Solid and Reliable.
We use MSSQL Server along with SSIS and SSRS as it's a very competent software suite and very stable. It integrates well with other …
Starting at $1,418 Per License
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What is Microsoft SQL Server?
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database.
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$13,748.00
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Microsoft SQL Server Technical Details
| Deployment Types | Software as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based |
|---|---|
| Operating Systems | Unspecified |
| Mobile Application | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database.
Reviewers rate Usability highest, with a score of 9.9.
The most common users of Microsoft SQL Server are from Enterprises (1,001+ employees).
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(1609)Attribute Ratings
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(1-4 of 4)Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
February 23, 2016
The giant RDBMS by Microsoft
I use SQL Server for 7 years.
I currently work in the Database Administrators department, we mainly use SQL every day. We use SQL for various needs, some examples: the management of corporate databases, for ETL processes (extract, transform, load) for data warehousing, data historicizing, reporting, OLAP cubes, dashboards, maintenance plans, monitoring and alert, the management of integration services packages and more.
- Management of very large volumes of data such as bulk loading
- Is one of the best (if not the best) relational database
- It brings you great ETL tools and data warehousing such as SSIS and SSAS
- Data indexing
- The management of VLDB (Very Large Databases) requires a lot of maintenance and preventive work to avoid falling into uncomfortable issues.
- The introduction of In-Memory (sql 2014) has opened up new prospects but still has many limitations (data types, functions and various restrictions)
- Table partitioning is as useful as awkward to handle.
- Data always accessible and available
- data history and previous analyzes (even many years back)
- development and maintenance of the data warehouse directly in-house
I started working with databases many years ago with Access, which allows you to create relational database and provide an old-fashioned desktop interface. I had a look at Oracle but I never had the opportunity to get to the bottom (also because of the budget that had the company where I worked at the time). SQL is an enterprise solution that allows professional management of DBs and DWHs in maximum safety and allows it to be applied in countless situations.
50
It is not easy to determine how many resources actually uses sql server, this because the use of sql server is of various kinds, from those who simply makes queries via the sql management studio, who uses the various business reports or dashboards, users of the sites, up to our DBAs department that directly manages the databases and data warehouses.
4
To use SQL Server are required detailed knowledge of relational databases, data warehousing concepts, notions and management of ETL (if you intend to use a corporate data warehouse), maintenance of databases, data management, data quality, high reliability of the data, indexing, queries optimization, management of a large amount of data and more.
- Data management
- Reporting and Dashboard
- ETL
- High Availability
- Datawarehouse
- transactions management
- Datawarehousing
- OLAP
- IN-memory OLTP
No
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Prior Experience with the Product
- Analyst Reports
I personally have not taken the decision to use SQL Server, but the reason why I specialized in SQL systems is because I think it definitely one of the best RDBMS in circulation, the support is great as well as his strength and for his great effectiveness, is chosen to secure by many companies to these factors and results.
If I had to choose whether to use an RDBMS the first question that I would do it if I really need a SQL db oriented or if I could draw benefit from a no-sql db, if my need is to have an RDBMS, the only choice that I should make is between Oracle and SQL, due to my experience in SQL would repeat this choice, if I'll have the opportunity to deepen Oracle will also evaluate this hypothesis (prices permitting) .
- Implemented in-house
No
Change management was minimal
Has no organizational change management needed.
However, if you are thinking of definitely migrate your data structure on sql server, you have to do several observations , you need to plan in detail every single operation, each database step by step and evaluate all the compatibility between your structure and the version of SQL on which you will migrate. This definitely requires a lot of time and tests.
- No issues
No
Fortunately we do not need premium or paid support because, fortunately for us, our team is well mixed and every time there is a problem to solve, we trying to reach a solution as soon as possible in the most constructive way possible by sharing the experiences and our know-how.
No
As I said before, fortunately it has never been necessary to seek assistance from Microsoft support regarding SQL Server, many of the answers you seek are on the MSDN Microsoft, alternatively you can open a ticket with microsoft and in the short term you will have solution to your problem .
Very useful are the Unleashed books (in your sql version) that have all the basics you need to manage sql servers.
- Always-On
- Availability Groups
- Jobs with SSIS packages integration
- Managing VLDB
- Table Partitioning
No
February 23, 2016
SQL Server from a mid-level DBA perspective
SQL Server is used throughout the organization in differing capacities. Research and Development uses it to develop new software and to fix previously coded bugs or issues. Our software communicates with a SQL server database that has almost 1000 tables with varying relationships and data amount. Support uses SQL to log customer/client issues and to see what clients have downloaded what products and who the contacts are that are viewing our released software from the Salesforce website which communicates with a local SQL database we have on site. Our Professional services team will configure databases in SQL server at client sites to help set up a new client or to solve issues that the client is encountering.
- Handle large amounts of data. SQL can process thousands of rows of data in a pinch when given the correct hardware to utilize. SQL likes memory and it will utilize it very efficiently when given the chance.
- SQL provides at least 2 methods to do everything. You can write simple SQL query scripts or you can use the built-in GUI (which coincidentally just runs SQL scripts behind the scenes).
- Allows for jobs to be setup that can do simple tasks such as database backups, database restores, export and import data and even send out notifications when SQL Server encounters a problem.
- Integrates with a lot of other programs and software. Microsoft allows SQL Server to integrate with Visual Studio and you can utilize SQL tools with SSIS, SSMS, SSAS, and SSRS to get deep into integration tools, Analyzing data, and reporting on various data in each database. You can also integrate with third party tools such as the suite of products from RedGate.
- Speed up installation times. A manual installation of SQL server can take up a good chunk of time. You can be forced to go through an installation wizard screen by screen and it can take a lot of time waiting for each screen to load.
- Allow for easier integration with GUI's. SQL has the capability to use a visual query builder where you can drag and drop fields, tables, etc to build a query but it is not as user friendly as you would imagine.
- Make the permissions more stream lined. Users can have permissions to a SQL Server but not a particular database and trying to find the right spot to add the correct permissions can be painful for someone who is new to SQL Admin work.
- Allowed my company to expand the services we offer and the speed at which our software runs due to the efficiency that SQL has.
- Negatively, it is hard to find SQL experts or seasoned veterans who can handle the data load and enterprise level functionality we have implemented.
I have used Microsoft Access, MySQL, and I have been a user of systems that run on Oracle database servers. All but Oracle are really intended for smaller scale projects and teams as they start to get slow or the performance will suffer once you start getting lots of data input and output into them. They are good for single user or single entry applications that can be maintained by almost anyone who understands databases. Oracle is a real competitor for SQL Server as it can handle large and small scale applications and data loads. It is competitively priced to SQL Server but I have heard it can be a bit tricky to work through in the back end. Since I only used applications that had Oracle databases on the back end I can only attest to the fact that the front end applications always worked just fine.
150
Research and Development, Support, Professional Services, Sales, Marketing. Each department utilizes SQL for different reasons but they all boil down to it is what our software runs on and it has been developed to integrate seamlessly with SQL Server and to run as efficiently as possible. We our a Microsoft gold partner and pride ourselves on utilizing Microsoft products to the fullest extent.
3
Our Tallahassee office currently has 3 people to service/support our SQL servers. We have a senior SQL DBA who has been with us for over 20 years, we have a mid level DBA who also is responsible for other Microsoft products such as Team Foundation Server and Hyper-V and we have a systems Administrator who is responsible for the hardware and any issues that arise with such.
- Development of new technology is the main focus of our company.
- Troubleshooting and debugging previously released code and databases.
- Configuring new servers and maintaining current SQL servers either individually or as a cluster.
- We have utilized SQL to have a client that has 2 offices on opposite sides of the planet utilize one central SQL database at the same time with no issues or hesitations.
- We can utilize the integration Microsoft allows to utilize tools outside of SQL to making reporting, error reporting, troubleshooting and data integrity easier, and more effective.
- We could utilize the new technologies being released in the new versions of SQL to allow us to process data faster and more efficiently in order to have faster processing times in our applications.
No
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Product Reputation
- Existing Relationship with the Vendor
We are and have been a Microsoft Gold partner and thus utilize most of Microsoft's products. Since we have that established relationship it made sense to continue with other products as Microsoft is known for the product integration which allows extras features and tools to be used which can then be passed down to our clients in the form of special features and benefits.
The evaluation and selection process wouldn't change. SQL did everything we did and it gave us room to grow. Training was provided and support is always accessible. Being an industry leader SQL Server is easy to maintain and troubleshoot. Finding certified and qualified individuals to service SQL is very easy as it is taught by most schools and training centers.
- Implemented in-house
No
Change management was a small part of the implementation and was well-handled
We have been using SQL Server since it's inception and thus change management was almost non-existent. We did have some applications running on other database software previously but with Microsoft putting a big emphasis on product integration and consistency it was easy to change over to SQL server. Each version has kept the base navigation and has just introduced new features allowing for a more robust experience.
- It can be time consuming.
- If you change SQL's default values it can get tricky if you don't update those names or values in every SQL instance.
I've never personally had to call Microsoft for SQL Server support. I have heard from coworkers that it has been fairly easy to get through to Microsoft Support and that their questions were answered. They were kept up to date on their cases and in all cases a resolution was provided or was at least documented with a reasonable work around solution.
- Writing and executing SQL queries is fairly simple. Just open up SQL Management studio and you can find a table you want and select rows from it using the drop down GUI when right clicking it or you can write SQL scripts into the query editor.
- Connecting to new database servers is as easy as typing the name (assuming you have permissions to connect to said server).
- Installation is easy but time consuming. Following the installation wizard allows you to get SQL installed and running in no time.
- Understanding the errors one might receive when you have incorrect permissions on a server or database.
- Setting up permissions can be difficult to grasp since there are permission levels for each server and database.
No
February 16, 2016
MS SQL server
It is used across the whole organization to build analytical tools for the business users to best analyze the sales data.
- Sql Server Integration services is a a great tool for ETL needs
- SQL Server Analysis Services is a great tool to build data marts and data cubes.
- SQL Server Reporting Services is a great reporting tool.
- SQL server installation always takes long time, that can be definitely improved.
- The Management Studio front end still needs work as does Indexing.
- Few in SSIS Realtime data refresh in SSRS More datasources in Power BI
- It is definitely one of the best tools available for all the database needs
- It is easier to install and easy to get on with.
- Consistent and reliable.
MS SQL server is the best database management tool available and it has been improving every year addressing the needs for ever growing data.
50
Sales
15
Tsql, Admininstration Skills,SSIS,SSRS,SSAS
- DataWarehouse
- Data Analytics
- Data Reports
- C# and VB.net coding and scheduling them
- Web Service calls
- DataBase transfer
- Make use of cloud technology with SQl Server 2016
- DataStorage space is increased a lot because of sql server 2016
Yes
MS Access... MS Access wouldn't support huge volumes of data like Sql Server does.
- Price
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Product Reputation
- Prior Experience with the Product
- Vendor Reputation
Product Usability
Not many changes
- Implemented in-house
Yes
SSMS,SSIS,SSAS
- Server compatability issues
- Online training
- In-person training
- Self-taught
Yes, easy to pick up
Hardware requirements have to be met, make sure RAM is available
No - there is no facility to customize the interface
Some - we have added small pieces of custom code
we can use VB.net code or C# code and its easy to implement.
Use add on tools like red gate
No
It is not my decision.
No
The issue was with MDS and MS support helped with excel plugins.
- SQL Server Management studio is easy to understand
- SQL server reports are easy to build
- Running queries and retrieving data and moving it to excel is easy
- Analysis services may be complex to start with
- Integration Services to an extent
- MDX queries
Yes, but I don't use it
- MS Excel
- SharePoint
- Cognos
Its is easy to implement
- Hadoop
no
- File import/export
- API (e.g. SOAP or REST)
- Javascript widgets
- ETL tools
Cognos reporting tools
Check the compatability
Installation ,support
little bit of patience needed while dealing with support teams
Yes
Integration services may take a little longer
- Query execution times
- New functionality available
- Data Storage space
- Cloud technology
- Improved Reporting services interface
- New additions to analysis services
Yes
All the features are not available in free editions
Yes
Advanced features in enterprise editions.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
We use SQL Server for numerous purposes - Line of Business applications, ERP, Sharepoint, Reporting, and Analytics. It is tightly integrated with other systems used throughout the worldwide organization utilizing various tools to provide that integration (Integration Services, linked servers, etc.)
- Installing and administering a SQL Server instance is one key area that I've found very compelling when using this solution. If you are a power user, you can do many administration tasks via the command line. The visual tools are very good as well.
- Development on the SQL Server platform is another area that I have found to be extremely flexible, powerful, and easy to manage code. It also integrates nicely with source control so you can keep track of changes.
- Performance - While this is a debatable topic, it has performed really well with the type of business applications that we've developed in-house as well as packaged solutions (ERP, etc.). I especially like how you can partition data across multiple drives to increase performance even more. The key idea (as with any solution) is how it is architected within your environment to best suit your requirements.
- One area that I'd like to see improve is it's monitoring toolset. While the built-in tools are good, I've found better 3rd party solutions that do a better job in this area (Embarcadero in particular).
- Another area is backups. The out-of-box solution is good for small-to-medium sized databases. When your data gets large (gigabtyte/terabyte), then being able to have a robust backup solution with compression becomes critical.
- Needs better out-of-box analytics and reporting tools. Again, the tools included in the SQL server package are good, but I find that we have to do a lot of workarounds to get these to work the way we need them to. However, for the most part, Reporting Services and Analysis Services are good toolset to quickly produce reports that would otherwise be too cumbersome with other tools on the market.
- Integration Services is ok for the most part, but it lacks that Enterprise class level of robustness of an effective ETL tool.
- Microsoft SQL Server has made an extremely positive impact on our organization. It was been running our core business for well over 20 years (starting with SQL Server 6.5, and now on SQL Server 2012), so the ROI has been huge!
- Our administrators and developers have been accustomed to this technology, so the learning curve from version to version has been very little.
We've evaluated a number of database platforms, including Oracle, MySQL, Interbase/Firebird, and MongoDB. While there are similarities in each of the platforms, one key difference is the tools included to administer and develop against the platform. We found that Microsoft SQL Server, hands down, to be the easiest and more robust toolset and have entrusted our organization with this technology.
Yes
We had an Oracle instance that was at the heart of our operations. It held master data as well as details behind many of the products sold through our offering. We ended up replacing Oracle with SQL Server due to two main reasons. Cost and technical expertise. At the time, the cost model was based on a per processor license and was really expensive. The expertise needed to administer and develop against the platform was much greater than was expected, hence the switch to SQL Server.
- Price
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Product Reputation
- Prior Experience with the Product
- Vendor Reputation
Ease of use. Microsoft SQL Server is much easier to deploy, manage, and maintain in a world wide organization than other platforms that we evaluated and used. We took our in-house expertise with Microsoft technology and leveraged that to deploy solutions created on this platform. To this day, it is one of the smartest moves we've made.
If we had to do this again, we would definitely utilize recommendations provided by sites like TrustRadius to assist in the evaluation and selection process. With so many choices out there on the market, it is very difficult to narrow down your selection because of the skilled way that products are being demonstrated and sold. It is through trusted recommendations where you can be assured that you are making a good choice for your organization.
Yes
Yes, we pay for premium support if it is absolutely necessary for us to escalate the issue at this level. We have done so on a couple of occasions where it was mission critical to resolve the issue quickly and efficiently. Microsoft provided a wealth of resources on the case and got the job done.
No
We had a case where we had corruption state in one of our Sharepoint instances. We had the Microsoft support team on calls for roughly a day to troubleshoot the issue. They provided various levels of expertise (Sharepoint, SQL Server, Network Administration, etc.) so that we can isolate the issue and get it resolved. At the end of the day, while everyone was exhausted, it was a great overall experience that should be mentioned.
- Information gathering through SQL Server Management Studio
- Simple import/export of data utilizing Integration Services
- Creating and publishing reports using Reporting Services
- Complex ETL processes
- Querying Analysis Services data
- Accessibility of the data for mobile devices
No