Summary
In this chapter, we reviewed the Extended Events engine in the SQL Database Engine and how you can leverage XEvent traces to gather detailed data about query execution and performance. We also discussed the various free tools from Microsoft that can be used to configure, capture, and analyze XEvent traces quickly and easily. Together with DMVs, we now have several tools in our toolbelt that can be used to diagnose and troubleshoot the various issues covered throughout the book.
In the next chapter, we will review yet another tool that is part of SQL Server designed to help diagnose query performance issues – using SSMS for the analysis of query plans.