MCSA 70-461 Question

  • Which clause of the MERGE statement isn’t standard?

    a. The WHEN MATCHED clause

    B. The WHEN NOT MATCHED clause

    c. The WHEN NOT MATCHED BY SOURCE clause

    D. All MERGE clauses are standard

    As per Training kit book its C..but i go for D

    Just to be sure its C or D?

    Pramod
    SQL Server DBA | MCSE SQL Server 2012/2014

    in.linkedin.com/in/pramodsingla/
    http://pramodsingla.wordpress.com/

  • One of the Geek sent me message specifying the answer as C

    but how do you differenciate between standard and non standard clause?

    I don't see such distinguishment in BOL...

    http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb510625.aspx

    Pramod
    SQL Server DBA | MCSE SQL Server 2012/2014

    in.linkedin.com/in/pramodsingla/
    http://pramodsingla.wordpress.com/

  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merge_%28SQL%29

    "Microsoft SQL extends with supporting guards and also with supporting Left Join via WHEN NOT MATCHED BY SOURCE clauses."

  • Thanks i got what writer meant to say..

    Thanks a lot

    Pramod
    SQL Server DBA | MCSE SQL Server 2012/2014

    in.linkedin.com/in/pramodsingla/
    http://pramodsingla.wordpress.com/

  • Correct answer is "C", not "D".

    Clauses, WHEN MATCHED and WHEN NOT MATCHED are the standards as per ANSI.

    Microsoft extended these to WHEN NOT MATCHED BY SOURCE to make things more simpler for supporting some complex logic. But this clause does not involve Source tables and its columns. You can only use Target table columns here.

  • Who comes up with such ridiculous, useless qs? And why on earth would a dba want to waste value time and brain space memorizing such trivialities??

    SQL DBA,SQL Server MVP(07, 08, 09) A socialist is someone who will give you the shirt off *someone else's* back.

  • ScottPletcher (5/8/2015)


    Who comes up with such ridiculous, useless qs? And why on earth would a dba want to waste value time and brain space memorizing such trivialities??

    Heh.... exactly why I've never tried to get certified. Too much trivia that's available in BOL and not enough technique.

    --Jeff Moden


    RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
    First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
    ________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

    Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.


    Helpful Links:
    How to post code problems
    How to Post Performance Problems
    Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

  • Jeff Moden (5/9/2015)


    ScottPletcher (5/8/2015)


    Who comes up with such ridiculous, useless qs? And why on earth would a dba want to waste value time and brain space memorizing such trivialities??

    Heh.... exactly why I've never tried to get certified. Too much trivia that's available in BOL and not enough technique.

    Thank you A LOT for this.

    A week or so ago was having a conversation with a co-worker who is knocking himself silly trying to amass certs. He believes this will achieve his goal of "as much money as possible." I suppose it could but there are no guarantees. He could be simply wasting his leisure time on a pursuit that will never pay off.

    I quit chasing certs back at VB 4 and haven't had any problems being recruited, finding jobs I like, increasing pay scale as I go. I think it's more about what you can DO than how many tests you can pass. No one has cared about my lack of "credentials" and I'm glad I didn't waste my time.

    It just feels good to "hear it" from a respected member of this board.

  • herladygeekedness (5/13/2015)


    Jeff Moden (5/9/2015)


    ScottPletcher (5/8/2015)


    Who comes up with such ridiculous, useless qs? And why on earth would a dba want to waste value time and brain space memorizing such trivialities??

    Heh.... exactly why I've never tried to get certified. Too much trivia that's available in BOL and not enough technique.

    Thank you A LOT for this.

    A week or so ago was having a conversation with a co-worker who is knocking himself silly trying to amass certs. He believes this will achieve his goal of "as much money as possible." I suppose it could but there are no guarantees. He could be simply wasting his leisure time on a pursuit that will never pay off.

    I quit chasing certs back at VB 4 and haven't had any problems being recruited, finding jobs I like, increasing pay scale as I go. I think it's more about what you can DO than how many tests you can pass. No one has cared about my lack of "credentials" and I'm glad I didn't waste my time.

    It just feels good to "hear it" from a respected member of this board.

    Good to get your feedback too. I've had DBA candidates that keep talking only about their certs; I tend to never hire them. I'd rather they focused on learning and skills rather than certs. Particularly with the obscure one-liner oddities in BOL that certs seem to focus so much on.

    SQL DBA,SQL Server MVP(07, 08, 09) A socialist is someone who will give you the shirt off *someone else's* back.

  • Only two reasons I would get the certs right now. One, if my employer came to me and said it was a requirement for my job. Two, validation of my skills and knowledge. Number one hasn't happened and I don't seem to have the time to accomplish number two. Guess it isn't a priority at this time.

  • Lynn Pettis (5/13/2015)


    Only two reasons I would get the certs right now. One, if my employer came to me and said it was a requirement for my job. Two, validation of my skills and knowledge. Number one hasn't happened and I don't seem to have the time to accomplish number two. Guess it isn't a priority at this time.

    For #1, it might cause me to update my resume. For #2, all someone has to do is a simple Yabingooglehoo on "Lynn Pettis" and they'll get instant validation of your skills and knowledge. If that's not good enough for someone, I'd be happy to write a letter of recommendation and I'm sure that several others on this forum would be happy to do the same for you or any of the other heavy hitters on this and other forums.

    --Jeff Moden


    RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
    First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
    ________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

    Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.


    Helpful Links:
    How to post code problems
    How to Post Performance Problems
    Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

  • Certifications don't prove much, if anything. If I can get one, a trained monkey can.

    There are several MVPs here in town (Joe, Dr SQL, Kevin...) and all of them have written either whole books on SQL Server or chapters in SQL Server Deep Dives, so they know what they're talking about.

    Know how many certifications they have between them?

    That's right, NONE.

    Certifications are, I think, a way for employers to try to validate a skillset they don't understand. Just because you can pass an exam doesn't mean much, especially when it's multiple choice. Show what you've fixed/dealt with. That means something.

  • There's always an exception to every rule... in this case, it would be the good folks that earned an MCM.

    --Jeff Moden


    RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
    First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
    ________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

    Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.


    Helpful Links:
    How to post code problems
    How to Post Performance Problems
    Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

  • I actually just took this exam last week. Yes much more of a trivia contest then a measure of skill. I'm doing the MCSA track because my employer is paying for it, helps get them Gold Certified and pushes me into SQL nuggets I might not encounter in my day to day. But a measure of skill the certs are not.

    If Certs measured skill they should have some called SQL Bad @$$ for Lynn and Jeff.:-)

    ***SQL born on date Spring 2013:-)

  • Jeff,

    I would agree the MCM is a different beast. It's more realistic (and difficult) than the standard multiple choice tests. Even I can pass those!

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