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Management Studio and DBAs [Email Your Thoughts Here]
Robert: "Management Studio and TSQL are tools a DBA uses to get the job done. I look for an experienced candidate how knows the most efficient way to complete the task, whether that means using Management Studio or TSQL. I would avoid a candidate who is dogmatic about a particular approach to solving a problem.
I might ask a candidate to tell me how he or she would create SQL Agent job with 5 steps and three distinct job schedules. I think it is clear that Management Studio is the tool to accomplish this task efficiently. One can complete the same task using TSQL, but it requires more time and typing. To take it a step further and learn more about the candidate’s experience with the toolset I might then tell the candidate that the above job will be deleted once a particular month end business process completes. Then the job will need to be recreated again next month for the same month end process. Now what is the most efficient way to solve the problem? Here I would want to the candidate talking about scripting out the job and using the TSQL code to create the job for next month’s process.
I can only speculate that those who automatically eliminate candidates who suggest using Management Studio are trying to weed out those candidates they feel lack experience. Or maybe they developed the rule because they are not involved with the initial interview process and rely on human resources staff to use this answer to separate those who they feel have solid DBA experience and those who do not. Basing a decision on this particular designation is lacking in my opinion. I am much more impressed by a candidate who knows the toolset and applies it thoughtfully than a candidate who insists on doing things one way and one way only."
Jim: "I want a SQL DBA who can think outside the confines of a GUI tool such as MS. In our environment automation is every thing, and a solution that involves a mouse click is not a solution. There are plenty of things that I would expect most DBA’s to do using MS, including investigation and troubleshooting problems. One of the best things about MS is the performance dashboard, which is a great tool for early diagnostics. But when it comes to architecting, creating and running operationally related solutions, I want that to be in a format that wont require a mouse click. I also don’t want my DBA’s doing it one way and the automation doing it another way. Consistency is mandatory."
Robert: "It would be hard for me to believe that someone had any extensive experience with mirroring, snapshots, or replication without knowing their way around the gui. Sure there are ways to do all of these things in T-SQL, but experience has shown me that the ones who know how to do these things without SSMS have built scripts and processes specific for their environment to handle them. I would be skeptical that someone could come into a new environment and be more productive relying strictly on the command line or scripts they have brought with them. I also wouldn’t allow them to introduce any scripts into my environment without first analyzing them myself. If they can’t work with SSMS, and I’m not going to let them run their personal script library on my servers right away, what is this person going to do?
I would also have a hard time believing that someone thinks it is faster and easier to tune queries using showplan as opposed to the visual execution plans, but I suppose that’s not out of the realm of possibility.
I would take it a step farther and say that I prefer that someone has experience not only with SSMS but third party tools like Quest or Idera as well. This tells me the person is ready to step into production support right away."
Jeremy: "If I were hiring a SR level resource; and there was a question about server activity, blocking, locking etc… and they mentioned using something in management studio; I highly doubt that I’d hire them.
If they were talking about the benefits of replication monitor in Management Studio; I’d give them a pass.
In short, it depends; but my basic rule is that if it’s DDL, DML or performance impacting specific; using Management Studio is not acceptable.
I *STILL* hate the “right click the table and select open table”. Horrible."
Ron: "I guess I’m an "old-school" DBA, but you can’t always depend on the GUI tools. There are those occasional times when you have to put SQL Server in single-user mode and you don’t have the luxury of multiple sessions.
Sometimes, not all the time, you have to just code it up !!!"
Randy: "I would have difficulty understanding an aversion to using Management Studio. I have been a database applications developer since 1994, just within the past year moving gradually to be DBA/database developer position. Programming languages depend heavily on the IDE interface for development, testing, viewing of data, etc. Management Studio provides me with the IDE I need to development, test, debug & modify stored procedures, as well as quickly view data, run ad-hoc queries, etc. I use the BI Studio of Visual Studio to construct SSIS packages, another IDE; this is especially useful for setting up data import from old systems to SQL Server, as well as update packages to be run as long as both non-SQL & SQL Server systems must be maintained. To write the stored procedures requires knowledge of T-SQL, but how would I effectively construct these procedures without Management Studio’s query window? Would I be reduced to old-style batch processing, i.e., writing a script in a text editor, then entering it? That certainly would seem like a step backwards.
What other functionalities are people thinking of, when they prefer using T-SQL instead of Management Studio? I’ve only been working with SQL Server for a year now, and certainly have much yet to experience or learn. But, nothing from my overall IT experience would argue for using raw code only, when an IDE like Management Studio is available. That is, except maybe for a dependence on using wizards. I would rather use an IDE to construct an application form than depend on raw code to construct the form components. I would rather use SSIS to construct routine tasks than try to hard-code it all in T-SQL without SSIS. The IDE is handy for setting up database roles and assigning users or domain groups, & visually seeing what securables & permissions are associated with them. But, as I said, maybe I’m missing something."
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