Exam Ref 70-764 Administering a SQL Database
Infrastructure
Victor Isakov
Exam Ref 70-764 Administering a SQL Database Infrastructure
Published with the authorization of Microsoft Corporation by: Pearson Education, Inc.
Copyright © 2018 by Pearson Education
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ISBN-13: 978-1-5093-0383-0
ISBN-10: 1-5093-0383-9
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017953072
First Printing September 1 17
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Contents at a glance
Introduction
Preparing for the exam
Chapter 1 Configure data access and auditing
Chapter 2 Manage backup and restore of databases
Chapter 3 Manage and monitor SQL Server instances
Chapter 4 Manage high availability and disaster recovery
Index
Contents
Introduction
Organization of this book
Microsoft certifications
Acknowledgments
Microsoft Virtual Academy
Quick access to online references
Errata, updates, & book support
We want to hear from you
Stay in touch
Preparing for the exam
Chapter 1 Configure data access and auditing
Skill 1.1: Configure encryption
Implement column-level encryption
Implement Always Encrypted
Configure transparent data encryption
Implement backup encryption
Configure encryption for connections
Troubleshoot encryption errors
Skill 1.2 Configure data access and permissions
Create and maintain users
Create and maintain custom roles
Manage database object permissions
Configure row-level security
Configure dynamic data masking
Configure user options for Azure SQL Database
Skill 1.3: Configure auditing
Configure an audit on SQL Server
Query the SQL Server audit log
Manage a SQL Server audit
Configure an Azure SQL Database audit
Analyze audit logs and reports from Azure SQL Database
Thought experiment
Thought experiment answers
Chapter summary
Chapter 2 Manage backup and restore of databases
Skill 2.1: Develop a backup strategy
Design a backup strategy
Back up databases
Back up VLDBs
Manage transaction log backups
Configure backup automation
Skill 2.2 Restore databases
Design a restore strategy
Restore a database
Perform piecemeal restores
Perform page recovery
Perform point-in-time recovery
Restore a filegroup
Develop a plan to automate and test restores
Skill 2.3 Manage database integrity
Implement database consistency checks
Identify database corruption
Recover from database corruption
Thought experiment
Thought experiment answers
Chapter summary
Chapter 3 Manage and monitor SQL Server instances
Skill 3.1: Monitor database activity
Monitor current sessions
Identify sessions that cause blocking activity
Identify sessions that consume tempdb resources
Configure the data collector
Skill 3.2 Monitor queries
Manage the Query Store
Configure Extended Events and trace events
Identify problematic execution plans
Troubleshoot server health using Extended Events
Skill 3.3 Manage indexes
Identify and repair index fragmentation
Identify and create missing indexes
Identify and drop underutilized indexes
Manage existing columnstore indexes
Skill 3.4 Manage statistics
Identify and correct outdated statistics
Implement Auto Update Statistics
Implement statistics for large tables
Skill 3.5 Monitor SQL Server instances
Configure database mail
Create and manage operators
Create and manage SQL Agent alerts
Define custom alert actions
Define failure actions
Configure policy based management
Identify available space on data volumes
Identify the cause of performance degradation
Thought experiment
Thought experiment answers
Chapter summary
Chapter 4 Manage high availability and disaster recovery
Skill 4.1: Design a high availability solution
Skill 4.2: Design a disaster recovery solution
Skill 4.3: Implement log shipping
Architect log shipping
Configure log shipping
Monitor log shipping
Skill 4.4: Implement Availability Groups
Architect Availability Groups
Configure Windows clustering
Create an Availability Group
Configure read-only routing
Monitor Availability Groups
Manage failover
Create Distributed Availability Group
Skill 4.5: Implement failover clustering
Architect failover clustering
Configure failover clustering
Manage Shared Disks
Configure Cluster Shared Volumes
Thought experiment
Thought experiment answers
Chapter summary
Index
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Introduction
First and foremost, thank you for your purchase and all the best of luck in your endeavor to become certified and an expert in the SQL Server
data platform. The 70-764 exam is intended for database professionals who perform installation, maintenance, and configuration tasks on the
SQL Server platform. Other responsibilities include setting up database systems, making sure those systems operate efficiently, and regularly
storing, backing up, and securing data from unauthorized access.
This book is geared toward database administrators who are looking to train in the administration of SQL Server 2016 infrastructure. To help
you prepare for the exam you can use Microsoft Hyper-V to create SQL Server virtual machines (VMs) and follow the examples in this book.
You can download an evaluation copy of Windows Server 2016 from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/evaluate-windows-
server-2016/ . SQL Server 2016 can be downloaded for free from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/sql-server/sql-server-downloads . You
can download the AdventureWorks databases from https://msftdbprodsamples.codeplex.com/ . The Wide World Importers database can be
downloaded from https://github.com/Microsoft/sql-server-samples/releases/tag/wide-world-importers-v1.0 .
This book covers every major topic area found on the exam, but it does not cover every exam question. Only the Microsoft exam team has
access to the exam questions, and Microsoft regularly adds new questions to the exam, making it impossible to cover specific questions. You
should consider this book a supplement to your relevant real-world experience and other study materials. If you encounter a topic in this book
that you do not feel completely comfortable with, use the “Need more review?” links you’ll find in the text to find more information and take the
time to research and study the topic. Great information is available on MSDN, TechNet, and in blogs and forums.
Organization of this book
This book is organized by the “Skills measured” list published for the exam. The “Skills measured” list is available for each exam on the
Microsoft Learning website: https://aka.ms/examlist . Each chapter in this book corresponds to a major topic area in the list, and the technical
tasks in each topic area determine a chapter’s organization. If an exam covers six major topic areas, for example, the book will contain six
chapters.
Microsoft certifications
Microsoft certifications distinguish you by proving your command of a broad set of skills and experience with current Microsoft products and
technologies. The exams and corresponding certifications are developed to validate your mastery of critical competencies as you design and
develop, or implement and support, solutions with Microsoft products and technologies both on-premises and in the cloud. Certification brings a
variety of benefits to the individual and to employers and organizations.
More Info All Microsoft certifications
For information about Microsoft certifications, including a full list of available certifications, go to
https://www.microsoft.com/learning .
Acknowledgments
Victor Isakov I would like to dedicate this book to Christopher, Isabelle, Marcus and Sofia. With your love and “infinite patience” I am the
luckiest guy on this planet! It would be remiss of me not to also thank Trina MacDonald and Troy Mott for their “infinite patience” in helping me
complete this “impossible task.”
Microsoft Virtual Academy
Build your knowledge of Microsoft technologies with free expert-led online training from Microsoft Virtual Academy (MVA). MVA offers a
comprehensive library of videos, live events, and more to help you learn the latest technologies and prepare for certification exams. You’ll find
what you need here:
https://www.microsoftvirtualacademy.com
Quick access to online references
Throughout this book are addresses to webpages that the author has recommended you visit for more information. Some of these addresses
(also known as URLs) can be painstaking to type into a web browser, so we’ve compiled all of them into a single list that readers of the print
edition can refer to while they read.
Download the list at https://aka.ms/exam764administersql/downloads .
The URLs are organized by chapter and heading. Every time you come across a URL in the book, find the hyperlink in the list to go directly
to the webpage.
Errata, updates, & book support
We’ve made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this book and its companion content. You can access updates to this book—in the form of a
list of submitted errata and their related corrections—at:
https://aka.ms/exam764administersql/errata
If you discover an error that is not already listed, please submit it to us at the same page.