M20465 - Designing a Data Solution with Microsoft SQL Server

Introduction to Enterprise Data Architecture

As organizations grow to enterprise scale, their IT infrastructure requirements become more complex and the network environment often includes an increasing number of servers, client computers, network segments, and other components. Because data is fundamental to most IT operations, careful thought must be given to the provisioning and management of databases across the enterprise.

Multi-Server Configuration Management

When an enterprise infrastructure includes multiple database servers, it can be useful to standardize and enforce configuration settings in order to ensure compliance and manageability. This module discusses Policy-Based Management in SQL Server, and describes how it can be used together with enterprise configuration management tools such as Microsoft System Center to aid enterprise database server management.

Consolidating Database Workloads with SQL Server 2014

This module provides an overview of the benefits of consolidating database workloads by using SQL Server 2014, and describes the different options for implementing a consolidation strategy. It also describes how you can manage a consolidated infrastructure in various scenarios.

Introduction to Cloud Data Solutions

Cloud computing has risen to prominence very rapidly within the world of IT, and many organizations have implemented or are planning to implement cloud-based solutions that encompass all or part of their infrastructure. This module describes some of the fundamental concepts of cloud computing and outlines how to include SQL Server 2014 in a private cloud infrastructure.

Introduction to Windows Azure

Cloud computing has risen to prominence very rapidly within the world of IT, and many organizations have implemented or are planning to implement cloud-based solutions that encompass all or part of their infrastructure. This module describes some of the fundamental concepts of cloud computing and outlines some of the important technologies, such as Windows Azure services, that organizations can use to build a cloud-based platform for SQL Server 2014.

Windows Azure SQL Database

Microsoft's cloud platform includes Windows Azure SQL Database, which you can use to use SQL Server to host your databases without having to take on the responsibility of managing SQL Server itself, or the operating system that supports it. This module describes Windows Azure SQL Database, including how to provision it, how to implement security, how to manage databases and how to migrate databases to Windows Azure SQL Database.

SQL Server in Windows Azure Virtual Machines

Using virtual machines in Windows Azure to host SQL Server instances and databases enables you to take advantage of the benefits of the cloud whilst retaining greater control over the infrastructure than you can when using Windows Azure SQL Database. This module explains the benefits and considerations for using virtual machines in Windows Azure. It also describes how to create and configure virtual machines in Windows Azure, and how to work with SQL Server databases in virtual machines in Windows Azure.

Introduction to High Availability in SQL Server 2014

Maintaining highly available database services is vital in a 24 hour operating environment. SQL Server 2014 includes many features that can help organizations to deliver the levels of service they require to drive their businesses. This module explains the different ways that you can implement high availability by using SQL Server 2014. It also describes how to use log shipping to promote resilience for individual user databases.

Clustering with Windows Server and SQL Server 2014

SQL Server 2014 is closely integrated with the Windows Server Failover Clustering feature in Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2012 R2, enabling you to create enterprise-class clustering solutions that can deliver comprehensive high availability and disaster recovery solutions. This module explains how Windows Server Failover Clustering and SQL Server AlwaysOn Failover Cluster Instances work, and describes how to implement clustering to protect service availability.

AlwaysOn Availability Groups

SQL Server 2014 includes AlwaysOn Availability Groups to provide high availability for groups of databases. This module describes AlwaysOn Availability Groups in SQL Server 2014, explains the key concepts of AlwaysOn Availability Groups, and describes how you can use them to maintain highly available databases.

Planning High Availability and Disaster Recovery

This module describes the planning considerations for high availability and disaster recovery, and provides common implementation scenarios for on-premises, hybrid, and Windows Azure environments.

Replicating Data

SQL Server replication enables you to copy and distribute data and database objects to other computers and locations in your enterprise, which can improve availability and scalability. This module provides an overview of SQL Server replication and explains the agents used to implement replication. It also describes some common replication scenarios, how to design an appropriate replication system for your requirements, and how to monitor and troubleshoot replication.