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seanworking
Starting Member
13 Posts |
 Posted - 2008-01-04 : 20:08:49
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| Hello All,I'm hoping you all can provide me with a little advice? I just landed my first DBA position with a company that runs different versions of SQL Server (7.0, 2000, 2005) on many different boxes. The databases I will be managing are in the 10-30TB ranges. Mostly the databases are for OLAP access by the company’s customers. I will need to bring myself up to speed on everything because there is no DBA at the company to transfer information. Can anyone provide any advise on how I should approach this task of learning my position and/or useful links to resources? Thank you in advance!~Sean |
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Michael Valentine Jones
Yak DBA Kernel (pronounced Colonel)
7020 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-04 : 21:05:16
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| "The databases I will be managing are in the 10-30TB ranges...there is no DBA at the company..."Doesn't seem likely that a company is running 10-30TB databases without a DBA.CODO ERGO SUM |
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rmiao
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
7266 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-04 : 23:25:55
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| Hire a seasoned dba. |
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seanworking
Starting Member
13 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-04 : 23:53:21
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| They did have a DBA but they left. That is why there was an open position available. Michael, strange you would not consider that as an option. I can't believe you would be that lacking in intellectual prowess? As for the comment made by rmiao about "Hire a seasoned dba." that comment is absolutely no help to me. With these kinds of comments I can see there is a lack of human decency on this forum. I can understand you two being threatened because you will be working for me one day :). |
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rmiao
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
7266 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-05 : 00:32:27
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| Be more realistic, first time dba can't manage 30tb db just by posting some questions in the forum. It's not lack of human decency, it's fact. Like it or not. |
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seanworking
Starting Member
13 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-05 : 12:01:49
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| I'm being totally realistic about my assessment of the quality of character exhibited through replies I have received. Those type of things are best learned by a person up-bringing. To late for some. |
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TG
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
6065 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-05 : 12:27:03
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| before this turns any uglier and gets locked let me through my .02 in.First, contratulations on the new position. Were you already working for the company or did they hire you off the street for this postion? They obviously know things about you that we don't otherwise you wouldn't have gotten the position. What type of work were you doing before this? If we had some idea of what you bring to the position we may be able to advise you better on where/how to come up to speed. You've got to understand that the only thing we know so far about you is you have no DBA experience and you are now accountable for a system that typically would require about 10 years of training so give us an idea of where you are in that process so we can offer some actual advice.EDIT:You can't go wrong reading through the (administration post category) of tkizer's weblogs. That is great for all levels of DBA. When you run into anything you don't understand, follow up with Books Online.http://weblogs.sqlteam.com/tarad/category/95.aspxBe One with the OptimizerTG |
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jezemine
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
2886 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-05 : 14:28:05
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just curious, what sort of data are you managing? 30tb is very big!
elsasoft.org |
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dataguru1971
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
1464 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-05 : 14:56:00
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Maybe it is an archive of forum twit lists?
Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part. |
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rmiao
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
7266 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-05 : 21:28:15
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| Need at least couple of seasoned dbas to handle 30tb dbs. |
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jsmith8858
Dr. Cross Join
7423 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-06 : 11:38:50
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| I really hope the OP hasn't left, I am fascinated to see where this thread will go.SeanWorking -- you have to understand why you have received the reaction you have from your initial post. What you wrote is basically the equivalent of:"Hi! I just got hired to be a doctor at a very busy hospital. We have lots of very sick patients here and a lot of work to do. I need to bring myself up to speed on medical training because there are no other doctors here to help me. Can anyone provide any advice on how to help sick people, what to look for, different medicines and treatments I can prescribe, and so on; or maybe links to websites that will help me get started on learning this stuff? Thanks in advance!"Isn't that situation a little unusual?Now, I am not saying your DBA position is a critical "life and death" scenario, but it is still very concerning. If you have no idea how to "be a DBA" or even where to start learning, it isn't exactly clear why you were hired in that role or how you expect to succeed, especially with so many very large databases to maintain. Many experienced DBAs struggle to manage and optimize databases a fraction of those sizes (say, the 10GB-100GB range).- Jeffhttp://weblogs.sqlteam.com/JeffS |
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Michael Valentine Jones
Yak DBA Kernel (pronounced Colonel)
7020 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-06 : 21:18:28
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quote:
Originally posted by seanworking
They did have a DBA but they left. That is why there was an open position available. Michael, strange you would not consider that as an option. I can't believe you would be that lacking in intellectual prowess? ...
Perhaps I am being a little skeptical or lacking in imagination, but I find it hard to believe that:1. A company managing multiple 10-30 TB databases would not have multiple DBAs, so that one guy leaving would not leave them without a support DBA.2. They would hire someone with no experience to be the sole support for databases that size. Hiring people can be very clueless, but most would have some idea how challenging managing an installation that large would be for someone with no experience.Databases that size are fairly uncommon, so I thought perhaps that you had made an error in typing TB instead of GB, or MB.Insulting my intellectual powers or human decency doesn’t seem like a good way to ask for help from me or others.CODO ERGO SUM |
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pootle_flump
1064 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 07:50:35
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quote:
Originally posted by jsmith8858
I really hope the OP hasn't left, I am fascinated to see where this thread will go.
Doubt - I think he has cracked it now:http://sql-server-performance.com/Community/forums/p/24994/138990.aspx#138990Let's hope no one else realises how easy this job is - we'll be out of work in no time  |
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jezemine
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
2886 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 10:01:38
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if this story is true and has a happy ending, it should make for a nice case study/advertisement for sql server...i don't believe the db sizes though. must be a typo.
elsasoft.org |
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blindman
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
2365 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 10:28:32
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| I wonder if he even knows what TB stands for...e4 d5 xd5 Nf6 |
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X002548
Not Just a Number
15586 Posts |
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Michael Valentine Jones
Yak DBA Kernel (pronounced Colonel)
7020 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 11:13:47
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quote:
Originally posted by blindman
I wonder if he even knows what TB stands for...e4 d5 xd5 Nf6
Maybe OP thinks TB is the abbreviation for "table"?CODO ERGO SUM |
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jezemine
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
2886 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 12:30:13
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quote:
Originally posted by Michael Valentine Jones
quote:
Originally posted by blindman
I wonder if he even knows what TB stands for...e4 d5 xd5 Nf6
Maybe OP thinks TB is the abbreviation for "table"?CODO ERGO SUM
that's probably it. or "tinybytes" :)
elsasoft.org |
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TG
Master Smack Fu Yak Hacker
6065 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 15:35:58
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Ah - Of course - 30TB = "30 tables". That makes a lot more sense now. Darn, I was hoping he was actually going to be in charge of 30,000 gigabyte databases  . I thought the US Govt hired him because all the other DBAs quit after realizing the illegality of storing every phone conversation that has taken place since Dick "go f yourself - shoot your friend in the face" Chaney came to office.woops, my Dennis Kucinich button is showing...Be One with the OptimizerTG |
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jsmith8858
Dr. Cross Join
7423 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 15:38:53
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| I also agree with the TB=Table assessment ... it's the only thing that makes sense. Well, then, in that case, my advice to him is: the first thing you should do is learn the standard abbreviations used in the industry!- Jeffhttp://weblogs.sqlteam.com/JeffS |
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pootle_flump
1064 Posts |
Posted - 2008-01-07 : 15:50:57
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| Well sussed Michael. Funny thing is, just a smidgen of humility and a little less defensiveness and he might have asked "Why - what's the problem?" and the thread could have gone in a more positive direction. 30TB per db! I thought they had pulled some random in off the street to look after lord knows how many millions of $ worth of kit.I suppose another bit of advice for an aspiring DBA - develop a thick skin |
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Newby to DBA - Need advise on learning position