It sounds like "Yukon" Beta 1 is still 30 to 60 days out (and will be a closed beta with prearranged participants, anyway). But that won't stop Microsoft from talking turkey about its next version of SQL Server, at the TechEd conference.

Here is an abridged version of a couple of our Q&A interviews with Holloway that have run in various issues of the Microsoft Watch newsletter.

Check Out Holloway's Weblog Here

Microsoft Watch: What are the top features that you feel will make Yukon a compelling database release, from a developer standpoint?

Holloway: For developers, I think three really stand out. First, and most obvious, is the (Common Language Runtime) CLR integration with Yukon and the ability to write stored procedures and to build custom data types using the .Net Framework languages and supporting tools. Second, the integration of the SQL Server development tools (tentatively titled the SQL Server Workbench) and Visual Studio .Net will allow developers to be more productive and will give them the best set of tools to date for developing database applications on the Microsoft platform. Third, the enhanced XML support and support for an XML data type in SQL Server will enable developers to further leverage heterogeneous data in their applications.

But there is much more, including Transact-SQL (T-SQL) updates like exception handling. It's going to be a very big release.

Microsoft Watch: What, specifically, will the integration of CLR into Yukon do for developers?

Holloway: The integration of the CLR into Yukon will provide developers with more flexibility for developing their database applications. Specific benefits of the technology include the ability to run compiled code (managed
assemblies) versus interpreted code (T-SQL). Managed code is expected to outperform T-SQL in these scenarios in a significant way.

Another interesting capability will be the use of .Net Framework types as custom type extensions to the SQL Server type system. This will enable these values to be stored as columns in a table, just like the standard data types that developers are accustomed to using. Developers will be able to create and store much more complex data types in the data tier and can reduce middle tier application processing requirements for many scenarios. This will promote a simpler programming model and scalability benefits for many applications.

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Microsoft Watch: What are likely to be the top Yukon features from
a user standpoint?

Holloway: For enterprise customers, there is a lot to be excited about as well. I think the biggest surprise for me has been in the enhancements to DTS (Data Transformation Services). That product has improved significantly and has really come into its own as an enterprise level ETL (Extract Transform and Load) tool. Other huge improvements are in the Analysis Services and BI (business-intelligence) reporting tools, where the tools support and the Web services capabilities are going to make these tools much more effective for enterprise customers.

There is also a significant story in the area of high availability, where there have been numerous enhancements to administrative tasks, ranging from handling indexes to managing log shipping. The enterprise level customers will see some huge benefits from this release in terms of additional tools support and product versatility.

Microsoft Watch: Can you help alleviate some of the confusion
around what Microsoft is doing with the file system it is developing for Yukon?

Holloway: There is a strong emphasis from the marketing group around SQL Server to try to clear up this issue with the Yukon file system.

The file-system technology that is slated for Longhorn (the Windows client due out in 2005) is based on some technology that is implemented for Yukon, but it is explicitly not the Yukon database engine. Also, the Yukon release is not a dependency for Longhorn. In general, the significance of this technology is that the search and storage efficiencies that can be gained through using a relational data-storage engine, along with programming model for data access can be applied to file system operations.

People didn't understand what it meant to have the "Yukon storage technologies in Longhorn," and I think that Microsoft doesn't want to set a false expectation about what these features will look like. The benefit of using the Yukon technologies to enhance the Windows file system is that you can use these powerful tools to better manage your files; search for information; and share this information with other applications in a much more structured manner, with a dramatic performance improvement over traditional file-system technologies.

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Microsoft Watch: What more do you have to say on the dependencies/synergies between Yukon and the next major release of Visual Studio .Net (code-named "Whidbey"), going forward?

Holloway: Honestly, I think Whidbey and Yukon are joined at the hip at this point. My understanding is that there is a significant amount of shared development that's going on between the Visual Studio team and the SQL Server team to build the tools that will be used to develop applications for Yukon. This will provide much of the added value that developers are looking for with Yukon, with source control for database development built in, and the development tools that will be used to build applications leveraging the .NET Framework in the database.

While I think it will be feasible for some version of Yukon to ship without Whidbey-meaning that the SQL Server team has some working build of the product that doesn't require the Whidbey version of the .NET Framework to run — I don't think there's any chance that's going to happen at this point.

MS WATCH: Any parting thoughts?

Holloway: The difference between SQL Server 2000 and Yukon will seem like the jump from SQL Server 6.5 to 7.0 years ago-it will be dramatic.
Additionally, of the most unheralded areas in Yukon is the number of updates to Transact-SQL. While the CLR (the Common Language Runtime environment) and .NET development in the database tier is going to get much of the attention, the Transact-SQL updates are going to provide big productivity gains and enable developers to write complex data access code much more easily.