQL Agent Job History with Database Health Monitor Read more »

Improved Index Usage Tracking in Database Health Monitor Many SQL Servers reboot on a regular cadence, and most monitoring tools only show index usage since the last restart, which means that an index used heavily at the end of the month or once a quarter can appear unused for most of the year. This leads to dangerous assumptions and unnecessary index changes. In Database Health Monitor version three, we have introduced an important enhancement: index usage is now stored directly …

Why Accurate Index History Matters and How Database Health Monitor’s New Enhancements Help You See the Full Picture Read more »