Administering a SQL Database Infrastructure

sing roles simplifies the management of user permissions. With roles, you can control authenticated users’ access to system resources based on each user’s job function—rather than assigning permissions user-by-user, you can grant permissions to a role, then make users members of roles. Microsoft SQL Server includes support for security roles defined at server level and at database level.

Lessons

• Working with server roles
• Working with Fixed Database Roles
• Assigning User-Defined Database Roles

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Describe and use server roles to manage server-level security.
• Describe and use fixed database roles.
• Use custom database roles and application roles to manage database-level security

In the previous modules, you have seen how Microsoft SQL Server security is organized and how sets of permissions can be assigned at the server and database level by using fixed server roles, user-defined server roles, fixed database roles, and application roles. The final step in authorizing users to access SQL Server resources is the authorization of users and roles to access server and database objects. In this module, you will see how these object permissions are managed. In addition to access permissions on database objects, SQL Server provides the ability to determine which users are allowed to execute code, such as stored procedures and functions. In many cases, these permissions and the permissions on the database objects are best configured at the schema level rather than at the level of the individual object. Schema-based permission grants can simplify your security architecture. You will explore the granting of permissions at the schema level in the final lesson of this module.

Lessons

• Authorizing User Access to Objects
• Authorizing Users to Execute Code
• Configuring Permissions at the Schema Level

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Authorize user access to objects.
• Authorize users to execute code.
• Configure permissions at the schema level.

Module 4: Protecting Data with Encryption and Auditing

One key aspect of managing Microsoft SQL Server in a proactive manner is to make sure you are aware of problems and events that occur in the server, as they happen. SQL Server logs a wealth of information about issues. You can configure it to advise you automatically when these issues occur, by using alerts and notifications. The most common way that SQL Server database administrators receive details of events of interest is by email message. This module covers the configuration of Database Mail, alerts, and notifications for a SQL Server instance, and the configuration of alerts for Microsoft Azure SQL Database.

Lessons

• Monitoring SQL Server Errors
• Configuring Database Mail
• Operators, Alerts, and Notifications
• Alerts in Azure SQL Database

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Monitor SQL Server errors.
• Configure database mail.
• Configure operators, alerts, and notifications.
• Work with alerts in Azure SQL Database.

This module looks at how to use Windows PowerShell with Microsoft SQL Server. Businesses are constantly having to increase the efficiency and reliability of maintaining their IT infrastructure; with PowerShell, you can improve this efficiency and reliability by creating scripts to carry out tasks. PowerShell scripts can be tested and applied multiple times to multiple servers, saving your organization both time and money.

Lessons

• Getting Started with Windows PowerShell
• Configure SQL Server using PowerShell
• Administer and Maintain SQL Server with PowerShell
• Managing Azure SQL Databases using PowerShell

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Describe the benefits of PowerShell and its fundamental concepts.
• Configure SQL Server by using PowerShell.
• Administer and maintain SQL Server by using PowerShell.
• Manage an Azure SQL Database by using PowerShell.

Monitoring performance metrics provides a great way to assess the overall performance of a database solution. However, there are occasions when you need to perform more detailed analysis of the activity occurring within a Microsoft SQL Server instance—to troubleshoot problems and identify ways to optimize workload performance. SQL Server Extended Events is a flexible, lightweight event-handling system built into the Microsoft SQL Server Database Engine. This module focuses on the architectural concepts, troubleshooting strategies and usage scenarios of Extended Events.

Lessons

• Extended Events Core Concepts
• Working with Extended Events

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Describe Extended Events core concepts.
• Create and query Extended Events sessions.

he Microsoft SQL Server Database Engine can run for long periods without the need for administrative attention. However, if you regularly monitor the activity that occurs on the database server, you can deal with potential issues before they arise. SQL Server provides a number of tools that you can use to monitor current activity and record details of previous activity. You need to become familiar with what each of the tools does and how to use them. It is easy to become overwhelmed by the volume of output that monitoring tools can provide, so you also need to learn techniques for analyzing their output.

Lessons

• Monitoring activity
• Capturing and Managing Performance Data
• Analyzing Collected Performance Data
• SQL Server Utility

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Monitor current activity.
• Capture and manage performance data.
• Analyze collected performance data.
• Configure SQL Server Utility.

Database administrators working with Microsoft SQL Server need to adopt the important role of troubleshooter when issues arise—particularly if users of business-critical applications that rely on SQL Server databases are being prevented from working. It is important to have a solid methodology for resolving issues in general, and to be familiar with the most common issues that can arise when working with SQL Server systems.

Lessons

• A Trouble Shooting Methodology for SQL Server
• Resolving Service Related Issues
• Resolving Connectivity and Log-in issues

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Describe a troubleshooting methodology for SQL Server.
• Resolve service-related issues.
• Resolve login and connectivity issues.

While a great deal of data residing in a Microsoft SQL Server system is entered directly by users who are running application programs, there is often a need to move data in other locations, to and from SQL Server. SQL Server provides a set of tools you can use to transfer data in and out. Some of these tools, such as the bcp (Bulk Copy Program) utility and SQL Server Integration Services, are external to the database engine. Other tools, such as the BULK INSERT statement and the OPENROWSET function, are implemented in the database engine. With SQL Server, you can also create data-tier applications that package all the tables, views, and instance objects associated with a user database into a single unit of deployment. In this module, you will explore these tools and techniques so that you can import and export data to and from SQL Server.

Lessons

• Transferring Data to and from SQL Server
• Importing and Exporting Table Data
• Using bcp and BULK INSERT to Import Data
• Deploying and Upgrading Data-Tier Application

After completing this module, you will be able to:

• Describe tools and techniques for transferring data.
• Import and export table data.
• Use bcp and BULK INSERT to import data.
• Use data-tier applications to import and export database applications.