January 16, 2008 at 12:36 pm
I'm working with a small company doing a lot of business and I was hired to help with general 'computer stuff' (my background is mostly in network/system admin). They ordered a custom app that uses SQL as a back end, and the support from the vendor is poor. So, I stepped in to help the company thru the the implementation process.
6 months later, I'm writing custom queries, acting as the PM with the vendor to design changes, and recently been asked to look at the backup and storage options for the database. My whole day is SQL, now and I need to get up to speed FAST.
Can anyone point me to the most efficient tools that can help me learn better query writing, backups/restores, and UI development (reports, forms, views?). The company still thinks that the custom app is all it needs, so they will not approve of any further database software; their response will be, "can't you do it?" I have SS2k5 and Access 2k3 and 2k7, as tools.
I have a budget of $0, and I need to address the company's needs before a problem arises.
They are so excited about the possibilities now that their paper system is digitized and I want to encourage them and provide real benefit. Ideas?
January 16, 2008 at 12:53 pm
My first suggestion is get very, very familiar with this site. It's a great place to learn all things SQL.
My second is get comfortable with Books Online, if you aren't already. You can't ask BOL plain-English questions, but the search function in it is pretty good. If you can't find something, ask on this site, and people will help you find what you need.
Third, if you handle software books reasonably well, go to a good bookstore with a list of database/SQL questions, dig through some books on the subject, and find which one(s): (a) answer your questions, (b) make sense to you, and (c) have enough material left over to be worth buying.
Fourth: By whatever means, get familiar with a few key concepts in SQL. I'd suggest starting with: Primary and Foreign Keys, Normal Forms, and Indexes. After those, Set-Based vs Row-by-Row methods. Once you have a good concept on those key things, everything else will be easier to deal with.
These assume that you're a database newbie (which seems to be the tone of your post).
If not, just use the first suggestion, and you'll be okay.
The tools that come with SQL 2005 are pretty good as a starting point. With $0 budget, they'll do. Access 2003 is good as a front-end for a small number of users on an SQL database. I haven't played with Access 2007 enough to have a real feel for it, but I've used 2003 for years and it's pretty good.
Another thing that will probably come up will be more reporting off the database for the application they're using. If so, Reporting Services (comes with SQL) is pretty cool.
Oh, and welcome to the world of DBAs. Say goodby to whatever life you used to have, say hello to learning to hate every procedural programmer who ever lived. 🙂
- Gus "GSquared", RSVP, OODA, MAP, NMVP, FAQ, SAT, SQL, DNA, RNA, UOI, IOU, AM, PM, AD, BC, BCE, USA, UN, CF, ROFL, LOL, ETC
Property of The Thread
"Nobody knows the age of the human race, but everyone agrees it's old enough to know better." - Anon
January 16, 2008 at 12:56 pm
One tool that is readily available to you as a part of the SQL Server 2k5 without any additional cost is SSRS (SQL Server Reporting Services). You can use this to provide web based reporting solution to the whole company very easily.
Sincerely,
Maz
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January 16, 2008 at 1:00 pm
There are a lot of good books out there. I'd hit Borders to start with and just start looking at them. I'll put together a list of books I have, but I might not get that to you until tomorrow. Some of the books I have here at work but some are also at home.
Also, you may want to spend the $50.00 and purchase SQL Server 2005 Developers Edition and load that on a system at home. Experiment there with writing queries and such.
😎
January 16, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Amazing responses. Thank you all.
I have, of course, scoured sites, and been to Borders, but I am overwhelmed by the breadth of information, and not sure, yet, which topics should be most relevant to me. Taking a "laundry list" with me and spending a day at the book store is a cool idea.
Thanks for the Developer Edition advice, I will purchase right away (somehow the price evaded me when I was looking before).
As for this site, are there "must read" threads or articles for someone in my position?
January 16, 2008 at 1:14 pm
There's lots of good microsoft white papers available on most subjects, but writing better t sql probably won't be one of them. You'll need a good sql book or maybe a training course - it's not always quite so simple as it seems and you need to understand set theory.
Yes you do get SSRS "Free" but remember Microsoft don't actually recommend you using this on a server which hosts any databases, other than SSRS - and you can get into a hell of a mess with any reporting solution.
You might want to hire a DBA for a short time to mentor you, I figure you'd probably learn quickest this way.
[font="Comic Sans MS"]The GrumpyOldDBA[/font]
www.grumpyolddba.co.uk
http://sqlblogcasts.com/blogs/grumpyolddba/
January 16, 2008 at 1:28 pm
This article should be a must read. It doesn't apply to this post, but in the future you may ask for help where it does:
http://www.sqlservercentral.com/articles/Best+Practices/61537/
😎
January 16, 2008 at 1:31 pm
How are your current backups running ?? Are your production backups in FULL recovery mode ? Are you taking transaction log backups regularly throughout the day ? Make sure you have backups. If not, this board & books won't be of any help.
January 16, 2008 at 1:42 pm
You can always feel free to ask questions here with your problem and you will get atleast 2 to 3 different ways to solve it... There are lots of real sharp guys here.
-Roy
January 16, 2008 at 1:52 pm
@Lynn - I will try to be a good SQL citizen when posting code 🙂 Thanks for the link, it provided some code to chew on.
@homebrew01 - Backups are FULL, and trans log is backed up a couple times a day.
@roy - I hope to BE one of the 'sharp guys' one day. As much as I really enjoy network engineering, SQL seems to fit me like a glove and I am REALLY getting into it and want to dig deeper. Is it a good sign when I start dreaming in t-sql? 😉
January 16, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Or they could be nightmares! Actually, at this point I'd say it is a good sign.
😎
January 16, 2008 at 2:01 pm
In a production environment, it might be safer to back up the t-logs more frequently. We back ours up every 15 minutes.
January 16, 2008 at 2:03 pm
A good place to start looking for Microsoft data on SQL Server is:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/default.aspx
Lots of "how to" articles, blogs by MVPs, lots of other stuff.
Another good page to check out is www.simple-talk.com. Check out Robyn Page and Phil Factor's "Workshops" on various subjects on those pages. They're kind of dense reading sometimes (lots of code samples), but they are well written and quite useful.
- Gus "GSquared", RSVP, OODA, MAP, NMVP, FAQ, SAT, SQL, DNA, RNA, UOI, IOU, AM, PM, AD, BC, BCE, USA, UN, CF, ROFL, LOL, ETC
Property of The Thread
"Nobody knows the age of the human race, but everyone agrees it's old enough to know better." - Anon
January 16, 2008 at 2:55 pm
@roy - I will look into it today
Wow, if I felt like a babe in the woods before, I certainly do not any more. What wonderful response!
I am currently using Access 2k7 to run queries on the SQL Server. Are there other more powerful ways to do this? I am finding Access a difficult tool to use to type and run SQL queries.
January 16, 2008 at 3:15 pm
I would use the SQL Server 2005 tools (SSMS, BIDS).
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