preparing for SQL 2008 DBA exams

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preparing for SQL 2008 DBA exams

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dra600n
Starting Member

5 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 12:54:05

Hi everyone!

I've recently been promoted to DBA where I work, and pending me passing a certification exam by the of the year determines my employment status with the current organization.

A little background info: I've been working with SQL 2005 and 2008 for probably a good 3 to 4 years now. I've been doing things with queries (basic stuff like joins), maintenance plans, creating stored procedures, backups and restores, and some troubleshooting.

For training, I've taken Microsoft's 3 courses they require for DBA certification, but after searching for practice exams online to see where I lack knowledge the most, I see that a lot of people actually fail the DBA exams. This is what worries me the most. The exam is about 4 months away, so I do have time to study, but knowing what areas to really study up on and start practicing in a test environment is what I'd really like.

There are some things I've noted in the current course I just finished up that I'll be studying, researching, and testing until I get it down (indexes, for example, since the instructor wasn't very thorough or answered questions very well).

Any useful links and resources would be greatly appreciated, as well as any advice for those who have taken the exams.

Thanks!

Sachin.Nand

2937 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 13:10:04

Honestly I pity your organization who use certification as a mean to judge your caliber..

After Monday and Tuesday even the calendar says W T F ....

robvolk
Most Valuable Yak

15732 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 13:19:26

quote:
Originally posted by Sachin.Nand

Honestly I pity your organization who use certification as a mean to judge your caliber..

Agreed. By all means continue on your certification path, but I'd recommend looking for another place to work.

On a more helpful note, I would recommend the Transcender Practice Exams, I found them very helpful. Spend the money, they're not that expensive, and frankly your company should pay for it if they are requiring you to pass.

If you do leave and they ask why, make them show THEIR certifications to manage a company. (oh? they don't have any? what a shocker!)

dra600n
Starting Member

5 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 13:25:35

Ha, I agree to an extent, but it kind of is a "not many places will consider your for a DBA unless you're certified", and they're paying for all of the courses and bootcamp which gives you the exams at the end, so I can't complain too much.

With the Transcender Practice Exams, is it just 1 static exam that can be taken once, or is it full of random questions that vary each time you take it?

robvolk
Most Valuable Yak

15732 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 13:36:54

There's a large set of questions with several preset exams and a random feature. You can also choose your own set. I ended up selecting all the questions from the pool.

Don't mistake passing the test for having the knowledge. To get ideas (and information) on what you can learn in SQL Server, look at the MCM prep material: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/ff977043

That will seem daunting at first, but the more you prepare for that the easier the certification exams will be.

quote:
"not many places will consider your for a DBA unless you're certified"

Don't take this personally, but that's bullshit. If the companies hiring have that mentality, look elsewhere. There are plenty of competent, and even excellent, DBAs who don't have certifications. As long as you keep learning and improve at your job you'll have no trouble finding a better one. I only recently took the certifications (after being a DBA for 10+ years) because they are a requirement for the MCM program.

Sachin.Nand

2937 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 13:40:39

When I interview candidates for my organization I give zero credit for any certification they have passed.

But looks very likely that I would have change that if someone is SQL Server 2012 certified.SQL Server 2012 certification path can kind of give an insight of how much the candidate really does know.

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/certification/cert-sql-server-mcsa.aspx

@dra600n

If they are ready to pay then why don't you get SQL server 2012 certified ?

After Monday and Tuesday even the calendar says W T F ....

Sachin.Nand

2937 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 13:42:06

@Rob

Are you a MCM ?

After Monday and Tuesday even the calendar says W T F ....

dra600n
Starting Member

5 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 15:01:09

@Sachin.Nand: We aren't planning SQL 2012 until the applications we use are supported for it, and they haven't given us a time on when they'll be 100% certain that the software will be 2012 compliant. Once we start implementing 2012, they'll send me out for training / certifications for that, as well as Oracle.

@rob: I absolutely agree that passing the test doesn't mean having the knowledge. A few years back, before I started working where I do now, someone got hired in the same position as me, with higher pay, because he was A+ certified. He couldn't tell the difference(s) between FAT32 and NTFS file systems. He didn't even know you could apply permissions to folders.

I think the things that is really going to hurt me in the long run is that we don't really do any database designs or anything like that. We basically maintain the databases and if something goes wrong, the vendor usually steps in, unless it's an in house application.

Is there any certain area of interest that I should strongly focus on? Is knowing about SSIS packages on the exams? Should I learn and memorize every single T-SQL/MS-SQL statement and command? I believe I have a strong understanding and knowledge of Views, triggers, and stored procedures (not necessarily what's built in, but how to use them and create them).

Sachin.Nand

2937 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 15:22:40

I think you are going a wrong path.You should be passing a SQL developer certification than a DBA one.Below you will find the skills you need to know to pass the examination.

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/exam.aspx?ID=70-433&locale=en-us#tab2

After Monday and Tuesday even the calendar says W T F ....

dra600n
Starting Member

5 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-11 : 16:36:00

Sachin.Nand, that link helps a lot with what they're testing for. That's one of the 2 exams I will be taking, the other is 70-450. You are right though, I'm more of a developer than an administrator. I eventually want to learn every aspect of SQL server, but while the pressure is on, I need to focus on these 2 tests.

chris_cs
Posting Yak Master

223 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-15 : 05:04:15

It was interesting to read this post because it frustrates me a little how much some companies seem to value the certifications over the person.

I got a junior/ish DBA role and I was one of the only candidates who didn't have at least the 70-432 by all accounts. I'd rather take these exams when I know I'll comfortably pass because I'm knowledgable in the subject matter as opposed to cram and try to pass for the sake of having it.

----------------------------
Junior DBA learning the ropes

robvolk
Most Valuable Yak

15732 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-15 : 07:32:57

quote:
It was interesting to read this post because it frustrates me a little how much some companies seem to value the certifications over the person.

Truer words have not been spoken. The general consensus is that the certification is useful for HR or hiring managers to identify a more qualified candidate. Their "logic" unfortunately extends to the point that everyone with the same certification is interchangeable, and that the position their hiring for is also interchangeable or replaceable. My own personal experience has been that HR and management are far more interchangeable than any IT person, since every manager I've seen makes the same bad decisions as any other.

To answer the earlier question, I'm not an MCM, just an MCITP DBA 2008 and MCTS DB Dev 2008. I think I might shift to the 2012 exams before continuing with the MCM path.

reks12
Starting Member

6 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-16 : 09:52:30

good afternoon
can you tell me how can i make instance on SQL Server
thank you so much

Aleksandra a

reks12
Starting Member

6 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-16 : 14:46:54

someone to help me for instance please?

Aleksandra a

robvolk
Most Valuable Yak

15732 Posts

Posted - 2012-05-16 : 15:37:01

Aleksandra-

Please start a new thread instead of hijacking several other threads.