Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Getting Started with Vector Searches in SQL Server 2025
Deborah Melkin – Lightning Talk

Mitigating Your Data Bloat with Partitioning & Data Virtualization
Andy Yun – Presentation

Are you managing a VLDB where cold data must be retained, but it’s dragging down maintenance, backups, and query performance? What if you could shrink your database footprint while still letting users query that data exactly as they always have?

In this session, we’ll start by reviewing the classic approach using partitioning and filegroup strategies. Then we’ll dive deep into a modern, more flexible solution: Data Virtualization. You’ll learn how external tables/CETAS can enable seamless access to archived data stored in object storage, with zero changes to your users’ T-SQL code. This isn’t just about saving space — it’s about redefining what “archiving” can mean in today’s SQL Server environments.

You’ll leave with practical techniques — both classic and modern — for reducing database bloat, improving manageability, lowering storage needs, and preserving fast, transparent access to historical data.

Deborah Melkin

Deborah Melkin has been working as a database professional with SQL Server for over 20 years. She spends her days helping coworkers with all aspects of database design, queries, performance, documentation, and deployment. In 2016, she began her blog, Deb the DBA. Soon after that, she began speaking at SQL Saturdays and user groups. Deborah is a board member of the New England SQL Server User group (NESQL) and a member of the Azure Data Community Advisory Council. She was named “One To Watch” as part of the #Redgate100 and won Speaker Idol at PASS Summit 2019. Deborah is also a Microsoft MVP for the Data Platform.

In her spare time, Deborah can usually be found doing something musical or doing something geeky with her husband, Andy, and dog, Sebastian.

Andy Yun

Andy Yun is a Field Solutions Architect at Pure Storage, who has been with SQL Server for over 20 years as both a Database Developer and Administrator. He focuses on performance tuning, with expertise in T-SQL, storage engine internals, and monitoring. Andy strongly believes in passing knowledge onto others, regularly speaking at conferences and user groups, and mentoring industry colleagues. Andy is a former Microsoft MVP, co-founder of the Chicago SQL Association, and former co-leader of the Chicago Suburban User Group and Chicago SQL Saturday Organizing Committee.

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Performance Tuning SQL Server for the Cloud

When your SQL database is in a cloud service, you’re paying for performance. How can you maximize performance while minimizing costs? Join me in this session to learn about SQL Server’s performance options that can be used to reduce CPU usage and storage, which will reduce costs and make your database faster! I’ll show you how to use features such as rowstore and columnstore indexes, in-memory OLTP, and read scale-out to minimize query run times and optimize resource use. DMVs, Query Store, and intelligent query processing will be covered so you know how to look for expensive queries and let the database engine make your queries faster automatically. You’ll be ready to get the most performance for the least amount of money from SQL in the cloud.

Jes Chapman

Jes Chapman is a Data & AI Cloud Solution Architect at Microsoft. With a dynamic background spanning software engineering to product management, and enriched by years as a SQL consultant and field engineer for SQL Server, Jes brings a wealth of expertise from the heart of Microsoft. A former five-time Microsoft Data Platform MVP, she’s contributed to technical books and taught from stages worldwide with her passion for teaching. When not immersed in the cloud, you’ll find Jes conquering trails, hiking through nature’s wonders, or experimenting in the kitchen.

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Migrating your SQL Server DBA skills to PostreSQL

During a recent job search I noticed an increase in the number of postings that called for not only SQL Server skills, but also PostgreSQL skills as well. This session is designed to help the SQL Server DBA start the transition to also being a PostgreSQL DBA. During this session, we will cover some of the core areas of responsibility for a DBA. There are a few tools similar to SSMS that we will do a high-level overview of. We will go over the options for backing up the database and server, process management, how to capture execution plans and discuss the basic security model for a PostgreSQL database and server.

David Bland

Over 25 years of SQL Server experience that includes being a DBA, BI development and Application development using VB.NET. Dave is currently the Manager of Database Engineering at Lexia. Prior to that he was the Manager of the DBA team at Stericycle. Dave was a Friend of Red-Gate for 2019 and 2020. He is a frequent presenter at SQL Saturday events and user groups around the country. Has been teaching SQL Server since version 2000 and is the SQL Server instructor at Harper College in Palatine, IL.

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Migrating your SQL Server DBA skills to PostreSQL

During a recent job search I noticed an increase in the number of postings that called for not only SQL Server skills, but also PostgreSQL skills as well. This session is designed to help the SQL Server DBA start the transition to also being a PostgreSQL DBA. During this session, we will cover some of the core areas of responsibility for a DBA. There are a few tools similar to SSMS that we will do a high-level overview of. We will go over the options for backing up the database and server, process management, how to capture execution plans and discuss the basic security model for a PostgreSQL database and server.

David Bland

Over 25 years of SQL Server experience that includes being a DBA, BI development and Application development using VB.NET. Dave is currently the Manager of Database Engineering at Lexia. Prior to that he was the Manager of the DBA team at Stericycle. Dave was a Friend of Red-Gate for 2019 and 2020. He is a frequent presenter at SQL Saturday events and user groups around the country. Has been teaching SQL Server since version 2000 and is the SQL Server instructor at Harper College in Palatine, IL.

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

SQL Server Health Checks – A How-to Guide

The database servers underneath critical applications are quite complex, but you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to learn how to keep it running efficiently. This highly technical session will help you lead an investigation into the performance of the database server and application databases. The SQL Server database environment will be examined in depth, including reasons to upgrade and how to save on SQL Server licensing costs. A rigorous health check from all the layers of SQL Server, including instance configuration, parallelization settings, and non-default performance and scalability improvements, will be introduced. Database-specific details designed to detect how your organization uses the database and options to improve its performance will also be discussed in detail. Valuable scripts, tips, and architecture concepts will be addressed so that you can perform a thorough analysis on your SQL Server environment.

David Klee

David Klee is a Microsoft MVP and VMware vExpert with a passion for the convergence of data, cloud, and infrastructure. David spends his days handling performance and HA/DR architecture of mission-critical SQL Servers as the Founder of Heraflux Technologies. His areas of expertise are virtualization and performance, datacenter architecture, and risk mitigation through high availability and disaster recovery. You can read his blog at davidklee.net, and reach him on Twitter at @kleegeek.

David speaks at a number of national and regional technology related events, including the PASS Summit, VMworld, IT/Dev Connections, SQL Saturday events, SQL Cruise, PASS virtual chapter webinars, and many SQL Server User Groups.

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Security Compliance and Auditing for SQL Server and the Azure Data Platform (Part 2 of 2)

As security and privacy requirements increase, DBAs are being tasked with providing detailed information about the architecture and activity on their databases, both for governance and compliance. However, the regulations are many and complex, and they are often written generically so they can be applied to many different industries. How do you interpret the regulations? What do you actually need for proof? And how do you get that information out of SQL Server and Azure?

In this session, we’ll explore some of the most common cybersecurity frameworks for regulations and cyber insurance, and we’ll break them down to understand how to architect your data platform for compliance. We’ll also look at how to use the tools available from Microsoft to get the proof you need. By the end of the day, you’ll have a plan for compliance that you can start implementing.

Ed Leighton-Dick

Ed Leighton-Dick is a Microsoft MVP, SQL Server performance and architecture specialist, and Founder/Principal Consultant of Kingfisher Technologies. He is a frequent volunteer with PASS, including roles as regional mentor, chapter leader of I-380 PASS SQL Server User Group, and organizer of SQLSaturday Iowa City. He can often be found teaching sessions at local, regional, and national events, including user groups, SQLSaturday, and PASS Summit. 

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Security Compliance and Auditing for SQL Server and the Azure Data Platform (Part 1 of 2)

As security and privacy requirements increase, DBAs are being tasked with providing detailed information about the architecture and activity on their databases, both for governance and compliance. However, the regulations are many and complex, and they are often written generically so they can be applied to many different industries. How do you interpret the regulations? What do you actually need for proof? And how do you get that information out of SQL Server and Azure?

In this session, we’ll explore some of the most common cybersecurity frameworks for regulations and cyber insurance, and we’ll break them down to understand how to architect your data platform for compliance. We’ll also look at how to use the tools available from Microsoft to get the proof you need. By the end of the day, you’ll have a plan for compliance that you can start implementing.

Ed Leighton-Dick

Ed Leighton-Dick is a Microsoft MVP, SQL Server performance and architecture specialist, and Founder/Principal Consultant of Kingfisher Technologies. He is a frequent volunteer with PASS, including roles as regional mentor, chapter leader of I-380 PASS SQL Server User Group, and organizer of SQLSaturday Iowa City. He can often be found teaching sessions at local, regional, and national events, including user groups, SQLSaturday, and PASS Summit. 

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

Unlocking Prompt Engineering for DBAs: Revolutionizing Database Management with AI Assistance

As you know, tools like ChatGPT and the newly released Gemini are making waves in how we approach database querying and management tasks. Over the past months, I’ve had the opportunity to engage with AI subject matter experts and delve deeply into how these tools can be leveraged effectively. When used correctly and wisely, they can significantly enhance productivity, streamline operations, and simplify problem-solving for DBAs.

Interestingly, the idea for this session came to me after a curious interaction with ChatGPT. I asked the same SQL-related question six times, and each time, it gave me the wrong answer. When I changed just one word—making the question sound grammatically incorrect—it finally produced the correct response. This experience highlighted the importance of how we ask questions when working with AI tools.

The goal of this presentation is to provide practical, actionable insights for the group:
– Know what to ask: Tips for crafting effective prompts to get the most accurate and useful AI responses.
– Know what to expect: Understanding the limitations and evolving nature of black-box AI tools.
– Know which model to use and when: Guidance on selecting the right AI model for specific tasks or scenarios.
– Know how to use the output: Strategies for verifying, refining, and applying AI-generated suggestions.

Leo Custodio

Leo Custodio is a data specialist and SQL enthusiast with over 15 years of expertise in data analysis, data security, systems architecture, and software design. With a master’s degree in computer science and numerous industry certifications, he has worked extensively with a variety of data science tools, including R, SPSS, Databricks, Spark, and MongoDB, to build robust data infrastructures. His experience spans deriving insights from complex datasets and implementing security measures to protect sensitive information. Passionate about the latest in database technologies, Leo actively shares his knowledge with the technical community, making advanced concepts accessible and practical.

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Event link at our Meetup page.

• 5:30 Networking
• 6:00 Meeting

SQL Server PostgreSQL Throwdown

•About four years ago maybe a little longer the company was developing some systems which involved AWS Aurora. I was asked to support them, and did.

•The request shifted to straight PostgreSQL because of the need to be on prem as well as in the cloud.

•Anyway always in the back of my mind was the decision as to why PostgreSQL. Why not SQL Server ?

•So hence this presentation of the SQL Server PostgreSQL Throwdown. Something on the order of the Bobby Flay Throwdown cooking shows.

H. Ross Reed

H. Ross Reed – DBA for over 25 Years Developer prior to being a DBA . Lead DBA SQL Server at The OCC. User group leader of The Chicago Data Professionals.

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