Everyone makes mistakes. Database administrators are no exception to that rule. When database administrators (DBAs) make mistakes, they are often the ones who find it first and have to fix it. The trick is to appear to never make mistakes is to get good at detecting and correcting my errors before anyone else notices. Some mistakes are often deemed inexcusable for a database administrator to make. These are the things that can cost organizations irreparable damage. DBAs are often coerced into allowing things that they know are wrong. When things go wrong, it is almost always the database administrator who is held responsible for failing to protect the data, no matter who signed off on the risky decisions. If a manager insists that DBAs do something that they know is wrong, it is incumbent upon the DBA to educate that manager about why it is the wrong thing to do and press for doing the right thing.

This whitepaper describes the issues that a database administrator should never allow to happen even when there are specific scenarios with a lot of grey areas that can justify allowing a risky behavior. These five mistakes endanger the recoverability, integrity, and security of the data that database administrators protect. These five mistakes may be deemed unforgivable, and they can cost database administrators their job. DBAs are the protectors and guardians of the data in the databases. And data is valuable and essential. It is the responsibility of a DBA to protect it. The five mistakes all center on protecting the data. These mistakes jeopardize the recoverability, integrity, and security of the data.

Presenter: Robert L. Davis

Robert L. Davis was a senior database administrator and technical lead at Microsoft. He was a speaker and a trainer as well as a writer for SQL Server Magazine.

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Topics: Database Performance, Database Diagnostics, Database Monitoring
Products: SQL Diagnostic Manager for SQL Server