In the initial post, we talked about some very basic items to get you up and running with temporal tables. In part 2, I’ll cover a few more things to think about and implement when working with temporal tables.
In the first post, we looked at altering an existing table to be a temporal table. Now we will look at what is involved in making a table be a temporal table from the very beginning.
Temporal tables were a new feature in SQL Server 2016. They allow for the tracking of changes without having to set up change tracking, change data capture or triggers. For certain uses, they are not a replacement for something like change data capture, but would work if the purpose is simply having a record of changes. Temporal tables can also be used for auditing changes to data as well as point-in-time analysis where users might want to compare data changes over time, or even at a specific point in time.
You’ve now likely reached the last stop in your career as a Development DBA. You have arrived at the Senior level. What skills do you have or should you be working on as a Senior Development DBA? I’m glad you asked. Let’s find out.