Introducing sqlsimtools
Years ago, in a galaxy far, far away, my colleagues in support, Keith Elmore and Robert Dorr, built a tool called ostress.exe. For decades it transformed the way we reproduced customer issues for SQL Server. The engineering team used it, and up until now I've used it for demonstrations, books, and examples. Its magic was simple: ostress could simulate many concurrent users running SQL queries or scripts. I decided to rethink ostress for today's SQL world, and the result is sqlsimtools, now in public preview at https://aka.ms/sqlsimtools. It's a free, open-source suite of workload simulation tools for SQL Server 2019, 2022, and 2025, Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, and SQL database in Microsoft Fabric. I've been building it for some time and using it at events and in demonstrations. Now I want everyone to have it. The public preview includes: sqlsim: a native, ODBC-based command-line tool for Windows (x64 and ARM64) and Ubuntu Linux. sqlpysim: a Python version of sqlsim built on Microsoft's mssql-python driver, for Windows and Ubuntu Linux. sqlsim Studio: a self-contained local browser app that configures, runs, monitors, replays, and compares workloads using sqlsim or sqlpysim. It's available today on Windows x64. I'm also looking for Private Preview testers for macOS, and for sqlsim Studio on Linux and Windows ARM64. If you'd like to help, request Private Preview access. I'll be writing more posts on different parts of the tools, but here are my top 10 cool things you can do with sqlsimtools: Run any SQL query, script, or mixed workload Create your own benchmarks, load tests, and stress tests Configure, run, monitor, and compare workloads visually with sqlsim Studio Replay captured SQL Server activity Monitor workload performance live or after execution Run before-and-after experiments with detailed performance comparisons Test SQL Server, Azure SQL, and SQL database in Microsoft Fabric with flexible authentication Use native or Python tools on Windows, Linux, and macOS (Private Preview) Automate testing with JSON results and live event streams Build and run workloads with AI agents such as GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, Codex CLI, and Cursor Get started today at https://aka.ms/sqlsimtools . The easiest way to start is the all-in-one sqlsimtools package, which includes sqlsim Studio and both command-line tools. You can also download just the tool for your platform, or clone the repo and build it yourself. On Windows, unblock the ZIP before you extract it, because the tools aren't code signed. sqlsimtools is an open-source project, not an official Microsoft product, and isn't covered by Microsoft support. For questions and ideas, join the conversation in GitHub Discussions (microsoft/sqlsimtools · Discussions · GitHub), and report bugs in GitHub Issues (Issues · microsoft/sqlsimtools). During Public Preview I'm not taking Pull Requests yet but file issues and as the project progresses, we will incorporate the PR process. Bob Ward MicrosoftMicrosoft at PASS Data Community Summit 2023!
It's gearing up to be an exciting week November 14 th – 17 th as we prepare for this year’s Microsoft Ignite and PASS Data Summit all happening at once! While across the way we’ll be sharing the latest from Microsoft all up, taking place at the Convention Center we’re excited to be with our community digging into all things data and analytics. We’re back as the premier sponsor together with our partners at Intel. With over 30+ sessions we’ll cover everything from ground to the cloud, with SQL Server, Azure SQL, all the way up to powering analytics for your data with Microsoft Fabric. This year, we’ll also bring in our developer community with sessions covering our solutions for open-source database, PostgreSQL. We hope you’ll join us to “Connect, Share and Learn” alongside the rest of your peers at the PASS community. The official event kicks off with our keynote Wednesday morning with Shireesh Thota Vice President of Azure Databases who’s been hard at work getting ready for the event: Below you’ll find just some of the highlights on how Microsoft is showing up at this year’s PASS Summit: Pre-Cons Monday: The Cloud Workshop for the SQL DBA Bob Ward This workshop will provide a technically led driven approach to translating your knowledge and skills from SQL Server to Azure SQL. You will experience an immersive look at Azure SQL including hands-on labs, no Azure subscription required. Tuesday: Azure SQL and SQL Server: All Things Developers Brian Spendolini, Anagha Todalbagi In this workshop, we'll dedicate a full day to deep diving into each one of these new features such as JSON, Data API builder, calling REST endpoints, Azure function integrations and much more, so that you'll learn how to take advantage of them right away. Also being covered: Understand the use cases Gain practical knowledge that can be used right away Keynote Wednesday Shireesh Thota, Vice President of Azure Join Microsoft's Shireesh Thota and Microsoft engineering leaders for a keynote delivered live from Seattle. We'll showcase how the latest from Microsoft across databases, analytics, including the recently announced Fabric, seamlessly integrate to accelerate the power of your data. General Sessions 30+ sessions over three days: Check them all out here. From SQL Server to Azure SQL and analytics and governance, Microsoft’s experts will bring the latest product develops to help you build the right data platform to solve your business needs. Connect, Grow, Learn with us! As a special offer from Microsoft, enter the code AZURE150 at checkout to receive $150 off on the 3-Day conference pass (in-person). SQL Server: 30 and thriving! Already registered? Pop on by opening night as we say Happy Birthday SQL Server! Register today at https://passdatacommunitysummit.com/ See you there!
