Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Administrator’s Pocket Consultant is designed to be used in the daily administration of SQL Server and, as such, the book is organized according to job-related tasks rather than SQL Server features. Before you use this book, you should be aware of the difference between Administrator’s Pocket Consultants and Administrator’s Companions. Although both books are designed to be a part of an overall administrator’s library, Administrator’s Pocket Consultants are the down-and-dirty, in-the-trenches books and Administrator’s Companions are the comprehensive tutorials and references that cover every aspect of deploying a product or technology in the enterprise.

Speed and ease of reference are essential parts of this hands-on guide. The book has an expanded table of contents and an extensive index for finding answers to problems quickly. Many other quick reference features have been added to the book as well. These features include quick step-by-steps, lists, tables with fast facts, and cross-references. The book is broken down into both parts and chapters, with the parts containing a part-opener paragraph or two about the chapters grouped in that part.

Part I, covers the fundamental tasks you need for SQL Server administration. Chapter 1 provides an overview of SQL Server administration tools, techniques, and concepts. Chapter 2 discusses deploying SQL Server. Chapter 3 shows you how to configure SQL Server’s services, components, and networking capabilities. Chapter 4 examines the structures available for configuring and tuning SQL Server. This chapter looks at SQL Server 2005’s system catalog and then continues with a discussion of catalog queries and stored procedures.

In Part II, you’ll find the essential tasks for administering SQL Server. Chapter 5 details management techniques for server groups and servers. Chapter 6 explores configuring and tuning SQL Server using SQL Server Management Studio. You’ll learn about optimizing memory usage, parallel processing, authentication, auditing, and more. The core administration tasks for creating and managing databases are covered in Chapter 7, with a logical follow-up in Chapter 8 on SQL Server security. To manage server security, you’ll create user logins, configure login permissions, and assign roles. The permissions and roles you assign determine the actions that users can perform as well as what types of data they can access.

SQL Server data administration is the subject of Part III. Chapter 9 covers techniques for creating, managing, and optimizing schemas, tables, indexes, and views. In Chapter 10, you’ll find tasks for importing and exporting data as well as the old standby bulk copy program (BCP). Chapter 11 focuses on integrating SQL Server databases with other SQL Server databases as well as other data sources. You’ll find detailed discussions on distributed queries, distributed transactions, Microsoft Distributed Transaction Coordinator (MS DTC), and linked servers. Chapter 12 explores data replication. You’ll learn about the latest replication techniques, including merge replication and immediate-updating subscribers.

Part IV, covers administration tasks you’ll use to enhance and maintain SQL Server. Chapter 13 provides the essentials for working with server logs, monitoring SQL Server performance, and solving performance problems. Chapter 14 starts by explaining how to create a backup and recovery plan. Afterward, the chapter dives into common tasks for creating and restoring backups. Chapter 15 explores database automation and maintenance, describing how to create alerts, schedule jobs, handle operator notifications, and more. You’ll also learn how to create maintenance plans and resolve database consistency problems.