SQLBits 2013

Estimation, Statistics and “Oh My!”

At the heart of SQL Server is the cost based optimizer. This is driven by estimates and they in turn are driven by statistics. This will be a deep dive into how the optimizer makes its decisions to give you a plan, the things that can go wrong.

At the heart of SQL Server is the cost based optimizer.  Stop and think about that a minute, it attempts to give the “best plan” based on the cost of the work undertaken.  How does it know the cost of the work before its done the work ? This isn’t a conundrum, it doesn’t.  It estimates!  How does it estimate ? That is statistics.

This will be a deep dive into how the optimizer makes its decisions to give you a plan, the things that can go wrong and how you can have influence over these choices.