SQL Server 2000 for Experienced DBAs

SQL Server 2000 for Experienced DBAs
by Brian Knight
Copyright 2003
Osborne/McGraw-Hill

Find out more about this book, or purchase it, from Amazon.com

There are a lot of SQL Server books designed for beginning DBAs, but not a lot for the experienced DBA. In this book, Brian Knight has helped to fill this gap with this book, aptly called, SQL Server 2000 for Experienced DBAs. This book covers many topics not covered, or just barely covered in other SQL Server books, such as security, troubleshooting, performance tuning, disaster planning, and clustering.

All of these are very important topics that are sometimes ignored or forgotten by DBAs, especially those that are still a little green under the collar. In many ways, any DBA who reads this book will become "experienced," if they are not so already.

Here's what the book covers:

• Architecture and Installation

• Managing SQL Server

• Securing SQL Server

• Optimizing and Automating SQL Server Administration

• Monitoring and Tuning SQL Server

• Automating Administrative Tasks

• Optimizing and Troubleshooting SQL Server

• Disaster Planning and Recovery

• Scaling SQL Server

• High Availability in SQL Server

• Clustering Windows and SQL Server

• SQL Server Replication

Each chapter is well written, and easily understandable. There are lots of examples and illustrations. Anyone with a novice understanding of SQL Server will understand everything described in the book. The information provided is both useful and practical (the kind of real-life insights you can't get from reading Books Online).

While the performance tuning portions of the book are a good introduction, they still are not as comprehensive as you will find on this website, or on books specifically on SQL Server performance tuning. The same goes for the clustering portions of the book. But if you are new to these topics, you will find these sections a good starting point.

You might ask, exactly what is an experienced DBA, and is this book appropriate for me? That depends. Another way to describe this book is an introduction to advanced SQL Server topics. If you are already passed the experienced stage, then you may not pick up as much new information as someone with less experience. While the advanced topics in the book are well introduced, they are not in every case covered in detail, which some very experienced DBAs might be looking for.

Generally speaking, I recommend this book for DBAs' somewhere between novice and very experienced, especially those who have learned all they can from beginning SQL Server books, and are looking to expand their skill set.

Another book from Brian Knight, that you may also find interesting, is Admin 911: SQL Server 2000. This book is also designed for advanced DBAs.