Will you be there?
The Biggest Online SQL Server Learning Event, Period.
Huge early-bird discount rates are in effect!
75 Sessions, 20 speakers – this is unlike any other virtual conference you may have gone to. These are technical sessions, no sales allowed, with presenters showing you their tips, tricks and best practices. With no travel involved, no time out of the office, on-demand for 45 days, Free SSWUG.ORG membership and more, you cannot lose. Make sure you register now for the April 7, 8 and 9th conference to lock in the best rates. There are group rates available too – just grab the group registration form. When was the last time you went to a conference… with a guarantee?!
[Visit the Virtual Conference Site]
Quick, Accidental DBA Type Things to be Checking
I thought it might be helpful to provide a couple of items to check through every now and then if you find yourself in the role of an accidental DBA. This is easily one of the most-requested things on the site – what to do when you’re getting started with SQL Server. Here are a couple of areas to check through – and they shouldn’t take long unless they need attention.
– Check maintenance plans, make sure they’re running as you expect. Check them again next month. And the month after. This is something you want to know is working.
– Restore your database backup to another server (or another database). Test it, make sure it works, make sure it has all of the information you expect it to.
– Check on index fragmentation for about 25% of your tables. If a table isn’t showing issues, set it aside and check it again in 6 months. If it is in need of defragmentation, correct it, then check it again in 2 weeks.
– Check your free disk space on all drives. Do it monthly, log the results, watch the trend, plan for when you’ll need more disk space. A simple Excel worksheet will do for keeping track, don’t make it more elaborate than it needs to be.
Accidental DBA doesn’t mean "wait for things to break, then do your best to fix them." Save your sanity and do some proactive work now to keep things flowing later. You won’t be sorry, and you’ll be a hero to your company and/or clients.
Several Webcasts to Take In
Some great information in webcasts – check them out:
Webcast: Avoiding a SharePoint Disaster
Whether you’ve already implemented SharePoint, or are only preparing to, backup and recovery should be a priority. Discover how to use SharePoint’s out of the box backup and restore capabilities to protect your data in case of calamity. This session will take a quick trip through the built in backup options available with SharePoint; suggest some tips, tricks, and best practices; and focus on some techniques concerning how to restore that data before disaster strikes. Presented by: CA Callahan
Webcast: Optimizing Backup and Restore Performance
As databases continue to grow in size, the time it takes for backup and recovery grows in length of time. Attend this session and learn methods to minimize the time it takes for your backups to complete, as well as how to minimize the amount of time it takes to recover.
Presented by: Thomas LaRock
Webcast: Securing Your SQL Servers From Attack
This presentation introduces a new mechanism in SQL Server 2008 that can report on and enforce server states, using Policy Based Management. You will learn how this feature works, where you can apply it, and how it can save you time in managing your systems. You’ll learn to run a compliance report across your SQL Server 2000, 2005 and 2008 systems and act on that report to find databases that are not backed up, naming standards that are not enforced and more. Presented by: Sarah Barela
> Register Now
> Live date: 2/17/2010 at 12:00 Pacific