Featured Article(s)
Review: Idera’s SQL Diagnostic Manager
Monitoring your servers and diagnosing issues as they occur is a huge part of managing SQL Server for optimum performance and usage. SQL DM is a tool that aims to help in this regard, automating much of the monitoring and troubleshooting for you.
Mobile Data – New Challenges Continue To Evolve
I’ve been reading quite a bit about new technologies that are "out there" and at the same time, I’ve been thinking that those same technologies (all of the mash-up capabilities, the online storage, the new tools and devices) represent quite a challenge when it comes to locking down or protecting data. I saw several articles recently talking about laptops being quickly outpaced as the most potentially dangerous devices. The new device of choice, and subsequently causing the most concern? Phones, PDAs and other mobile, personal devices. (I suppose it goes without saying that that also means the services behind those devices).
There is a lot to this – this "danger" of data on these devices. I was thinking though that there may be another area that you should probably be thinking about. That is the portion of the application development that’s being done to support these applications. Many times the mobile application requires a new application, or subset application that pulls information from the database and presents it to the device. Many times this is new development work. Be cautious of these applications and the work around them. Be sure you’re checking back on the information being shared, how it’s used, etc.
The reason I say this is because so many people quickly discount information sent "just" to a cell phone, PDA or other personal device. They’re still seen as relatively controlled devices with limited functionality and I think that leads many of us to overlook both the use of information on the device and the protection of information on the device. If you add to this the potential to downplay the control over the application development process for that device (because people won’t "worry" about such a minor application) you have the breeding grounds for some real issues.
This will all be magnified as more applications are built. Today the application may have access to different bits and indeed be innocent in its usage of the information. You might not think twice about that select * statement or the permissions associated with the login. But, as the devices mature and keep using the same data sets, the same permissions and logins, we may quickly find that we’re collectively faced with re-engineering a significant set of applications. Use the same care and feeding on those mobile application development projects that you do on more traditional application development – you’ll save yourself a lot of trouble in the very near future.
SQL Server Video Show Available
SelectViews – Injection Recovery, Accidental DBA Tip: Auto-Grow/Shrink, Upcoming Events, Good Enough Follow-Up. Also, 60-Second Tip on Tape Rotations, Permissions Tips, New SQL Server 2008 List Server and A Lot More.
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Windows PowerShell: Why Developers Should Care
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