How to use fake tables in SQL unit testing? April 22, 2019 by Esat Erkec In this article on SQL unit testing, we will talk about how to isolate SQL unit tests from dependencies and how to use fake tables in SQL unit tests, so that we will able to develop more robust and less fragile SQL unit tests. Read more »
SQL unit testing best practices April 8, 2019 by Esat Erkec SQL unit testing is a testing method which allows us to test the smallest, atomic programmable part of a database object. SQL unit testing plays a key role in the modern database development cycle because it allows us to test individual parts of the database objects work as expected. SQL unit testing adds a great worth to the database project because unit tests are more reliable then manual test methods. Read more »
SQL Unit testing with the tSQLt framework and SQL Server Database Project integration March 25, 2019 by Esat Erkec In the previous article SQL unit testing with the tSQLt framework for beginners in this series, we covered tSQLt framework essentials and installation. we also demonstrated basic SQL unit testing through the tSQLt framework. In this article, we will continue to explore SQL unit testing and we will also discuss the benefits of SQL unit testing. Additionally, we will learn how we can use the tSQLt framework in a SQL Server Database Project. Read more »
Continuous Database Delivery (CD) using SQL Server Tools SqlPackage.exe August 14, 2018 by Prashanth Jayaram A little curiosity on my part led me to research a little further on the available pieces of SQL Server Tools. A cross-platform tool for continuous integration and deployment, called SqlPackage, is part of SQL Server Data Tools. I picked it up because continuous integration, delivery and deployment are now must-have in the modern-day application development paradigm. We’d talk about the following in this article: The Database Management Life Cycle Complexities of the database release management process Introduction to SQL Server Data Tools and SqlPackage Using SqlPackage.exe, with examples Read more »
The BCP (Bulk Copy Program) command in action August 13, 2018 by Prashanth Jayaram There are various methods available for bulk data operations. BCP utility BULK INSERT Using OPENROWSET Import/Export wizard The BCP (Bulk Copy Program) utility is a command line that program that bulk-copies data between a SQL instance and a data file using a special format file. The BCP utility can be used to import large numbers of rows into SQL Server or export SQL Server data into files. The BCP data files don’t include any schema details or format information. Hence, it is recommended to create a format file to record the data format so in case of any failures, you can refer to the format file and better understand the data format to determine what may have gone wrong.. We’ve been using the BCP tool for a long time, the reason being that it has a very low overhead, and works great for bulk exporting and importing of data. It is one of the most efficient ways to handle bulk import and export of data. Read more »
Overview of the SQLCMD utility in SQL Server August 13, 2018 by Prashanth Jayaram This article is aimed at helping you understand the sqlcmd utility. Of course, this is a tool most of us have used it at several occasions given that the tool has been around for a decade now. However, to be a solid starting point, this article contains some examples that help you understand the tool from different viewpoints. This article discusses the following: How to enable SQLCMD A few important points to remember SQLCMD with scripting variables in SSMS Passing variables (or argument) as T-SQL and or a SQL Script file SQLCMD with scripting variables and Windows scripting in SSMS Read more »
SQL Server utilities you probably didn’t know about – SQLdiag, osql and SqlLocalDB October 26, 2017 by Daniel Calbimonte Introduction There are several tools included in SQL Server on-premises that you may not know. In this article we will explain the following tools: SQLdiag osql SqlLocalDB After reading this article, you will learn how to use them and understand what are they for. Read more »
