Top Microsoft SQL Server Features: Explained in Detail

Microsoft SQL Server Features empower businesses with advanced data management capabilities such as data warehousing, mobile business intelligence, and scalability. It has many benefits, like optimising performance, enhancing security, and enabling informed decision-making. These features help address complex data challenges as well as provide useful insights.  

Today, it is among the most popular Relational Database Management Systems (RDBMS). Read this blog to learn about the Top Microsoft SQL Server Features in detail. 

Table of Contents         

1) Key Microsoft SQL Server Features  

   a) Relational Database Management System (RDBMS)  

   b) Big Data clusters  

   c) Data warehousing  

   d) Query Store  

   e) Flexibility  

   f) Intelligent database capabilities  

   g) Mobile BI and scalability  

   h) Temporal Tables  

   i) Data encryption and compliance  

   j) New design for cardinality estimation  

2) Conclusion  

Key Microsoft SQL Server Features  

It is a powerful and versatile RDBMS that offers a wide range of key features. These features provide businesses with robust tools for efficient data management, analysis, and security. Read ahead to explore some of the notable Microsoft SQL Server Features that contribute to its popularity and effectiveness.   

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Relational Database Management System (RDBMS)  

At the core, it is an RDBMS that follows the principles of relational database management. It allows users to define relationships between tables, enforce data integrity, and perform complex queries using Structured Query Language (SQL).

Big data clusters  

Microsoft SQL Server offers an exceptional feature called big data cluster that enables intelligent data handling and analysis. Here's what you can achieve with this powerful feature:   

a) Seamlessly query and explore your entire data estate without data replication, including SQL Server and Oracle databases.   

b) You can integrate diverse data sources, enabling a unified view for comprehensive analysis.   

c) Leverage advanced analytics and machine learning capabilities to gain valuable insights and make informed decisions.   

d) Utilise the scalability and performance benefits of big data clusters for handling large volumes of data.   

e) You can accelerate data-driven innovation by harnessing its powerful and intelligent data processing.   

f) With it's big data clusters, you can unlock the complete potential of your data, enabling intelligent decision-making and driving business success.

Data warehousing

It provides robust features for building and managing data warehouses. It supports techniques like partitioning, columnstore indexes, and compression, which enhance query performance on large datasets. The built-in data warehousing capabilities make the Microsoft SQL Server ideal for business intelligence and analytics purposes.   

Query store  

The query store feature in Microsoft SQL Server provides valuable insights into query performance and optimisation. Here are the key benefits of query store:   

a) You can capture and store query execution plans and runtime statistic   

b) With query store, you can analyse and compare query performance over time   

c) You can identify and troubleshoot performance regressions   

d) With this, you can pinpoint queries causing performance issues   

e) Moreover, you can easily revert to previous query plans if necessary   

f) You can efficiently monitor and optimise query performance   

Flexibility  

The Microsoft SQL Server allows businesses to choose their preferred language and platform. Whether operating in Windows or Linux environment or considering Kubernetes deployments, SQL Server supports many options. This flexibility ensures compatibility and ease of use, allowing you to work with the language and platform that best aligns with your organisation's needs. 

Intelligent database capabilities  

Microsoft SQL Server provides a range of intelligent database capabilities that enhance performance and efficiency. Here's what you can expect from these advanced features:   

a) In-memory support: It accelerates data access and processing by leveraging in-memory technology, resulting in faster transactions and improved overall performance.   

b) Persistent memory support: It benefits from persistent memory technology, which combines the speed of memory with the durability of storage, ensuring faster and more reliable data access.   

c) In-memory optimised tempdb: It optimises temporary database operations by leveraging in-memory technology, reducing contention and improving concurrency for better overall performance.   

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Mobile BI and scalability  

SQL Server enables businesses to leverage mobile Business Intelligence (BI) capabilities. It allows you to easily integrate your database management systems with any device, providing access to real-time data and analytical capabilities. It also offers scalability options, ensuring that your database can accommodate growing data volumes and user demands.   

Temporal tables

Microsoft SQL Server introduces temporal tables, a powerful feature that effectively tracks data changes over time. Here's how temporal tables enhance your database management:  

a) Data history tracking: It automatically tracks and stores the full history of changes made to your data, including inserts, updates, and deletions. This comprehensive historical information facilitates auditing, compliance, and analysis.   

b) Point-in-time querying: With temporal tables, you can easily query data as it appeared at a specific point in time. This capability is invaluable for historical analysis and reconstructing past states of your data.   

c) Simple data auditing: It simplifies auditing data changes by providing a built-in mechanism to track and retrieve historical data. This feature is particularly useful for regulatory compliance requirements.   

d) Transparent data management: Temporal tables seamlessly integrate with existing SQL Server functionality, making it easy to manage and manipulate data using familiar Transact-SQL commands.   

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Data encryption and compliance  

As data security becomes increasingly vital, Microsoft SQL Server offers robust data encryption and compliance features. Its data protection, monitoring, and classification system have positioned it as one of the most secure platforms in the industry.    

Plus, it has been recognised by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) database for nine consecutive years. It ensures the confidentiality and integrity of your data, helping you meet regulatory compliance requirements.   

New design for cardinality estimation  

Microsoft SQL Server incorporates a new design for cardinality estimation, which plays a crucial role in query optimisation and performance. Here's how this advanced feature can help you:  

a) Enhanced query optimisation: The new cardinality estimation design improves estimated row counts and statistics, enabling the query optimiser to generate more efficient plans for faster and more accurate execution.  

b) Improved plan quality: SQL Server generates query plans aligned with actual data distribution and query semantics, reducing suboptimal plans and enhancing overall performance.  

c) Adaptive query processing: The design integrates with adaptive query processing, allowing dynamic adjustment based on runtime data for better estimations and query performance.  

d) Statistical model enhancements: Updated models and algorithms enable more precise estimations, especially for complex queries with multiple tables, joins, and filters.  

e) Compatibility and migration: The new design may impact existing query plans, but Microsoft provides compatibility views and trace flags for a smooth migration. So, it helps minimise performance regressions.  

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Conclusion          

We hope you enjoyed reading this blog explaining the Microsoft SQL Server Features. From Temporal tables to Mobile BI, it has many features for improving your organisation's business capabilities. By harnessing its power, you can gain a competitive edge and drive success in today's data-driven landscape.   

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