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SQL Server 2012: Installation and Configuration

by Glenn Berry

Learn how to correctly install and configure SQL Server 2012, including configuration of Windows and storage for stability and performance, and post-installation updates, configuration, and database maintenance. This course is applicable to anyone who is installing SQL Server for the first time and wants to avoid the common mistakes and pitfalls that are made so often.

What you'll learn

How do you configure Windows correctly for running SQL Server 2012? Which Edition of SQL Server 2012 should you select? How do you choose a RAID level for the SQL Server storage? Which installation options should you choose for SQL Server, and how do you keep SQL Server up-to-date after installing it? This course answers all these questions and more. The course begins by explaining why it is so important to install SQL Server 2012 correctly, and then explains how to configure Windows for stability and performance, choose a storage RAID level that takes the anticipated SQL Server workload into account, and test the storage to ensure it has the performance required. It then describes and shows the SQL Server 2012 installation process, including which options to choose or not, along with common configuration mistakes to avoid. After that it explains how to keep your SQL Server 2012 instance up-to-date with Service Packs and Cumulative Updates, as well as post-installation configuration tasks such as provisioning tempdb. Finally it explains how to configure Database Mail and SQL Server Agent Alerts so that you are notified of critical errors when they occur, plus installing and configuring a simple solution for regular database maintenance, such as backups and index rebuilds. This course is perfect for anyone who is installing SQL Server for the first time and needs guidance on how to properly configure Windows, SQL Server, storage, and regular maintenance so that the SQL Server installation is stable, performs well, and adheres to configuration best practices.

Table of contents

Introduction
16mins
Pre-Installation Tasks for the Operating System
30mins
Pre-installation Tasks for SQL Server 2012
28mins
Installing SQL Server 2012
21mins
Post-Installation Tasks for SQL Server 2012
28mins
Automating Common Maintenance Tasks
28mins

About the author

Glenn Berry

Glenn works as a Principal Consultant at SQLskills.com. He has been a SQL Server MVP since 2007, and he has a whole collection of Microsoft certifications, including MCITP, MCDBA, MCSE, MCSD, MCAD, and MCTS, which proves that he likes to take tests. His expertise includes DMVs, high availability, hardware selection, and performance tuning. He is also an Adjunct Faculty member at University College - University of Denver, where has been teaching since 2000. He has completed the Master Teacher P... more

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