Cloud based Tools-Microsoft...

One of the time consuming activities  for a DBA in the sql server world is to work with problems related to poor performance which are due to lack of proper configuration of a SQL Server.Usually DBA's have scripts/jobs/PowerShell scripts to detect performance related issues and fix them.Once a problem is detected, then one would deal with research of different KB articles/ use experience to fix the issues. As part of the SQL Server 2011 release, microsoft also released a cloud service which can be used to monitor different sql server's. Here is a link: explaining the basic premise of the Atlanta tool and the beta version is available for download.
http://www.microsoft.com/systemcenter/en/us/atlanta.aspx
Microsoft is embracing the cloud in a big way and making lot of investments in this area. Cloud is going to be an interesting area to watch out for in the years to come.

SSIS New Features...

With the PASS Summit winding down, there is a lot activity in the SQL Server blog sphere about the next SQL Server Release, SQL Server 2011 (Code Name: Denali). One of the areas of improvements which I have been following is the New Features in SSIS. There have been lot of wish lists request, one of the video's/demo which explain these very well is available at the following link: The content in this video is presented by Steve Swartz.
http://www.msteched.com/2010/Europe/BIN303.
The features are broken down into the following areas: User Interface/Designer Experience, Project Management (This explains features which enhance multiple package experience) and Administration.
In The Designer improvements some features explained are Undo and Redo, a new improved mapping editor. This allows one to export and import mappings, this is huge since now it allows the developers to store mapping s outside the SSIS packages. There is also an Zoom in/Zoom out feature which comes in handy while developing complex packages. As part of the Project management, there is a feature called Parameters being added to SSIS packages, communication betwen child and parent packages would improve with this feature.
As part of the Administration piece, a new SSIS server is being built out, this could be installed in the SQL Server instance. This SSIS Server is being built out with the DBA in mind, giving ability to monitor these packages in a more productive manner. In the Adminstration side, the deployment process has become more streamlined and allows one to set parameters and variables by pointing to differen environments. There is going to be a SSMS based SSIS package management feature and dependency analysis.

SQL Server Denali...

Microsoft has released he CTP1 version of the next version of SQL Server Code named Denali. It is available for download, Quoting Softpedia.com,The first Community Technology Preview of SQL Server Codenamed "Denali" went live on the Microsoft Download Center earlier this week, as Ted Kummert revealed details of the next release of SQL Server at the opening keynote of PASS Summit 2010.
Quoting the http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/11/09/denali_sql_server_cloud/ article,This version of SQL Server Denali introduces Juneau, what Microsoft is calling a "new-generation" Visual Studio development tool for SQL Server that will bridge the gap between building and deploying apps for on-site and on cloud. There has been a lot of momentum in the cloud space in the last few months. There are 3 major players at this point for the Cloud Initiative, they are Microsoft,Google and Amazon. Microsoft had released its cloud version of the SQL Server Database called SQL Azure close to a year ago and has been refining it ever since. SQL Azure details: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsazure/sqlazure/default.aspx

Open DTS packages in SQL Server 2005...

I am working on a project where in I had to analyse DTS packages and figure out the tables being exoprted/imported. The supported environment i have is only SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008, so i needed way to open up DTS packages in SQL Server 2005. Microsoft has a tool SQLServer2005_DTS available for download in the MSDN site. Once this file is download and installed, one would have the ability to open DTS packages from Management Studio. Looka t the snapshot below:

Once the DTS package is opened, the package open up in the DTS designer of SQL Server 2000. Once the package is open, the DTS package can be exported to a Visual Basic file and open the .vb file in a standard text editor and analyse the contents.

Services,Devices and Cloud...

There has been a lot of developments in the cloud computing space with new offerings coming out and the concept being increasingly debated in and outside of the enterprise. The announcement of Ray Ozzie's departure from Microsoft and the resulting departure memo he circulated within Microsoft is a must read. He talks about his vision and what Microsoft's vision needs to be and the reasons for all these can be found in this link. This piece of text i being increasingly read and being debated, here is the link:
http://ozzie.net/docs/dawn-of-a-new-day/
I found the memo very interesting and gave points to ponder being a developer/consultant in the Microsoft BI space.

Learning SQL...

My Friend and SQL Server Expert Pinal Dave (SqlAuthority.com) has blogged and reviewed a book called Beginning SQL Joes 2 Pros: The SQL Hands-On Guide for Beginners (SQL Exam Prep Series 70-433 Volume 1). In today's age: One should open to learning new ways of doing things and be adaptive. Reading books can help in keeping up or find innovative way of doing things.
One can learn more about Joes2Pros by going to the web site here...
http://www.joes2pros.com/index.php

SQL Server Mgmt Studio...

During my recent visit to the SQL Saturday Sessions at Raleigh,NC, I noticed a feature which was used by a presenter. Usually while using the SQL Server Management studio, I typically open up query files and they usually are arranged using tabs. Once the number of files open grows it becomes kind of difficult to keep track of the files opened in case you need to go back to a certain query file. During the presenters demo I noticed he was using the solution explorer/project setup available in SSMS. Normally I have used this setup in BIDS or Visual Studio, I rarely used the setup in Management studio. I decided to give it a spin and like the way it is setup. When one chooses the Solution Explorer from the View Menu in SSMS, the solution explorer window pops up on the right hand side. Once this is done once can add projects, get to choose from SQL Server Scripts, Analysis Server Scripts and SQL Server Compact Edition Scripts, these are options in SQL Server 2005. I choose Sql Server Scripts and once the project was created, it creates 3 subfolders called Connections,Queries and Miscellaneous. Once this is done, one can add the existing .sql files to the queries folder by choosing the Add Existing Item under the Projects folder. This way all the query files are lined up under the queries folder. I found this setup to be a easy way to open up files if one has to go back and forth between scripts. This is also a good way to organize scripts within SQL Server Management Studio.