Understanding SQL Server Execution Plans
This page contains the description for my preconference conference session “Understanding SQL Server Execution Plans”, and links to the slide deck and demo code used in this presentation.
Description
| Target audience | Database developers, DBAs, data engineers, and anyone who writes or maintains T-SQL queries in SQL Server and wants to master execution plans at the right depth for them. |
| Short description | This training day adapts in real time to your experience level. We start with the basics: reading execution plans and avoiding common mistakes. We then go deeper into operator internals and their interactions, as deep as the audience wants. Expect deep information, live demos, and lots of time for your questions, so that everyone leaves with new knowledge. Bring your slow queries! |
| Duration | This is a full day pre-con session. |
| Full abstract | Execution plans are the single most powerful tool for diagnosing and fixing slow queries in SQL Server. But they can be overwhelming, to beginners as well to seasoned professionals.
During this full-day precon, I adapt the content on the fly to match the knowledge level and needs of the attendees. We always start with a solid foundation: what execution plans are, how to read them, and common mistakes to avoid. From there, we dive deeper (as far as the group can handle) into the inner workings of operators (joins, scans/seeks, sorts, spools, parallelism, and many more), and how they interact in complex plans. Whether you’re new to execution plans and want to learn how to read them confidently, or you’re already using them regularly but want to uncover hidden details and take your query tuning to the next level, this session flexes to deliver maximum value for everyone in the room. |
Resources
The slide deck and demo code for this precon session are currently not yet available. They will be uploaded here by the time this session is presented for the first time.