OK, you've seen many of these before, but if you haven't figured out its TIME to upgrade your SQL Servers to 2008, here are 7 more reasons, brought to you by TechTarget, Dell & Intel, as part of their SQL Server 2008 Upgrade Series.  Some are obvious, others not - but if you are on SQL Server 2000, make the move as soon as possible - support is already phased out.  If you're on SQL Server 2005, then, well, there are no excuses - the transition is pretty seemless. 

There is much for the DBA and BI professional alike.  My personal favorite reasons for upgrading are the new exciting features in SQL Server 2008, such as Data and Backup Compression (- see my earlier blog on this topic: Decompressing on Compression in SQL Server 2008....), Change Data Capture (CDC), Auditing, Policy Management, Data Collector and Management Data Warehouse, Spatial Data, and more...

For a full list of features and detailed descriptions, see SQL Server Books Online and the SQL Server 2008 Overview Web site.

So, back to the article at hand.  I wanted to share and disseminate the information, which is focused on the small-medium businesses, and talks about business strategies with respect to upgrading to 2008. 

Among their seven business reasons for upgrading to SQL Server 2008 are:

1. YOUR BUSINESS WILL BE MORE INTELLIGENT

2. YOUR MISSION-CRITICAL DATA CAN BE BETTER PROTECTED

3. YOUR ENTIRE BUSINESS WILL PERFORM MORE EFFICIENTLY

4. YOUR DATABASE WILL BE MANAGED CENTRALLY

5. IT’S GOOD TO BE CURRENT

6. IF YOU STILL HAVE SQL SERVER 2000, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

7. IF YOU HAVE SQL SERVER 2005, WHY WAIT AT ALL?

It isn't always easy to know when to upgrade to the latest hardware or software release. This white paper explores the benefits of moving to SQL Server 2008, including improved performance and management capabilities. Gain insight into how to simplify this transition, and the top seven reasons organizations are making the shift. Learn how this upgrade can enable your organization to improve its efficiency, data security and business continuity.   Learn more of the benefits of this upgrade here.

Hope you enjoy!