23 Oct 2015
By Allen
0 Comments
Allen Speaking at InnoTech – FREE Tickets!

Allen Speaking at InnoTech – FREE Tickets!

Business, Microsoft SQL Server, , ,
        November 3, 2015 Featuring This Session from Cognitive Information: Return on Data   Learn the basics of Business Intelligence, Big Data and getting return on the data in your company, with Allen Smith, MBA, MCTS, Business Intelligence Specialist, Cognitive Information, Inc.   CLICK HERE to register, and use discount code: SPKR  and receive complimentary admission to InnoTech Oklahoma*. OPENING KEYNOTE ANNOUNCED  Opening Keynote: 8am The Internet of Everything Featuring Leah Lewis, Managing Director of Cisco’s Public Sector Consulting Services and an Internet of Everything / Smart+Connected City Strategist And You Won't Want to Miss These Other Great Sessions:  Case Study: Seagate’s…
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26 Aug 2015
By Allen
0 Comments
SSAS Lost security context

SSAS Lost security context

SSAS,
I recently logged into an SSAS server and was unable to add a user to the server security. Worse yet, the Security Properties tab was not showing domain user names, just SID's. This means the service has lost connectivity to resolve SID's with the domain. The solution today was to run SSMS as Administrator, domain admin that is. Once connected the domain administrator account is able to remove the disconnected SID's and add back the proper accounts. On other occasions I have seen the security tab empty, meaning there is no recognized administrators. To resolve that issue, stop the service…
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26 Jun 2015
By Allen
0 Comments

SSAS Tabular Error “The object reference not set to an instance of an object”

SSAS, ,
This just goes under the blog tag "Useless Error Messages". My instance of this error happened when I added a new calculated column. Finally I realized I had named the new column the same as another column in a different table. Changed one of the names and no error. Lesson learned: SSAS Tabular is picky about not having two columns named the same. So boys and girls, only you can prevent stupid coding mistakes...
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12 Jun 2015
By Allen
0 Comments

SSIS Error

Microsoft SQL Server, SSIS
Recently at a client, the SSIS Server was giving an error message which I had never seen before every time I tried to run a package. Changing protection level: Success Message: An error occurred in the Microsoft .NET Framework while trying to load assembly id 65537. The server may be running out of resources, or the assembly may not be trusted with PERMISSION_SET = EXTERNAL_ACCESS or UNSAFE. Run the query again, or check documentation to see how to solve the assembly trust issues. Googling this error led me to some old SQL 2005 and 2008 articles relating to proxy accounts,…
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13 Sep 2014
By Allen
1 Comment
SQL Saturday #300 Kansas City, MO 2014

SQL Saturday #300 Kansas City, MO 2014

Microsoft SQL Server,
This is my second year at SQL Saturday in Kansas City.  I thoroughly enjoy the people and of course the BBQ Crawl.  This year my hands down favorite was Q39.   Of course that's not what your'e here for, so here is the synopsis and download for the BI Basics session.  This slide deck has been updated since SQL Saturday in Oklahoma City. Session Outline: This session will you chart the waters through the sea of Business Intelligence (BI) options. IT departments need tools to turn data into useful information for users. Instead of ROI, this session talks about Return on…
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23 Aug 2014
By Allen
2 Comments
SQL Saturday 309 Downloads

SQL Saturday 309 Downloads

BI/DW Projects, Business, Microsoft SQL Server,
Downloads for SQL Saturday #309 in Oklahoma City are below. Thank you to all who attended. Thanks also to all the sponsors who help make these great events possible for the tech community.     Business Intelligence Basics: Finding Return on Data This session will you chart the waters through the sea of Business Intelligence (BI) options. IT departments need tools to turn data into useful information for users. Instead of ROI, this session talks about 'Return on Data' for IT Managers. In this session we look at the roles of data warehousing, big data and business intelligence systems. The…
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18 Aug 2014
By Allen
0 Comments
Tulsa TechFest Presentations

Tulsa TechFest Presentations

Microsoft SQL Server, SSRS,
Thank you to all who attended my sessions at Tulsa TechFest. It was my first time to attend TechFest and I really enjoyed it. I do ask for an email address for downloads, so I can stay in touch to see if you have questions or need help getting the demos to work. I will never sell or share your email info. Business Intelligence Basics: Finding Return on Data This session will you chart the waters through the sea of Business Intelligence (BI) options. IT departments need tools to turn data into useful information for users. Instead of ROI, this…
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12 Aug 2014
By Allen
0 Comments
Speaking Schedule

Speaking Schedule

Microsoft SQL Server, Uncategorized,
I'm looking forward to speaking at the following upcoming events. August 15th - Tulsa TechFest,  speaking about Business Intelligence Basics and SQL Server Reporting Services Basics August 23 - SQL Saturday 309 in Oklahoma City, speaking about Business Intelligence Basics and SQL 2014 Columnstore Indexes September 13 - SQL Saturday 300 in Kansas City,  Business Intelligence Basics Hope to see you there.
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23 Jul 2014
By Allen
1 Comment
SQL 2014 ColumnStore Indexes

SQL 2014 ColumnStore Indexes

Microsoft SQL Server, ,
Recently I was invited to speak at Oklahoma City SQL User Group and Tulsa SQL User Groups about the advancements available in SQL 2014 with Columnstore Indexes. ColumnStore indexes were first introduced as xVelocity with SQL 2012 as a way to improve query performance against large data sets by grouping and storing columns of data instead of rows.  With SQL 2014, those ColumnStore indexes become update-able.   In this session, we review the difference in ColumnStore indexes, implementing ColumnStore indexes Clustered and Non-Clustered and monitor performance. Allen is a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist with certification in Business Intelligence Development and Maintenance. His IT specialties include…
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