ProcureSQL Speakers at Day of Data Pittsburgh and St. Louis 2026
The ProcureSQL team is bringing practical insights on SQL Server performance, data protection, Power BI, and Microsoft Fabric to two…
Top 10 Announcements from FabCon Europe 2026
FabCon Europe took place in Barcelona from September 28 to October 1, 2026. Microsoft announced a long list of updates…
10 Decisions to Make Before You Create A Fabric Workspace
Creating a Fabric workspace takes about 30 seconds. Restructuring workspaces after people have built content in them takes a lot…
September 2026 SQL Server Security Updates
The cost of a properly planned SQL Server maintenance window is measurable and manageable. The cost of a database compromise…
Data Classification for HIPAA-Aligned Security in SQL Server and Azure SQL
10 Limitations of Fabric Deployment Pipelines And Some Alternatives
Fabric deployment pipelines look like they solve CI/CD for Fabric content, especially for people who prefer a GUI over writing…
Think Twice Before Enabling Fabric’s Inbound Network Protection
Fabric inbound network protection involves two tenant-level controls: Private Link and Block Public Internet Access. But enabling them disables several…
The $150 Challenge: What We’re Building and Why
Series: Building a SQL Server Always On Lab in Azure Before You Begin This is the first post in the…
Crawl, Walk, Run with Agentic Development of Power BI Assets
If you’ve been watching AI roll through the data community and thinking, “this seems useful, but I have no idea…
T-SQL Tuesday 198: The Hidden ETL Mistake That Silently Wastes Time And Compute
Programmatically Retrieving MLV Lineage and Refresh Times
Materialized lake views (MLVs) in Microsoft Fabric are an effective way to implement medallion architecture declaratively, but once you have…
New Video: Defaulting Power BI Slicers to the Current Month
There is currently no way to set a default value in a Power BI slicer visual. So how do you…
Keeping the Current Month Selected in your Power BI Slicers
There is currently (as of April 2026) no native way to keep the original slicer visual defaulted to keeping the…
Monitoring Fabric Mirroring for SQL 2025
I previously wrote about how the underlying technology for Fabric mirroring changed with SQL Server 2025. The latest version of…
SQL Server 2025 Fabric Mirroring: Change Feed vs CDC Explained
SQL Server 2025 replaces CDC with a new change feed for Fabric mirroring giving you lower overhead, self-healing DDL, no…
SQL Server Dynamic Data Masking Security Pitfalls: How Masked Data Gets Exposed
SQL Server Dynamic Data Masking (DDM) is one of those SQL Server features that is commonly misused as a primary…
Operating Materialized Lake Views in Microsoft Fabric
This is the last post in a three-part series exploring the mechanics of Materialized Lake Views (MLVs). The goal is…
Designing with Materialized Lake Views in Microsoft Fabric
This is the second post in a three-part series exploring the mechanics of Materialized Lake Views. The goal is to…
We’re Speaking at FabCon/SQLCon
We are happy to announce that three ProcureSQL employees are on the FABCON/SQLCON agenda. These co-located conferences are happening in…
SQL Server 2025 Upgrade Cost & ROI
The issue I’ve found is that reviews of SQL Server 2025 that showcase the business impact of the upgrade are…
New Video: Optimizing Azure Data Factory ForEach Parallel Execution
I just published a new video to our YouTube channel explaining how Azure Data Factory ForEach activities work as far…
Optimizing Azure Data Factory ForEach Parallel Execution
Do you use ADF ForEach activities to execute other activities in parallel? Check out this video to understand how the…
Materialized Lake Views in Microsoft Fabric
This is the first post in a three-part series exploring the mechanics of Materialized Lake Views. The goal is to…
Data Viz in Fabric Notebooks
Lots of people have created Power BI reports, using interactive data visualizations to explore and communicate data. When Power BI…
Classifying and Auditing Sensitive Data with SQL Server
In this tip, we go over how you can classify your sensitive columns, audit anytime anyone selects, updates, deletes, or…
Check Power BI Bookmarks with Semantic Link Labs
Have you ever added a visual to a Power BI report page and published the updated report only to realize…
Check Power BI report interactions with Semantic Link Labs
It can be tedious to check what visual interactions have been configured in a Power BI report. If you have…
Automating Power BI Tasks with Semantic Link Labs
Do you wish it were easier to clean up Power BI reports and review their contents before publishing them to…
Semantic Link Labs: A Key-player in Power BI Automation
Setting page visibility and the active page are often overlooked last steps when publishing a Power BI report. It’s easy…
Code Changes that Eliminate SQL Server Performance Complaints
Getting Started with SQL Server Performance Tuning
Learn how to identify your bad queries and how to make them go faster even if you never looked at…
TSQLTuesday #188 – The Recap of Growing the Younger Data Community and Speakers
Earlier this month, we hosted T-SQL Tuesday and chose the topic of Growing the Younger Data Community and Speakers. Today, I…
TSQLTuesday #188 – Growing the Younger Data Community and Speakers
This month, I am hosting T-SQL Tuesday for the very first time. T-SQL Tuesday is a monthly blog party created…
Fabric Mirroring is Changing the Game for Data Ingestion
Microsoft’s Fabric Mirroring will change how you perform data ingestion. If you are using products to automate batch processes for…
A Guide for Executives on Modern Data Strategies
In an era where data complexity outpaces organizational capacity, IT leaders face mounting pressure to deliver analytics that drive growth…
Microsoft Power BI to Microsoft Fabric: Are You Ready for the Transition?
In 2023, Microsoft announced its new platform, Microsoft Fabric, an innovative product that combined Microsoft Power BI, Azure Synapse Analytics,…
Standard Developer Edition is added to SQL Server 2025
With the release candidate of SQL Server 2025, which came out last week, I want to discuss a valuable feature…
SQL Server 2025 Standard Developer Edition
With the release candidate of SQL Server 2025, which came out last week, I want to discuss a valuable feature…
Advanced Data Protection Webinar with Azure SQL Database and SQL Server
Organizations handle increasing amounts of growth with their sensitive data. Data engineers must identify and protect their data from external…
Austin, Texas Best SQL Server Training in 2025
If you’re looking to master SQL Server, Power BI, or Microsoft Fabric, attending the SQL Saturday event in Austin, Texas,…
Legacy Applications: Should They Stay Or Should They Go?
Modernizing Legacy Applications Older legacy systems and legacy applications are crucial to a business’s functionality. They’re the backbone that holds…
The CIO’s Guide to Leveraging Microsoft Fabric for Competitive Advantage
I attended the Microsoft Fabric conference for the first time last week. I wanted to provide a guide that CIOs…
Is SQL Server is the root cause or a symptom of your performance issues?
In this six-minute video, Allen shows you multiple ways to quickly identify if your performance problem is related to SQL…
Pain free way to identify if SQL Server is the root cause or symptom
In this six-minute video, Allen Kinsel shares multiple ways to quickly determine whether SQL Server is the root cause or…
Streamlining Data Analytics with Data Pipelines and a Data Lake
AI analytics today allow us to break down and analyze all parts of a business. Today, we will quickly talk…
Images in PBIR Format Reports: A Guide to Easy Replacements
With the PBIR format of Power BI reports, it’s much easier to make report updates outside of Power BI Desktop.…
Ignite 2024 Cliff Notes
Semantic Link Labs with Power BI: Finding fields used in a Power BI report in PBIR format
Have you ever wondered where a certain field is used in a report? Or maybe you need an easy way…
AI in the Boardroom: Turning Data into Strategic Insights
For every company in America, there are thousands of different variables that can positively or negatively affect its finances. Today…
Microsoft Entra Authentication: A Superior Alternative to SQL Server Authentication
Securing data access is paramount for organizations of any size. Nobody wants to be the following data security leak that…
Machine Learning for Operational Efficiency
Every year, hundreds of billions of packages are shipped around the world. And in 2023 alone, that number broke the…
Fabric Lakehouse Schemas: Your Data’s New Best Friend
In this post, we will cover a new feature in preview for Microsoft Fabric: Lakehouse Schemas. If your Lakehouse is…
SQL Server Performance Tuning: No Consultant Required
Are you tired of people complaining about your database’s slow performance? Maybe you are tired of looking at the black…
Why Adopting a Modern Data Warehouse Makes Business Sense
Why Adopting a Modern Data Warehouse Makes Business Sense Most traditional data warehouses are ready for retirement. When they were…
Ignore_Dup_Key – the good the bad and the ugly
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication, Please!
This year, several data breaches were caused by multi-factor authentication NOT being enabled. If you ever follow any of our…
Validating Your SQL Server Backups Made Easy!
Hello, Everyone; this is John Sterrett from Procure SQL. Today, we will discuss how you can validate SQL Server Backups…
Kansas City Developers Conference 2024
Why Did You Sponsor Kansas City Developers Conference? This is a great questions which leads to a good story. Back…
Microsoft Build 2024: Key Updates for Data Pros
“Every business workflow in every enterprise will be engineered with GenAI at its core” -ServiceNow’s Bill McDermott Microsoft Build 2024…
Testimonial from REPS & Co.
CTO Jeremy Brown of REPS & Co. Speaks on how Procure SQL helped him.
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – February 28, 2024!
Here are some news, videos, tips, and links the Procure SQL team would like to share! Scan vs. Seek The most…
Data Engineering with Notebooks in Seven Minutes
Checkout this quick video to see how you can start to load and transform your data with notebooks. Data Engineering…
Microsoft Fabric Data Engineering with Notebooks in Seven Minutes
This is an introduction to utilizing Notebooks to transform and load your data into Microsoft Fabric.
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – February 21, 2024!
Here are some news, videos, tips, and links the Procure SQL team would like to share! Near Zero Downtime…
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – February 14, 2024!
Here is some news, videos, tips, and links the Procure SQL team would like to share! Procure SQL made it…
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – February 7, 2024!
Here are some videos, tips, and exciting links the Procure SQL team would like to share! MLB’s Databases Have you…
Microsoft Fabric Overview in Five Minutes
In five minutes, Justin gives you a Microsoft Fabric overview to help you ingest, process, store, monitor, and govern your…
Microsoft Fabric Overview in Five Minutes
In five minutes, Justin gives you a Microsoft Fabric overview to help you ingest, process, store, monitor, and govern your…
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – January 31, 2024!
Here are some videos, tips, and exciting links the Procure SQL team would like to share! Xbox and SQL Server…
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – January 24, 2024!
Here are some videos, tips, and interesting links we have viewed at Procure SQL. Comparing NULLS Struggling to compare many…
Is external governance coming to SQL Server 2022?!?!
Every so often, when a new cumulative update (CU) comes out for SQL Server, I like to see what system…
SQL Server Cumulative Updates
Learn what cumulative updates are and how installing them can help you. Learn how to find and understand the release…
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – January 17, 2024!
Hopefully, everyone is back into the swing of things as we are in the middle of week three of 2024!…
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – January 10, 2024!
Hopefully, everyone is back into the swing of things as we are in the middle of week two of 2024!…
Query your Lakehouse in Fabric with SSMS
This week, John asked, “Can you query data inside a lakehouse using SQL Server Management Studio? Yes, did you know…
Query Your Lakehouse in Microsoft Fabric with Management Studio
Learn how to utilize SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) to write queries against your Lakehouse in Microsoft Fabric.
Procure SQL’s Weekly Digest – January 3rd, 2024!
Happy New Year! We hope everyone had a happy holiday season. Here are some videos, tips and links we found…
Finding Query Anti-Patterns in Your Developer’s Queries
In the beginning of my IT career, I was a developer. I wrote a lot of bad code that didn’t…
Exposing Anti-Patterns in your Developers SQL Server Queries
Learn how to catch query anti-patterns with Extended events and see how to fix some of the most common anti-patterns.
Power BI: Discover What License Is Best for Your Money
Am I choosing the correct license for my budget and needs? In the dynamic realm of Data Analytics, the recent…
Azure VMs – How To Go Green
This article will help guide you to go green with your Azure VMs and save some green! ???? When building…
Austin Texas SQL Saturday was a Success!
Austin Texas SQL Saturday was a success! Procure SQL would not exist if it wasn’t for #SQLFamily and the SQL…
SQL Saturday Austin, Texas – Free SQL Training
SQL Saturday Austin is coming to Austin Texas. That’s right, you heard it here first! Free SQL Server training in…
Back To Basics: Benchmark Your Queries
Learn how to use set statistics to benchmark your queries for duration, cpu, and logical reads so you can know…
SQL Saturday Jacksonville Sponsors
Procure SQL is proud to be speaking and sponsoring SQL Saturday Jacksonville this weekend. Join us and several other amazing…
Query Store 101
Today I heard a great analogy, and it inspired this post. Execution plans are like flight plans, there are multiple…
Getting Started with SQL Server Performance Tuning
Have slow queries and want to get down to the basics of learning some fundamentals for performance tuning? If so,…
SQL Server 2022 What is New?
SQL Server 2022 was announced yesterday at Microsoft’s Ignite Conference. Here are some of the items that caught our attention.…
Replay in the Cloud
Want to save money, validate performance, and make sure you don’t have errors while migrating to Azure SQL Database, Azure…
Benchmarking Queries with SentryOne Plan Explorer
Today, I want to focus on a free tool that everyone can use when benchmarking queries or performance tuning their…
Free SQL Data Compare
I am a consultant in Austin who can help make your data go fast, be secure and highly available. When…
Five Tips for Working Remotely
The following are five tips for working remotely that I learned over the years from working remotely with large companies…
Query Store for Workload Replays
Query Store for Workload Replays This month’s T-SQL Tuesday is hosted by Tracy Boggiano. Tracy invites us all to write…
Import Databases to Azure SQL Database
I recently spoke at a conference and was asked what is the easiest way to import databases to Azure SQL…
Allow users to start/stop Azure VMs
Today I wanted to cover how you can grant the least privilege required to stop, start or restart an Azure…
Previous SQL Server Updates
Hello everyone, this is John your Austin SQL Server Consultant here and today I am going to answer a question…
Free SQL Server Training Videos
Hello everyone! This is your SQL Server Consultant in Austin, TX and due to some posts on twitter about SQL…
5 Game Changers with SQL Server 2019
Microsoft made SQL Server 2019 Generally Available this week we want to share some videos and code examples of our…
Keeping Data Safe: Row-Level Security
In this tip, we want to go over the fundamentals of Row-Level-Security for a database table. Don’t let your data…
Azure Backup for SQL Server VMs
I am not sure why but sometimes I am glutting for punishment. Maybe its why I try every backup and…