SQL Server Catalog Views & Dynamic Management Views (DMVs) take an administrator to the very heart of SQL Server. DMVs expose vital diagnostic information which are not only useful to indicate the overall health of the SQL Server, but also of the databases hosted by the given SQL Server instance. The list of DMVs that changed in SQL Server 2008 R2/2012 is available in one of my previous posts here: http://bit.ly/XobXup.

Microsoft SQL Server 2012 comes with a very wide variety of changes designed to make the SQL Server more available. These features are collectively known as High Availability & Disaster Recovery [HADR] features and are also often recognized via their code name – “Always ON”. Some of the key enhancements introduced in SQL Server 2012 are:

• AlwaysON extends Windows clustering
• A shared storage disk is no longer required to configure clustering
• One Primary database, four secondary replicas, and two secondary synchronous replicas can be configured
• Readable secondaries, supporting DBCC and backups
• Log backup and Full backup with COPY_ONLY option can be performed on any replicas
• Log backups done on all replicas does not break across replicas and therefore can be used as part of recovery strategy

It would be next to impossible to cover all of HADR in a single post. Therefore, I would redirect you to the posts by Balmukund Lakhani (B|T) who is an expert in all matters SQL. He demonstrated HADR features of SQL Server during :

• AlwaysON (HADR): Step-by-Setup setup guide
• TechEd 2012 Session: Keep databases AlwaysON!

A complete list of the HADR related DMVs and Functions is available at the links below:

• AlwaysOn Availability Groups Catalog Views: Link
• AlwaysOn Availability Groups Dynamic Management Views and Functions: Link

Until we meet next time,

Be courteous. Drive responsibly.