SQL Server Administration

Here you will find links to articles and resources concerned with SQL Server Administration

• SQL Server Configuration
  • Generic
    • How to determine proper SQL Server configuration settings
    • SQL Server 2005 Performance Audit : SQL Server Hardware Configuration Checklist
  • CPU
    • SQL Server timing values may be incorrect when you use utilities or technologies that change CPU frequencies
    • SQL SERVER – CXPACKET – Parallelism – Usual Solution – Wait Type
    • MSDN Thread discussing NUMA/MAXDOP settings in newer technology and considerations for Denali
  • Memory Managment
    • Memory Management Architecture
    • Memory Configuration – AWE, PAE the /3GB Swith, MAX and MIN settings all discussed here.
    • Suggested Max Memory Settings for SQL Server 2005/2008
    • Do I have to assign the Lock Pages in Memory privilege for Local System?
  • Physical Storage
    • SAN Configuration – Disk Partitioning
    • SAN Best Practices
    • Should you store image files in SQL Server or the Filesystem?
    • Disk Alignment Best Practice
    • Monitoring Drive and Database Storage
    • Muli-Tenant Data Architecture
    • RAID Calculator
    • Disk Performance Hands On – This is Part 8 in an ongoing series on disk performance from Kendal Van Dyke. Compares the various RAID levels.
    • SQL Server Urban Legends Discussed – The number of threads per file myth.
    • SQL Server 2000 I/O Basics
  • Indexes
    • Inside sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats
    • Storage Internals of Non-Clustered Indexes
      • T-SQL Tuesday #010: Little Known Index Facts – Shows how the clustering key is stored differently in UNIQUE and non-unique nonclustered indexes.
      • Geek City: Nonclustered Index Keys

• SQL Server Clustering
  • SQL Server 2005 Clustering White Paper
  • Setting up a Windows Cluster using Virtual Servers
  • Step-by-Step: Configuring a 2-node multi-site cluster on Windows Server 2008 R2 – Part 1
• SQL Server Reference Diagrams
  • SQL Server 2005 System Views Map
  • SQL Server 2008 System Tables Diagram