Jumping into deep end of Clustering and DTS...
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Hi all,
The senior DBA in our organisation is leaving on Friday and I've only just been informed that he'll be handing his systems over to me.
Normally, I relish a challenge, but each of his systems is clustered and runs 30 or so DTS packages - and I'm not experienced in either discipline.
Pretty much all I know about DTS is that each package creates a scheduled job that ETL's data, I'm not a developer and Ive never designed a package or used Active X script, or Heaven forbid actual VB Script. The worst of it is, there are failures occurring twice or thrice a week - which in my view does not constitute a finished system, but this system is getting handed over, regardless.
I understand the concept of clustering, but again I'd struggle right now to tell you how to raise the Cluster Admin console. I have studied NT as part of my MCP but that was a long time ago, before the days of Active Directory etc, and I'm quite rusty.
The state of play is this - either:
1) Get another contractor, a hybrid dba/developer who can take over for an interim period, and then handover to me - which is unlikely, given that budgets are set and don't include provision for such a contractor,
OR...
2) I train for three days We/Th/Fr in the complexities of the packages and clustering.
Given that 1) is pretty near impossible, how feasible is a three-day handover, in your opinion gents?
Thanks,
Jaybee.
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Clusters are not too bad as long as you ALWAYS remember to administer the sql server in cluster administrator. NEVER try stopping or starting the sql/agent service other than in cluster administrator otherwise the cluster will fail over. ( DO NOT use EM )
There's reasonably adequate documentation on the ms web site about clustering sql server.
DTS - well buy a book ! check out http://www.sqldts.com.
Make sure the package logging is on, that'll help you find dts errors.
[font="Comic Sans MS"]The GrumpyOldDBA[/font]
www.grumpyolddba.co.uk
http://sqlblogcasts.com/blogs/grumpyolddba/ -
I would weigh the business criticality and political visibility of the systems as major factors in deciding whether or not to engage a contractor. 3-5 days is not a long enough transition based on the information that you have provided even for very non-cirical and somewhat invisible systems. Granted there are lots of great resources on the web and in books. However, the one resource you lack is time.
If you have decent hardware and a decent infrastructure your cklusters are pretty much animals that are to be left alone (aside from checking logs on daily basis - don't forget cluster.log !). I would concentrate on a SQL person with DTS/ETL experience, if he has some clustering it's a bonus. As Colin states, use the cluster administrator !
RegardsRudy KomacsarSenior Database Administrator"Ave Caesar! - Morituri te salutamus."
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Within 3-5 days, it is hard to fully understand all concepts of DTS packages. But it is enough to grab their main ideas. Being an SQL Server DBA, you may not need to fully understand the workflow of the packages, you may not need to know how to write a single DTS package. What you have to know are how to guarantee successful backups and recoveries, migrations from one server to another, and find error messages if a package fails. However, if you would like to modify DTS packages, phew, you have to struggle for yourself.
Hiring a contractor also needs time for him to catch up. It is not a good idea. Personally, I would not prefer to hire any DBA as a contractor.
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I think I'm right in saying that this was true in SQL Server 7.0, but not 2000. You can now use Enterprise Manager or the SQL Server Service Manager to stop and start services safely. However, if you use the Services applet in Control Panel, then yes, the resource will fail over. Having said that, I usually use Cluster Administrator anyway, just in case!
John
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Well guys...here's the situation.
There are THREE systems getting handed over, not two, and even more brutally, the handover time has been slashed in HALF - tomorrow afternoon and Friday. The 'extra contractor' idea got blown out of the water 1/10th of a second after utterance.
I think the only way forward is to get a grip on the (failing) DTS processes, draft up a "What Do I Do If X Goes Tummy-Up' List, and hope there's no VB Script involved. I've made it clear WILL be screw-ups that I'll need days to straighten - if I can can straighten them all. Looks like the DTS section is going to be a frequent haunt from next week....
Wish me luck...
Jaybee.
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Good luck ... here's another site that may be of assistance as well: http://www.sqldts.com/
RegardsRudy KomacsarSenior Database Administrator"Ave Caesar! - Morituri te salutamus."
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