Monday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM · Room 343

A Comprehensive Guide to Direct Lake for the Pro Data Modeller

Join us for a workshop designed specifically for Pro Data Modellers. This comprehensive session will guide you through all the critical elements needed to build, tune, and maintain a Direct Lake Model in Microsoft Fabric.

Throughout the workshop, you will delve into essential topics such as: -Understanding the prerequisites for setting up your model. -Exploring the anatomy of Parquet files and their role in data storage. -Mastering transcoding and framing techniques to optimize data processing. -Implementing SQL fallback strategies for enhanced reliability. -Discovering new features and how they can benefit your projects. -Ensuring robust security measures to protect your data. -Fine-tuning performance to achieve optimal efficiency. -Navigating the migration process with ease. -Tackling advanced topics to elevate your modelling skills.

By the end of this workshop, you will have gained the knowledge and skills necessary to effectively manage a Direct Lake Model, ensuring your projects are both efficient and secure.

Monday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM · Room 348

Introduction to Microsoft Fabric for the Data Professional

Join us for a full day of exploration into Microsoft Fabric, the revolutionary Software as a Service (SaaS) product that’s changing the game in Business Intelligence and Modern Analytics. For the last 3 years, Microsoft has been building this groundbreaking technology, which offers the ability to ingest and link to existing data without duplication. With Azure Synapse Data Engineering, Data Factory, Data Science, Data Warehousing, Realtime Analytics, and Power BI all at your fingertips, the possibilities are endless. In this pre-conference event, we’ll guide you through a full build scenario, showing you how to link existing data, and utilize OneLake. Join us and discover the power of Microsoft Fabric!

Tuesday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM · Room 320-321

Intro to T-SQL Data Manipulation Language

From early database management systems to modern data platforms like Microsoft Fabric, SQL has withstood the test of time. This language can be powerful in its navigation of data relationships, calculation of detailed or aggregate values, or adjustment of records stored in tables. All of these capabilities fall under the term Data Manipulation Language (DML). This language can enable many data practitioners, from engineers and citizen developers, to harness their data and bend it to their needs.

Suppose you have not had the opportunity to learn SQL DML and would find use for your work. This introductory course to Microsoft's version of SQL, called Transact SQL or T-SQL, is a great place to start. Join this workshop to learn T-SQL DML from the ground up, starting with the SELECT statement and all of its primary clauses.

Tuesday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM · Room 343

Data Science Jump Start using Microsoft Fabric

Data scientists can manage data, notebooks, experiments, and models while easily accessing data from across the organization and collaborating with their fellow data professionals using Microsoft Fabric.

In this module, you'll learn how to understand the data science process in Fabric, train models with notebooks in Fabric and track model training metrics with MLflow and experiments.

Tuesday 1:30 PM - 5:00 PM · Room 340-341

Maximize efficiency in your data-driven projects by leveraging AI and Copilot technologies.

In the Total Economic Impact™ of Microsoft Fabric study, the composite organization based on data from four companies using Fabric showed an increase in data engineer and data scientist productivity of up to 50%, plus a 15% increase in business analyst productivity.

In this workshop, we will explore the transformative potential of various copilots, AI services within Microsoft Fabric. It covers live demos and hands on experience on Microsoft Fabric Copilots, AI Skills, Fabric integration with AI and GenAI services.

Participants will thoroughly explore the Copilot maturity framework and learn strategies to overcome adoption challenges, enabling customers to maximize the benefits of Copilots.

Wednesday 8:30 AM - 9:40 AM · Room 342

Copilot in Fabric - AI Data Science Help Tips and Tricks

Copilot and other generative AI features bring new ways to transform and analyze data, generate insights, and create visualizations and reports in Microsoft Fabric and Power BI. Come see how to take advantage of Copilot in Fabric, what it can do and how to make sure it's enabled.

Wednesday 8:30 AM - 9:40 AM · Room 340-341

Microsoft Fabric: Ultimate Data Security for Robust Data Warehousing

This session delves into the advanced security features of Microsoft Fabric, specifically designed for data warehousing. Attendees will learn how to classify and protect sensitive data using sensitivity labels and policies in Microsoft Purview.

The session will cover the implementation of Row-Level Security (RLS) to restrict access at the row level, ensuring users only see data relevant to their roles. Additionally, it will explore Column-Level Security (CLS) to secure specific columns in datasets, providing an extra layer of protection for sensitive information.

Participants will also discover how to use data masking techniques to obfuscate sensitive data, making it unreadable to unauthorized users while maintaining usability for authorized personnel. The session will emphasize aligning data warehousing practices with regulatory requirements such as GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA, leveraging Microsoft Fabric’s compliance tools and features.

Join us to gain a comprehensive understanding of how to secure your data warehouse end-to-end within Microsoft Fabric.

Wednesday 8:30 AM - 9:40 AM · Room 344

Microsoft Fabric: Lessons from Year 1

As of November 2023, Microsoft made the announcement that Microsoft Fabric was Generally Available. In the time since, many organizations jumped into the exciting world of this emerging technology.

Any fabric, technical or not, needs to be well maintained to retain its initial quality and usefulness. In the same way, your approach to implementing Microsoft Fabric could either set yourself up for a successful, long-term implementation, or one that needs a rebuild in 1-2 years.

In this session, I'll walk through features of Fabric that have lived up to the hyped labels and work as prescribed. I'll also provide demos challenges I've faced with the product and how I've worked through them. Finally, I'll recommend routine activities that should be performed on any Fabric environment to keep it nice and clean.

(If this wasn't enough Fabric references and you need more, check out this session for even more puns!)

Wednesday 8:30 AM - 9:40 AM · Room 347

How much SQL do you need to know as developer?

In today’s data-driven world, developers must accurately utilize SQL and database functionalities to provide effective and cost-efficient solutions. This presentation covers key database skills for developers at all levels, focusing on design, querying, and optimization.

The topics are categorized by developer levels (Jr, Sr, Ld). We will begin with fundamental topics, such as using the correct data types, and progress to advanced topics, including vectors and artificial intelligence.

We will utilize SQL Server, one of the most commonly used databases globally. By knowing how to use this well-known server, you automatically qualify for numerous projects. Though many database engines have similar functionalities, they use different terms, so everything learned in this session will apply to other database systems you encounter.

How many new technologies will remain next year is uncertain, but SQL has been essential for decades. Mastering SQL can give you a significant competitive advantage!

Wednesday 8:30 AM - 9:40 AM · Room 348

Infrastructure for Data Professionals: An Introduction

It doesn’t matter if you are a Junior DBA, an accidental DBA or all the way up to a Senior DBA, the infrastructure your SQL Server environment runs on is important. Many among the DBA community came in as developers or perhaps directly into database administration roles it is equally possible that you have been out of the operations world long enough to have fallen out of the loop with what is happening. This session is intended to provide a full stack infrastructure overview so that you can talk shop with your cohorts in operations to resolve issues and maybe even be proactive. We will discuss, in an introductory fashion, hardware, network, storage, virtualization and operating system layers. Additionally, some suggestions as to where to find more information will be provided.

Wednesday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 320-321

Fabric Data Factory: What's New and Roadmap

In this session, you will learn the exciting product innovations and roadmap for Fabric Data Factory. You will learn how Fabric Data Factory provides industry-leading data movement, transformation and orchestration capabilities. You will learn how AI-powered development experiences will enable you to be more productive and effectively build data integration solutions.

Wednesday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 342

Accelerate Intelligent App Development with SQL Database in Microsoft Fabric

Discover the new SQL database in Microsoft Fabric, where seamless setup and an integrated development environment enable you to quickly leverage the power of an AI-driven data platform. Provision and deploy an autonomous database with built-in security in seconds, featuring automatic setup. In this session, we'll delve into the potential of SQL database in Fabric, which combines the enterprise-scale features and capabilities of the Azure SQL Database engine with the autonomous management and ease-of-use advantages of the Microsoft Fabric data estate. We'll uncover core functionalities, best practices, and real-world strategies to integrate your database with other Fabric workloads, creating a tailored, high-impact data stack that empowers your solutions to thrive within the Fabric ecosystem.

Wednesday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 344

Deep dive into Direct Lake

Join Patrick Leblanc and Phil Seamark for a deeper dive to discover what makes Direct Lake so fast. This session will cover important elements of monitoring and optimizing your Fabric data platform to unlock the full potential of Direct Lake, such as how to interpret Delta Analyzer logs and what to look out for if things slow down.

Wednesday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 348

Getting started with SQL database in Fabric

Microsoft Fabric, the unified data platform, now includes an operational database solution and it is SQL! Come learn all the fundamentals of how this solution is the same and different from other SQL deployment options. We will also show you the value of using SQL in the Fabric ecosystem including developer experiences, automation, monitoring, and integration for AI applications.

Wednesday 2:00 PM - 3:10 PM · Room 340-341

Securing SQL Server

Your organization's data will always be a primary target for adversaries. If you are using SQL Server to store this data, there are a wealth of settings and tools available to improve your security posture. In this talk, we will look at different methods of securing a SQL Server instance, from venerable (principle of least privilege, Transparent Data Encryption) to modern (Always Encrypted with secure enclaves, Microsoft Defender), and many things in between. These tools and techniques will show us ways for developers, database administrators, systems administrators, and network specialists to work together to secure SQL Server instances.

Wednesday 2:00 PM - 3:10 PM · Room 344

PowerBI, DirectQuery and SQL Server. It is a good choice?

You will learn best practices, tips and tricks on how to successfully use SQL databases (OnPremise,IaaS, PaaS,SQL Managed Instance) with PowerBI on production environments.

How improve the performance, using for example, Read-Scale, HyperScale or Synapse, partitioning, ColumnStoreIndexes, Indexed views, etc..

How to monitor and diagnostic your database and find out issues with Query Data Store. These learnings are fruit of Microsoft CSS support cases, and customer field engagements.

Wednesday 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM · Room 347

Worst code ever! Reviewing real-world examples that mandated refactoring.

This session looks at SQL Code that couldn't be tuned without a rewrite, working through why it was bad, why the optimizer couldn't deal with it appropriately, and what needed to be done to fix it.

Wednesday 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM · Room 348

Visualization Magic in the Age of Numbers & Science

Power BI is a great sandbox environment for report design. However, knowing how to leverage visuals and features in a way that adds additional value can be challenging. New visualizations and features can be created a number of ways including: layering visuals, customizing visual formatting, and/or utilizing DAX measures. The session will include a series of visualization and reporting techniques that you'll be able to leverage in your company's reports to take them to the next level.

Thursday 8:25 AM - 9:35 AM · Room 345-346

Harness the Power of Microsoft Fabric and Notebooks

Microsoft Fabric gives us a notebook experience unlike any other previous Microsoft product. The power of notebooks is immense. Sure you can use data from your Lakehouse, Data Warehouse, or OneLake but what about PYODBC? Can we connect to a relational database without a Data Pipeline or a Data Flow? Could we just download a file from Kaggle or Github and start using Data Wrangler? Could we use Beautiful Soup to scrape data, load it into a Pandas data frame, and begin working with it? Can we invoke OpenAI models using GPT to glean new insights into our data? Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, and Yes. Yes we can, and in this session you will learn how to harness the power of Microsoft Fabric Notebooks.

Thursday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 340-341

How to Pitch Fabric to your Leadership

While executives are familiar with Power BI's impact on business intelligence, many remain unaware of how Microsoft Fabric revolutionizes the entire data value chain. This session bridges that knowledge gap, equipping data leaders with practical strategies to transform Fabric from "just another BI tool" into a compelling platform for enterprise-wide data transformation. Learn how to build a clear, staged roadmap that starts with familiar Power BI territory and progressively demonstrates Fabric's game-changing capabilities in data integration, lakehouse architecture, and real-time analytics. Through real-world case studies, you'll see how leading organizations have successfully expanded from departmental BI to enterprise-wide data transformation using Fabric's unified platform. We'll explore how to identify and prioritize quick wins that build momentum while laying the foundation for broader adoption. You'll learn effective techniques for quantifying ROI at each stage of implementation, addressing security and governance concerns, and managing organizational change from your existing data stack to Fabric's modern architecture. Whether you're just starting to evaluate Fabric or looking to accelerate adoption, you'll leave with a practical blueprint for moving your organization beyond Power BI into the full potential of Microsoft's unified data platform.

Thursday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 348

10 Free SQL Databases: Your Playground for AI, Advanced Analytics, and Next-Gen Applications!

The Azure SQL free database offer is bigger than ever—now providing 10 free databases per subscription for life! This means unlimited opportunities to build, analyze, and innovate without worrying about costs.

In this session, you'll explore how to:

1. Unlock AI-driven insights by running ML models, anomaly detection, and intelligent recommendations directly in SQL 2.Power real-time analytics by processing and visualizing data streams for predictive forecasting and decision-making 3.Automate workflows and optimize data pipelines with SQL-based automation and event-driven processing 4.Enhance BI reporting and dashboarding with seamless integrations into Power BI and other analytics tools 5.Develop enterprise-grade applications, including AI-powered customer insights, fraud detection, financial forecasting, IoT telemetry, and marketing personalization 6.Set up multi-database environments for development, experimentation, and CI/CD pipelines—all without affecting production

Whether you're a developer, data scientist, or analytics enthusiast, this session will show you how to harness the full power of SQL for AI and analytics—with zero cost and limitless possibilities.

Join us and take your data-driven applications to the next level!

Thursday 12:40 PM - 1:50 PM · Room 340-341

Best practices and Guidance when using Microsoft Dataverse

We'll cover best practices when developing solutions using Microsoft Dataverse. We'll cover guidance for API usage, form design, app performance, security, maintenance and more!

Thursday 12:40 PM - 1:50 PM · Room 343

A Query Runs Through It: An Introduction to the SQL Server Engine

Have you ever wondered what happens inside SQL Server when you execute that query you wrote? This session will serve as an introduction to what is going on under the hood, commonly called SQL Server Internals. Whether writing queries or tuning them, SQL Server internals knowledge is highly valuable in Azure VMs or SQL DB, AWS, GCP, and on-premises as the SQL Server engine is the same. Together we will dip into why data types matter, ponder pages, sample the storage engine, and ponder the query processor as we see what happens when your query runs.

Thursday 12:40 PM - 1:50 PM · Room 344

Power BI Storage Modes: The Ultimate Showdown

Power BI offers three different storage modes for data: Direct Query, Import and Direct Lake. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages, depending on the scenario and the requirements. But which one is the best overall? How do they compare in terms of performance, scalability, flexibility and ease of use?

In this session, we will put the three storage modes to the test in a series of challenges inspired by the Olympic Pentathlon. We will use real-world data sets and scenarios to measure how each storage mode handles different aspects of data analysis and visualization. We will also share some best practices and tips on how to choose the right storage mode for your project.

By the end of this session, you will have a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each storage mode, and you will be able to decide which one deserves the gold medal in your Power BI dashboard.

Thursday 12:40 PM - 1:50 PM · Room 345-346

Avoid Data Silos! Best Practices for Implementing Shared Semantic Models

In this presentation, we will explore how to create effective shared semantic models in Power BI and how to manage them in the Power BI Service. Shared semantic models can help reduce the cost and complexity of fragmented data, also known as data silos, within an organization. By using shared semantic models, developers can save time and resources by only having to maintain a single semantic model instead of multiple unique ones. Additionally, shared semantic models can prevent discrepancies and ensure consistent logic across reports. We will also cover how to configure semantic models for enhanced user experiences, enable row level security (RLS) to protect sensitive data, publish semantic models for optimal sharing and distribution, and promote or certify semantic models for increased exposure.

Thursday 12:40 PM - 1:50 PM · Room 347

Unleash the Power of SQL Database in Fabric: Innovate Without Limits Using the Free Trial

Curious about SQL Database in Fabric but unsure where to start? This session is your gateway to limitless innovation—completely free. Discover how to leverage the Fabric free trial to explore serverless computing, real-time analytics, and AI-powered insights—all without cost or commitment.

We’ll walk you through hands-on scenarios, best practices, and real-world workflows that showcase the full potential of SQL Database in Fabric. Learn how to automate processes, optimize performance, and seamlessly integrate SQL with other Fabric components to drive efficiency and scale effortlessly.

Whether you're a developer, data engineer, or tech innovator, this session will give you the tools to experiment, build, and unlock new capabilities—risk-free. Don't miss this opportunity to transform your data solutions and bring your ideas to life with zero barriers, zero cost, and endless possibilities.

Thursday 12:40 PM - 1:50 PM · Room 348

Azure SQL DB Hyperscale: The Definitive Modern Database Choice​

Join us at DataCon to explore the Azure SQL Database Hyperscale. We'll discuss its architecture and use cases, highlighting benefits like larger database sizes, faster throughput, and continuous priming. Learn how these advancements boost scalability, speed, and reliability in data management. Stay ahead with the cutting-edge features of Azure SQL Database Hyperscale. We'll dive into real-world use cases and innovations that demonstrate the power of Azure SQL in driving the next generation of databases. Discover how organizations are leveraging Hyperscale for mission-critical applications, and how vector support enhances performance for complex queries and AI workloads. Experience firsthand the transformative impact of Azure SQL Database in various industries and understand why it is the preferred choice for modern data solutions.

Thursday 2:00 PM - 3:10 PM · Room 320-321

Handling Big Data with Power BI

When you started working in Power BI you only had a few million rows or data or the data latency requirements were non-existent. Now all of that has change, the data volume is billions of rows and/or data latency must be less than 5 seconds. How do you manage these challenges with Power BI. Join this demo-heavy session where we will explain and demonstrate how.

Thursday 2:00 PM - 3:10 PM · Room 342

Data Processing Architecture: Key Design Principles & Considerations

In the era of big data, the design of data processing architecture is crucial for efficient data management and analysis. This presentation explores the fundamental principles and considerations essential for constructing robust data processing systems. Key design principles such as scalability, reliability, security, and flexibility are examined in detail.

The architecture's ability to handle varying data flows, ensure data integrity, and maintain security across multiple stages is emphasized. Additionally, the presentation discusses various architectural patterns, including data warehouses, data lakes, and data flow pipelines, highlighting their respective use cases and benefits.

Furthermore, the presentation contrasts traditional data processing architecture with the emerging concept of data mesh. While traditional architectures focus on centralized data processing and transformation, data mesh advocates for a decentralized approach, promoting domain-oriented data ownership and self-serve data infrastructure.

This comparison underscores the shift from monolithic data management to a more flexible and scalable architecture, addressing the diverse needs of modern data-driven organizations.

By adhering to these principles and considerations, data engineers can create systems that not only meet current data processing needs but are also adaptable to future technological advancements and data requirements.

Thursday 2:00 PM - 3:10 PM · Room 343

Migration Mystery Solved: Moving SSRS and SSAS to Power BI

Management has come to you and said that now is time to migrate your SSRS and SSAS assets to Power BI. Now you’re wondering about things like: where do I start? Is there planning that can be done to de-risk the migration? Are there tools that could help me with migration? Good News! There are places to start, there is planning that can be done, and yes, there are tools that can help with migrations. We will also discuss P SKU to F SKU migration as a lot of customers are facing that challenge now as well.

During this session we are going to guide you through the migration process by covering: • Assessing your current environment • Planning your migration strategy • Selecting the right tools • Executing the migration in phases • Validating and optimizing the migration and its processes

Thursday 4:00 PM - 5:10 PM · Room 343

SQL Server 2025: The Enterprise AI ready database

Come learn about the latest information for SQL Server 2025, now in preview. You will learn how to bring AI to your data with AI applications using built-in vector capabilities ground to cloud. In addition, you will learn about new enhancements for developers including JSON, RegEx, REST API, GraphQL, Change Streaming. You will also learn about all the new engine features for security, performance, and availability. You will also see how to integrate your SQL Server 2025 experience using the new SSMS21 and SSMS Copilot.

Thursday 4:00 PM - 5:10 PM · Room 344

SSMS 21 Spotlight: What's new and why it matters

With the Preview 1 release of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 21 in November, the SQL Tools team made available the biggest set of updates to SSMS in recent memory, including numerous requests that customers have been waiting to see...for years in some cases.

In this session we'll show off what's new in SSMS 21, what's in progress, and what we have planned for SQL 2025. We'll start by walking through installation and jump to the first step for each launch - connecting. You'll want to connect to a database using our new connection dialog - we'll take a tour through the experience and take feedback (we're always listening :) We'll also cover updates you'll find throughout SSMS such as changes to Azure authentication, and improvements in the query editor and results grid. Folks have been excited about support for Git in SSMS, so we'll show you how to get started. If Git is new to you, it may seem daunting. Don't worry, if we can figure it out, so can you!

Expect lots of demos, as many tips, tricks, and updates as we can fit in.

Thursday 4:00 PM - 5:10 PM · Room 348

Introduction to Version Control, GIT, and Power BI Developer mode

This session will guide you through the basics of version control, ensuring you understand its significance for efficient Power BI project management. We will introduce you to GIT, a widely used version control system, without delving into intricate code or overly technical jargon. In just one hour, you will gain a genuine grasp of how it all works.

Key Topics Covered:

• Demystifying Version Control: We'll explain version control in plain language, emphasizing why it's pivotal for successful Power BI projects.

• An Introduction to GIT: Get a straightforward overview of GIT, without getting bogged down in technical details. Discover why it's so popular and beneficial.

• The Power of Power BI Developer Mode: Understand how the new Power BI Developer Mode simplifies development and collaboration, without diving into intricate coding.

• Version Control in Power BI: Not all users need GIT, so understand the options for all projects and different methods available.

• Practical Tips for Success: We'll share practical insights and straightforward tips for effectively using version control in Power BI.

Suitable for any data analyst, a Power BI developer, BI enthusiast, or anyone looking to understand enterprise features.

Friday 9:00 AM - 10:10 AM · Room 342

Building a Data Culture

Data is a core part of our lives that influences all parts of business, from how we implement technology, to our establishment of business processes, all the way to individuals themselves. We solve tech and business process problems every day, but do we solve people problems?

How are people problems solved? With company culture. And culture can make or break data projects as easily as tech and process problems.

In this session, we'll talk about a company culture's influence on their ability to be data driven. We will identify common pitfalls that can influence how well your organization will be able to use data. We will also identify ways you can identify, and even measure, the data culture in your organization.

Friday 9:00 AM - 10:10 AM · Room 340-341

The Power of Semantic Layers: Ensuring Reliable and Governed BI

Developers often create excellent reports, only to be asked for data exports to Excel.

Ultimately, users want only one thing: easy access to data that helps them do their job. While Power BI reports and dashboards are powerful, they can't answer every question. Users may need to create their own reports, build Excel pivots, or extract data for other processes. These needs must be met securely and consistently, avoiding governance bypass, duplicated calculations, or compromised security.

Enter the Semantic Layer. The semantic layer connects Power BI and Microsoft Fabric back-end systems to end users, offering secure, governed, and user-friendly data access. Certified semantic models means that the content meets the organisation's quality standards and can be regarded as reliable, authoritative, and ready for use across the organisation.

This session will cover:

1. What is a Semantic Model? Define the semantic layer, its components, and its role in self-service BI.

2. The Certification Process Explore the structured, repeatable steps required to certify semantic models. This introduces the certification process map and checklist - a list of best practices a model requires to pass to be certified.

3. Deep dive into the Certification Checklist Learn some common best practices, optimization tips, security considerations, and practical advice for building robust semantic models.

Who Should Attend?

This session is for Data Analysts, Data Engineers, and BI Developers aiming to upgrade models to meet enterprise business and self service needs.

Led by Steve Campbell, a Microsoft MVP and co-owner of a Microsoft data consultancy. Steve previously led data analytics for large-scale EMEA platform implementations.

Key Takeaways

• Understand the Role of Semantic Models.
• Learn the Certification Process and a repeatable framework for ensuring your models meet organisational standards.
• Take away practical tips for optimisation, security, and best practices.

Friday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 343

Performance tuning for Azure Cosmos DB

Azure Cosmos DB is a fully managed database service, freeing developers from database management tasks. However, as a developer, you still have important responsibilities, such as changing indexing policies, configuring connections, estimating workloads, and selecting the right throughput options. All of these tasks have a direct impact on the performance and cost of your application. To keep your application running smoothly and fast, we'll explore the .NET/SDK settings, connection types, and indexing types. We'll also focus on selecting the right throughput options, using Query Execution Metrics and server-side programming. Join me as we explore how to optimize your Azure Cosmos DB solutions for the best performance.

Friday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 344

Harnessing the Power of Data Mesh: A Deep Dive into the Four Pillars of Modern Data Architecture

Abstract: In today's data-driven world, traditional data management approaches often struggle to keep pace with the growing complexity and scale of enterprise data. Enter Data Mesh, a revolutionary paradigm that redefines how organizations handle data. This session will explore the four foundational pillars of Data Mesh architecture: Domain-Oriented Decentralization, Data as a Product, Self-Serve Data Infrastructure, and Federated Computational Governance.

We'll delve into how Domain-Oriented Decentralization empowers teams to own and manage their data, fostering agility and innovation. Discover the concept of Data as a Product, where data is treated with the same rigor and care as any other product, ensuring quality and usability. Learn about Self-Serve Data Infrastructure, which democratizes data access and tooling, enabling teams to work independently and efficiently. Finally, understand the importance of Federated Computational Governance in maintaining security, compliance, and consistency across decentralized data environments.

Join us to gain insights into implementing Data Mesh in your organization, transforming your data strategy, and unlocking the full potential of your data assets.

Friday 10:20 AM - 11:30 AM · Room 348

Microsoft Database Docs - Learn about Contributing for your Career

Join content developers from the Microsoft Database Docs content team for an interactive discussion and call to action on modern Microsoft docs. Learn about the Docs publishing process in GitHub, and the best ways to add content and fixes to Docs that are read by the entire customer community. We'll also ask for your feedback on Docs and host Q&A. Learn what contribution to Microsoft Learn can mean for your Microsoft MVP status, your career, or your personal brand.

Friday 12:30 PM - 1:40 PM · Room 344

Build a Robust App with Fabric SQL Database, GraphQL API, and User Data Functions

Discover how to harness the full potential of Fabric to build powerful modern data-driven applications. In this session participants will learn how to use the API for GraphQL and User Data Functions over SQL databases and other data sources in the Microsoft Fabric Platform to build modern “CRUD” (Create, Read Update and Delete) data APIs that you can immediately call from an application. APIs for GraphQL enable you to effortlessly connect your Fabric data with your applications, with only a few clicks. If you have more complex business logic for your data, you can implement it with Python User Data Functions. With these two powerful building blocks and a SaaS-ified, developer-friendly experience, your app will be up and running in no time!

Friday 12:30 PM - 1:40 PM · Room 347

Build AI Apps Smarter: Optimize SQL Database Costs & Performance in Fabric

Take your AI apps to the next level with cost-smart SQL database optimization in Fabric. This session explores how to maximize performance while minimizing costs by leveraging Fabric's capacity monitoring tools for SQL databases. Learn to track resource usage, identify inefficiencies, and optimize database performance—all without exceeding your budget. Designed for app developers, architects, and innovators, this talk will provide real-world strategies to build scalable, high-performing AI apps powered by intelligent SQL database cost management. Discover how to turn insights into action and supercharge your AI applications with Fabric

Friday 12:30 PM - 1:40 PM · Room 348

Unleashing Modern Data Warehousing: Architecture, Insights & Future Innovations in Fabric Warehouse

Join us for a deep dive into the modern data warehouse! We’ll break down the core principles, use cases, and architectural intricacies. Discover how innovations like Data Virtualization, enhanced Data Modeling experiences, AI-powered insights with Copilot, and more are helping developers and customers unlock the full potential of Fabric Warehouse. This session is packed with live demos, best practices, and an exciting glimpse into the future roadmap of Data Warehousing.

Friday 1:50 PM - 3:00 PM · Room 343

Wait Wait Do Tell Me: A Look At SQL Server Wait Stats

Hurry up and wait, it happens to all of us, even SQL Server. Why is SQL Server waiting? What can we do about it? These questions will be addressed as we define what a wait really is in SQL Server and some approaches to make SQL wait less. This session, targeted at data professionals, managers, developers, and sys admins, will also explore a few of the common SQL waits and specifically what we can do about them

Friday 1:50 PM - 3:00 PM · Room 344

Mirroring in Microsoft Fabric - Overview and Roadmap

Microsoft Fabric accelerates data potential for the era for AI. Mirroring simplifies linking of external databases into Fabric, with full replicas created with just a couple of clicks. Once a database is mirrored, real-time updates will automatically be replicated into OneLake and stored as Delta Parquet, an analytics-ready format that works seamlessly for every analytics workload in Fabric. Join us to gain deeper insights and learn how to get started with Mirroring by bringing data gravity to unlock powerful insights in Fabric.