High Performance SQL Server: Consistent Response for Mission-Critical Applications

SQL Server performance is shaped by more than the query in front of you. Configuration choices, memory and storage, changing workloads, and the database engine itself all influence how reliably an application responds. In High Performance SQL Server: Consistent Response for Mission-Critical Applications, Benjamin Nevarez takes a system-wide view of that challenge, connecting internals and configuration with the monitoring and troubleshooting work that follows deployment.

Understand the engine, then tune the environment

The book begins with SQL Server internals and the way the database engine works, including a chapter on SQL Server on Linux. It then turns to instance configuration and database design for high-throughput applications. This foundation helps readers consider performance as the result of interacting system choices—not simply a matter of rewriting one slow query.

Make monitoring part of the performance process

Dedicated chapters examine wait statistics and Query Store, alongside ways to record performance baselines and investigate changes in a production workload. These topics give database professionals a practical framework for spotting where performance issues may be emerging and for assessing the system over time.

From tempdb to intelligent query processing

Across its performance-tuning and troubleshooting section, the book addresses tempdb configuration, in-memory technologies, indexing, storage, and intelligent query processing. The second edition also covers SQL Server on Linux and updates the material for SQL Server 2019, extending its scope beyond the earlier edition.

A reference for SQL Server practitioners

Database administrators, developers, and data architects will find the book’s mix of internals, configuration, and operational diagnosis especially relevant. System administrators responsible for the servers running SQL Server may also value its attention to the relationship between database performance and the underlying environment.

For readers working to keep mission-critical SQL Server applications responsive as usage and query volumes vary, Nevarez offers a structured guide to understanding the system and investigating performance problems.