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Month: June 2023

SSMS 19.1 Updates

Published 2023-06-13 by Kevin Feasel

Erin Stellato has a two-parter around SSMS 19.1. The first includes a small but important change:

In SSMS 19.1, the default value for Use system default web browser was changed to True.  This only applies to new installations; anyone upgrading from an earlier version of SSMS 19 will need to change the option to True manually.

This means that, for new installations, clicking on a link in SSMS will no longer open in the built-in SSMS browser, which doesn’t work for a lot of newer sites.

Part 2 picks up with some additional changes:

We have heard complaints, for months, about the startup time for SSMS.  Between 18.12.1 and 19.0 we made a few changes, and in 19.1 we delayed initializing the output window to also reduce startup time.  Some of you noticed!  Glenn Berry completed a round of testing and documented findings in his SSMS 19.1 Performance Improvements blog post.  We are hoping to also gain improvement when we get to SSMS 20, so know that our work is not yet done.

Click through for the full set of chnages.

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Shiny Apps and Fullscreen Behavior

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Tim Brock gives us a demo:

Browsers have been implementing variations on a JavaScript fullscreen API for over a decade. Unfortunately, for much of that time the APIs varied across browsers. This made actually using it in production somewhat cumbersome.

Finally, with the release of Safari 16.4 in March of this year, the latest versions of all major desktop browsers now support a single, standardized interface. Legacy versions of Safari for desktop are still in use and there’s still no support at all for the Fullscreen API on iPhones; so while you can cover most users with the standardized API, it should still be for progressive enhancement and not as a fundamental requirement for operation of an application.

Click through for the script.

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Listing Files by Date in R

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Steven Sanderson shows off a built-in function:

In R, the file.info() function is a useful tool for retrieving file information, such as file attributes and metadata. It allows programmers to gather details about files, including their size, permissions, and timestamps. In this post, we will explore the file.info() function and demonstrate how it can be used to list files by date.

Read on for more information. This function is a lot more powerful than simply running ls or dir (without any flags) in a directory.

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Computed Properties in Cosmos DB

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Hasan Savran shows off a new feature in Cosmos DB:

A computed property is a virtual property that is not physically stored in a document. You can use data from other properties of a document to calculate a value for the computed property. This will help you to save CPU power since the database engine does not need to calculate the computed column value for each query request. In the Cloud CPU power means money! Computed Columns are like coupons you can use to save money.

Read on to learn more about how computed properties work, their limitations, and some examples of how to create and use them.

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Code Signing on an Executable

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Gianluca Sartori takes us through the process of signing our own executables:

Why does happen with some files and doesn’t happen with the Chrome installer or Acrobat reader? Because those setup kits are signed with a certificate from Google and Adobe, released by a certification authority that checks that Google is actually Google and not a disgruntled random guy pretending to be Google.

This means you can sign your code too, you just need to get a code signing certificate from a certification authority and they will be happy to give you one in exchange for money.

Click through for the step-by-step demonstration and a Powershell script to perform the signing.

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Contrasting Lakehouse, Warehouse, and Datamart in Fabric & Power BI

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Reza Rad disambiguates three terms:

Three types of objects in the Microsoft Fabric have similarities in what they can do for an analytics system. These three are; Lakehouse, Data Warehouse, and Power BI Datamart. All three objects provide storage for the data, which can be loaded into them using an ETL process and read using something like a Power BI report. In this article and video, I’ll explain the actual differences and how to choose the best option for your implementation and architecture.

Reza does a good job explaining when each of the three fit in and even has a nice chart to work out which one you might want to use.

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Power BI Theme Generator Updates

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Seth Bauer has some updates for us:

Gradients add depth and visual interest to your reports and dashboards. With our enhanced gradient selections, you can now choose from a wide array of gradient styles to create eye-catching visualizations. Whether you prefer subtle transitions or bold color shifts, the Power BI Tips Theme Generator has you covered. Unleash your creativity and elevate your designs with stunning gradient effects.

Not all of the updates are in the free plan, though some of them are.

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Debunking Security Myths with SQL Server

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

Eitan Blumin has some myths for us:

Many organizations assume that their SQL Server is secure because it is behind a firewall. However, firewalls only block traffic to specified ports and protocols, and they do not protect against attacks that come through allowed traffic. Therefore, it’s important to secure SQL Server at a more granular level.

Furthermore, even if your SQL Server is not connected to the internet, it can still be hacked through internal attacks or by using compromised devices that connect to your network… If at least one privileged user can connect to the SQL Server, that means a malicious attacker potentially could do the same.

My one quibble is that number 5 isn’t a myth. I accept the importance of performing auditing, and people I know who have insane transactional throughput requirements still perform auditing, but there certainly is a performance effect. Otherwise, definitely worth the read.

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SSIS Package Migration with dtutil

Published 2023-06-12 by Kevin Feasel

John McCormack does some spring cleaning:

SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) is a powerful tool, but migrating packages across SQL Servers can be a slow and thankless task if you don’t use automation. The single best way to do this is by using DTUTIL, a command-line utility provided directly by Microsoft. When it comes to moving 1000s of packages, I would only use DTUTIL because it can achieve in minutes what it would takes days to achieve using point and click.

Read on to see how you can move these packages between instances, as well as downloading packages as a backup.

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What’s New in Power BI: May 2023 Edition

Published 2023-06-09 by Kevin Feasel

Ronald Kraijesteijn talks about some of the more interesting updates:

In May 2023, Microsoft announced a series of updates and new features to its Power BI platform, aiming to improve user experience, accessibility, and performance. As a skilled blog writer, I will provide you with a comprehensive summary of these updates, covering all areas from reporting and modeling to embedded capabilities and accessibility improvements.

There’s a lot on this list to check out.

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