How SQL Server Stores MONEY and SMALLMONEY, and the Rounding Trap
money and smallmoney are just integers scaled by 10000. The real page bytes, why the ranges are what they are, and the four-decimal truncation trap that bites calculations.
How SQL Server Stores DECIMAL and NUMERIC, Down to the Bytes
decimal and numeric store a sign byte plus a little-endian integer scaled by the column scale. Why precision buys storage in tiers, and why an oversized decimal is not free.
How SQL Server Stores a GUID, and Why Random Ones Fragment
A uniqueidentifier is 16 bytes with a peculiar sort order. Why random GUIDs fragment as a clustering key, and how NEWSEQUENTIALID and design fix it.
How SQL Server Stores Strings: varchar, nvarchar, and What UTF-8 Changed
The same word can take 3, 5, 6, or 9 bytes depending on the type and collation. A byte-level look at varchar, nvarchar, and UTF-8 collations.
Catching Slow File I/O with a Filtered Extended Events Session
file_read_completed and file_write_completed fire on every I/O. Filter on duration to capture only the slow ones, then shred to name the file.
Seeing Exactly Where SQL Server Stores Each Column
You add a couple of varchar(max) columns to a table because you are not sure how big the values will get. Most rows hold a few dozen characters. A handful hold tens of thousands. Everything…