Learn about the different pointer types & sizes for (MAX) LOB data types - BLOB Inline Data, BLOB Inline Root and Textpointer.

Don't trust bits in the null bitmap as they may contain garbage. Here's an example of how it may occur and why it doesn't matter.

Sometimes record structures aren't straightforward. Here's an example of a record that doesn't make any immediate sense when parsing it.

Contrary to popular belief, the null bitmap is not always present in data records. Here's an example of a data record that doesn't contain a null bitmap due to using sparse columns.

Sparse columns are stored entirely different from normal fixed length and variable length columns. This post demonstrates & parses the sparse vector structure which stores the sparse columns.

How do we distinguish a normal variable length column value from one containing a complex value like a row-overflow pointer, back pointer or a sparse vector?

Learn how to parse the base table sysrscols ti field values.

Learn how the sys.system_internals_partition_columns view retrieves its values from the sysrscols base table column, ti.

SQLBits 9 is coming soon, make sure you register in time & vote for your favorite sessions!

Lean how to convert between binary (base 2), decimal integers (base 10) and hexadecimal (base 16) using T-SQL.

Once you know what the uniquifier is, you may thirst for more details. This post outlines how to determine where the uniquifier is stored internally in records.