Good sources for SQL training?

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Good sources for SQL training?

rickkumar

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Points: 219
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April 14, 2019 at 12:56 pm

#3329818

I'm relatively new to SQL and would like to beef up my knowledge of how it operates and query commands. Are there any good, hopefully free, resources you recommend?

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HappyGeek SSCoach Points: 18729 More actions · Answer 1

Try the stairway series on this site and look at the books list, many have a free downloadable pdf version. Other wise try the Microsoft Virtual Academy (MVA).

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Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1004401 More actions · Answer 2

The most important step is to have a learning/test/experimentation environment you have all to yourself. The following link contains a "download" button that will provide you with a free copy of SQL Server Developers Edition 2017. It's the Enterprise Edition will all capabilities of SQL Server but with special "non-production" licensing. You also don't need Windows Server to install it or use it.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/sql-server/sql-server-downloads

On that same page, you'll also find links for SSMS and SSDT links under "Tools". You'll need SSMS and SSDT is a good thing according to most I know, although I don't use SSDT.

During the process of installing SQL Server, you'll have the option as to where the full documentation will be located for "help". You can choose to either using things from Microsoft Docs on the web (always up to date, sometimes to a fault) or download it to your box. I prefer the later because (to me, anyway), it's easier to find things thanks to the Index.

Whether or not you decide to do all that (and I strongly recommend that you do), you can also visit places like the following URL, which actually provides a place for you to try different things (to a limited extent) for the current lesson. Keep in mind that the following link isn't just for SQL Server syntax. Each RDBMS has it's own proprietary stuff and all follow ANSI SQL standards to some extent, which isn't necessarily fully available on the RDBMS of your choice.

https://www.w3schools.com/sql/

Heh... also remember the old adage that "Half of all that is written is wrong and the other half is written in such a fashion that you can't tell". The same applies with SQL Server. For example, you'll eventually find someone that claims that it's a "Best Practice" to use rCTEs (Recursive CTEs) to do anything that requires incremental counting for one reason or another. NOTHING could be further from the truth. One of the best things you can do is teach yourself a basic skill from the link above and then come to this site to ask any questions. That helped me a whole lot to learn that there's a lot I don't know and so don't know what I don't know and nearly daily trips here to see what kinds of questions others ask were (and still are even after using SQL Server for more than 2 decades) instrumental in me learning in that very critical area (learning what I don't know).

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

ScottPletcher SSC Guru Points: 101117 More actions · Answer 3

Itzik Ben-Gan books and/or videos.

Books will typically you a much more in-depth knowledge. If you'd rather just have an overview level of knowledge, then a video(s) would work.

SQL DBA,SQL Server MVP(07, 08, 09) "It's a dog-eat-dog world, and I'm wearing Milk-Bone underwear." "Norm", on "Cheers". Also from "Cheers", from "Carla": "You need to know 3 things about Tortelli men: Tortelli men draw women like flies; Tortelli men treat women like flies; Tortelli men's brains are in their flies".