Prepare to maintain SQL databases on Azure

1. Describe Microsoft Intelligent Data Platform roles

2. Understand SQL Server in an Azure virtual machine

3. Design Azure SQL Database for cloud-native applications

4. Explore Azure SQL Database Managed Instance

Deploy IaaS solutions with Azure SQL

1. Explain IaaS options to deploy SQL Server in Azure

2. Understand hybrid scenarios

3. Explore performance and security

4. Explain high availability and disaster recovery options

Deploy PaaS solutions with Azure SQL

1. Explain PaaS options for deploying SQL Server in Azure

2. Explore single SQL database

3. Deploy SQL database elastic pool

4. Understand SQL database hyperscale

5. Examine SQL managed instance

6. Describe SQL Edge

Evaluate strategies for migrating to Azure SQL

1. Understand compatibility level

2. Understand Azure preview features

3. Describe Azure database migration options

Migrate SQL Server workloads to Azure SQL Database

1. Choose the right Azure SQL Database feature

2. Use Azure SQL migration extension to migrate to Azure SQL Database

3. Explore Data Migration Assistant to migrate to Azure SQL Database

4. Migrate to Azure SQL Database using BACPAC

5. Use an online method to migrate to Azure SQL Database

6. Move data to Azure SQL Database

Migrate SQL Server workloads to Azure SQL Managed Instance

1. Evaluate migration scenarios

2. Use Log Replay Service (LRS) to migrate

3. Migrate using Managed Instance link

4. Migrate using Managed Instance link

Configure database authentication and authorization

1. Describe Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID (Formerly Azure AD)

2. Describe authentication and identities

3. Describe Security Principals

4. Describe database and object permissions

5. Identify authentication and authorization failures

Protect data in-transit and at rest

1. Explore Transparent Data Encryption

2. Configure server and database firewall rules

3. Explain object encryption and secure enclaves

4. Enable encrypted connections

5. Describe SQL injection

6. Understand Azure Key Vault

Implement compliance controls for sensitive data

1. Explore data classification

2. Explore server and database audit

3. Implement Dynamic Data Masking

4. Implement Row Level security

5. Understand Microsoft Defender for SQL

6. Explore Azure SQL Database Ledger

7. Implement Azure Purview

Describe performance monitoring

1. Describe performance monitoring tools

2. Describe critical performance metrics

3. Establish baseline metrics

4. Explore extended events

5. Describe Azure SQL Insights

6. Explore Query Performance Insight

Configure SQL Server resources for optimal performance

1. Explain how to optimize Azure storage for SQL Server virtual machines

2. Describe virtual machine resizing

3. Optimize database storage

4. Control SQL Server resources

Configure databases for optimal performance

1. Explore database maintenance checks

2. Describe database scoped configuration options

3. Describe automatic tuning

4. Describe intelligent query processing

Explore query performance optimization

1. Understand query plans

2. Explain estimated and actual query plans

3. Describe dynamic management views and functions

4. Explore Query Store

5. Identify problematic query plans

6. Describe blocking and locking

Evaluate performance improvements

1. Describe wait statistics

2. Tune and maintain indexes

3. Understand query hints

Explore performance-based design

1. Describe normalization

2. Choose appropriate data types

3. Choose appropriate data types

Automate deployment of database resources

1. Describe deployment models in Azure

2. Automate deployment by using Azure Resource Manager templates and Bicep

3. Automate deployment by using PowerShell

4. Automate deployment by using Azure CLI

Create and manage SQL Agent jobs

1. Create a SQL Server maintenance plan

2. Describe task status notifications

Manage Azure PaaS tasks using automation

1. Explore Elastic jobs

2. Understand Azure Automation

3. Build an automation runbook

4. Automate database workflows by using Logic Apps

5. Monitor automated tasks

Describe high availability and disaster recovery strategies

1. Describe recovery time objective and recovery point objective

2. Explore high availability and disaster recovery options

3. Describe Azure high availability and disaster recovery features for Azure Virtual Machines

4. Describe high availability and disaster recovery options for PaaS deployments

5. Explore an IaaS high availability and disaster recovery solution

6. Describe hybrid solutions

Explore IaaS and PaaS solutions for high availability and disaster recovery

1. Describe failover clusters in Windows Server

2. Configure Always-on availability groups

3. Describe temporal tables in Azure SQL Database

4. Describe active geo-replication for Azure SQL Database

5. Explore auto-failover groups for Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance

Back up and restore databases

1. Back up and restore SQL Server running on Azure virtual machines

2. Back up a SQL Server virtual machine

3. Back up and restore a database using Azure SQL Database