June 23, 2008 at 6:56 am
Shiraz (6/23/2008)
I think what Brad is saying is ok for small companies where there is one or two DBA's, but most times its not a good idea with large companies where you have a team of DBA's.Large companies are always looking at cutting back, therefore if you fix all the problems before they happen, in the eyes of the company you do not exists, which means you are in effect redundant.
From my experience I have found that the more problems there are the more money/resources are available to the DBA team.
:w00t: Sounds like you should be a politician, not a DBA. If you worked at my company, an attitude like that would put you on the path to the exit door.
If you are worried about becoming redundant, then document all the issues you do fix, and how quickly you do it. Sure, problems exist, but you can rest assured that your fantastic DBA has got it covered.
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How best to post your question[/url]
How to post performance problems[/url]
Tally Table:What it is and how it replaces a loop[/url]
"stewsterl 80804 (10/16/2009)I guess when you stop and try to understand the solution provided you not only learn, but save yourself some headaches when you need to make any slight changes."
June 23, 2008 at 7:03 am
Other than DBA-specific tips like reviewing server logs, these can be used in any job in any office environment. I have known non-IT people to enter through the back or side door, to try to get to the coffee first, and to try to get a jump start on the day without interruption.
I worked at one place where everyone tried avoiding the main office hallway whenever possible. There was no telling who would be there to waste your time. Of course, from their standpoint, they were not wasting time. 🙂
These are all good suggestions that grunt workers worth their salt have employed in their careers. I'm glad that I now work in a shop where I don't have to try to avoid anyone. 😎
June 23, 2008 at 7:10 am
Shiraz (6/23/2008)
I think what Brad is saying is ok for small companies where there is one or two DBA's, but most times its not a good idea with large companies where you have a team of DBA's.Large companies are always looking at cutting back, therefore if you fix all the problems before they happen, in the eyes of the company you do not exists, which means you are in effect redundant.
From my experience I have found that the more problems there are the more money/resources are available to the DBA team.
Whoa! Yikes! Believe me, if you fix all the problems before they exist we'll fire everyone else to keep you around. No worries. If you're actively not fixing problems the opposite would be true.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
June 23, 2008 at 7:59 am
Hello Brad McGehee.
Read your guest editorial this morning on “A Day in the Life of the DBA”. Have the following comments.
I disagree with the office unseen approach. I disagree with the sugar and/or coffee rush every morning. I agree you should review your server logs before any e mail.
If you’re never seen in the office, get to the morning rush after everyone else, and then review your server logs before your e mail you’ll never get promoted.
I suggest the following. Get a notebook or a laptop and use a wireless adapter to communicate with your server logs and e mail before you even get to your workplace. Deal with any problems you may have and do any telephone or e mail follow up you deem necessary before you travel to your workplace..
Take notes on a tablet that you take with you every morning instead of a briefcase. Always come in late. Always go in the front door after you remove any coat you may be wearing in cold or inclement weather. Casually walk to your office carrying your coat in one hand and your tablet, with a pen attached to your notes, in the other. Always stop and talk with the people who may have a valid reason to talk with you.
If you want to see anyone you may have an interest in, go to the coffee pot whether you need a sugar/coffee rush or not. After a short period of time you’ll be able to figure out who comes and goes there at specific times.
Now you can check your e mail first to see if you haven’t already dealt with any problems your manager may be inquiring about before you hit the server logs a second time that morning.
I have not read Buck Woody’s blog but I believe this is a much more proactive approach than the humorous tongue-and-cheek suggestions you examined from Buck’s opening.
Lloyd McElaney
June 23, 2008 at 8:04 am
I agree with those who mention coming in early before everyone else. It gives you time to check on things and, if there is a problem, time to fix it before most people come in. You're really golden if there's a problem and it's fixed before your manager gets in.
In my younger days, I even use to check things from home in the morning and try to fix them before leaving for work. However, that sometimes required me to work while half asleep and could delay my arrival at work. I tried creating a transporter beam to cut my commute time but was never able to work out the bugs.
June 23, 2008 at 8:39 am
I have learned and practiced many of the 'time savers' listed in this excellent discussion thread. What I have found out over time is that all of these suggestions, whilst seeming proactive, are actually reactive ! I say this because when you boil it all down to the base reason - you need time to learn and expand your DBA/SQL knowledge, whether is be a new release like 2008, or anything else related to your career.
One should look at it more like a successful investment counselor would, and say to you "Pay yourself first". By this I mean continuing education is a daily part of my work ethic and has been for over a decade now. I schedule in 30 minutes of every, yes every day for continuing education (well almost - production issues and the like not withstanding).
So in essence, the article and discussion following it are more of a form of positive reinforcement for daily habits already practiced !
RegardsRudy KomacsarSenior Database Administrator"Ave Caesar! - Morituri te salutamus."
June 23, 2008 at 8:46 am
I think Buck's comments should be seen as humor, and perhaps used on rare occassion.
Most of the time, I like to be up front with the users, help them if I have the time or let them know I'm working on something and I'll meet with them later, or get someone else more appropriate (like the guy at the helpdesk 😉 ) to address their issue. This way, the users get trained as to who is the appropriate 'computer guy' to call.:D There's only 4 of us, and the users mix our names up all the time.:P
June 23, 2008 at 8:47 am
I have email alerts setup so when I come in, the first thing I do is get my coffee and then look at email (no back door but I arrive before everyone else anyhow). I have a rule setup that puts them all in the same folder so I go to that folder first. For the alerts that I have deemed "critical", I have it send those to my cell phone so I know before I leave home whether or not there are problems. If I receive a message on my phone, I stop and check before leaving since we do have staff in the east coast that expect to be working before I arrive at the office, since I have a 45 minute drive :crying:.
I do train people to use email since I despise voice mail. In fact, I even have on my voice message a statement to send an email for a quicker response. I only check voice mail once per day in the afternoon. I also use my caller id to determine whether or not the call is worth bothering with. I do watch my email and have notifications pop-up when emails come in so I can quickly determine if I need to worry about it or not.
June 23, 2008 at 8:50 am
Alan Vogan (6/23/2008)
There's only 4 of us, and the users mix our names up all the time.:P
My last job, my last name was shared by our IT help guy. I was not in the IT dept, but when users called and asked "Scott" how to fix what was going wrong, I usually just walked them through setting up a printer/fixing their email issue/etc, because it was easier than explaining that they called the wrong person.
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How best to post your question[/url]
How to post performance problems[/url]
Tally Table:What it is and how it replaces a loop[/url]
"stewsterl 80804 (10/16/2009)I guess when you stop and try to understand the solution provided you not only learn, but save yourself some headaches when you need to make any slight changes."
June 23, 2008 at 8:57 am
For a person who is a DBA, and a DBA only, I think the first one is not necessary, but it depends a lot on your organization size and structure. We have a help desk that people are used to calling for general problems, we have specific contacts for our ERP system, but otherwise, I'm probably unknown to most of the people here. I enter through the back door every day as it takes me in through our mainframe room directly to my office, it's a matter of path routing from where I park rather than avoiding people. The only people who call me directly are those who I do specific projects for.
When I was a network admin, it would have been nice to be able to take a back door as I was also support, installation, training, and hardware maint. I did frequently get ambushed at that job (about 20 years ago), but it also gave me a heads up on a massive outage once: a storm came in and the computer room (no backup power or UPS on two Wang minis, but that's another story) turned off my two hub concentrators, servers were up but no one was able to talk to them. :hehe:
I don't drink coffee, and when someone brings donuts, they are IT staff and leave them in our secured area, so they don't disappear too rapidly. As far as checking email, I get my DBCC log summaries emailed to me every night and all of my backup jobs notify me on fail, so things tend to run pretty smooth. And that's the way I like it.
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[font="Arial"]Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a subject ourselves or we know where we can find information upon it. --Samuel Johnson[/font]
June 23, 2008 at 9:03 am
I always take the back door in because it is the closer entrance 😛
I also have most of the problems that I encounter logged to my email. I do a quick check before I get out the door just to start prioritizing before I get to work. That way, I don't get to work and have all of these "surprises". My commute to work isn't that long, but if I took the train into work, I would probably get a laptop and start working while on the train. Anything to make that trip go a little faster and make my day a little easier at the same time.
Mia
Mia
I have come to the conclusion that the top man has one principle responsibility: to provide an atmosphere in which creative mavericks can do useful work.
-- David M. Ogilvy
June 23, 2008 at 11:03 am
Large companies are always looking at cutting back, therefore if you fix all the problems before they happen, in the eyes of the company you do not exists, which means you are in effect redundant. From my experience I have found that the more problems there are the more money/resources are available to the DBA team.
In my humble, this comment isn't a reflection of grasshopper's ethics; it's a reflection of management's. Sadly, I've found this observation to be true with a most of my employers (I've been in the work force for 20+ years).
I have a colleague who writes/creates bug-infested code/databases. His applications work intermittently and require constant attention. If it were up to me, he would have been fired long ago. However, management actually rewards him nicely for his hard work on nights/weekends fixing his own bugs and cleaning up bad data that should never have existed in the first place (e.g. no constraints on fields, no table relationships, bad data, redundant fields, ...).
If I sound bitter, it's because I am. I take my time, am detail-oriented and bend over backwards to get things right the first time. The result is that my applications work as expected, my nights and weekends are free, and I don't have an opportunity to be the hero by spending free time fixing problems arising out of applications that suck.
Somebody wrote, something to the effect that, all cynics are disappointed idealists. I think that describes me well.
Sorry if I brought anybody down.
June 23, 2008 at 11:13 am
Chris (6/23/2008)
If I sound bitter, it's because I am. I take my time, am detail-oriented and bend over backwards to get things right the first time. The result is that my applications work as expected, my nights and weekends are free, and I don't have an opportunity to be the hero by spending free time fixing problems arising out of applications that suck.
point taken, Chris, but 1) if that's really how your management thinks, do you really want to work for them? 2) who's really losing out when your nights and weekends are free and his aren't? Careful what you wish for.
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How best to post your question[/url]
How to post performance problems[/url]
Tally Table:What it is and how it replaces a loop[/url]
"stewsterl 80804 (10/16/2009)I guess when you stop and try to understand the solution provided you not only learn, but save yourself some headaches when you need to make any slight changes."
June 23, 2008 at 11:29 am
i am definitely loving the 7am start time. Gives me an hour before questions start flying. if there is an issue i have had an hour to work it before management gets in and then it takes them at least 30 mintues to get to their vm and email to get hot about it.
All of my monitoring has been fairly well automated. This has been a godsend for the 110 servers we watch. plenty of other stuff to do too.
June 23, 2008 at 11:35 am
As much as I find Buck to be entertaining, I think this is BAD ADVICE™. It sounds like a DBA who has forgotten who runs the joint, and that management operates on the principle of:
Out of sight. Out of mind.
I don't recommend avoiding management, even if it seems trivial, tangential or stupid to you... it's important to the person asking the questions.
And you'll never know who'll be the boss tomorrow. I guarantee that it won't be you if nobody ever sees your or knows who you are!
:hehe:
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