Alan Lawhon
lawhonac at hiwaay.net
Tue Aug 16 09:08:52 CDT 2011
Stuart: Thanks. This is encouraging. I vaguely remember SQL pass-through queries, ODBC, and linked tables from my Access days. I even recall playing around a bit with ADO. In my last software job, we had an Access application that was being converted to a SQL Server back end, but I left before the conversion was completed. That was over five years ago. I did get a small amount of experience with SQL Server. (I recall a GUI interface labeled "Enterprise Manager" that resembled a tree-like structure with a lot of lower-level branches - or something similar to that.) This may not be as difficult as I originally thought. From what you're describing, combined with my past experience, I should be able to pick up most of the major implementation and maintenance topics in fairly short order. According to this: http://tinyurl.com/27f4fzt blog posting by Buck Woody, there are over 40 major study areas covered in the 70-432 exam. At first glance, most of the topics - and the links to their corresponding MSDN articles - don't look familiar, but surely I've been exposed to some of this before. With determined effort, (and a little help from my friends), I believe I can master this material and ace the exam. (Thank goodness I don't have to become a SharePoint and Visual Studio expert in order to pass the exam. That's a relief!) Five years ago I turned downed an offer of a Database Administrator job in Iraq. I was worried that I might not be qualified, but I was even more worried about being surrounded by terrorists! With perfect 20/20 hindsight, I probably should have taken that job - whether I was qualified or not - and "grown" into it once I was over there. Once I've passed 70-432 and obtained my (first) certification, I feel fairly confident that I'll find a DBA job somewhere - even if it's on a remote island in the middle of the South Pacific. (It will be nice to work someplace where you can walk to work and you don't need a car.) Thanks again for the good news. I'm now even more motivated to study my butt off. Alan C. Lawhon -----Original Message----- From: dba-sqlserver-bounces at databaseadvisors.com [mailto:dba-sqlserver-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Stuart McLachlan Sent: Tuesday, August 16, 2011 6:57 AM To: Discussion concerning MS SQL Server Subject: Re: [dba-SQLServer] Question Concerning Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Prerequisites Hi Alan, Nice to see you over on this list. SQL Server is a Database Management System. It is generally used as the back-end to some sort of front end application. You can use anything you like for the front end. A number here and on the VB List use Visual Studio but it is not the only thing to use ( I stopped using VS years ago). Sharepoint is used by a small minority of SQL users. Forget about Excel, PowerPivot has nothing to do with that application. At this stage, you would probably be best off sticking to Access as the front end with ODBC linked tables and PassThrough Queries to stored procedures in SQL Server. You get your head around the fundamentals of tables, triggers, SQL and stored procedures, how user permissions work, how backups work, how import and export works. They are the key components of managing SQL Server. Then you can look at other front ends if required. Many DBAs (Database Administrators) don't get involved in front end application development at all - they just manage the back end and leave it up to others to use the data in real-world applications. -- Stuart On 16 Aug 2011 at 4:47, Alan Lawhon wrote: > > My question concerns the three Microsoft products mentioned in that > sentence, specifically "Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, Microsoft > SharePoint 2010, and SQL Server PowerPivot for SharePoint." Is > knowledge and experience with these three products taken for granted - > an assumed prerequisite - prior to pursuing a SQL Server > certification? (I have no knowledge or experience with any of these > three products - I don't even know what SharePoint is - or what > SharePoint does.) As far as PowerPivot is concerned, I think that has > something to do with Excel spreadsheets. My prior experience with > Excel was limited to converting (and copying over) spreadsheet data to > Access tables. Is a detailed knowledge of these three Microsoft > technologies required (or assumed) as a prerequisite to pursuing a SQL > Server certification? > > TIA. (I suspect this is going to be the first of many questions.) > > Alan C. Lawhon > > > > _______________________________________________ > dba-SQLServer mailing list > dba-SQLServer at databaseadvisors.com > http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/dba-sqlserver > http://www.databaseadvisors.com > > _______________________________________________ dba-SQLServer mailing list dba-SQLServer at databaseadvisors.com http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/dba-sqlserver http://www.databaseadvisors.com