Update from Kendra (2018)** - Microsoft Connect has been retired. The current feedback system is here: https://feedback.azure.com/forums/908035-sql-server

Why Connect Matters

Microsoft Connect (http://connect.microsoft.com) is one of the main ways the SQL Server team communicates with users: this is how you report bugs and suggest features. Therefore it’s important to regularly vote for bugs and suggestions that make a difference to you!

For bugs you file, you’ll also get feedback pretty quickly from the product team about whether it is a known issue, if there is a workaround, or if a fix is scheduled. I have always been impressed at the speed of response.

Where are the DBAs?

Looking at the ‘most voted up’ suggestions and bugs, most of the items are for SQL Server development. There are certainly some items that are more administrative, or which impact performance in a way which is more specific to DBAs, but to me it looks like items which DBAs would like are under-represented.

Here’s an example: Are there really only 41 people who’d like to have online partition rebuilds after the suggestion has been in for three years? Even if you’re a DBA and you’re not using partitioning at this time, wouldn’t you like to have the option to rebuild a partition online in the future? (See below for a link to that suggestion).

Get Started

• Go to http://connect.microsoft.com/
• Click Sign in with my Windows Live id
• Follow the prompts

Once you’re all set up, on the ‘Home’ page you can search for the product ‘SQL Server’, or go directly to https://connect.microsoft.com/SQLServer.

Use the search box at the top to find items on a particular topic. If you’re having an issue that you believe is a bug, search for an existing item before filing the bug.

Vote!

It’s important to vote for things you’d like to see changed, and to encourage your colleagues to vote as well. The product team looks at connect votes– this is their way to get your input.

When I vote for something, I also like to click the link ‘Add to watch list’. This means the item will be easily accessible from your dashboard, so you can follow up on its progress, and recommend others to also vote for it. You can always remove items from you watch list later.

Here are some suggestions I believe are worth voting for:

• Online Partition Rebuilds
• Clear index DMVs without restarting SQL Server
• Data Collector: Remove data collector to remove associated objects
• Improve graphical interface for SQL Agent
• Update Statistics at the Partition Level

You can also review items and start the process of submitting feedback (bug or suggestion) by going to: https://connect.microsoft.com/SQLServer/Feedback

Finding Items to Vote On

I like to do this in two ways:

1. Go to the Feedback page and click ‘more…’ on the most voted up suggestions or bugs.
2. Search for an item by keyword which I would personally like to see changed.

Tips and Reminders

Make sure to put feature requests in the ‘Suggestions’ category and existing defects in the ‘Bugs’ category. Otherwise your item might need to be closed and a new item opened.

When you come back, you can use your dashboard to check out new items since the last time you logged in.

Let Me Know what DBA Connect Items Matter to You

I have created a page tabbed at the top of this site for Connect Items. I’ll update this regularly with items I support, and if you have items you’d like to see on my list, please add them to the comments or email me at kendra-dot-little-at-hotmail-dot-com.

Update: when Microsoft connect was retired, so was my page.