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[Focus]

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Securing SQL Server
In the aftermath of the Slammer worm, Microsoft Vice President of SQL Server Gordon Mangione explores why customers aren’t applying patches, shares how Microsoft plans to solve these problems, and looks to the future of security for SQL Server.
 — Brian Moran

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[Features]

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Swimming in the .NET Connection Pool
If you’re diving into ADO.NET, you might be wondering how you can use connection pooling to improve your applications’ performance. Here are some basic connection-pooling concepts you’ll need to know when you’re ready to get your feet wet.
 — William Vaughn

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[SQL Server Savvy]

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Checking Port Numbers
Find out what your options are when determining the port number a SQL Server instance is using.
 — Brian Moran


Particular Demands of the xp_sqlmaint Command
Both ISQL and xp_sqlmaint are particular about whether parameters are enclosed in single and double quotes. Find out if using the -i switch is a suitable option for you.
 — Brian Moran


Real vs. Auto-Created Indexes
Have you noticed entries in the sysindexes table for indexes that you didn't create? Read on to find out what these entries are for.
 — Brian Moran

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[Editorial]

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The OS Factor
One aspect of database performance that's rarely considered is the OS itself, which ultimately handles all I/O requests.
 — Michael Otey

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[SQL Seven]

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ADO.NET Dos
ADO.NET isn’t just a fancy new wrapper for the COM-based version of ADO. Here are seven tips to help you write better ADO.NET applications.
 — Michael Otey

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[Inside SQL Server]

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Managing Memory
With just a few counters and a little experience, you can monitor and manage your SQL Server memory.
 — Kalen Delaney

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[Solutions by Design]

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What's in a Name?
“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet,” but when you change a database object’s name, you can create confusion and poor performance. Here are some tips for choosing and using a good naming convention.
 — Michelle A. Poolet

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[T-SQL Black Belt]

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Generating Histograms
A histogram is a simple means of gathering statistics for analysis. But what's the best way of generating histograms?
 — Itzik Ben-Gan

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[Answers from Microsoft]

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Analyzing a Query from the Inside Out
Microsoft's SQL Server development team takes a close look at a query that works from the inside out to return information from tables that are related only indirectly.
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team


Error Investigation Reveals Ghostly Objects
When you delete rows, pages, or extents, SQL Server can mark those objects as "ghosts" and clean them up later. Here's how one DBA unearthed these ghostly objects while investigating a mysterious error code.
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team


Working Around a Varchar Truncation
How can I keep SQL Server 7.0 from truncating varchar data?
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team

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[Exploring XML]

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Querying Open Content
You’ve stored open content from your XML document in your database. Now you need to merge the content with relational data in an XML query result. Read on to see how you can use FOR XML Explicit queries and XML Views to return the open content.
 — Rich Rollman

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[Letters]

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Letters, May 2003
Readers ask why so many SQL Servers were connected to the Internet--where they were vulnerable to Slammer, whether linked servers work for Oracle running on Solaris, and comment on choosing a .NET language.
 — Various Authors

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[New Products]

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New Products, May 2003
Check out the latest SQL Server-related new and improved products.
 — Carolyn Mader