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andybrownsword.bsky.social
Andy B
@andybrownsword.bsky.social
5 followers 7 following 140 posts
📝 https://andybrownsword.co.uk
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andybrownsword.bsky.social
How've the last couple of weeks been?
Satisfactory (the game 🎮)
Exploring, planning, and optimising ⚒️... apparently efficient factories and pipelines are my thing 😉
January 4, 2026 at 12:09 AM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
What doesn't go bump in the night? The Halloween problem - because SQL Server solves it for you 🎃
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/12/30/t...
The Halloween Problem and SQL Server
It’s not the usual time of year to think about Halloween, but listening to Erik Darling and Kendra Little recently on the Dear SQL DBA podcast they mentioned a completely new topic to me: Hal…
andybrownsword.co.uk
December 30, 2025 at 10:01 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
🧠 ISNULL and COALESCE may return the same value, but not the same type:
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/12/23/u...
Understanding Return Types with ISNULL and COALESCE
Last week we looked at how expressions are evaluated with the ISNULL and COALESCE functions. Whilst we’re in the area it’s worth running through how data types are selected for them too…
andybrownsword.co.uk
December 26, 2025 at 9:12 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
⚙️ ISNULL and COALESCE may return the same value, but not in the same way:
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/12/16/u...
Understanding Expression Evaluation with ISNULL and COALESCE
When eliminating NULL values with SQL Server queries we typically reach for ISNULL or COALESCE to do the job. Generally speaking they’ll provide equivalent resul…
andybrownsword.co.uk
December 24, 2025 at 11:51 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
This month's #tsql2sday, sharing a couple of notes with career advice:
👶🏼 ...to my past self
👴🏼 ...from my future self
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/12/09/t...
T-SQL Tuesday #193 – A Note to the Past and a Warning from the Future
This month’s invitation from Mike asks us to write a couple of notes – one to our past self, and one from our future self – focused on what we were concerned about, and what we sh…
andybrownsword.co.uk
December 9, 2025 at 11:23 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
🚀 Quick win: Add email support to ADF / Synapse pipelines with a lightweight Logic App 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/12/02/s...
Sending Emails from Data Factory Pipelines
Not all pipelines in Azure have native options for sending emails. The lucky Fabric folks have an Office 365 connection ready to rock. Data Factory and Synapse don’t have email capability bui…
andybrownsword.co.uk
December 4, 2025 at 8:34 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
Winter is coming...
(stew in the slow cooker tonight 🍲)
November 27, 2025 at 7:01 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
🔧 The Import Data wizard in SSMS copies columns, not schema. Don't lose the important bits 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/11/25/t...
The Cost of Convenience with the Import Data Wizard
If you need to create a copy of a table in another database, the ‘Import Data’ option may seem convenient. If you’ve used this method to copy to your dev environment and found thi…
andybrownsword.co.uk
November 25, 2025 at 10:14 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
🚨 When SQL Server stops responding, the DAC might be your lifeline. See how it works in different offerings:
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/11/18/u...
Understanding SQL Server’s Dedicated Admin Connection (DAC)
Slow queries are one thing, but under heavy pressure, your SQL Servers might see failed connections or slow responses. When the server isn’t responding we want a back-door we can crack open. …
andybrownsword.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 1:12 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
☁️ If your Self-Hosted IR doesn’t need to run 24/7, switch the VM on for the work and off when you’re done - and save 💰
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/11/11/r...
Reduce Uptime and Costs for Azure Hosted Integration Runtimes
If you have a Self-Hosted Integration Runtime (SHIR, or IR for short here) on an Azure Virtual Machine (VM), there’s a cost to keep it online. When used intermittently – for example dur…
andybrownsword.co.uk
November 12, 2025 at 10:14 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
☁️ Calling Logic Apps from Pipelines ☁️
Web vs. WebHook: the patterns, pitfalls, and cost savings 💰
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/11/04/c...
Calling Logic Apps from Data Factory Pipelines
Last week we looked at calling a Data Factory Pipeline from a Logic App. This week I thought we’d balance it out by taking a look at calling a Logic App from an Azure Data Factory (ADF) Pipel…
andybrownsword.co.uk
November 5, 2025 at 9:20 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
Demonstrating the pattern for calling a pipeline from a Logic App and waiting for completion 🖐🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/10/28/r...
Running Data Factory Pipelines in Logic Apps
When building Azure Logic Apps we can use the Azure Data Factory connector to start a pipeline. However that action simply triggers a pipeline and doesn’t wait for it to finish. If …
andybrownsword.co.uk
October 30, 2025 at 8:01 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
FTTP finally available and installed. Top class service from Openreach 🤝

Upward of 40x uplift on the old copper in one afternoon 🤯⚡
October 24, 2025 at 10:46 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
This month's T-SQL Tuesday looking at string parsing, and filling the Named Groups gap in SQL Server 2025's Regex functions 🧩
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/10/21/t...
T-SQL Tuesday #191 – Art of the Parsable
This month’s invitation from Steve asks us about our favourite string parsing routines. It conveniently popped up as I was trying out the new Regular Expression (Regex) functions in SQL Serve…
andybrownsword.co.uk
October 21, 2025 at 8:45 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
🧠 String parsing got an upgrade in SQL Server 2025 with Regular Expressions. Check out the expressions and the power they bring 💪🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/10/14/e...
Exploring Regular Expressions in SQL Server 2025
String parsing is a regular occurrence when it comes to data engineering. Splitting strings, converting, combining – all in an effort to bring some order. Sometimes we need a more p…
andybrownsword.co.uk
October 18, 2025 at 11:19 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
I was today years old when I learned bearer tokens could be decoded 🤯
October 15, 2025 at 8:08 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
Proactively review and tighten your SSRS security with a couple of quick scripts 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/10/07/r...
Review Security Drift in Reporting Services
Reporting Services deployments aren’t exactly the latest fashion, so any you stumble upon are probably a little dated and in need of TLC. One place to review would be the security. Security i…
andybrownsword.co.uk
October 13, 2025 at 7:43 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
Integrating with SharePoint from Logic Apps 🤝 using the REST API, an App Registration, and a certificate 🔒
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/09/30/f...
File Operations in SharePoint Using Logic Apps and App Registration
The standard SharePoint connectors in Logic Apps authenticate with Entra accounts. When you want to use an App Registration instead, it’s a little trickier. In this post, we’ll show how…
andybrownsword.co.uk
October 7, 2025 at 7:56 AM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
A bit about debugging and error handling with RAISERROR and THROW 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/09/23/w...
Why Do We Still Use RAISERROR?
I don’t use RAISERROR often – I usually forget which severity code to use. After looking at a sprinkling of them recently I decided it was time for a refresher, so come along for the ri…
andybrownsword.co.uk
September 24, 2025 at 9:16 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
Great to see 1.0 and the Xbox release for DRG Survivor 💪🏼 Had a blast trying out early access and love diving back in for 1.0! Rock and stone miners ⛏️
September 19, 2025 at 9:04 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
Quick and easy table row count. That is all. 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/09/16/h...
How Many Rows Are In That Table?
A question I ask myself often when exploring unfamiliar data sets. So here’s a quickie: SELECT SchemaName = OBJECT_SCHEMA_NAME([object_id]), TableName = OBJECT_NAME([object_id]), NumRows = SU…
andybrownsword.co.uk
September 17, 2025 at 6:33 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
🖥️ Den in progress...
⚒️ Love a good flat pack
✅ Afternoon project complete
September 13, 2025 at 7:53 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
This month's #tsql2sday discussion about mastery of skills and my approach to learning 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/09/09/t...
T-SQL Tuesday #190 – Mastering Skills
This month’s T-SQL Tuesday invitation from Todd asks us to consider mastery of skills. Learning is a continual cycle, a part of our everyday – be it on a personal or professional journe…
andybrownsword.co.uk
September 9, 2025 at 9:19 PM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
An efficient option for batching DML changes by walking the primary key 🚶🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/09/02/b...
Batching Large Data Changes Using Key Ranges
Handling data modifications to large tables can be tricky. We can end up with long running queries and large transactions. Efficiently handling them comes from batching. Effective batching in gener…
andybrownsword.co.uk
September 8, 2025 at 8:44 AM
andybrownsword.bsky.social
⛏️ Digging deeper into Join operator behaviour to see where they can be quietly helping or hindering performance 👇🏼
andybrownsword.co.uk/2025/08/26/d...
Discovering More About Join Operator Internals
In the previous post I explained Join Operators in SQL Server. Whilst compiling that I dug a little deeper and came across a few interesting points I thought were worth sharing. Let’s look at…
andybrownsword.co.uk
September 4, 2025 at 8:40 AM