By: Daniel Calbimonte | Comments (4) | Related: More > Professional Development Certifications
Problem
I would like to know what books, videos, links and advice you could give me to pass SQL Server exam 70-466?
Solution
There is no Training Kit for this exam (at least not yet), the official Microsoft course for this certification (Course 20466: Implementing Data Models and Reports with Microsoft® SQL Server®) is very useful, but it is not enough to pass the exam (the official courses never cover all the Microsoft certification exam topics).
So, what can we do to pass this exam?
This tip will give you links and tips for this very complex and difficult exam.
If you are a beginner in SQL Server Business Intelligence or you do not have experience in the Microsoft Certification exams, we strongly recommend taking exam 70-463 first. The 70-466 exam is very complex and difficult.
If you already passed exam 70-463, this tip is for you. We will give you advice, books and useful links for your exam.
Getting started
Here we compiled the links to SQL Server web sites, books, manuals:
Design dimensions and measures
- Given a requirement, identify the dimension/measure group relationship that should be selected.
- Design patterns for representing business facts and dimensions (many-to-many relationships).
- Using Many-to-Many Relationships in Multidimensional SQL Server Analysis Services.
- SSAS Interview Questions on Measures, Actions, and Storage. Design dimensions to support multiple related measure groups (many related fact tables. What is the purpose of Dimension Usage settings? Explain different types of relationships between Facts and Dimensions.
- Defining a Many-to-Many Relationship
- Handle degenerate dimensions in a cube.
- Identify the attributes for dimensions.
- Identify the measures.
- Aggregation behavior for the measures.
- Build hierarchies. Define granularity of dimension relationships.
Implement and configure dimensions in a cube
- Translations.
- Define attribute relationships.
- Implement hierarchies.
- Implement SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) dimensions and cubes.
- Create the Attribute Relationships that should be made for a given set of attributes in a dimension.
- Develop new custom attributes on dimensions.
- Detect possible design flaws in attribute relationships.
- Implement time dimensions in cubes.
- Manage SSAS parent-child dimensions.
- Dimension types.
Design a schema to support cube architecture
- Multidimensional modeling starting from a star schema.
- Relational modeling for a data source view.
- Choose or create a topology.
- Identify the appropriate data types with correct precision and size.
Create and configure measures
- Logically group measures and configure Measure Group Properties.
- Select appropriate aggregation functions.
- Format measures.
- Design the measure group for the correct granularity
Implement a cube
- Use SQL Server Data Tools - Business Intelligence (SSDT-BI) to build the cube.
- Use SSDT-BI to do non-additive or semi-additive measures in a cube.
- Define measures.
- Specify perspectives.
- Define dimension usage.
- Define cube-specific dimension properties.
- Define measure groups.
- Implement reference dimensions.
- Implement many-to-many relationships.
- Implement fact relationships.
- Implement role-playing relationships.
- Create and manage linked measure groups and linked dimensions.
- Create actions.
Create Multidimensional Expressions (MDX) queries
- Identify the structures of MDX and the common functions (tuples, sets, TopCount, SCOPE, and more).
- Identify which MDX statement would return the required result.
- Implement a custom MDX or logical solution for a prepared case task.
- How to reduce MDX code redundancy in SQL Server Analysis Services SSAS.
- Order and Sort with MDX in SQL Server Analysis Services.
- MDX Function Reference (MDX)
- SQL Server Analysis Services Rank and Row Number Ordering.
- Analysis Services MOLAP Performance Guide for SQL Server 2012 and 2014 (section 2.4 and 3.3).
Implement custom logic in a data model
- Define key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Define calculated members.
- Create relative measures (growth, YoY, same period last year).
- Percentage of total using MDX.
- Named sets.
- Implement ranking and percentile.
- Define MDX script to import partial PowerPivot model.
Implement storage design in a multidimensional model
- Create aggregations.
- Create partitions.
- Storage modes.
- Define proactive caching.
- Manage write-back partitions.
- Implement linked cubes.
- Implement distributed cubes.
Select an appropriate model for data analysis
- Select Tabular versus Multidimensional based on scalability needs.
- Traditional hierarchical.
- Data volume.
- Select appropriate organizational BI, such as corporate BI or PowerBI, and team and personal BI needs and data status.
Manage, maintain, and troubleshoot a SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) database
Analyze data model performance
- Identify performance consequences of data source view design.
- Optimize performance by changing the design of the cube or dimension.
- Analyze and optimize performances of an MDX/DAX query.
- Optimize queries for huge data sets.
- Optimize MDX in the calculations.
- Performance monitor counters.
- Select appropriate Dynamic Management Views for Analysis Services.
- Analyze and define performance counters
- Monitor growth of the cache
- Define and view logging options
Process data models
- Define processing of tables or partitions for tabular and multidimensional models
- Define processing of databases, cubes, and dimensions for multidimensional models.
- Select full processing versus incremental processing.
- Define remote processing;
- Define lazy aggregations.
- Automate with Analysis Management Objects (AMO) or XML for Analysis (XMLA).
- Process and manage partitions by using PowerShell.
Troubleshoot data analysis issues
- Use SQL Profiler.
- Troubleshoot duplicate key dimension processing errors.
- Error logs and event viewer logs of SSAS.
- Mismatch of data: incorrect relationships or aggregations.
- Dynamic security issues.
- Validate logic and calculations.
Deploy SSAS databases
- Deployment Wizard.
- Implement BIDS.
- Deploy SSMS.
- Test solution post deployment.
- Decide whether or not to process.
- Test different roles.
Install and maintain an SSAS instance
- Install SSAS.
- Install development tools.
- Identify development and production installation considerations.
- Upgrade SSAS instances.
- Define data file and program file location.
- Plan for Administrator accounts.
- Define server and database level security.
- Support scale-out read-only.
- Update SSAS (service packs).
- How to obtain the latest service pack for SQL Server 2012.
- How to obtain the latest service pack for SQL Server 2014.
- KB2755533 How to obtain the latest SQL Server 2012 service pack
- KB2527041 How to obtain the latest SQL Server 2008 R2 service pack
- Microsoft SQL Server support lifecycle
- KB321185 How to determine the version and edition of SQL Server and its components
- KB957826 The builds for all SQL Server versions
- KB822499 Naming schema and Fix area descriptions for SQL Server software update packages
- KB824684 Description of the standard terminology that is used to describe Microsoft software updates
- Install and maintain each instance type of Analysis Services including PowerPivot.
- Restore and import PowerPivot.
- Back up and restore by using PowerShell.
Build a tabular data model
- Configure server roles.
- Configure SSAS database roles.
- Implement dynamic security (custom security approaches).
- Role-based access.
- Test security permissions.
- Implement cell-level permissions.
- Define tables, import data.
- Define calculated columns.
- Define relationships.
- Define hierarchies and perspectives.
- Manage visibility of columns and tables.
- Embed links.
- Optimize BISM for Power View.
- Mark a date table.
- Sort a column by another column.
- Implement measures and KPIs.
- Implement Data Analysis Expressions (DAX).
- Define relationship navigation.
- Implement time intelligence.
- Implement context modification.
- Manage partitions.
- Processing.
- Select xVelocity versus DirectQuery for data access.
- Select report components (crosstab report, Tablix).
- Design chart.
- Data visualization components.
- Design report templates (Report Definition Language).
- Identify the data source and parameters.
- Design a grouping structure.
- Drill-down reports.
- Drill-through reports.
- Determine if any expressions are required to display data that is not coming directly from the data source.
- Formatting.
- Apply conditional formatting.
- Page configuration.
- Implement headers and footers.
- Implement matrixes, table, chart, images, list, indicators, maps, and groupings in reports.
- Use Report Builder to implement a report layout.
- Create a range of reports using different data regions.
- Define custom fields (implementing different parts of the report).
- Implement collections (global collections).
- Define expressions.
- Implement data visualization components.
- Identify report parts.
- implement group variables and report variables.
- Design for multiple delivery extension formats.
- Configure server-level and item-level role-based security.
- Configure reporting service security (setup or addition of role).
- Authenticate against data source.
- Store credential information.
- Describe Report Server security architecture and site level security.
- Create system level roles, item level security.
- Create a new role assignment.
- Assign Windows users to roles.
- Secure reports using roles.
- Configure SharePoint groups and permissions.
- Define varying content for different role memberships.
- Drilldown.
- Drillthrough.
- Interactive sorting.
- Parameters: (databound parameters, multi-value parameters).
- Create dynamic reports in SSRS using parameters.
- Implement show/hide property.
- Actions (jump to report).
- Filters.
- Parameter list.
- Fixed headers.
- Embedded HTML.
- Query the ReportServer database.
- View Reporting Services log files.
- Use Windows Reliability and Performance monitor data for troubleshooting.
- Use the ReportServer: define service and web service objects.
- Monitor for long-running reports.
- Rendering, and connectivity issues.
- Use SQL Profiler.
- Perform data reconciliation for incorrect relationships or aggregations.
- Detect dynamic security issues.
- Validate logic and calculations.
- Manage subscriptions and subscription settings.
- Define data-driven subscriptions.
- Manage data sources.
- Integrate SharePoint Server.
- Define email delivery settings.
- Manage the number of snapshots.
- Manage schedules.
- Running jobs, and report server logs.
- Manage report server databases.
- Manage the encryption keys.
- Set up the execution log reporting.
- Review the reports.
- Configure site-level settings.
- Design report lifecycle.
- Automate management of reporting services.
- Create a report organization structure.
- Install and configure reporting services.
- Deploy custom assemblies.
- Select appropriate query types (stored procedure versus table versus text only).
- Configure parameterized connection strings (dynamic connection strings).
- Define filter location (dataset versus query).
- Configure data source options, for example, extract and connect to multiple data sources.
- Shared and embedded data sources and datasets.
- Use custom expressions in data sources.
- Connect to Microsoft Azure SQL database.
- Connect to Microsoft Azure Marketplace.
- Implement DAX and MDX queries to retrieve appropriate data sets.
- Work with non-relational data sources, such as XML or SharePoint lists.
- Connect to HDInsight Server.
Configure permissions and roles in a tabular model
Implement a tabular data model
Implement business logic in a tabular data model
Implement data access for a tabular data model
Build a report with SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS)
Design a report
Implement a report layout
Configure authentication and authorization for a reporting solution
Implement interactivity in a report
Troubleshoot reporting services issues
Manage a report environment
Configure report data sources and datasets
Conclusion
As you can see, there are a lot manuals, links and videos to study. If you already have real life experience in these topics it usually takes 3 months to study the material. Otherwise, plan on 6 months or more.
If you believe there are other useful links for the exam feel free to comment and share your material.
Next Steps
There are several links that will be useful to you:
- Exam 70-466
- Other books
- SSAS Papers
- Microsoft Practice Exam for 70-466 MSCert: Implementing Data Models and Reports with Microsoft SQL Server.
About the author
This author pledges the content of this article is based on professional experience and not AI generated.
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