SQL Server support
Something is wrong with SQL Server and it needs senior eyes now, not a ticket in a queue. What good looks like here: the real cause diagnosed rather than the symptom silenced, and a straight read of what is actually at risk.
The database is slow. Or it’s down. Or the person who understood it left, and now nobody’s quite sure how it all hangs together. You don’t need a helpdesk ticket — you need someone senior who has fixed your exact problem before, and who’ll tell you the truth about what’s actually at risk.
SQL Server is all we do — not networks, not general IT. So when it breaks, you talk to a DBA who has been in your seat at the worst possible moment, reading what the server is waiting on and fixing the cause. Nobody should be there alone.
Usually on a day that started badly.
The 2:39am call
Production is down and the runbook stops exactly where the problem starts.
Your DBA just left
And took the only working mental map of the estate out the door with them.
A migration stalled
Half cut over, and rolling back is starting to look like the safer option.
“The database is fine”
The vendor says so. Your users, and your month-end, disagree.
Customers spot outages first
You’re hearing about downtime from the people you least want to hear it from.
An audit finding nobody showed you
A gap you didn’t know existed, now with a deadline attached.
What support with us looks like
Four things you can count on, whether it’s a one-hour incident or a standing arrangement.
Senior only
You talk to a principal DBA, not a tier-1 queue.
SQL Server only
Not networks, not general IT — SQL Server is the whole job.
Cause, not symptom
We fix the reason it broke, and show you the before-and-after.
The truth about the risk
An honest read of where you actually stand, even when it isn’t what you hoped.
You get a senior DBA who has fixed your exact problem before — not a junior reading a script.
Something’s wrong now
A live incident, a stalled migration, or a second opinion when the story doesn’t add up. We diagnose it, fix the cause, and you’re free to take it from there.
Keep a DBA on call
Watched continuously, so the next bad day does not arrive. A Virtual DBA arrangement keeps the estate patched, tested and monitored, with a senior DBA on call when it counts. Covering a gap or a project instead? That is a contract DBA.
How Virtual DBA worksFrequently asked questions
Do you do emergency or one-off support?
Yes. A live incident, a stalled migration, or a second opinion when something does not add up are all one-off jobs. The work is the same either way: diagnose the real cause, fix it, and you are free to take it from there or keep a DBA on.
How fast can you respond?
Response times are agreed in the engagement contract, in writing, rather than advertised on a web page. What does not vary is who responds: the senior DBA who fixes it, not a dispatcher. Our pricing guide sets out what a reasonable SLA looks like for any provider, and how to tell a response time from a resolution time. For an active incident, the number on this page is answered by a senior DBA rather than a dispatcher.
Are you in New Zealand, or remote?
Both. We are based in Auckland and can be on-site here, and most support runs remotely over secure access to your estate — so location is no barrier. We also support clients in Australia and further afield.
Can you take over from our current provider or MSP?
Yes, and it is common. We read what is actually there first — configuration, backups, jobs, access — tell you the gap between what is managed and what is only invoiced, and pick it up from there. No drama with the outgoing provider required.
Can you just tell us what is wrong first?
That is exactly what the free health check is for. It is read-only, changes nothing on your servers, and gives you a graded report in plain English — so you can see the real state of things before deciding whether you even need us.
What does one-off or ongoing support cost?
One-off work runs on a fixed senior day rate, and project work is quoted fixed-price, with no meter on calls, meetings or emails. Ongoing managed cover is priced per instance, per month. Typical market rates for this kind of work are in our pricing guide. The honest first step is the free, read-only health check: it scopes the real work, and you keep the report whether or not we go further.
Not sure what is actually wrong?
Tell us what is going on. A senior DBA reads every message and points you at the right next step, even when that is not us. You can also reach us at info@sqldba.org, or on 0800 000 174 in New Zealand.