Security
How to Fix SQL Database Error 8942
Summary:
In this article, we will solve the SQL Database error 8942 in different ways and, I will tell you the best way for solving this error. The error is:
“Server: Msg 8942, Level 16, State 1 Table error: Object ID O_ID, index ID I_ID, page P_ID, Test (TEST) failed. Slot S_ID, offset 0xADDRESS overlaps with the prior row.”.
Reasons behind this error:
- It is recommended to keep the offset of the next slot equal to or greater than the previous one. If the offset slot S_ID is not greater than or equal to the previous slot, then the chances of this error are high.
- Hardware malfunctioning can also lead to table structure corruption.
- Forced closure of the SQL Server in the middle of an ongoing process is also harmful to the database.
Solutions
Restore Database from Backup File
Column encryption, is it table or data specific?
I ran into an interesting problem lately. I have a table that has encrypted data with a key on a column. The data however needs to be a piece of an ETL process and then it has to become unencrypted.
This led me to ask the question: Can I create a table, insert a record, encrypt the record, move the record to various tables, and finally decrypt the record in a new table successfully?
Home VPN’s, are you updating your IP securely?
Normally I blog about SQL Server, but I have found this (and one more coming) answers to questions that I could not find on the internet. So I had to share!
As many folks who start dabbling in home VPN setups realize or had known prior (I’m a database guy, not a network admin!), you need a DDNS provider. Your home IP will probably change, so if you wanted to connect to your home IP, it may work for a little while, but it may change unexpectedly. Having it update every few minutes with a provider so they can give you a static name to use that maps automatically to your new IP is the solution to keep it working consistently.
Auditing your SQL Servers
Below is what I recommend to my clients to evaluate the security of their infrastructure quarterly, although more frequently is always better. Typically with this set of scripts, you’ll want to either compile the data into workbooks, flat files, or at least historic tables so you can track trends and changes.
We begin with two queries; one brings back the SQL Server Name and Instance so we know what we are evaluating and then we check the version of SQL Server which in itself has its own security repercussions based on service pack and year.
Who changed my data?
Odds are that if you are reading this; someone, somewhere, somehow… has changed your data. Odds are also, you may be out of luck figuring out what changed and who did it. The good news is that the lesson has been learned and you can take action now to prevent this in the future.
SQL Server by default does not automatically track who does what to your tables. It does track the made to your database, but it won’t tell you “who done it?”. You can however use the transaction logs with extreme painstaking patience to reveal what changes were made.