Exam 70-462: Administering Microsoft SQL Server Databases

Skills Measured:

Install and configure (20–25%)

• Plan installation
  • Evaluate installation requirements; design the installation of SQL Server and its components (drives, service accounts, etc.); plan scale-up vs. scale-out basics; plan for capacity, including if/when to shrink, grow, autogrow, and monitor growth; manage the technologies that influence SQL architecture (for example, service broker, full text, scale out, etc.); design the storage for new databases (drives, filegroups, partitioning); design database infrastructure; configure a SQL Server standby database for reporting purposes; Windows-level security and service level security; Core mode installation; benchmark a server before using it in a production environment (SQLIO, Tests on SQL Instance); choose the right hardware
• Install SQL Server and related services
  • Test connectivity; enable and disable features; install SQL Server database engine and SSIS (not SSRS and SSAS); configure an OS disk
• Implement a migration strategy
  • Restore vs detach/attach; migrate security; migrate from a previous version; migrate to new hardware; migrate systems and data from other sources
• Configure additional SQL Server components
  • Set up and configure all SQL Server components (Engine, AS, RS and SharePoint integration) in a complex and highly secure environment; configure full-text indexing; SSIS security; filestream; filetable
• Manage SQL Server Agent
  • Create, maintain, and monitor jobs; administer jobs and alerts; automate (setup, maintenance, monitoring) across multiple databases and multiple instances; send to “Manage SQL Server Agent jobs”

Maintain instances and databases (15–20%)

• Manage and configure databases
  • Design multiple file groups; database configuration and standardization: autoclose, autoshrink, recovery models; manage file space, including adding new filegroups and moving objects from one filegroup to another; implement and configure contained databases; data compression; configure TDE; partitioning; manage log file growth; DBCC
• Configure SQL Server instances
  • Configure and standardize a database: autoclose, autoshrink, recovery models; install default and named instances; configure SQL to use only certain CPUs (affinity masks, etc.); configure server level settings; configure many databases/instance, many instances/server, virtualization; configure clustered instances including MSDTC; memory allocation; database mail; configure SQL Server engine: memory, filffactor, sp_configure, default options
• Implement a SQL Server clustered instance
  • Install a cluster; manage multiple instances on a cluster; set up subnet clustering; recover from a failed cluster node
• Manage SQL Server instances
  • Install an instance; manage interaction of instances; SQL patch management; install additional instances; manage resource utilization by using Resource Governor; cycle error logs

Optimize and troubleshoot (15–20%)

• Identify and resolve concurrency problems
  • Examine deadlocking issues using the SQL server logs using trace flags; design reporting database infrastructure (replicated databases); monitor via DMV or other MS product; diagnose blocking, live locking and deadlocking; diagnose waits; performance detection with built in DMVs; know what affects performance; locate and if necessary kill processes that are blocking or claiming all resources
• Collect and analyze troubleshooting data
  • Monitor using Profiler; collect performance data by using System Monitor; collect trace data by using SQL Server Profiler; identify transactional replication problems; identify and troubleshoot data access problems; gather performance metrics; identify potential problems before they cause service interruptions; identify performance problems;, use XEvents and DMVs; create alerts on critical server condition; monitor data and server access by creating audit and other controls; identify IO vs. memory vs. CPU bottlenecks; use the Data Collector tool
• Audit SQL Server instances
  • Implement a security strategy for auditing and controlling the instance; configure an audit; configure server audits; track who modified an object; monitor elevated privileges as well as unsolicited attempts to connect; policy-based management

Manage data (20–25%)

• Configure and maintain a back-up strategy
  • Manage different backup models, including point-in-time recovery; protect customer data even if backup media is lost; perform backup/restore based on proper strategies including backup redundancy; recover from a corrupted drive; manage a multi-TB database; implement and test a database implementation and a backup strategy (multiple files for user database and tempdb, spreading database files, backup/restore); back up a SQL Server environment; back up system databases
• Restore databases
  • Restore a database secured with TDE; recover data from a damaged DB (several errors in DBCC checkdb); restore to a point in time; file group restore; page level restore
• Implement and maintain indexes
  • Inspect physical characteristics of indexes and perform index maintenance; identify fragmented indexes; identify unused indexes; implement indexes; defrag/rebuild indexes; set up a maintenance strategy for indexes and statistics; optimize indexes (full, filter index); statistics (full, filter) force or fix queue; when to rebuild vs. reorg and index; full text indexes; column store indexes
• Import and export data
  • Transfer data; bulk copy; bulk insert

Implement security (15–20%)

• Manage logins and server roles
  • Configure server security; secure the SQL Server using Windows Account / SQL Server accounts, server roles; create log in accounts; manage access to the server, SQL Server instance, and databases; create and maintain user-defined server roles; manage certificate logins
• Manage database security
  • Configure database security; database level, permissions; protect objects from being modified; auditing; encryption
• Manage users and database roles
  • Create access to server / database with least privilege; manage security roles for users and administrators; create database user accounts; contained login
• Troubleshoot security
  • Manage certificates and keys; endpoints

Implement high availability (5–10%)

• Implement AlwaysOn
  • Implement AlwaysOn availability groups; implement AlwaysOn failover clustering
• Implement replication
  • Troubleshoot replication problems; identify appropriate replication strategy