Alert! Alert! Alert! Backup and Restore – Baby!
At many organizations I doubt red lights flash with the sound of blaring sirens when backups fail in production environments, but I believe at every organization backups are one of the most critical IT functions. Of all backups, database backups, by most accounts, are considered the most critical. I know this is certainly true for me as a SQL Server DBA. I am sure at one point in all of our careers we were too busy to check all of our backups across all SQL Servers, with a million responsibilities on a daily basis. I know some of us were lucky and made it unscathed, while others were not so lucky with backup failures that caused extensive data loss and long downtimes. Now when IT Departments are forced to "do more with less," it is time to put the necessary SQL Server Alerts in place for backup and restore operations in order to more easily monitor and streamline this critical process.
...And How Do You Expect Me to Audit SQL Server?
Is your organization faced with pending audits resulting in long and tedious meetings to try to achieve compliance? Have you been hearing a foreign set of acronyms around the water cooler like HIPAA, SOX, GLBA and SAS 70? Have these new sets of requirements been causing consternation for your DBAs, Developers and Management? Have you been trying to figure how you are going to write the code to capture the data needed for the continuous audits in between the remainder of the company projects?
SQL Server Upgrade Recommendations and Best Practices - Part 2
The first article of the series, Part 1 - Upgrade Overview and Project Planning, detailed the business justification for upgrades to SQL Server 2000 related to TCO (Total Cost of Ownership), automation capabilities and new features from both the Business and DBA perspectives. The next portion of the article outlined a detailed process to break down the SQL Server 2000 project as well as the applicable Upgrade project phases using high level steps. Both sets of information were in simple terms for DBAs new to the Upgrade process, well experienced DBAs needing a refresher or for technical managers interested in the level of effort and overall planning for a SQL Server 2000 Upgrade.
SQL Server Upgrade Recommendations and Best Practices
As the DBA in your organization, you are central to the success of the SQL Server environment. In the case of a system upgrade, you need to act as a ‘driver' for an upgrade project to ensure success based on your technical expertise and role in the organization. Over this multi-part series, these articles will outline proven and recommended best practices for the upgrade process. This process is detailed from both technical and logistical perspectives which are both critical to the success of the project.
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