Database Administration: The Complete Guide to Practices and Procedures

"One of Craig's hallmarks is his ability to write in a clear, easy-to-read fashion. The main purpose of any technical book is to transfer information from writer to reader, and Craig has done an excellent job. He wants the reader to learn—and it shows." —Chris Foot, Senior Oracle Certified Instructor, Contemporary Technologies

"I think every business manager and every IT manager should have a copy of this book."—Dan Hotka, Senior Technical Advisor, Quest Software Inc.

With Database Administration, database professionals now have a comprehensive sourcebook of strategies for delivering quality administration across today's challenging multi-DBMS environments. Filled with practical guidelines and strategies, this book provides the most comprehensive survey available of the administrator's world for the existing or aspiring database professional.

Part tutorial and part reference, Database Administration explains and examines each of the components that comprise the discipline of database administration. The book opens by providing an overview of the responsibilities of database administrators (DBAs) along with the various "flavors" of DBAs and their tasks. From there, the book proceeds chronologically through every task a DBA is likely to encounter. Although designed as a comprehensive survey of the entire DBA environment, the book's individual chapters are also well suited for quick look-up of specific information.

Highlights include:

The world of the DBA: types, tasks, daily issues, and much more
The DBA environment—installation and upgrading issues, standards, and procedures
Data modeling and normalization
Database design and application design
Performance management, including system, database, and application performance
Ensuring data integrity and database security
Database back-up and recovery strategies and disaster planning
Storage management and data warehouse administration
Connectivity, metadata management, Internet-enabled database access, and additional DBA tools
Platform-independent coverage applicable for all the major DBMS products including DB2, Oracle, and SQL Server
Whether you're a database analyst, architect, or application engineer, this book will provide the strategies and solutions you need to navigate the rocky terrain of today's complex data environments.