

About us
Data Professionals using the Microsoft Data Platform
We are a member of the Azure Data Community network of User Groups. Our purpose is to provide a forum for the SQL users of Atlanta to network, communicate and educate one another. Our user group is open to both technical and business-minded professionals. Events are free to all attendees.
Please review our Code of Conduct Anyone violating it will be removed from the group/meeting and potentially banned from attending future meetings or affiliated events.
Monthly meetings are the 2nd Monday of the month.
Place:
In-Person
Improving Atlanta Offices
11675 Rainwater Dr #100
Alpharetta, GA 30009
Networking begins at 6:15PM
Speaker will begin 6:30-6:45, based on attendance.
We are database experts who passionately share our knowledge with the community. However, it’s not enough to be an outstanding technologist, we also want to represent our values and display community spirit in a positive way by conducting ourselves with respect and restraint whenever we engage with others within and outside the community. Simply put, an individual’s character and leadership truly matter.
Minimum Code of Conduct
1. No disrespectful behavior. This includes threats, harassment, stalking, abuse, slurs, profanity, personal attacks, sexual remarks or innuendos, physical violence, public speculation about others, and any other behavior that you would not tolerate others display towards you.
2. Respect the presenter and other attendees
· Refrain from carrying on conversations during the presentation. If conversation is necessary, please leave the presentation room
· Ask questions but respect the presenter’s wishes regarding when to ask questions (some like questions during the presentation, others have specific Q&A time slots). Also, give others a chance to ask questions. If you have more than one question, give others a chance to pose theirs before you ask your next question.
· Don’t challenge the presenter on a point during the presentation. If you feel that the presenter’s information is completely incorrect or off base, signal one of the user group leaders, leave the room to present your information, and allow the user group leader to deal with it. Asking a question that might lead to clarification is one thing, directly disagreeing with the presenter leads to embarrassment of the presenter and confusion for other attendees.
· Avoid asking questions or making statements that will side-track the presentation. However it’s intended, it may be seen as hijacking the presentation.
3. No impersonations of a Microsoft or user group employee, agent, manager, host, or another user.
4. No illegal or offensive activities. Members will not publish, post, distribute, or disseminate defamatory, infringing, obscene, or other unlawful material or discussion in any group forum or post. This includes, but is not limited to, child pornography, bestiality, incest, illegal drugs, software piracy, discriminatory/racist statements or images and harassment.
5. Accountability. Members are fully responsible and liable for anything they say (whether orally or in writing) or do. This includes any actions taken based on advice or information received in presentations, online forums or elsewhere. Remember, always test what you plan to do, regardless of the source of the information.
6. No libel or slander against the user group, Microsoft or other persons or entities. Libel includes false statements made in written form, such as statements posted to forums or other publicly accessible websites, electronic mail, or any other printed form.
7. No confidentiality violations. Members may inadvertently gain access to certain non-public information during their participation in the group and are expected to honor the confidentiality of the information.
8. No plagiarism. Members may post their own original work or work that they have written permission to post. If a member cites another author’s work, please provide any necessary attribution according to the requirements associated with the original author’s work. Learn more about copyright at: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/legal/Copyr...
9. No discrimination or harassment. This user group is committed to providing a harassment-free experience to members regardless of age, ancestry, color, gender identity or expression, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical size, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or technology choices. Harassment is unwelcome verbal, physical or virtual behavior based on the characteristics identified above.
10. No sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is unwelcome verbal, physical or virtual behavior based on sex and includes gender-based harassment of a person of the same or different gender. Examples of sexual harassment include, but are not limited to:
· Unwelcome sexual advances
· Sexual comments or inappropriate gender-based jokes
· Excessive, unwelcome romantic attention
· Offering or conditioning an employment benefit or preferential treatment, like a promotion or job assignment, in exchange for sexual favors
· Unwelcome physical contact
· Sharing or displaying sexually explicit content
· Using sexually degrading words
We reserve the right to take action equal and commensurate with the violation. This includes ejecting any participants who violate our Code of Conduct from the event and prohibiting attendance at all future user group associated events.
Reporting Conduct Violations
If you become aware of a conduct violation on or offline, you are encouraged to report it to a user group leader.
If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other concerns, please contact a user group leader or member of the event staff immediately.
Upcoming events
3

SQL Server 2025 Optimized Locking w/ John Morehouse and Monica Morehouse
11675 Rainwater Dr #100, Alpharetta, GA, USMeeting IN-PERSON
Monday, February 9, 2025
Networking begins at 6:15PM
Speaker will begin 6:30
Location:
Improving Atlanta Offices
11675 Rainwater Dr #100
Alpharetta, GA 30009# Deep Dive into SQL Server 2025 Optimized Locking w/ John Morehouse and Monica Morehouse
Originally introduced in Azure SQL Database, Optimized Locking arrives in SQL Server 2025 to tackle long-standing locking challenges while significantly improving performance and transactional concurrency. This feature is a true game changer for concurrency control, increasing transaction throughput and dramatically reducing unintended blocking—yes, even those infamous “oops” table locks.
In this session, we’ll dive into how Optimized Locking works under the covers, explore its architecture and implementation, and discuss best practices for getting the most out of it. Along the way, we’ll also cover real-world gotchas we’ve already uncovered, so you can confidently adopt this feature and avoid common pitfalls.
Whether you’re battling blocking today or planning ahead for SQL Server 2025, this session will help you unlock the full potential of Optimized Locking.### Monica Morehouse (Rathbun)
Monica is a Microsoft MVP for Data Platform, resides in Virginia and brings two decades of experience across various database platforms, with a particular focus on SQL Server and the Microsoft Data Platform. She is a frequent speaker at IT industry conferences, where she shares her expertise on performance tuning and configuration management for both on-premises and cloud environments. Monica leads the Hampton Roads SQL Server User Group and is passionate about SQL Server and its community, she is dedicated to giving back in any way she can. You can often find her online (@sqlespresso) offering helpful tips or blogging at sqlespresso.com.
### John Morehouse
John is a Principal Consultant living in Chesapeake, Virginia. Honored to be a Microsoft Data Platform MVP & former VMWare vExpert, having over 2 decades of technical experience, John now focuses on solving crucial business problems with Microsoft SQL Server oriented solutions. John has a passion around speaking, teaching technical topics and giving back to his community whenever possible. He is a blogger, avid tweeter, and a frequent speaker at conferences and user groups whenever possible. If you want to find John, you can find him on Twitter (@sqlrus) or on his blog, http://sqlrus.com.
Target audience
Database developers and DBAs who want to learn more about migration of SQL Server workloads to the cloud.18 attendees
Past events
86

