Tag Archives: New features in SQL Server 2012

Using TIMEFROMPARTS() – SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 June 5, 2014 Leave a comment

This new function in SQL server 2012 helps in converting time parts to time. The syntax of this function is as follows

TIMEFROMPARTS ( hour, minute, seconds, fractions, precision )

The range of the parameters for TIMEFROMPARTS is as follows :
Hour -> 0-23.
Minutes -> 0-59.
Seconds -> 0-59.
Fractions -> 0-9999999.
Precision -> 0-7.

Let us understand this with an example.

DECLARE @hour INT, @min INT,@Sec INT,@frac INT;
SET @hour = 13
SET @min = 24
SET @Sec = 22
SET @frac = 45
SELECT TIMEFROMPARTS(@hour,@min,@Sec,@frac,2)

time1

This function requires a valid value for the Hour,Minute, Seconds, Fractions, Precision parameters. If any invalid value is passed then this function will return an error. If a Null value is passed on for the Precision parameter then it generates an error. For other parameters if a Null is passed then the output is also Null.

For example in the below code we pass an invalid value for the Hour parameter

time2

Now lets see what happens when we pass a Null value to the Fraction parameter

time3
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
   
   
      
If we fail to pass any one of the parameters then the following error message is returned.
time4

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Using DATEFROMPARTS() – SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 March 7, 2014 Leave a comment

DATEFROMPARTS() returns a date value for the specified year, month, and day.

Let us understand this with an example.

The SQL code for returning day, month and year parameters as a date would probably look something like this

DECLARE @Day INT = 07, @Month int = 03,@Year INT = 2014
SELECT CONVERT(datetime,CONVERT(varchar(10),@Year) + '-' +
CONVERT(varchar(10),@Month) + '-' +
CONVERT(varchar(10),@Day),103) AS TheDate

datetime1Now lets implement DATEFROMPARTS

Here is the code for the same

DECLARE @Day INT = 07,
@Month int = 03,
@Year INT = 2014
SELECT DATEFROMPARTS (@Year, @Month, @Day) AS TheDate

datetime2

Extended Events in SQL Server 2012 – Part 2

Extended Events, SQL Server 2012 February 22, 2014 Leave a comment

In my earlier post on Extended events we discussed how we can use the SSMS GUI in SQL Server 2012 to create new extended events. In this article we will take a deeper dive into the SQL Server 2012 SSMS GUI and explore other extended events features.

How to add fields to a session

Step 1 -> Right click on the session we created. Click on properties
ee14Step 2 -> Click on Events -> Click on Configure
ee15Step 3 -> When we click on configure, the below window will appear
ee16Step 4 -> Now click on the first event ‘query_post_execution_showplan‘ and we will find a list of Actions on the right hand pane being displayed. These are the bunch of global fields from which we can choose and add to the events and the relevant data will be captured by the event trace. For this event we will choose ‘cpu_id’ and ‘database_name’.
ee17ee17Repeat the same for the next event
ee19Step 5 -> Now Click on the ‘Events Fields‘ tab and select the below as depicted. Click OK.
ee20ee21Now lets start the session and examine the Live data. For generating activity on the SQL Server we will run the below queries

USE AdventureWorks2012
go
SELECT * FROM Production.Product pp
WHERE pp.ProductID > 40
go
SELECT * FROM Production.BillOfMaterials Pb
WHERE pb.BillOfMaterialsID > 100
go

Now lets watch the Live data
ee22

How to add filters to a session

In this section we will add filters to the session we created. Filters allow you to fetch events based on the criteria provided.
Step 1 -> Right click on the session -> Click on Properties -> Click on Events -> Choose an event -> Click on the ‘Filter(Predicate)’ tab
ee23Step 2 -> From the Field tab choose a filter from the drop down. In our case we will choose duration and set a value in the Value field. Click on OK.
ee24
Step 3 -> Start the session and fire some queries and observe the Live data in action.

How to troubleshoot error – Msg 195, Level 15, State 10, Line 1 ‘TRY_CONVERT’ is not a recognized built-in function name

SQL Server 2012, Troubleshooting February 19, 2014 Leave a comment

While running the following code on a database on my SQL Server 2012 instance I got the following error message

USE BB
go
SELECT TRY_CONVERT(xml, 'MyClub')

TCerr1The reason for this error is that this function TRY_CONVERT is 110 compatible. Which means it will only run on a database with 110 compatibility. Upon checking the compatibility level, I found the database to be on 90 or SQL Server 2005 compatible.
TCerr2Resolution:
I had to change the compatibility level to 110 and then ran the code with success.

TCerr3

TRY_CONVERT function in SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 February 18, 2014 Leave a comment

TRY_CONVERT is one of the new conversion function introduced in SQL SERVER 2012. It returns a value converted to the specified data type if the conversion succeeds. Otherwise,it returns returns NULL value when it fails to convert to a requested data type. TRY_CONVERT function raises an exception if we try to an convert expression to a type which is not explicitly permitted

The syntax for TRY_CONVERT is as follows

TRY_CONVERT ( data_type [ ( length ) ], expression [, style ] )

Let us now implement this function and see how it works with different examples

SELECT TRY_CONVERT(xml, 'Manchester United')
SELECT TRY_CONVERT(DATETIME, '02/18/2014 05:30',111)
SELECT TRY_CONVERT(INT, '40')

The output of the above as follows
TryCon1

Now let us see examples where this function might fail or throw an exception

SELECT TRY_CONVERT(xml, 40)

And the output is
TryCon2

SELECT TRY_CONVERT(DATETIME, '22/18/2014 05:30',111)

And the output is
TryCon3The first error is self explanatory. The second code gives an output of NULL because the date is an invalid date.

Now the question is how is TRY_CONVERT different from CONVERT function?

Lets understand with this example

SELECT CONVERT(DATETIME, 'ABC')

TryCon4CONVERT will give an error message stating the conversion failed.

SELECT TRY_CONVERT(DATETIME, 'ABC')
AS 'Result'

TryCon5TRY_CONVERT will give a NULL.

 

CHOOSE – SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 February 17, 2014 Leave a comment

In this article we will understand this new logical function named CHOOSE in SQL Server 2012.

So here is how the syntax of CHOOSE looks like

 CHOOSE ( index, val_1, val_2 [, val_n ] )

Now let us use this in the below code and understand the output.

declare @MyFavouriteClub as int = 5
SELECT choose(@MyFavouriteClub, 'Arsenal', 'Chelsea',
'Liverpool', 'Everton', 'Manchester United',
'Sunderland', 'Fulham')

Now lets see the output of the above
choose1So what the function does is pulls out the 5th value from the data set and dispalys as a result set. CHOOSE works like an index into an array, where the array contains values or arguments. The index value\argument determines which of the containing values will be returned. If no match is found then a NULL is returned.

PERCENTILE_DISC function in SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 February 16, 2014 Leave a comment

PERCENTILE_DISC is one the new analytical\statistical functions that we have in SQL Server 2012. In this article we will see how we can use this function. To begin with let us see the syntax of this function as stated in BOL.

Syntax of PERCENT_DISC

PERCENTILE_DISC ( numeric_literal ) WITHIN GROUP
( ORDER BY order_by_expression [ ASC | DESC ] )
OVER ( [ <partition_by_clause> ] )

Now let us implement PERCENT_DISC and understand how it works.We will be using the below script to create a database and insert some values in it before we call this function.

USE [Master]
GO
IF EXISTS(SELECT name FROM sys.databases
WHERE name = 'PERCENTRANK')
BEGIN
DROP DATABASE PERCENTRANK;
END
GO
CREATE DATABASE PERCENTRANK;
GO
USE PERCENTRANK
GO
CREATE TABLE PERCENTRANKDEMO
(
[ProductId] int,
[SalesQty] int,
[Year] int
);
insert into PERCENTRANKDEMO
VALUES
(10,1000,2005),(20,1215,2005),(30,3327,2005),
(10,2000,2006),(20,2415,2006),(30,3429,2006),
(10,3050,2007),(20,3216,2007),(30,3737,2007),
(10,3026,2008),(20,1618,2008),(30,3452,2008),
(10,2004,2009),(20,4315,2009),(30,5435,2009),
(10,3040,2010),(20,4015,2010),(30,4343,2010),
(10,3060,2011),(20,4345,2011),(30,3237,2011),
(10,3075,2012),(20,4035,2012),(30,7450,2012),
(10,3055,2013),(20,5012,2013),(30,3321,2013),
(10,3059,2014),(20,6019,2014),(30,3245,2014),
(10,3150,2015),(20,6815,2015),(30,4000,2015);

Noe let’s use the below code to implement this function. With this code we are trying to find the 50th percentile from table we created.

USE PERCENTRANK
GO
select ProductId, SalesQty, Year,
PERCENTILE_DISC(.5)
WITHIN GROUP(ORDER BY SalesQty)
OVER(PARTITION BY ProductID) as [50Percentile]
from PERCENTRANKDEMO
WHERE ProductId = 20
order by ProductId;

Snapshot of the output of the above code
Perc1So what is the inference that we draw from the output. The function PERCENTILE_DISC calculates the Nth percentile based on a discrete distribution of the column values. The result set would have the Nth percentile value which would equal to a specific value in the column. Any NULLS would be ignored.

PERCENT_RANK function in SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 February 13, 2014 Leave a comment

PERCENT_RANK is a new function introduced in SQL Server 2012. The function calculates the relative rank of a row within a subset of rows or in simpler terms  it shows the percentage of values that are less than or equal to the current value.

The syntax for the function is as follows

 PERCENT_RANK( )
 OVER ( [ partition_by_clause ] order_by_clause )

Let us quickly implement PERCENT_RANK and understand how it works.

Use the following code to create a database with values in it.

USE [Master]
GO
IF EXISTS(SELECT name FROM sys.databases
WHERE name = 'PERCENTRANK')
BEGIN
DROP DATABASE PERCENTRANK;
END
GO
CREATE DATABASE PERCENTRANK;
GO
USE PERCENTRANK
GO
CREATE TABLE PERCENTRANKDEMO
(
[ProductId] int,
[SalesQty] int,
[Year] int
);
insert into PERCENTRANKDEMO
VALUES
(10,1000,2005),(20,1215,2005),(30,3327,2005),
(10,2000,2006),(20,2415,2006),(30,3429,2006),
(10,3050,2007),(20,3216,2007),(30,3737,2007),
(10,3026,2008),(20,1618,2008),(30,3452,2008),
(10,2004,2009),(20,4315,2009),(30,5435,2009),
(10,3040,2010),(20,4015,2010),(30,4343,2010),
(10,3060,2011),(20,4345,2011),(30,3237,2011),
(10,3075,2012),(20,4035,2012),(30,7450,2012),
(10,3055,2013),(20,5012,2013),(30,3321,2013),
(10,3059,2014),(20,6019,2014),(30,3245,2014),
(10,3150,2015),(20,6815,2015),(30,4000,2015);

Now lets use the PERCENT_RANK function on the above database created and view the outcome. We will use the following code below.

SELECT ProductId,SalesQty,Year,
PERCENT_RANK() OVER ( ORDER BY [SalesQty] )
AS PercentRank
FROM PERCENTRANKDEMO
WHERE productid = 30;

The outcome would be as below. The column PercentRank shows the percent of values that are less or equal to the current value of the SalesQty column. The first row in any set has a PERCENT_RANK of 0. That’s how it has been designed by default. In the result set 0.1 denotes 10 percent while 1 denotes 100 percent.
PR1

LAG and LEAD functions in SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 February 12, 2014 1 Comment

LAG() and LEAD() are two of the new analytical functions that has been introduced in SQL Server 2012. These functions helps in accessing a value from a  previous row (lag) and subsequent row (lead) in the same result set without joining the result set to itself . Let us quickly understand this with an example.

Let us create a database for the same and insert some values. Use the following code to achieve the same on a SQL Server 2012 instance

USE [Master]
GO
IF EXISTS(SELECT name FROM sys.databases
WHERE name = 'LagAndLeadDemo')
BEGIN
 DROP DATABASE LagAndLeadDemo;
END
GO
CREATE DATABASE LagAndLeadDemo;
GO
USE LagAndLeadDemo
GO
CREATE TABLE LagLead
(
[ProductId] int,
[SalesQty] int,
[Year] int
);
insert into LagLead
VALUES
(10,1000,2005),(20,1215,2005),(30,3327,2005),
(10,2000,2006),(20,2415,2006),(30,3429,2006),
(10,3050,2007),(20,3216,2007),(30,3737,2007),
(10,3026,2008),(20,1618,2008),(30,3452,2008),
(10,2004,2009),(20,4315,2009),(30,5435,2009),
(10,3040,2010),(20,4015,2010),(30,4343,2010),
(10,3060,2011),(20,4345,2011),(30,3237,2011),
(10,3075,2012),(20,4035,2012),(30,3093,2012),
(10,3055,2013),(20,5012,2013),(30,3321,2013),
(10,3059,2014),(20,6019,2014),(30,3245,2014),
(10,3150,2015),(20,6815,2015),(30,4000,2015);

Now let us implement LAG with following query

select [ProductId], [SalesQty], Year,
LAG([SalesQty]) OVER
(ORDER BY Year) as SalesQtyLastYear
from LagLead
where [ProductId] = 10
order by Year;

ll2Now if we observe the data of the column ‘SalesQtylastYear’ then we will find that it reflects the value that belongs to the previous row of the SalesQty column.

Now let us implement Lead with the following query

select [ProductId], [SalesQty],
Year,
LAG([SalesQty]) OVER
(ORDER BY Year) as SalesQtyLastYear,
Lead([SalesQty]) OVER
(ORDER BY Year) as SalesQtyNextYear
from LagLead
where [ProductId] = 10
order by Year;

ll3What we observe now is that the data of the column ‘SalesQtylastYear’ reflects the next value that belongs to the SalesQty column.

So in a nutshell this is what LAG and LEAD does. Fetches the previous row and next row values respectively. Let us now calculate the difference between last years sales quantity and current year’s sales quantity

select [ProductId], [SalesQty], Year,
LAG([SalesQty]) OVER (ORDER BY Year)
as LastYearRevenue,
[SalesQty] - LAG([SalesQty]) OVER (ORDER BY Year)
as SalesQtyChange
from LagLead
where [ProductId] = 20
order by Year;

ll4

Implementing user-defined Server Roles in SQL Server 2012

Security, SQL Server 2012 February 6, 2014 Leave a comment

In SQL Server 2012 you can now create an user-defined server role and configure server level permissions for it. In previous versions this was not possible. If we had to delegate someone with administrative tasks we had no choice but to assign more rights and access than required. With SQL Server 2012, user-defined server roles can be created and configured with specific permissions for specific set of DBA’s.

Let us understand with an example how we can create an user defined server role.
Step 1: Right click on Server roles and select ‘New Server Role‘
udr1Step 2-> As the dialog box opens, type in a server role name -> set the owner to a preferred login. In our case we would choose sa.
udr2Step 3 -> Choose an option\s from Securables window. In our case we chose Servers. Under servers you will find the name of the server. Select the option. Below in the permissions window select the following as shown in the snapshot.
udr3Step 4 -> Click on OK. You will find the new server role under the server roles in SSMS
udr4Step 5 -> Now let us add a login to this new role. Right click on the ServerRole1 -> Click on Properties -> On the members tab click on Add
udr5udr6Step 6 -> Add a login that you want a to give membership to this role. Click on OK.
udr7So now you have successfully given a particular login few administrative rights that is required rather than granting it a privilege like sysadmin.However, one limitation of the user-defined server roles is that they cannot be granted permission on database level securables. Below is the script for the entire action we did.

USE [master]
GO
CREATE SERVER ROLE [ServerRole1]
AUTHORIZATION [sa]
GO
use [master]
GO
GRANT ALTER SERVER STATE TO [ServerRole1]
GO
use [master]
GO
GRANT ALTER TRACE TO [ServerRole1]
GO
use [master]
GO
GRANT CONNECT SQL TO [ServerRole1]
GO
ALTER SERVER ROLE [ServerRole1]
ADD MEMBER [testdb]
GO

Extended Events in SQL Server 2012 – Part 1

Extended Events, SQL Server 2012 January 31, 2014 1 Comment

In SQL Server 2008, Microsoft introduced a feature called Extended Events. Extended Events helped in collecting and analyzing event driven data about the SQL Server instance. Extended Events introduced lesser load than trace or profiler events on the server. But in SQL Server 2008 there was no GUI that allowed direct communication with the events. Complex T-SQL had to be written to fetch the information which was returned in xml format.

In SQL Server 2012, MS has introduced a GUI in the Management Studio (SSMS)  that allows working with Extended Events and viewing event related data a much simpler process. In this article we will understand and see step by step how we can create and manage Extended events via the GUI that is built in the SSMS.

Step 1: Connect to SQL Server 2012 instance -> Open Management Tab -> Open Extended Events -> Right Click on Sessions -> New Session
Ee1
Step 2 -> In the new session dialog box type in a name of the session. In this case we will use ‘Session1’. For now we will not choose any template.
EE2

Step 3 -> Click on Events tab -> On the below window you will find many Events listed from which we need to pick an event or multiple events that we want to capture. Once selected we need to click on the button to add it. For this article we will use the Events
a) query_post_execution_showplan and b) sql_statement_completed
EE3AEE4Step 4 -> Click on Data Storage -> Here you specify how you can capture data so you can view it later. Here we will save it as Event File. Mention the path where we would save the file -> Click on OK.
EE5Step 5 -> Go to management studio -> Under sessions you will find New session listed. It would be in a stopped state as this is the default behavior. Right Click on the session and click on ‘Start Session‘
EE6EE7EE8Step 6 -> Now right click on the created session and select ‘Watch Live Data’. If there is no activity on the instance you will not see any data.
EE9EE10Step 7 -> Let us fire few queries on the AdventureWorks2012 database and watch the window. Following are queries that we would run on the database for testing. After running the queries go back and open the ‘Watch Live Data’ window again. Click on the Event data and observe the below.

USE AdventureWorks2012
go
SELECT * FROM Production.Product pp
WHERE pp.ProductID > 40
go
SELECT * FROM Production.BillOfMaterials Pb
WHERE pb.BillOfMaterialsID > 100
go

EE11EE12EE13In this article we have seen how we can start a new event trace from SSMS. In my next article we will explore more into the new GUI feature that MS has added to SQL Server 2012.


Data page restore from the SSMS UI in SQL Server 2012

Backup\Restore, SQL Server 2012 January 26, 2014 Leave a comment

How about a UI that lets you restore data pages in SQL Server? Well that’s exactly what we have in SQL Server 2012. The UI allows you to select the pages from the backup to restore rather than restoring the entire database.

Here are the steps how we can restore a data page in SQL Server 2012

Step 1:dp1Step 2: Once you click on Check database pages you will have list of pages that are corrupt. Click on Add. Choose the correct backup set and click on OK. The corrupt data page\s will be restored.
dp2

Timeline – Point in time recovery with SQL Server 2012

Backup\Restore, SQL Server 2012 January 23, 2014 Comments: 3

How about a nice GUI that lets you select the time to which you want to restore all your available backups in sequence in one go. A TIMELINE of restoration points. That would be fantastic and that is what SQL server 2012 has introduced. Point in time recovery via the TIMELINE feature. Let us understand this feature with an example.

I have created a database called MyDB which I will restore to a point in time. I have kept the DB in full recovery mode. The following backups have been taken.
1) 1 full backup
2) 1 Diff backup
3) 5 t-log backups
Snapshot of the backups
tl2Now lets recover this database to a point in time from the available backup via TIMELINE option.
Step 1: Right click on the database -> Tasks-> restore -> database
tl3Step 2: select device. Give a new name to the restored DB
tl4Step 3: Click on the add button and select all the backup files
tl5Step 4: Click on ok and you will see the below screen. Observe the option restore to
tl6tl7Step 5: Lets click on TIMELINE button and this is what you will see
tl8Step 6: Select the option -> Specific date and time. Once you do that you will be able to move the scroll bar to any time highlighted in green. In tis case i have moved it to 6:02:03 PM. This is the time i would like to have my DB restored to. Click on OK.
tl9Once you click on OK, you will find the below screen with the required backup only. Also observe that a tail log backup will also be taken.
tl10Step 7: Click on options tab. We will go with restore with recovery. Click on OK
tl11tl12Once you click on OK you will find the db restored with recovery to the name given above
tl13

FIRST_VALUE – New analytical function in SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 January 22, 2014 Leave a comment

In this article we will be taking a look at the new analytical function FIRST_VALUE  in SQL Server 2012. Let us understand them with examples.

This function returns the first value from an ordered set of values. The syntax for the same is

FIRST_VALUE ( [scalar_expression ] )
OVER ( [ partition_by_clause ]
order_by_clause [ rows_range_clause ] )

Let us create a sample table and understand this on SQL Server 2012. The following script does the same. Lets observe the output of the script below

CREATE TABLE [dbo].[MyFirstLastVaL](
[id] [int] IDENTITY(1,1) NOT NULL,
[Name] [nchar](10) NOT NULL,
[MarksInMaths] [int] NOT NULL )
GO
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Alan',99)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Brent',29)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Charlie',25)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('David',37)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Ello',15)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Frank',59)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Grant',16)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Honey',18)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Irene',86)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Jack',76)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Kalou',66)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Lisa',68)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Mike',98)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Lisa',28)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Mike',45)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Alan',19)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Brent',92)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Charlie',35)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Irene',36)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Jack',67)
insert into MyFirstLastVaL values('Kalou',96)

SELECT id,name,MarksInMaths,
FIRST_VALUE(marksinmaths) OVER (ORDER BY marksinmaths) MyFirstVal
FROM MyFirstLastVaL

fvl1Now let us use the function with partition by clause and observe the output

SELECT id,name,MarksInMaths,FIRST_VALUE(MarksInMaths)
OVER (PARTITION BY Name ORDER BY MarksInMaths) MyFirstVal
FROM MyFirstLastVaL

fvl2In the first case the query simply returns the first value of the entire data set whereas in the second case the output is based on the marksinmaths column, so the FIRST_VALUE is different but the same for each partition.

CONCAT() function in SQL Server 2012

SQL Server 2012 November 26, 2013 Comments: 2

In this article I will discuss the new function concat() in SQL Server 2012. This function performs a concatenation operation. We need to pass CONCAT() a number of string arguments and it will concatenate, or join them together and return an output string.
The basic syntax is as follows:
CONCAT ( string_value1, string_value2 [, string_valueN ] )

Let us now understand with an example how we can use this function and how it is different from the concatenation operator. Let us create a new table and insert some values in the table and then use a query that will use this function

CREATE TABLE MyConcatTable
(
FirstName varchar(20) NOT NULL,
MiddleName varchar(20) NULL,
LastName varchar(20) NOT NULL
)
INSERT INTO MyConcatTable
VALUES
('Sachin', 'Ramesh', 'Tendulkar'),
('Diego', 'Armando', 'Maradona')
,('Diego', Null, 'Maradona')
SELECT CONCAT(FirstName + ' ', MiddleName + ' ', LastName) AS
CustomerName
FROM MyConcatTable

The output of the above as shown below
concat1The concat function joins the columns and returns a single string. Now the big question is how is it different from the below

SELECT FirstName + ' ' + MiddleName + ' ' + LastName AS CustomerName
FROM MyConcatTable

Let us run the above code and see the outcome
concat2The 3rd value in the table has a null in the middle name column. Normal concatenation would not handle that thus resulting in a null output but the concat() would automatically remove the null and join the next corresponding string value.

I hope this short article was helpful in understanding the new function in SQL Server 2012 called concat().

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