Event Location:
William Peace University
15 E Peace Street
Raleigh, North Carolina
Abstract:
GDPR is coming, no matter where you are if you are handling data on European data subjects. Laying a solid foundation of data security practices is vital to avoid the potential fines and damage to reputation that being non-compliant can bring. Practicing good data hygiene is vital to meeting compliance requirements, whether it is GDPR, PCI-DSS, HIPAA or other standards. The fundamentals around data identification, classification, and management are universal. Together we will look at some of the key areas that you can address to speed up your readiness for meeting GDPR requirements. Including what data is covered, principals for gaining consent, data access requests as well as other key recommended practices. By the end of this session you will be able to start the groundwork on getting your organization in shape for its journey to compliance.If you want to avoid the big fines, up to EUR 20 million or 4% of global turnover whichever is higher, it is important to act early.
Speaker(s): John Martin,
Abstract:
DevOps is the new hot topic for IT, but only answers part of the problem. This session and demo will discuss why data creates continual friction in the DevOps environment and how it must be incorporated into the solution. Reasons for this solution is required: -Data is getting bigger and more complex -Security concerns around critical data is becoming more evident every day -Data is created in silos in many sources, yet consumed in just as many locations, including on-premises and in the cloud. We'll discuss the tech, the politics and the challenges of bringing data into DevOps and how to do so more successfully with culture changes, tools, scripting, and virtualization. Takeaways from this session: 1. Learn the five principles of Data Ops 2. How embracing a dynamic data platform can eliminate challenges and provide automation. 3. Learn the difference between containers, packages and data pods. 4. Learn how to bridge the gap between data and people, eliminating culture from the scene
Speaker(s): Kellyn Pot'Vin-Gorman,
Abstract:
Whether you’ve dabbled in PowerShell or wondered what all the fuss is about, make no mistake: PowerShell isn’t going away. It is definitely something worth learning to make your life as a SQL Server professional easier, and allow you to advance in your career as a DBA. In this session, you’ll see practical, real-world examples of how you can blend SQL Server and PowerShell together. You’ll also get a look at the SQL Server PowerShell provider and how you can incorporate it into your automation scripts. Instead of focusing on syntax, the session will plunge straight into examples and highlight various snippets of code and how they work. You can expect to see code examples on how PowerShell can do anything from comparing tables across servers, automating and centralizing your backups, and even doing in-depth security audits.
Speaker(s): Drew Furgiuele,
Abstract:
Like parents having to break up a fight between battling siblings, SQL Server must do the same for conflicting transactions. We call these Deadlocks and they can present a problem to many DBAs. Deadlocks can be minor fights or major issues making SQL Server continually choose a side like constantly quarreling siblings. To understand how Deadlocking occurs, we must understand what caused the fight . Learning about basic locking and blocking of SQL Server is a great place to start. By the end of this session you will walk away with the knowledge of how the locking/blocking mechanism works, the basics of deadlocking, and what Isolation Levels are . You will know how these can help or hurt your situation. Finally you will have the power to capture, report, and stop the family fighting.
Speaker(s): William Wolf,
Abstract:
With heavily consolidated instances and competing workloads, the Enterprise only Resource Governor feature is an incredibly useful tool for any DBA to have in their toolbox. It allows for the effective throttling and control of CPU, memory and I/O consumed by multiple workloads running on a single SQL Server instance. In this session, we will cover the fundamental concepts of the SQL Server Resource Governor and provide demonstrations of practical scenarios where Resource Governor can control resources for specific workloads. Some of these demonstrations include how to limit the amount of memory consumed by memory-optimized tables and how to prevent poorly-written queries from overwhelming your storage subsystem. We will also discuss cases where Resource Governor can mitigate parameter sniffing problems. Finally, we will look at ways to leverage the useful information contained in the Resource Governor DMVs for monitoring and reporting.
Speaker(s): Brian Carrig,
Abstract:
We’ve all heard the rules for SQL Server like separate your data from your log, watch for a disk queue length over 2, and a low Page Life Expectancy always means memory pressure. All of these used to be true, but on today’s hardware and SQL Server versions – they are dangerously outdated. In this session, we will take on a bunch of these old “givens” of SQL Server that everybody has heard and followed, the underlying technological reasons they were true then, how today’s technology has rendered them obsolete, and what the new rules are that you need to know. So whether you are one of the old guard looking to refresh your set of working SQL Server rules or a member of the up-and-comers looking for the facts to win over the old guard, this session is for you.
Speaker(s): Maxwell Myrick,
Abstract:
Any changes to Non-Memory Optimized tables require a certain amount of logging to the transaction log in order to ensure the integrity of the operation and of course the data. Most of these are fully logged operations and can write a tremendous amount of data to the transaction log. As you probably already know this can lead to various performance and availability issues. However you may be able to minimize the effect of these with what is called a minimally logged operation. This session will outline how these can be used under the right conditions to save time, resources and potentially a lot of headaches. Various demos will hit home on just how much of an impact this can have on some every day operations.
Speaker(s): Andrew Kelly,
Abstract:
Even with the increased simplicity of plan forcing using Query Data Store in SQL Server 2016 and above, plan guides remain a very powerful but often overlooked feature of SQL server. There is a misconception in the community that plan guides are really only useful for situations where the DBA "cannot change the code" but actually plan guides have much broader applicability than simply fixing problems with poorly designed ISV code. However, for the DBA, working with plan guides can often be a confusing and frustrating experience. In this session we will cover what plan guides are, how they work and demonstrate scenarios where they can be successfully used to solve a number of problems DBAs experience on a day to day basis.
Speaker(s): Brian Carrig,
Abstract:
One of the most common problems I have encountered as a DBA is the complaints from users that a particular query is slow, just one query. Many times one that used to run in acceptable time, but that over time has slowed down substantially. In this session we will show some of the causes for this, with emphasis on I/O requests being too high for the query. First part of the session will explain how to find these numbers, looking at a few queries with some major performance issues, including explaining why they have a problem. The second part will focus on how to reduce I/O requests. All of this can be done without the need for any 3rd party tools, all within the scope of what is available to SQL Server, all versions, all editions, including Azure.
Speaker(s): Anders Pedersen,
Abstract:
Power BI SSRS Server allows you to internally host On-Prem classic RDL Paginated Reports, KPIs, Mobile Reports and now Power BI reports, allowing you to create real-time Dashboards on data behind the firewall. This session will be a complete tutorial from setup, config and PBI Desktop publish from Start To Finish.
Speaker(s): George Walkey,
Abstract:
Containers are everywhere. If server virtualization dominated the past decade, then this decade belongs to the containers. Name any product, and there is a container image of that product ready to be deployed at a moment's notice. Containers can be used for hosting any type of application, and in this session, we'll take a look at what you need to know to get started with containers with respect to SQL Server, and address some of the common questions that come up during this setup.
Speaker(s): Azhagappan Arunachalam,
Abstract:
String data is far more complex than most people are aware of. The US English alphabet and punctuation (i.e. standard ASCII) are relatively simple, but they make up a very small portion of the alphabets and non-language symbols that can be represented. Given the increasing need to handle multiple languages, it is important to understand collations and encodings before getting collation mismatch errors or losing data. In this presentation we will cover: the actual differences between VARCHAR and NVARCHAR, what Collations are and can do, binary collations (and why they aren't truly case sensitive), SQL Server vs Windows collations, supplementary characters and surrogate pairs, Collation Precedence, Code Pages, ASCII / Unicode / UTF-8 / UTF-16 / UCS-2 encodings, combining characters, what server-level and database-level default collations do, ramifications of changing a database's collation, multi-byte character sets, NVARCHAR to VARCHAR "best fit" mappings, and other fascinating topics.
Speaker(s): Solomon Rutzky,
Abstract:
If you just started using SQL Server and may be unsure of the need for backups or even how to do them, this is for you. It is very basic and will cover Recovery Models, Backup Types. In addition, I will demonstrate backups and a restore.
Speaker(s): Mark Gordon,
Abstract:
In this breakout session, you'll learn the basics of the DAX language, Power BI’s modeling language. Belinda will introduce you to the concept of calculated columns, measures and basic data modeling, with some practical examples. This introduction will cover basic calculations and an overview of all the scalar and table functions. This session has practical examples for business analytics and users. To the Developer, DAX feels like a programming language; to the user, DAX feels like Excel formulas.
Speaker(s): Belinda Allen,
Abstract:
When called in to diagnose a performance issue what are the 1st things you review? Many DBAs and developers make the mistake of diving straight into the code looking for an answer. However, often times the solution is not in the code but rather in the overall environment. Environmental troubleshooting is often a quick and overlooked method for discovering and configuring SQL Server to perform at a higher level without the need for application change controls. In this session we will discuss both performance pitfalls and optimizations that can be made to the system outside of code changes. We will diagnose configurations commonly misapplied and review best practices in SQL Server, Windows Server, and VMware!
Speaker(s): Jeff Mlakar,
Abstract:
A lot of DBAs use Powershell to help automate complex tasks or apply configuration changes to multiple servers. Many are writing their own functions, and some may even have packaged them up into a custom module. What about more advanced features? How many are using verbose output, pipeline parameters, or parameter validation? These are just some of the features of something called "Advanced Functions" in PowerShell. In this session, we will discuss these topics and more as we work through all the components of a sample Advanced PowerShell function. This session will be geared towards DBAs but will be useful for anyone wanting to learn more about PowerShell. Experience writing basic PowerShell functions is not a requirement, but will definitely make it easier to follow along. I highly recommend bringing a laptop with PowerShell 5.1 installed so attendees can follow along.
Speaker(s): Mark Wilkinson,
Abstract:
Power BI allows us to easily apply Row Level Security (RLS) to our published reports, streamlining report development for individuals or groups within your organization. This session shows you how to set up a report to apply RLS as well as how to model your data to support users dynamically.
Speaker(s): Wes Springob,
Abstract:
In this pre-con, attendees will arrive with their laptops with Docker and the Linux image of SQL Server 2017 ready to go. The image and instructions can be found at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/linux/quickstart-install-connect-docker. We'll use Docker and the newest SQL Server 2017 image to go from the A to Z of Linux, learning how to navigate, manage and manipulate Linux. We'll learn best practices surrounding file systems, security and database management. Once we've become comfortable with the basics, we'll move onto more advance features and tools that have become the savior of DBAs working on Linux/Unix system for decades. To register for this paid Pre-Con: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/linux-power-pre-con-for-the-dba-kellyn-potvin-gorman-sql-saturday-raleigh-tickets-42733262338
Speaker(s): Kellyn Pot'Vin-Gorman,
Abstract:
In today's world, technology is a pervasive part of our lives. We have "smart" appliances everywhere: from cars, thermostats, and even refrigerators contain built-in systems to collect, store, and transmit data. Small embedded devices can also be used for scientific purposes as well, offering new and exciting ways to collect data for studies or projects at home. The High-Altitude SQL Server Project, or HASSP, is one such project. The HASSP team has created a high-altitude balloon that uses sensors to collect various data points and store the results in an embedded version of SQL Server! In this session, you'll hear about how this is possible: we'll discuss the hardware used, the custom device that we built, and the software used to make it all work together. Best of all, you'll see how to recreate (and hopefully improve!) the project on your own.
Speaker(s): Drew Furgiuele,
Abstract:
SQL Server provides database technology built with industry-leading performance, top-notch security and compliance, mission-critical availability, and a consistent experience across platforms and devices. API-driven data consumption platforms and services highlight the need for RESTful access to SQL server data. The existing options for REST access to SQL Server data or using web development frameworks to convert relational data to JSON objects soak up time, resources, and energy on software development and maintenance that enterprises could be using to drive business. With the CData API Server, users can rapidly create RESTful APIs for SQL Server data using a point-and-click interface. API Server includes everything needed to create, run, manage, and secure APIs for your SQL Server data. In this talk, we will walk through creating an OData API for SQL Server data and demonstrate connectivity using modern web development frameworks
Speaker(s): Jerod Johnson,
Abstract:
So you have a good backup strategy in place, but now you have to think about recovery. Where do you start and what are your options? SQL Server offers several options, but then how do you choose the right one to meet your business requirements? In this session, we will go over some of the common HA/DR options including log shipping, replication, mirroring, clustering, and availability groups. Then we will talk about how to choose the best one to meet your business needs.
Speaker(s): Doug Purnell,
Abstract:
Consistent and predictable performance is critical for any successful deployment of Microsoft SQL Server. All-Flash arrays have been available for years and sub-millisecond response times should be the expectation. Maximize the performance and agility of your environment and learn how to automate and leverage self-service for snapshots of your databases for protection and re-purposing. Test/dev infrastructures can be refreshed from production DBs in minutes rather than hours or days. Stop working harder and slower than you need to be, learn how you can leverage Dell EMC. Whether storage, servers, networking, data protection, converged or hyper-converged… we have you covered.
Speaker(s): Michael Wells,
Abstract:
This full-day session on Friday, April 13, 2018, will focus on principles for designing and implementing a data lake. There will be a mix of concepts, lessons learned, and technical implementation details. This session is approximately 70% demonstrations: we will create a data lake, populate it, organize it, query it, and integrate it with a relational database via logical constructs. You will leave this session with an understanding of the benefits and challenges of a multi-platform analytics/DW/BI environment, as well as recommendations for how to get started. To register for this paid Pre-Con: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/architecting-a-data-lake-with-melissa-coates-raleigh-sql-saturday-tickets-42691287791
Speaker(s): Melissa Coates,
Abstract:
You're looking to protect your SQL instance from a machine failure. Or maybe your storage budget and tight and you don't want to have your databases in two places with one of the other highly available options that SQL provides. Let's learn what a cluster is and why it might be the right thing for you. We'll explore the system, network, storage and database administration sides of the equation. And, when it's all said and done we'll even have built a SQL clustered instance!
Speaker(s): Paul Popovich Jr,
Abstract:
Automating extract packages is trivial., you simply use INFORMATION_SCHEMA. The problem is not all your data sources have easy to read metadata like SQL Server. How do you create usable metadata from these sources? In this hour, I’ll show you how easy it is to make an educated guess on the schema of flat files and other “semi-structured” data sources. With that schema, automatically generating your extract package is a matter of seconds! Join me while I share my interrogator project with you and start saving hours at work today!
Speaker(s): Shannon Lowder,
Abstract:
This session will take a look at the new Query Store feature in SQL Server 2016. Query Store tracks changes in execution plans, allowing you to easily view performance differences and revert to older plans with a few clicks of the mouse. We will take a hands-on look at how to use Query Store to troubleshoot problems new features in 2017.
Speaker(s): Tracy Boggiano,
Abstract:
Ever wonder why SSIS runs so slow? Watch SSIS author Andy Leonard as he runs test loads using sample and real-world data and shows you how to tune SQL Server 2016 Integration Services (SSIS 2016) packages. We'll start by experimenting with SSIS design patterns to improve performance loading AdventureWorks data. We will implement different change detection patterns and compare execution performance for each. Then, we'll explain a Data Flow Task's bottleneck when loading binary large objects - or Blobs. Finally, we'll demonstrate a design pattern that uses a Script Component in a Data Flow to boost load performance to MySql, whether on-premises or in the cloud.
Speaker(s): Andy Leonard,
Abstract:
What is a windowing function? What do I do with them? Are they actually useful? By the end of the class, you'll be asking yourself - Why haven't I used these before? How can I use them more often? Learn more about the class of functions that are known as "windowing functions" and why you should get to know them more!
Speaker(s): Kevin Wilkie,
Abstract:
Some people think of Azure HDInsight as Microsoft’s Hadoop in The Cloud. That thought is only partially correct. With storage separate from compute, HDInsight flexibility offers Hadoop with Pig and Hive options as well as HBase, Storm, Spark, R Server, and Kafka … all priced a la carte and on-demand. Join me as I explain what HDInsight is and is not along with some live demos of HDInsight’s capabilities.
Speaker(s): Mark Hudson,
Abstract:
Using the SQL setup wizard and management studio (SSMS) to install and configure a new SQL server is a time-intensive process. PowerShell scripts can greatly reduce the time required to complete the process. They can also ensure build standardization throughout your SQL environment. In this session we will look at PowerShell scripting, including the basic syntax and commandlets needed to automate the installation and post-install configuration of a SQL Server.
Speaker(s): Jamie Wick,
Abstract:
Linux is a very compelling choice for SQL Server, and may of us may find ourselves supporting it very soon. We'll arm you with the information you'll need to start supporting Linux, even if you've never touched it before - Including Linux equivalents of standard Windows administration tasks, and an introduction to using PowerShell on Linux. We'll also cover best practices for SQL Server on Linux, including kernel tuning
Speaker(s): Dave Walden,
Abstract:
When it was introduced way back in SQL Server 2005, the lowly ROW_NUMBER() function at first seemed to have little functionality other than simply counting rows. However, over time we have come to see this humble function is actually surprisingly useful in often unexpected ways. In this session we will discover the creative uses of ROW_NUMBER() in ways that you may likely not have yet considered. This session will be filled with little goodies that can you can use, whether you are a writing SQL for application code or for administrative functionality.
Speaker(s): Brian Hansen,
Abstract:
"Alexa, make Song Quiz smarter and more fun." That command may not work (yet), but this session can give you the tools and knowledge to enhance Alexa's ability to do all kinds of fun and useful things. Alexa is fast growing to be the strongest of the three personal assistants. Much of this growth has come from the fact that Amazon opened up 3rd party development through their Skills program. In this session, we’ll start with the Alexa ecosystem and terminology. We’ll then cover the infrastructure behind skills and development framework We’ll wrap things up with how to implement continuous improvement, by using data to drive it all!
Speaker(s): Shannon Lowder,
Abstract:
The 'Cloud" is here. With it, there are many options for storing and processing data. What does it mean? Why should you be interested in this conversation? How can a cloud solution compare to an "on-prem" solution? We will discuss these questions and more. The focus of this session will be on the options available in Azure from Azure SQL DB to Azure SQL Data Lake, but we will also touch on AWS and Google Cloud options to put the options in context.
Speaker(s): Rick Heiges,
Abstract:
Both Hashbytes and Compress functions have some use cases that we should consider when designing and tuning databases. These functions can be used to improve query performance, reduce storage, and enforce consistency. We will walk through some examples where these functions have helped me and will hopefully help you in the future.
Speaker(s): Jeff Nowiski,
Abstract:
This session will highlight the core fundamentals of Power Query and how it can transform your efforts relating to Business Intelligence. Together we will talk about what it is, how it works, and how you can put it to good hard use in your organization. Power Query is powerful tool that can help do the dirty work for you! It’s easy to learn and get started! Whether you want to use large complex datasets for Excel, Power BI or Power Pivot, Power Query is definitely a tool to help get you where you want to be!
Speaker(s): Shawn Dorward,
Abstract:
Everyone knows sp_WhoIsActive by Adam Machanic! In this session, we will see how its output captured periodically to a central database using PowerShell can be used as an effective monitoring tool with the analytics provided by Power BI. sp_WhoIsActive puts out the best output. PowerShell is the best at collecting data centrally from multiple servers and Power BI is the best at presenting and analyzing the results. The session will bring together features of sp_WhoIsActive, PowerShell and PowerBI to get an effective solution.
Speaker(s): Jana Sattainathan,
Abstract:
Learn all you wanted to know about index design, but were afraid to ask. This session focuses on physical index structures as well as how the server chooses indexes. Note: Join optimization is a separate session
Speaker(s): Jeffrey Garbus,
Abstract:
This session aims to take attendees through what containers are and what benefits they bring. After this demo based session, attendees will be able to go back to their respective companies and be able to evaluate container technology to determine whether or not it will be of benefit. Attendees will be taken through the following: - The definition of containers Virtual Machines vs Containers Container networking fundamentals Installing the docker engine Pulling SQL images from the docker repository Running SQL Server containers Creating custom container images Persisting data in SQL Server containers A real world implementation of containers
Speaker(s): Andrew Pruski,
Abstract:
This session is packed with practical tips and lessons learned about using Azure as a database platform. You will learn the fundamentals about how Azure is structured to help you make architectural decisions. Ideas will be shared for planning resource groups, naming conventions, and the separation of Dev, Test, and Prod. We will discuss database platform options, data storage options, and why PowerShell and ARM are so important to deployment scenarios.
Speaker(s): Melissa Coates,
Abstract:
Why create a SQL Server Test premise environment in Azure cloud? One of the first steps into moving to Azure cloud, is building an environment that looks a feels like premise but only in the cloud. This session is an overview of getting started with basics of Azure environment, such as Accounts, virtual networks, Storage and creating virtual machines.. Once we fly by reviewing several building blocks, we then build Active Directory VM, SQL Server VM and App Server Tier VM using Azure portal and PowerShell.
Speaker(s): Michael Wharton,
Abstract:
What are your first steps when you hear one of your SQL Servers is having a performance problem? In this demo-driven session, we will discuss key DMVs that can provide us data quickly. We will examine a number of example queries that can lead us to a quick root cause analysis in a number of different situations. This session will be kept at a very functional level, and should be accessible for anyone interested in SQL Server performance.
Speaker(s): Jared Poché,
Abstract:
It seems like web apps are getting all the love and at first glance it may be hard to identify a good way to use the database in containers. This session will review the concept of containers and attempt to identify ways we might benefit from this new technology as we support our users.
Speaker(s): Carlos L Chacon,
Abstract:
Is it time to migrate your SSRS to the latest version? Do you really want to migrate everything or only those reports and objects actually in use? We will walk through some migration methods and find the data available to help manage report lifecycle (age, permissions, use, data sources).
Speaker(s): George Maxson,
This is a list of speakers from the XML Guidebook records. The details and URLs were valid at the time of the event.
Brian Carrig is a Microsoft Certified Master of SQL Server and is currently a Senior Program Manager on the SQL Server Tiger Team at Microsoft focusing primarily on persistent memory technology and replication. In a previous life, Brian spent some time as an academic and holds a PhD in Computer Science. He is a native of Dublin, Ireland but now lives with his wife and two daughters in Redmond, Washington. If he is not talking about, thinking about or working with technology you will usually find him watching Chelsea FC.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carloslchacon
Contact: http://sqldatapartners.com/blog
Carlos Chacon is the managing partner of SQL Data Partners LLC and co-host of the popular SQL Data Partners Podcast. While getting his start as a typical accidental DBA, Carlos has sat on Microsoft exam review panels, served as regional mentor and chapter leader. He enjoys traveling and has been to four continents, speaks Spanish and can eat his weight in raspberries (not yet proven). He and his family live in Richmond, Virginia.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/SQLWes/
Contact: http://SQLWes.com
Wes Springob is a Premier Field Engineer (PFE) at Microsoft and speaks regularly on Business Intelligence, Power BI, database and report development.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracyboggiano
Contact: http://databasesuperhero.com
Tracy Boggiano is a Senior Database Administrator for DocuSIgn. She has spent over 20 years in IT, using SQL Server since 1999, and is currently certified as an MCSE Data Platform. Tracy has worked on SQL Server since 6.5. She has spoken at local user groups and numerous SQLSaturdays. She is currently a co-leader of a TriPASS Local Group in Raleigh, NC. Tracy also tinkered with databases in middle school to keep her sports card collection organized. She blogs at databasesuperhero.com. Her passion outside of SQL Server is volunteering with foster children as their advocate in court through volunteerforgal.org and being a mental health advocate as part of the PAIMI NC Advisory Council.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffmlakar/
Contact: http://www.mlakartechtalk.com/
Jeff Mlakar is a database professional specializing in Microsoft SQL Server. He has worked the past 15 years as a database developer and administrator (admini-loper or develo-strator…take your pick), analyst, and with Business Intelligence. A technology enthusiast – he is interested in data security and privacy topics. Jeff lives in the Raleigh-Durham area of NC.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-nowiski-3703536b
Jeff works at Citrix as a Database Engineer working primarily on the ShareFile platform. His day to day is mostly TSQL development and tuning but he does his best to involve PowerShell as much as he can. Past jobs have included accidental DBA work though he mostly tries to leave database administration to the experts. Outside of work he enjoys building Legos with his kids and playing Ultimate Frisbee.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/rick-heiges/1/b93/777/
Contact: http://sqlblog.com/blogs/rick_heiges/default.aspx
Rick is a Former Data Platfrom MVP and Sr. Consultant for Microsoft where he focuses on working with customers on their data estate. His career includes work as a DBA, University full-time faculty member, Systems Analyst, Project Leader, and Developer. He has found his passion in working with data and the community. Rick served nine years on the PASS Board of Directors and spearheaded the popular 24 Hours of PASS event. He also started his local User Group in 2002. Today, he spends much of his time with his head in the clouds.
Brian Carrig is a Microsoft Certified Master of SQL Server and is currently a Senior Program Manager on the SQL Server Tiger Team at Microsoft focusing primarily on persistent memory technology and replication. In a previous life, Brian spent some time as an academic and holds a PhD in Computer Science. He is a native of Dublin, Ireland but now lives with his wife and two daughters in Redmond, Washington. If he is not talking about, thinking about or working with technology you will usually find him watching Chelsea FC.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellynpotvin
Contact: http://dbakevlar.com
Kellyn Pot’Vin-Gorman is a member of the Oak Table Network and an Idera ACE and Oracle ACE Director alumnus. She is a Data Platform Architect in Power BI with AI in the EdTech group at Microsoft. Kellyn is known for her extensive work with multi-database platforms, DevOps, cloud migrations, virtualization, visualizations, scripting, environment optimization tuning, automation, and architecture design. Kellyn has spoken at numerous technical conferences for Oracle, Big Data, DevOps, testing, and SQL Server. Her blog (http://dbakevlar.com) and social media activity under her handle, DBAKevlar, is well respected for her insight and content.
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/slowder
Contact: http://shannonlowder.com
For over 15 years Shannon Lowder has been spotting patterns and learning ways to work smarter instead of harder. He started with development and moved into database administration. Using TSQL, Database Jobs and PowerShell, he automated himself out of contracts quickly. As Business Intelligence became a greater demand, he moved into SSIS, SSRS, and SSAS development. Early on, he tried using PowerShell and .Net to automate BI Development. Later those efforts turned to Biml. After founding a startup six years ago, he finds himself a data platform consultant, designing and guiding other professionals to build highly automated enterprise solutions. Today, he is a Biml Hero candidate and is awaiting the final approval for the award.
With over 20 years of experience in large, high performance, mission critical environments, Dave brings a wealth of knowledge and experience. While his primary focus is the data platform, Dave has deep expertise in other fields, including Cloud (Private/Public/Hybrid), Storage, Virtualization, Compute and Networking. Dave also has deep experience in the Big Data space, having worked in technologies such as Hadoop, Data Lake, Cosmos DB and MongoDB. Dave is a international speaker on SQL Server related topics, most recently on SQL Server on Linux.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-popovich-jr-2a03b692?trk=hp-identity-name
Contact: https://pmpjr.wordpress.com/
Paul Popovich Jr. has been in the IT space for his whole career and tinkering with computers since his 486 PC back in the mid 1990s. Professionally he is a senior DBA for a large hospital system. You can find on twitter @pmpjr, email at paulpopovichjr@gmail.com.
LinkedIn: http://uk.linkedin.com/in/johnqmartin/
Contact: https://www.mssqltips.com/sqlserverauthor/291/john-martin/
John Martin is a Data Platform Engineer working in the financial sector, as well as Vice President Marketing for the PASS organization and currently a Microsoft Data Platform MVP. Previously John has worked as a product manager for SentryOne and a Premier Field Engineer with Microsoft UK. John has over a decade of experience working with SQL Server and the Microsoft Data Platform. Working as a DBA, developer and consultant for Microsoft, he has been lucky enough to see how best, and how not, to use SQL Server and the Data Platform effectively.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnmd/
Contact: https://gplifehacks.com/
Shawn Dorward, a Microsoft MVP for Business Solutions, is a business and technology professional focusing on efficiencies and maximizing the return on technology investments. After using Dynamics GP for nearly 15 years as an end user, Shawn found himself better serving the Dynamics Community as a consultant. Shawn is the Dynamics GP Practice Lead at InterDyn Artis, headquartered in Charlotte, NC where he focuses on building relationships and helping businesses deepen their skill sets by learning more and more about their ERP. Very active in the GP User Group (GPUG), Shawn serves proudly as a GPUG Allstar and can often be found presenting at community events around the US and online.
Contact: http://sqlblog.com/blogs/andrew_kelly/default.aspx
Andrew J. Kelly is a Senior Technical Subject Matter Expert with B3 Group Inc. and lives in Clarkdale, AZ. He has over 20 years experience with relational databases and application development, but his main focus now is SQL Server. In addition to general SQL Server training and mentoring, he specializes in performance, scalability, and maintainability of large-scale SQL Servers. He is a regular speaker at conferences and user groups and was a SQL Server / Data Platform MVP for 18 years.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellynpotvin
Contact: http://dbakevlar.com
Kellyn Pot’Vin-Gorman is a member of the Oak Table Network and an Idera ACE and Oracle ACE Director alumnus. She is a Data Platform Architect in Power BI with AI in the EdTech group at Microsoft. Kellyn is known for her extensive work with multi-database platforms, DevOps, cloud migrations, virtualization, visualizations, scripting, environment optimization tuning, automation, and architecture design. Kellyn has spoken at numerous technical conferences for Oracle, Big Data, DevOps, testing, and SQL Server. Her blog (http://dbakevlar.com) and social media activity under her handle, DBAKevlar, is well respected for her insight and content.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/srutzky
Contact: http://SqlQuantumLeap.com/
Solomon Rutzky has been working with databases for since 1996, focusing on SQL Server since 2002. He has written several articles for SQL Server Central (including the Stairway to SQLCLR series), and SimpleTalk, and has a blog: https://SqlQuantumLeap.com/ . Solomon is owner / founder of Sql Quantum Lift ( https://SqlQuantumLift.com/ ), and is the creator of the popular SQLCLR library of functions: SQL# ( https://SQLsharp.com/ ). He does what he can to help others by answering questions on a couple of StackExchange sites ( https://stackexchange.com/users/281451/ ), Ask.SqlServerCentral.com/users/20164/SRutzky.html , and SqlServerCentral.com/Forums/ .
Contact: http://www.m82labs.com
I am a father of 4, and live in Raleigh North Carolina. I love fixing problems, and learning new technologies that can help me fix those problems faster and better than I did the time before. In my spare time I like to read, speak, and learn new things. I currently work as a Database Administrator at ChannelAdvisor where I solve fairly interesting problems on fairly large databases. You can often find me on Twitter where I talk about SQL, beer, and anything else I find interesting.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jared-poche-51102797
Contact: https://sqljared.com
Jared Poche began working with SQL Server as an instructor for certification classes and has a passion for teaching and performance troubleshooting. Jared spent 10 years providing customer support at Microsoft, most recently as a Sr. Support Escalation Engineer. He is currently working as a Database Engineer for ChannelAdvisor and is blogging about his current experiences at sqljared.com
Contact: http://insyncva.com
SQL Server DBA, Developer, IT Manager, Business Owner from the Richmond, VA USA Area Interested in pushing the limits of both hardware software and my own brain
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinwilkie
Contact: http://sherpaofdata.com
Kevin has 15+ years experience with SQL Server and has worked with the product since version 6.5, although he remembers with distaste the early versions of the product. He started working with SQL Server as an "Accidental" DBA, and has moved up through the ranks as a SQL Developer, a BI Associate, and Production DBA at various parts of his career. Currently, he works as a Lead Data Analyst spreading the gospel of how great data can be to anyone and everyone who will listen.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/AndyLeonard
Contact: https://andyleonard.blog
Andy Leonard is founder and Chief Data Engineer at Enterprise Data Analytics, Microsoft Data Platform MVP, creator of the DILM (Data Integration Lifecycle Management) Suite, an SSIS trainer, consultant, developer, Business Intelligence Markup Language (Biml) developer and BimlHero, SQL Server database and data warehouse developer, community mentor, engineer, and farmer. He is a co-author of "The Biml Book and SQL Server Integration Services Design Patterns" and author of "Managing Geeks - A Journey of Leading by Doing", "Data Integration Lifecycle Management with SSIS", "Building Custom Tasks for SSIS", and the "Stairway to Integration Services". Andy blogs at andyleonard.blog where you can learn more on the About Andy page.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/pittfurg
Contact: http://www.port1433.com
Drew Furgiuele is a senior DBA that lives in Dublin, Ohio who is passionate about SQL Server and PowerShell. He's been working with SQL Server since 2002. When he’s not accidentally dropping tables in production, he likes writing automation scripts, blogging about SQL Server Replication, wiring electronics, playing board games, and spending time with his dog. He's also not embarrassed by his Spotify playlists.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/williamjwolf
Contact: http://www.sqlwarewolf.com
Bill is the Manager of SQL Server Performance Tuning for RDX. He works with over 400 customers on solutions within the SQL Server environment and specialized in code tuning and mentoring the team within RDX. He has become a SQL Saturday veteran speaking at nearly 40 SQL Saturdays in the last 3 years. He has also spoken at Summit and is an Idera Ace class of 2018. Bill is active in the Pittsburgh SQL Server User Group. He is also the chapter lead for the DevOps Virtual User Group. He is passionate about educating users on SQL Server and mentoring others.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sqlha
Contact: http://sqlha.com/blog
Max Myrick is a SQL Server consultant whose experience includes 15 years at Microsoft with 5 years on the SQL Server development team where he ran the SQL Customer Lab and then the Sustained Engineering team. He was an founding member of Microsoft#39;s Mission Critical team where he worked with the largest SQL Server applications worldwide for almost a decade. Max was a regular speaker for Microsoft and has continued to speak at various PASS and other SQL Conferences since becoming a managing partner of SQLHA LLC.
Az Arunachalam has been working with SQL server since v4.21/SQLNT. He started his career with troubleshooting at chip level, worked as a network engineer managing Novell NetWare networks, graduated into managing Windows NT, moved onto development, administered databases, and is currently working as a database architect. He#39;s excited about all the cloud offerings that Microsoft and others have made possible, and in sharing his findings with aspiring data enthusiasts.
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/george-maxson-6612945
George Maxson has been a Database Administrator for Elon University for the last 1.5 years, and was the Database Analyst in a manufacturing environment for the previous 7 years. He volunteers with PASS as a co-leader of the Triad BI User Group and volunteers for SQL Saturday events.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerod-johnson/
Contact: https://www.cdata.com/blog/
Jerod started his career as a teacher, teaching high school math and computer science for 6 years before transitioning to a career in the software industry. Originally hired as a member of the developer support team at CData Software, a leading provider of standards-based connectivity solutions for SaaS, Big Data and NoSQL sources (think ODBC, JDBC, ADO.NET, etc.). He spent some time as a developer, but eventually found himself in his current role as a Technology Evangelist, writing about, demo-ing, and presenting the same products he supported and developed. In the wild, you'll find Jerod at home with his wife and kids, climbing some rocks (or plastic holds), or gathered around a table with friends playing board games.
Contact: http://www.tf3604.com
Brian is a database administrator at Children International in Kansas City. He has been working with SQL Server technologies since 1998, including roles in report development, application development and database administration.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dougpurnell/en
Contact: http://sqlnikon.wordpress.com
Doug Purnell is a DBA at Elon University and is a co-leader for the Triad SQL BI PASS User Group. In his spare time you can find Doug taking photos and cooking up some BBQ on his cooker.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anders-pedersen-993676
Contact: http://blog.AndersOnSQL.com
20+ years of experience with SQL Server, from version 6.0 to 2017. Funnily enough, the only certification I have is on SQL 2012, the one version I have never used. Mostly worked at medium sized companies, by choice. Was a consultant for 6+ years, working on anything from facility security systems, background checks, retail PoS systems, to major financial systems. Passion for performance, and teaching people easy ways to better SQL performance.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mikewells
Contact: http://sqltechmike.com
Michael Wells is a Microsoft Specialist at Dell EMC covering enterprise customers. He has worked in IT since 2000 and has supported all versions of SQL Server from SQL Server 2000 to SQL Server 2014. Michael has been presenting since 2007 for local user groups, CodeCamps, SQLSaturday events, IT Pro Camps, and large conferences like PASS Summit and Oracle OpenWorld.
Mark Hudson is an MCITP with many years of experience in business intelligence and data analysis. He has developed data solutions using numerous platform tools including multiple SQL Server versions. He is a data architect and developer with CapTech (www.captechconsulting.com) and served as a leader of the Richmond SQL Server User Group (www.richmondsql.org).
Mark has been working in IT for 30 years. Currently is a senior MS SQL DBA/Database developer who also performs SQL performance tuning and data warehousing. Works with SSIS and develops ETL/ELT packages for data warehousing. Also is involved with reporting solutions with SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS). Enjoyes sharing SQL techniques with newcomers.
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/slowder
Contact: http://shannonlowder.com
For over 15 years Shannon Lowder has been spotting patterns and learning ways to work smarter instead of harder. He started with development and moved into database administration. Using TSQL, Database Jobs and PowerShell, he automated himself out of contracts quickly. As Business Intelligence became a greater demand, he moved into SSIS, SSRS, and SSAS development. Early on, he tried using PowerShell and .Net to automate BI Development. Later those efforts turned to Biml. After founding a startup six years ago, he finds himself a data platform consultant, designing and guiding other professionals to build highly automated enterprise solutions. Today, he is a Biml Hero candidate and is awaiting the final approval for the award.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/msbelindaallen/
Contact: http://www.BIBelinda.com
Belinda Allen is a (Power BI) Data Platform Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP). Belinda has just completed her second book, Building Dashboards with Microsoft Dynamics GP 2016 - Second Edition. Belinda is also an inaugural member of the Board of Advisors for PBIUG (Power BI User Group.) Belinda is also well known for her blog, www.BelindaTheGPcsi.com. On her blog, she shares really useful information about the product quickly and succinctly. With followers from all over the globe, she can share knowledge and achieve her mission: “To improve the lives and business success of my followers.”
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpruski
Contact: https://dbafromthecold.com/
SQL Server DBA with over 10 year's experience. Originally from Wales but now living in Ireland
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiewick/
Contact: http://blog.wicktech.net
Jamie Wick is the Systems Database Engineer for The College of William Mary and has been working with SQL databases for the past 10+ years. His background includes working for several years as a SQL SysAdmin for the University of Queensland (Australia), a Masters degree in Computer Information Systems from Boston University, and assorted Microsoft SQL certifications. He is the Chapter Leader of the Richmond SQL Server Users Group, a volunteer and speaker at regional SQL events (User Groups/SQLSaturdays), helps run the SQLSaturday RVA events, and is an avid photographer.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacoatesprofile
Contact: https://www.CoatesDataStrategies/blog
Melissa Coates is a data architect with a background in data warehousing and business intelligence. Her current professional focus is enterprise-level Power BI governance, deployment, security, and administration. As the owner of Coates Data Strategies, Melissa produces training and consults to help companies strengthen and sustain their data-driven initiatives. Melissa is big supporter of the technical community, and has been a Microsoft Data Platform MVP since 2013. You can visit Melissa's website at CoatesDataStrategies.com, which includes community resources like diagrams, blogs, and videos.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=176471amp;trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile
Contact: http://mssqlperformance.blogspot.com/
Jeff has been consulting on and performing technical training for MS SQL Server since 1989, Version 4, on OS/2. Since then, he has worked extensively with each release of the product, specializing in performance and tuning, from concept through legacy system, on systems of all sizes, from small start-up company applications to multi-terabyte data warehouses. In addition to hands-on consulting, he speaks at SQL Saturdays several times/year, has a youtube channel with free training, and has written 20 books on database management systems. His latest book is "Transact SQL the Definitive Guide."
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacoatesprofile
Contact: https://www.CoatesDataStrategies/blog
Melissa Coates is a data architect with a background in data warehousing and business intelligence. Her current professional focus is enterprise-level Power BI governance, deployment, security, and administration. As the owner of Coates Data Strategies, Melissa produces training and consults to help companies strengthen and sustain their data-driven initiatives. Melissa is big supporter of the technical community, and has been a Microsoft Data Platform MVP since 2013. You can visit Melissa's website at CoatesDataStrategies.com, which includes community resources like diagrams, blogs, and videos.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwhartoncomputer
Contact: http://MyProjectExpert.com
Michael Wharton is a Project MVP. He has been an independent consultant for the past 20 years, with over 30 Project/SharePoint Server deployments. He has an MBA from Wake Forest and has over 44 Microsoft Certifications. Michael's primary job is helping companies setup a PMO, Project Management Office using Project Server using SQL server on a SharePoint Farm. He has worked extensively with the back end support setting up SQL server, SharePoint Server and Project Server using PowerShell.
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/pittfurg
Contact: http://www.port1433.com
Drew Furgiuele is a senior DBA that lives in Dublin, Ohio who is passionate about SQL Server and PowerShell. He's been working with SQL Server since 2002. When he’s not accidentally dropping tables in production, he likes writing automation scripts, blogging about SQL Server Replication, wiring electronics, playing board games, and spending time with his dog. He's also not embarrassed by his Spotify playlists.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/pub/janakiraman-jana-sattainathan/a/a07/b95
Contact: http://www.sqljana.wordpress.com
Jana works as a Senior Oracle and SQL Server DBA at SCOR, a leading Reinsurance company in the world. He has spent most of his professional life around databases. At work, he has automated most aspects of his job using PowerShell. Most recently, he created PowerPump, a “PowerShell Database Copy Server” for his company to copy 50 billion rows (> 20 TB,) from 4000+ of Oracle/SQL Server tables on a recurring basis to SQL Server targets for migration/testing. He has also fully automated the database deployment which supports all components of SQL Server and Oracle using PowerShell (with about 150 functions) that is tracked extensively.
The following is a list of sponsors that helped fund the event.