Truncating the transaction log in SQL Server

I found a great blog entry by one of the Microsoft boyz on truncating the transaction log, and what is happening behind the scenes. This step-by-step gives you the complete lowdown on this sometimes misunderstood topic, so check it out.  Just remember when you try this demo all of your Current LSNs will be different, so just make sure and jot down the operation value = LOP_BEGIN_CKPT  as this will be the minimum LSN after each checkpoint. You can also follow them as they move from MIN LSN to MIN LSN if you don’t do a tlog backup between row inserts. Also note that SQL Server throws in a checkpoint here and there as well.

It’s also interesting to know that the SQL server transaction logs wrap, and that checkpoints roll transactions to the next log VLF, or log segment. Depending on the transactions, and as shown in the demo, more than one can be active at a given point in time.

Lee

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Now if I can just find a place to use this exhilarating and newfound knowledge