Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Exam 70-431

Had a great exam yesterday.  Took me the full 2.5 hours.  I've never done Simulation questions before.  They were... interesting.  I found them quite easy.  The simulator only allowed certain actions to be performed in the SSMS IDE, so finding the right sequence was relatively simple.
35 ordinary questions and 12 simulations.
My study technique this time worked really well.  Each number below stands for the date in February:

  1. Picked up the self-paced study kit on February 1st.  Completed Chapter 1: Installing SQL Server 2005
  2. Chapter 2: Configuring SQL Server 2005
  3. Chapter 3: Creating Tables, Constraints, and User-Defined Types
  4. Chapter 4: Creating Indexes
  5. Chapter 5: Working with Transact-SQL (very light)
  6. Chapter 6: Creating Partitions
  7. Chapter 7: Implementing Views
  8. Chapter 8: Managing XML Data (very important)
  9. Chapter 9: Creating Functions, Stored Procedures and Triggers
  10. Chapter 10: Working with Flat Files
  11. Chapter 11: Backing Up, Restoring and Moving a Database
  12. Chapter 12: Using Transact-SQL to Manage Databases
  13. Chapter 13: Working with HTTP Endpoints
  14. Chapter 14: Working with SQL Server Agent Jobs
  15. Chapter 15: Monitoring and Troubleshooting SQL Server Performance
  16. Chapter 16: Managing Database Snapshots
  17. Chapter 17: Implementing Database Mirroring
  18. Chapter 18: Implementing Log Shipping
  19. Chapter 19: Managing Replication
  20. Chapter 20: Working with Service Broker
  21. Chapter 21: Creating Full-Text Catalogs
  22. Concentrated (using practice exam questions) on Exam Objective 1: Installing and Configuring SQL Server 2005
  23. Objective 2: Implementing High Availability and Disaster Recovery
  24. Objective 3: Supporting Data Consumers
  25. Objective 4: Maintaining Databases
  26. Objective 5: Monitoring and Troubleshooting SQL Server Performance
  27. Objective 6: Creating and Implementing Database Objects
  28. On February 28th sat the exam

Name: TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - Implementation and Maintenance
Required score: 700
My Score: 876

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Busy Studying for Exam 70-431

Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist:
Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Implementation and Maintenance
Studying via Self-Paced Training Kit by Solid Quality Learning
Chapter 8: Managing XML Data is a killer...
MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-431): Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Implementation and Maintenance (Pro-Certification)