◆ Microsoft SQL Server

Identify query filling tempdb transaction log

This is real work, not a feature someone invented — it comes from real job ads and real questions people asked. Below are four ready AI prompts: get it done, make it easy for the next person to say yes to, work out the right move when you are stuck, and stop it coming back.

4prompts

The same task, four prompts

today's deadline · the next reviewer · the stuck moment · the pattern
AExecute — do the immediate taskFind the query that is currently filling up the tempdb transaction log. The log is at 85%…+
Find the query that is currently filling up the tempdb transaction log. The log is at 85% capacity and growing fast.
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
BImprove — make it easier to acceptIdentify the top five queries that have contributed most to tempdb transaction log growth in…+
Identify the top five queries that have contributed most to tempdb transaction log growth in the last hour. For each, tell me its query text, the user running it, and the amount of log space it consumed. I need to understand if this is a new issue or an ongoing problem, so I can explain it to the application team.
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
CDecide — diagnose the stuck momentTempdb transaction log just hit 95% capacity, and I can't immediately see what's causing it.…+
Tempdb transaction log just hit 95% capacity, and I can't immediately see what's causing it.
Tempdb transaction log just hit 95% capacity, and I can't immediately see what's causing it. The finance director is running month-end reports, and I'm terrified this will cause a critical system outage. I don't know if it's one rogue query or a general increase in load. What's the fastest way to pinpoint the exact query or process that's consuming the most log space right now and what's the immediate action I should take to prevent a crash?
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?
DBecome — change the patternI frequently get caught off guard by tempdb transaction log filling up, leading to urgent,…+
I frequently get caught off guard by tempdb transaction log filling up, leading to urgent, reactive firefighting.
I frequently get caught off guard by tempdb transaction log filling up, leading to urgent, reactive firefighting. This often happens during peak business hours and causes a lot of stress and potential downtime. What habit should I change in my monitoring or analysis routine to proactively identify and address tempdb log growth issues before they become critical, so I can avoid these last-minute scrambles?
when the reply comes backPush once: ask it to sharpen the weakest part, and to say what it assumed. Helpful?

Questions people actually ask

honest answers, no sign-up

Every task here was seen in the real world. Someone doing the job named it, a real job ad asked for it, or a lot of people asked about it online.

If nothing real showed a task, it is not on the page. That is the whole rule.

They are the same job approached four ways, because what you need depends on where you are.

Get it done today. Make it easy for the next person to say yes to. Work out the right move when you are stuck. Learn the pattern so the job stops coming back.

For most of these jobs it can carry the heavy thinking - draft it, sort it, check it, rehearse it with you.

It cannot sit in your chair, take the blame when a number is wrong, or notice what nobody wrote down. Let it do the first 80%. Keep the last 20% that is truly yours.

No. Copy any prompt and paste it into the AI you already use. No account, no score, no wall in the way.

Any of them. The prompts describe the work rather than naming a product, so they are not tied to one assistant.

That is also why they keep working when you switch.

Change it freely. Every prompt is a starting line, not a rule.

Put in your real numbers, your real names and your real deadline. The more you make it yours, the better the answer comes back.

The tasks come from real job ads, published job data and the questions people ask in public forums.

The steps come from Microsoft SQL Server's own documentation, with practitioner sources for the traps the manual does not mention.

Push once. Ask it to sharpen the weakest part and to say what it assumed.

Most wrong answers come from a missing detail rather than a bad prompt - tell it the thing it could not know.