Tuesday 26 May 2015

Add an Operator to All SQL Server Agent Alerts

I was investigating a new server I'd been assigned, looking for gaps in configuration using the trusty sp_Blitz tool. The organisation that owns this server instance is small and doesn't use third-party monitoring. I decided to add some basic alerting as recommended by Brent Ozar and Co. They've kindly provided a script to do this: Blitz Result: No SQL Server Agent Alerts Configured.

A little later on I realised that I needed to add an additional operator to these alerts and was loath to step through them one at a time and tick the appropriate box. So, I knocked out a quick and simple script (I've included two versions, one that adds the operator to all alerts and one that allows you to select a subset). I hope it is helpful.

Tuesday 19 May 2015

Study Materials for MCSE Microsoft Exams 70-457, 70-458, 70-459

/***UPDATE***/
I passed the 70-457! Now studying for 70-458...
I passed the 70-458! Now studying for 70-459, booked for Jan 29, 2016...
/***UPDATE***/

I am studying for the MCSE Certification and will be taking the upgrade from MCITP 2008R8 tests 70-457, 70-458 and 70-459. After trawling the web for study materials I stumbled upon a series of posts on coffeeandsql.com by Carla Abanes. It is a great resource, touching on all the topics covered by the 70-457 exam. I've collated the links below:

Review Materials for 70-458

Exam 70-458 Transition Your MCTS on SQL Server 2008 to MCSA: SQL Server 2012

Review Materials for 70-457

70-457 Reviewer #01, Rank Functions
70-457 Reviewer #02, What is Columnstore Index?
70-457 Reviewer #03, Planning an Installation of SQL Server 2012
70-457 Reviewer #04, Implement a Migration Strategy
70-457 Reviewer #05, Configuring SQL Server 2012 Components
70-457 Reviewer #06, Configuring and Managing Database in SQL Server 2012
70-457 Reviewer #07, Resolving Concurrency Problems in SQL Server 2012
70-457 Reviewer #08, Implementing Clustered Instance in SQL Server 2012
70-457 Reviewer #09, Auditing SQL Server 2012
70-457 Reviewer #10 Managing SQL Server Agent
70-457 Reviewer #11 Configuring and Maintaining a Backup Strategy
70-457 Reviewer #12 Restoring SQL Server Databases
70-457 Reviewer #13 Managing SQL Server Logins
70-457 Reviewer #14 Database and Application Roles
70-457 Reviewer #15 Implement Database Mirroring
70-457 Reviewer #16 Implement AlwaysOn in SQL Server 2012
70-457 Reviewer #17 Database Replication in SQL Server 2012

Friday 15 May 2015

SQL Login and User for Performance Tuning

I've run into an interesting dilemma: as a new staff member in a security conscious organisation, I can't really get any work done. There is, however, a lot of work a DBA can do in terms of analyzing SQL Server instances right from day one. There are lots of best practice recommendations that can be made that are application or db design agnostic. Alternately, it can be possible to investigate the database design without access to the underlying data itself. With that all in mind, I have put some scripts together that creates login/user permissions and roles that can give a SQL consultant useful, but security minded, access to a SQL instance.

Thursday 14 May 2015

Database Backup Monitoring

Not everyone has access to off-the-shelf monitoring tools. One of my clients is a very small shop with only a few databases and 2 database servers. But that doesn't mean they don't need monitoring. Over the past few weeks I've been implementing various system alerts and now I've deployed the backup monitoring stored procedure below.