This book, written by veteran Oracle database administrator Iggy Fernandez, a regular on the Oracle conference circuit and the editor of NoCOUG Journal, is a manageable introduction to key Oracle database administration topics including planning, installation, monitoring, troubleshooting, maintenance, and backups, to name just a few. As is clear from the table of contents, this book is not simply a recitation of Oracle Database features such as what you find in the reference guides available for free download on the Oracle web site. For example, the chapter on database monitoring explains how to monitor database availability, database changes, database security, database backups, database growth, database workload, database performance, and database capacity.

The chapters of this book are logically organized into four parts that closely track the way your database administration career will naturally evolve. Part 1 gives you necessary background in relational database theory and Oracle Database concepts, Part 2 teaches you how to implement an Oracle database correctly, Part 3 exposes you to the daily routine of a database administrator, and Part 4 introduces you to the fine art of performance tuning. Each chapter has exercises designed to help you apply the lessons of the chapter. Each chapter also includes a list of reference works that contain more information on the topic of the chapter.

In this book, you'll find information that you won't find in other books on Oracle Database. Here you'll discover not only technical information, but also guidance on work practices that are as vital to your success as technical skills. The author's favorite chapter is "The Big Picture and the Ten Deliverables." If you take the lessons in that chapter to heart, you can quickly become a much better Oracle database administrator than you ever thought possible.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 6 Ratings

Overall, a good entry level book - 2009-05-06
Reviewer Rating:
Let me start my review saying that this one is a book that deserves some attention; we have a lot of options in terms of Oracle 11g books out there, but problem (like MS-SQL) is the inability for some authors, to express their knowledge in a coherent way. Being an Oracle "master" DBA does not mean you'll be a good author or viceversa.

I've had the opportunity to check this one on my local bookstore (I think I'll buy it, maybe) and spent some time drinking a cup of coffee and reading it ... so, here are my impressions.

What I like:

1. Very well organized: I believe you should start reading from very beginning to end, but author divided concepts very well so you can easily find information without the need of going back and forth or read initial chapters. Like any RDMS (MS-SQL, Oracle, etc), if you have a basic SQL language fundamentals and Os experience (Linux, Windows), material will be much much easier to understand
2. Plain english: I love when you can read an IT or SQL book and you do not need a "PhD" in order to understand. This book is easy to read and straight to the point.
3. Good price: I think that based on the content and other options, price on this one is something to take seriously.

What could be improved

1. Not in-depth coverage: Ironically, point 2 in "What I like" section leads to point 1 here. Good or bad thing depends of what you're looking for. I think that if reader is looking for a more in depth and comprehensive material, this book will not be a good choice. Is so straight to the point that clarifications or further explanations in sections like setup, are short.
2. Use of Windows as Testing environment: read my blog comment below with author about this. Is a topic which creates polemic. But being a DBA for one of the largest Computer companies in the world, I can tell that you won't get full Oracle power if you run it from Windows. So, learning how to setup or how Oracle runs on Linux is a must in today's job market. Yes, you can learn basic T-SQL administration running Oracle on top of Windows ... Yes, internal SQL statements operations won't change, but again, if you want to be different and get the full Oracle's advantage, why not test it on a Linux/Unix box? we got VMware, VirtualBox and others that will let you install Oracle with some tweaks (Red Hat like Linux systems are the only one supported by Oracle)
3. More pictures, please! Not in agreement with other review. I think that we won't find enough here; one or another pictures among chapters, but not enough in my opinion indeed. Oracle architecture is so complex that concepts get lost easily if you don't visualize them.

Overall, this is a good book for the entry level or MS-SQL DBA which is trying to catch Oracle concepts in a fast but good way but I would suggest to overlap ideas with a good Linux book like: Linux Recipes for Oracle DBAs, by Darl Kuhn or get a nice Linux cert book, like the most recent Sybex edition: LPIC-1: Linux Professional Institute Certification Study Guide: (Exams 101 and 102). Like I said before, if you master the Os portion of Oracle or MS-SQL, your troubleshooting skills get empowered also.

Excellent book for a new Oracle DBA - 2009-05-17
Reviewer Rating:
Having worked for a Fortune 50 company as an Oracle DBA for more than ten years, I have read many Oracle books. Apress usually publishes good quality books but where this one stands out is that it teaches a beginning Oracle DBA the tasks of Oracle database administration in a very orderly and precise manner. Go through the chapter list and you will realize that the book covers precisely what a beginning Oracle DBA does.

As a new Oracle DBA you have a choice: read the relevant portions of over 100 Oracle manuals or buy this book, get started on the job, and plan on further reading as you progress in your Oracle career.

The book is written in a platform-agnostic manner but provides instructions to install Oracle on your laptop and follow along. Every chapter ends with exercises and suggestions for further reading which are very helpful.

Part I Database Concepts

Chapter 1 Relational Database Management Systems
Chapter 2 SQL and PL/SQL
Chapter 3 Oracle Architecture

Part II Database Implementation

Chapter 4 Planning
Chapter 5 Software Installation
Chapter 6 Database Creation
Chapter 7 Physical Database Design
Chapter 8 User Management and Data Loading

Part III Database Support

Chapter 9 Taking Control
Chapter 10 Monitoring
Chapter 11 Fixing Problems
Chapter 12 Backups
Chapter 13 Recovery
Chapter 14 Database Maintenance
Chapter 15 The Big Picture and the Ten Deliverables

Part IV Database Tuning

Chapter 16 Instance Tuning
Chapter 17 SQL Tuning

If you read one Oracle book, read this one... - 2009-05-22
Reviewer Rating:
I've worked with relational databases--including Oracle--for most of my career and managed teams of database administrators for many years.

If you're new to Oracle, this is the one book for you. Chock full of real life tips and advice borne from a DBA who has clearly learned the hard way, you will benefit from his successes and failures. Well written and easy to understand, this book will jump start anyone who is new to Oracle or wants to brush up on DBA fundamentals.

Exceptional Oracle 11g Resource - Gives you a great overview - 2009-05-19
Reviewer Rating:
This book is a must for new DBA's considering installing and using Oracle 11g. Not only is it full of details it is well written and easy to understand. I have recommended to my other friends in the Oracle community and want to pass along that if you are planning to use 11g in the next year you should get this book as a resource.

Great book for aspiring DBAs - 2009-06-05
Reviewer Rating:
I have known Iggy Fernandez for the last twenty years. I have always been impressed with his deep knowledge of database technology and his ability to explain it in a clear and succinct manner. He has brought that knowledge and ability to bear on this book wonderfully well. Most technical books focus on command syntax while this one gives equal importance to concepts. It is very well organized and the examples are taken from real life. "The Big Picture and the Ten Deliverables" is a very original chapter. Exercises at the end of each chapter and ample references will help the serious student. I truly wish I had this book when I started as an Oracle DBA all those years ago.

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