Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 Administration with Windows PowerShell™

Chapter 12. Managing Policies through SQLSERVER:\SQLPolicy

Policy-Based Management (PBM) is a new feature in SQL Server 2008 that helps SQL Server administration. It enables database administrators to manage SQL Server instances by intent through clearly defined policies, thus reducing the potential for administrative errors. In Chapter 11, managing databases and database objects through the SQL folder under the SQLSERVER: drive was discussed. In this chapter, you will learn how to access Policy-Based Management objects, such as policies and conditions, through the other folder, SQLSERVER:\SQLPolicy.

This chapter covers the following topics:

• SQLSERVER:\SQLPolicy folder

• Conditions

• Policies

SQLSERVER:\SQLPolicy Folder

If you are not familiar with the Policy-Based Management (PBM) feature in SQL Server 2008, here is a brief introduction. As mentioned in the introduction to this chapter, Policy-Based Management helps database administrators manage SQL Server instances by applying clearly defined policies that reduce the potential for errors. The Policy-Based Framework implements the policies behind the scenes with a policy engine, SQL Server Agent jobs, SQLCLR, DDL triggers, and Service Broker. Policies can be applied or evaluated against a single server or a group of servers, improving the scalability of monitoring and administration. The operative terms used in Policy-Based Management include target, facet, condition, policy, and category.

Before creating a policy, you need to identify the ...