SQLBits 2011

Working with Server Side Traces

Learn to create and customise TSQL scripts for capturing SQL Profiler data in a server side trace. Examine methods for stopping, starting and storing these traces, and finally look at free tools available for analysing the captured data.

You may have heard that you should always use a server-side trace to capture SQL profiler data, but do you know how to create one?  Can you tweak to make it work to your liking?  Furthermore, do you know how to process the data you’ve captured?  If not, then this session is for you.

First, we’ll examine the anatomy of a profiler trace script and look at the different ways to customise the data being retrieved. Then, we’ll talk about methods for stopping and starting the trace, how to know what traces are already running, and ways to schedule a trace to start under certain server conditions. Lastly, we will look at the different tools available to you for analysing the data you’ve gathered, including the SQL Server Profiler client application, “home-grown” T-SQL queries, ClearTrace, and the ReadTrace component of the RML Utilities.