T-SQL Tuesday is a monthly SQL Server blog party where a host picks a topic and the community responds. The 101st edition is hosted by Jens Vestergaard (b/t), who asked which tools are essential to our daily job — or rather, which tools do we depend on as a DBA.
Interesting Topic
I would love to say I noticed the invitation last week and had an idea already in place. I would like to say that, but I would be lying. In a moment of serendipity, I’m testing my individual DR solution today — how effectively can I work from a borrowed workstation. You’re probably sitting there thinking, “Wow, someone out there actually tests how to work from a borrowed machine? That’s hard core!” While I would suggest asking yourself what you’d do if your main workstation became unavailable while you’re on call, this isn’t that. I simply was too preoccupied this morning to realize I had forgotten my laptop bag.
So today, I’m thinking about how much I miss my work environment. Things like:
- NotePad++ that I use as a text editor and scratch paper.
- My local script repo
- Reference docs/ebooks I keep on the hard drive
- SQL Prompt
- SQL Search
I also miss how I have various apps configured for my personal preference. But I’m also thankful that I have cloud tools like OneNote and LastPass that make this more bearable. Signing into Mozilla got me access to my bookmarks.
What this is teaching me
I am quickly realizing that having my documentation/ebooks and scripts available in some kind of repository would be greatly beneficial (Why yes, I am embarrassed I haven’t put those scripts in a repository). It is also making me realize how dependent I am on a laptop that could fail or be stolen, and just how disruptive that is.
The fix isn’t complicated — it’s just discipline: scripts in source control, reference material in the cloud, and a documented list of the tools that actually matter. A proper personal DR plan doesn’t need to be elaborate; it just needs to exist before you need it.
Key Takeaways
- The tools you depend on most are often invisible until they’re gone.
- Cloud-synced tools (OneNote, LastPass, browser profiles) dramatically reduce the pain of working from a borrowed machine.
- Scripts and documentation belong in a repository — local-only copies are a single point of failure.
- A lightweight personal DR plan (cloud storage, portable tool list, browser sync) is worth 30 minutes of setup.