Changing the Collation of the SQL Server Instance, the Databases, and All Columns in All User Databases: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Need to change the collation at ALL levels? Prefer to avoid reloading all objects and data? Learn what the "sqlservr -q" option does, and doesn't, do.

Clustered Index Uniquifier Existence and Size

In SQL Server, Clustered Indexes created without the UNIQUE keyword must guarantee unique key values by adding a hidden "uniquifier". But how big is this field, and is it always there?

Impact on Indexes When Mixing VARCHAR and NVARCHAR Types

(last updated: 2019-11-10 @ 11:15 EST / 2019-11-10 @ 16:15 UTC ) You may have heard, or read, that you should not mix VARCHAR and NVARCHAR datatypes, especially when one of them is a JOIN or WHERE predicate / condition, as doing so will invalidate indexes. While it is always best to have all datatypes… Continue reading Impact on Indexes When Mixing VARCHAR and NVARCHAR Types