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[Focus]

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Guard Your Data with Kerberos
All security operations in SQL Server depend on authentication and authorization. Kerberos authentication, the Windows 2000 default, offers identification of both the client and the server.
 — Morris Lewis

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[Features]

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Security Through Ownership Chains
Are you looking for ways to improve SQL Server object security in a multidatabase environment? Making better use of ownership chains can help. Here's a look at concepts, techniques, and best practices for working with ownership chains.
 — Dan Guzman

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[SQL Server Savvy]

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Blocking SQL Server Agent Stops and Starts
A reader asks how to prevent users from stopping and starting the SQL Server Agent.
 — Brian Moran


Dynamic Port Detection
A reader asks why he can't get his SQL Server client tools to connect to a default instance of SQL Server 2000 through a dynamically determined TCP/IP port.
 — Brian Moran


Multiple NULLs with Unique Constraints
Although SQL Server Books Online can be misleading on this topic, a unique constraint doesn't let you add multiple records that contain a value of NULL.
 — Brian Moran


Using T-SQL to Concatenate Data Into a Variable
You can use a T-SQL-based cursor to create a stored procedure that loops through rows and concatenates data into a variable, as you do in Visual Basic.
 — Brian Moran

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[Editorial]

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Benchmarks Gone Bad
Not all database benchmarks are created equal. The reasons why the TPC tests are successful are the same reasons why magazines and other interested parties can’t perform good database benchmarks.
 — Michael Otey

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[SQL Seven]

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Visual Studio .NET FAQs
Developers are learning how important Visual Studio .NET will be to Yukon, the next release of SQL Server. Are you ready to begin testing Visual Studio .NET? Here are the answers to seven common questions that you might ask.
 — Michael Otey

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[Inside SQL Server]

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Indexing Updates
Indexes that help with data modification operations can be totally different from the ones that help with retrieval. Learn how to choose UPDATE and DELETE indexes wisely.
 — Kalen Delaney

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[Mastering Analysis]

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Writing Back Time
You've created a time-tracking application that uses Analysis Services' write-back capability. Now learn how to automate maintenance of your write-back cube and create a data-entry application so employees can enter billable time.
 — Russ Whitney

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[Solutions by Design]

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Product-Distribution Metamodel
Would you like to know instantly how much of one wallpaper batch remains in your warehouse bin? Or how your current cost for lawn mowers matches your cost over time? The product-distribution metamodel provides the framework for these details.
 — Michelle A. Poolet

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[T-SQL Black Belt]

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Missing Numbers
You might have missed out on proving Fermat's Last Theorem, but here's your chance to solve Blank's Puzzling Problem. Ready?
 — Itzik Ben-Gan

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[Answers from Microsoft]

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Migrating a SQL Server 2000 Database to SQL Server 7.0
Microsoft’s SQL Server Development Team illustrates three ways to move data from a SQL Server 2000 database to SQL Server 7.0.
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team


Performing a Log Shipping Role Change
Microsoft’s SQL Server development team tells a reader how to link login accounts from one server to another.
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team


Retrieving a Database’s Stored Procedures and Change Dates
Microsoft’s SQL Server development team sends readers to a database’s list of stored procedures and offers a code snippet that returns that information.
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team


Rolling Back a Transaction in the Transaction Log File
Microsoft’s SQL Server development team explains why you can’t use T-SQL to roll back a transaction in the transaction log and provides code for a way to accomplish the task.
 — Microsoft's SQL Server Development Team

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[Exploring XML]

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Web Services in Action
Now you can use Microsoft’s SOAP Toolkit 2.0 and the WSDL to create a Web Service that easily expands the volume of data you send your customers across platforms.
 — Rich Rollman

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[Letters]

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Letters, July 2002
Readers write in about creating Web-based analysis systems, finding answers to their problems in SQL Server Magazine, and the future of mdXML.
 — Various Authors

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[New Products]

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New Products, July 2002
Check out the latest SQL Server-related new and improved products.
 — Carolyn Mader