DP-300: Administering Microsoft Azure SQL Solutions

Learning Path 1: Introduction to Azure database administration
Microsoft Azure provides a set of seamless capabilities for SQL databases. Explore the different database offerings, and services available to help you get started.

Prepare to maintain SQL databases on Azure
Explore the role of a database administrator on Azure. Describe SQL Server-based offerings on Azure.

Lessons
•   Describe Microsoft Intelligent Data Platform roles
•   Understand SQL Server in an Azure virtual machine
•   Design Azure SQL Database for cloud-native applications
•   Explore Azure SQL Database Managed Instance

Learning Path 2: Plan and implement data platform resources
Deploy data platform resources in Azure SQL. Explore options for deployment and migration. Calculate resource requirements and create templates.

Deploy IaaS solutions with Azure SQL
Configure virtual machine sizing, storage, and networking options to ensure adequate performance for your database workloads. Choose and configure appropriate high availability options.

Lessons
•   Explain IaaS options to deploy SQL Server in Azure
•   Understand hybrid scenario
•   Explore performance and security
•   Explain high availability and disaster recovery options
•   Exercise: Provision a SQL Server on an Azure Virtual Machine

Deploy PaaS solutions with Azure SQL
Provision and deploy Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL managed instance. Select the appropriate options when performing a migration to the SQL PaaS platform.

Lessons
•   Explain PaaS options for deploying SQL Server in Azure
•   Explore single SQL database
•   Deploy SQL database elastic pool
•   Understand SQL database hyperscale
•   Examine SQL managed instance
•   Describe SQL Edge
•   Exercise: Deploy an Azure SQL Database

Evaluate strategies for migrating to Azure SQL
Describe database migration options and tools on Azure. Understand how compatibility level affects database behavior. Describe Azure private and public preview options.

Lessons
•   Understand compatibility level
•   Understand Azure preview features
•   Describe Azure database migration options

Migrate SQL Server workloads to Azure SQL Database
You will explore different migration tools and migrate SQL Server databases to Azure SQL Database.

Lessons
•   Choose the right Azure SQL Database feature
•   Use Azure SQL migration extension to migrate to Azure SQL Database
•   Explore Data Migration Assistant to migrate to Azure SQL Database
•   Migrate to Azure SQL Database using BACPAC
•   Use an online method to migrate to Azure SQL Database
•   Move data to Azure SQL Database
•   Exercise – Migrate a SQL Server database to Azure SQL Database

Migrate SQL Server workloads to Azure SQL Managed Instance
You’ll explore different migration tools and migrate SQL Server databases to Azure SQL Managed Instance.

Lessons
•   Evaluate migration scenarios
•   Use Log Replay Service (LRS) to migrate
•   Migrate using Managed Instance link
•   Move data to SQL Managed Instance
•   Exercise – Migrate a SQL Server database to Azure SQL Managed Instance

Learning Path 3: Implement a secure environment for a database service
Implement SQL Server-based options for authentication and authorization, as well as Azure options for securing Azure SQL databases. Explore encryption, firewalls and advanced threat protection.

Configure database authentication and authorization
Contrast authentication using Microsoft Entra ID, Windows Active Directory, and SQL Server authentication. Implement various security principals and configure permissions.

Lessons
•   Describe Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID
•   Describe authentication and identities
•   Describe Security Principals
•   Describe database and object permissions
•   Identify authentication and authorization failures
•   Exercise: Authorize Access to Azure SQL Database with Microsoft Entra ID

Protect data in-transit and at rest
Explore encryption options available within Azure SQL, including firewall rules, Always Encrypted, and Transport Layer Security. Understand how SQL Injection works.

Lessons
•   Explore Transparent Data Encryption
•   Configure server and database firewall rules
•   Explain object encryption and secure enclaves
•   Enable encrypted connections
•   Describe SQL injection
•   Understand Azure Key Vault
•   Exercise: Configure a server-based firewall rule using the Azure portal

Implement compliance controls for sensitive data
Explore data classification capabilities and degrees of confidentiality. Implement security options to maintain private data safe, including Azure SQL auditing, Microsoft Defender for SQL, row-level security, Dynamic Data Masking and Azure SQL Database Ledger.

Lessons
•   Explore data classification
•   Explore server and database audit
•   Implement Dynamic Data Masking
•   Implement Row Level security
•   Understand Microsoft Defender for SQL
•   Explore Azure SQL Database Ledger
•   Implement Azure Purview
•   Exercise: Enable Microsoft Defender for SQL and Data Classification

Learning Path 4: Monitor and optimize operational resources in Azure SQL
Configure hardware and server resources for optimum performance after establishing a baseline. Identify sources of performance problems. Troubleshoot using Azure SQL Intelligent Insights.

Describe performance monitoring
Compare Azure, and on-premises tools for monitoring and measuring performance. Determine critical metrics. Understand the purpose of a baseline for comparative analysis. Configure extended event sessions for tracing activities.

Lessons
•   Describe performance monitoring tools
•   Describe critical performance metrics
•   Establish baseline metrics
•   Explore extended events
•   Describe Azure SQL Insights
•   Explore Query Performance Insight
•   Exercise: Isolate problems with monitoring

Configure SQL Server resources for optimal performance
Choose the appropriate size and storage options for your Azure SQL databases. Configure server resources such as tempdb. Understand the usage of Resource Governor.

Lessons
•   Explain how to optimize Azure storage for SQL Server virtual machines
•   Describe virtual machine resizing
•   Optimize database storage
•   Control SQL Server resources

Configure databases for optimal performance
Implement tasks for both IaaS and PaaS to maintain indexes, and statistics. Explore the automatic tuning features of Azure SQL Database. Control database-level configuration options. Explore Intelligent Query Processing.

Lessons
•   Explore database maintenance checks
•   Describe database scoped configuration options
•   Describe automatic tuning
•   Describe intelligent query processing
•   Exercise: Detect and correct fragmentation issues

Learning Path 5: Optimize query performance in Azure SQL
Analyze individual query performance and determine where improvements can be made. Explore performance-related Dynamic Management Objects. Investigate how indexes and database design affect queries.

Explore query performance optimization
Read and understand various forms of execution plans. Compare estimated vs actual plans. Learn how and why plans are generated. Understand the purpose and benefits of the Query Store.

Lessons
•   Understand query plans
•   Explain estimated and actual query plans
•   Describe dynamic management views and functions
•   Explore Query Store
•   Identify problematic query plans
•   Describe blocking and locking
•   Exercise: Identify and resolve blocking issues

Explore performance-based design
Explore normalization for relational databases. Investigate the impact of proper datatype usage. Compare types of indexes.

Lessons
•   Describe normalization
•   Choose appropriate data type
•   Design indexes
•   Exercise: Identify database design issues

Evaluate performance improvements
Evaluate possible changes to indexes. Determine the impact of changes to queries and indexes. Explore Query Store hints.

Lessons
•   Describe wait statistics
•   Tune and maintain indexes
•   Understand query hints
•   Exercise: Isolate problem areas in poorly performing queries