What we learned from the reddit SQL Server AMA thread on /r/sqlserver

The SQL Server AMA thread on reddit, has finished. I have put 8 most interesting answers here and then gave my take on it, the questions will be linked straight to the question on reddit. The answer will be in italics and my take on it will be below in regular font


What was the reasoning for having SQL Server for Linux run atop Drawbridge, rather than directly interfacing with Linux? It seams like it's not a true Linux port if NT Kernel emulation is required 

I guess you can always debate whether it is better to have an abstraction layer or do a full port. I am a practical person, and like to judge based on results. I myself am not on the Linux team, but am really impressed with what the team has managed to deliver thus far, both in terms of feature set and in terms of performance. A full port would have taken much longer and would have led to a code base that is much harder to maintain. 

I never heard of Drawbridge either. From the Microsoft Drawbridge research page: Drawbridge combines two core technologies: First, a picoprocess, which is a process-based isolation container with a minimal kernel API surface. Second, a library OS, which is a version of Windows enlightened to run efficiently within a picoprocess.

I really like the JSON support you guys added. Is JSON in SQL Server still evolving, or are you guys happy with where it is at?I would love to see a JSON data type, like XML support. Thanks!

We are collecting feedback and we will decide what would be the next step. Current NVARCHAR representation enables us to integrated JSON with in-memory, column store, does not require new types in drivers, etc. Also, some experiments show that text representation is even faster than XML type in some scenarios. The next step would be better integration with native modules that will speed up queries. We would like to know how your are using current JSON, what are limitations, and then we will decide what would be the next step.

It makes sense that they decided to use nvarchar since you can then use it with in-memory OLTP and Columnstore. We currently store json in some of our tables but we never search on it or manipulate it in the DB

How does making SQL Server available for Linux relate (or not relate) to Microsoft's famous "Embrace, Extend, Extinguish" strategy?

Two things - Satya Nadella, cloud economics - changed a lot of the way we think about things here at Microsoft now. The way I like to think of this strategy of bringing SQL Server to Linux is that it maps to Microsoft's new mission statement - "Empower every person and every organization to achieve more". SQL Server on Linux is about bringing the really powerful capabilities of SQL Server to everybody, not just those that are using Windows/Windows Server and seeing what people can do with it. It's inspiring for example to think about what the scientific or academic communities (which are oftentimes on Linux) could now achieve with SQL Server. Let's call it Microsoft's new 'Embrace, Enable, and Empower' strategy. :)

Haha I knew this would be asked, great answer also. We all remember the Ballmer Linux is a cancer quote, how things have changed

I am so sorry, but I just had to add this image  :-)

SSMS coming for Linux? If so when?

We do not plan to port SSMS "as is" to Linux/macOS for 2 main reasons: 1) SSMS on Windows depends on the VS2015 Isolated shell which is not available on Linux/macOS and 2) a direct port of SSMS will not align with the design guidelines & information architecture of apps that natively run on Linux/macOS (e.g. buttons, menus, etc. are different, the window chrome is different, etc.)

That said, we are working on a new set of multi-platform SQL client tools that DBAs and database developers can use on Linux/macOS/Windows. The new 'mssql' extension for Visual Studio Code is our first attempt in this area and we are using it to prove out the multi-platform SQL tools stack "backend" we've created.

We don't have specific dates yet but stay tuned for more details in the coming months. Meanwhile, you can try the mssql extension for VS Code on Linux/macOS/Windows from here: https://aka.ms/mssql-marketplace


We plan to have a cross-platform tool that will be Linux native. We don't have an exact date set but it's in the works for 2017. In the meantime, you can connect to SQL Server on Linux through the Visual Studio Code mssql extension as well as SSMS.

So it looks like there will be a cross-platform tool, maybe something like Visual Studio Code, make it web based. As long as it is not based on Java and has that nasty purple shiny look and feel. But in reality, all the people I worked with that used *nix always used windows and then would use PuTTY or something similar to SSH into the box and just do everything from the command line.

will SQL on Linux have an Express edition? (I think it should, to give a better alternative to all those LAMP proponents - though admittedly I think a number of switching to postgres, which is at least better than mysql)

Yes, it will! Cost = free.

This is nice, also it seems that when you license SQL Server in the future, the OS doesn't matter, if you get a 4 core license, you can install SQL Server on Linux or Windows, your choice

Is there any plan to make SQL Server work on Windows Server Nano?

This is something that we are looking into. It would require creating a new appx-style package for deployment. That in itself would be a good thing actually that could make it easier to install SQL Server (like the package based install for SQL Server on Linux) but it would be a very large development effort. Spending dev effort on that would take away from other things we would like to do. It would also mean that we end up having two different methods of patching SQL Server (.msp and appx) which could further complicate servicing. On the other hand, WS Nano is really well suited for SQL Server due to it's higher availability (less patching), smaller attack surface area, fewer services running, etc. Those are the trade offs we are thinking through, but no concrete plans one way or another right now. Let us know what you think we should do!

Installing SQL Server on Linux is really nice, here is what it looks like on redhat

sudo su

curl https://packages.microsoft.com/config/rhel/7/mssql-server.repo > /etc/yum.repos.d/mssql-server.repo

sudo yum install -y mssql-server

sudo /opt/mssql/bin/sqlservr-setup   #follow the prompts

systemctl status mssql-server #verify service is running

It also makes sense to run it on a server that is bare metal, no need for IE or printer service running.

Any chance we will ever get a step by step course that uses the developer edition of SQL server to walk someone through basic use cases of all the applications. For instance, creating a sample database, adding tables, keys. Scripting user permisions for them and encrypting them. Setting up the report server. Making a report. Building a cube, making a small data analysis setup. All in an easy to follow step by step? A basic use case example for r services.

Great minds think alike! We actually just this Wednesday posted our first set of developer tutorials for lots of different languages (node, python, C#, Java, and more) and platforms (macOS, Docker, Linux, and Windows). They cover how to get SQL Server installed, get some tools, get your first basic app going, and how to use some powerful features like columnstore. There is a tutorial for R language/services too. If that seems to be a popular thing, we'll keep going and add more to it. Check it out and spread the word! http://aka.ms/sqldev

You can find R Services samples in the following links:
https://gallery.cortanaintelligence.com/Collection/ML-Templates-with-SQL-Server-R-Services-1

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/library/mt591993.aspx

Additionally, we have a new website focused around easy to use "Getting Started" tutorials. There is one R sample there:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/sql-server/developer-get-started/r


let me add a couple more R-related articles :)

https://github.com/Microsoft/sql-server-samples/tree/master/samples/features/r-services/Implementing%20Predictive%20Analytics

and a simple blogpost I wrote some time ago just in case it helps with the 101 https://medium.com/@davidsb/datascience-for-developers-build-your-first-predictive-model-with-r-a798f684752f

Is using the GPU for extra processing power on the horizon?

The trick with GPUs is balancing the cost of moving data onto the GPU vs the compute gains. While I can't comment on the future, we are always looking at ways to improve the performance of SQL Server and leverage the latest hardware to its fullest potential. I'd encourage you to take a look at the "SQL 2016 - It Just Runs Faster" blog series for examples of what the team has done recently.

Here are a few that I like:

• Improvements in columnstore indexes and batch processing (link)
• Automatic soft NUMA for large CPU system deployments (link)
• Hardware acceleration for encryption features like TDE by leveraging Intel's AES-NI instruction set (link)

We evaluate hardware advancements periodically for SQL Server. The new Microsoft ML library that is available with SQL Server vNext uses GPU for the neural net algorithms so you may see such capabilities in other areas of the product.

This is definitely an area we are looking at. But we don't have any concrete at the moment.

I remember when postgres did this, the performance improvement was impressive, you can read about that here PG-STROM

That is all, if you want to see all the questions and answers go here:  SQL Server AMA thread on reddit,