New DBA

  • I've been dabling in SQL 2000 for the last two years. A little bit ago my company promoted me to DBA (Which I have no ide where to start). The first thing I did was go out and buy

    2 SQL 2000 Performance and Tuning Books and

    1 Admins Guide to SQL 2000

    Just wanted to know if anyone had any good suggestions or comments for a rookie. I'm sure I'll be asking a bunch of questions.

    Thanks for everything

    Shane

  • 1. Read as much of SQL Server 2000 Books-on-Line (BOL) as you can. All the basics (and more) are covered and you will save yourself a great deal of pain by understanding what is in that reference.

    2. Make sure you and your boss are clear on what your role is as a DBA, and what functions you are expected to perform. Tackle those areas first.

    3. Learn the basics of TSQL.

    4. Learn how to use the basic tools that come with SQL Server - Enterprise Manager, Query Analyzer, Profiler and Performance Monitor. Enterprise Manager is a great learning tool for beginners, but do not become overly dependent on it.

    5. Learn from others. There are several excellent web sites that post articles and offer forums. My favs are: SQL Server Central, SQL Server Worldwide Users Group (sswug.org), SQL Server Performance (sql-server-performance.com), SQL Pass, and Microsoft's SQL Server site. Seeing how others have tackled similar problems you encounter (sql scripts, stored procs, etc.) provides great insights.

  • Hi,

    always make sure that your backup and maintenance jobs are scheduled and work successfully in case of any problems (especially on production machines).

    Paul

  • quote:


    Just wanted to know if anyone had any good suggestions or comments for a rookie. I'm sure I'll be asking a bunch of questions.


    you're welcome!

    ...and ask your manager for a copy of Inside SQL Server 2000 worth some 40$

    Frank

    http://www.insidesql.de

    http://www.familienzirkus.de

    --
    Frank Kalis
    Microsoft SQL Server MVP
    Webmaster: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs
    My blog: http://www.insidesql.org/blogs/frankkalis/[/url]

  • To add a little to the much that has been said in response to your question.

    Good and "tested" backup/recovery cannot be over-emphasized "DBA" work finally comes pretty close to that .

    You may have some time on your hands when things are not broken and no projects are in the pipeline.

    Your employer may buy you books and pay for training ,take advantage of both.Even if they do not a $50 book and/or a test system where you will learn and be paid is nothing to complain about .

    Life is good at least most of the time

    Mike

  • Thank You to everyone for all of the help

    Shane

  • 1. Never put spaces or dashes in any object names (columns, table names, server names, etc). It will only turn around and bite you later. Understores are OK.

    2. Learn a scripting language (such as VB Script or Perl) so you can have error logs culled and served up to you automatically using task scheduler, if you have a lot of servers. See the book "Real World SQL Server Administration with Perl" by Linchi Shea on just how valuable this can be (at least look at the excerpts and contents on Amazon.com to get ideas on what you'd need).

    3. Use lots of comments in your T-SQL Code. Have a standardized "header" section where you put information on objects, notes, etc. Here's what I use:

    /*=========================================================================

    Title: Formal_Descriptive_title_Here

    Script Script_Path_and_file_name

    Purpose: SHORT_DESCRIPTION

    Author: Your Name Here

    Date Created: 1/1/2003

    Date Last Updated:

    By:

    Note:

    =========================================================================*/

    4. Read Inside SQL Server 2000 by Kalen Delaney (sp?)

    Edited by - gmilner on 11/20/2003 1:00:25 PM

    G. Milner

  • Set up test boxes. Use test for learning. Don't do anything in Production until you fully understand and are completly confident of the changes you want to make to production.

    We all started somewhere, dont be shy, ask questions when you need to.

    Good Luck!


    -Isaiah

  • I think this forum could be a great learning tool.

    See what types of problems others are having and learn the steps necessary to solve them.

    Read through the articles from time to time and browse the script archive to see how others are adding new functionality to sql server or automating their regular admin tasks.

    Finally, the question of the day is a relatively painless way to learn something new each day.

    -Dan B

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