Microsoft SQL Server 2008: Introduction to Querying

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Course Overview

This is a comprehensive course, with plenty of illustrated examples, augmented with practical hands on exercises. The Appendix module(s) detailed in the outline are included in the course material but are not delivered as part of the training due to time constraints.

However, as this course is fully modularised, an Appendix module could be swapped out with any one, or more, of the main modules of comparable size and duration if so desired. It is worth noting that this course could also be delivered in its entirety on a Microsoft SQL Server 2005 platform.

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Audience

This course is intended for students who are completely new to querying with Microsoft SQL Server products and who need a gentle but concise introduction to the subject. This would be an ideal course for anyone wishing to learn SQL with the aim of implementing the language in a reporting environment.

Skills Gained

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

Use SQL Server Management Studio for Querying Purposes
Understand the Basic Structure of SQL Server Databases
Retrieve Data from Tables Using the SELECT Statement
Filter Data Using the WHERE Clause
Sort Data Using the ORDER BY Clause
Query Data from Multiple Tables by Using Joins
Summarize and Group Data Using Aggregate Functions
Combine and Limit Result Sets
Work with Simple Nested Subqueries
Work with Correlated Subqueries
Add Records to a Table Using the INSERT Statement
Remove Records from a Table Using the DELETE Statement
Modify Existing Records Using the UPDATE Statement

Prerequisites

Students should ideally be familiar with basic programming concepts and understand the fundamental design of relational databases and the concept of data normalization.

Course Outline

1. Introduction to SQL Server Databases

Objects in a SQL Server Database Database Diagrams Components of a SQL Server Database Table Native SQL Server Data Types Categories of SQL Statements Adding Comments to SQL Code

2. Using the SELECT Statement to Retrieve Data

Examine the Basic Syntax of the SELECT Statement Retrieving Columns of Data from a Table Using Aliases for Column Names Using Aliases for Table Names

3. Retrieving Specific Rows of Data Using the WHERE Clause

How to Use the WHERE Clause Overview of Operators Filter Data by Using Comparison Operators Filter Data by Using String Comparisons Filter Data by Using Logical Operators Filter Data Using a Range of Values Filter Data Using a List of Values Working with NULL Values Introducing Native SQL Server Functions Functions Relating to NULL Values

4. Formatting and Sorting Result Sets

Sorting Data Using the ORDER BY Clause Eliminating Duplicate Rows Using String Literals Using Expressions

5. Querying Data from Multiple Tables by Using Joins

Introduction to Joins Using Inner Joins Using Outer Joins Using Cross Joins Joining More than Two Tables Joining a Table to Itself

6. Summarizing Data Using Aggregate Functions

Using Aggregate Functions Native to SQL Server Using Aggregate Functions with NULL Values Grouping Summarized Data with GROUP BY Filtering Grouped Data Using the HAVING Clause

7. Combining and Limiting Result Sets

Combining Result Sets Using the UNION Operator Limiting Result Sets Using the TOP Operator

8. Working with Subqueries

Introduction to Subqueries Using Subqueries as Expressions and Derived Tables Scalar versus Tabular Subqueries Using Correlated Subqueries Using the EXISTS Clause with Correlated Subqueries

9. Inserting Data into Tables

Inserting a Single Row into a Table Inserting Multiple Rows into a Table Differentiating Various INSERT Statements

10. Deleting Data from Tables

Deleting Rows from a Table Truncating a Table Deleting Rows Based on Data in Other Tables

11. Updating Data in Tables

Updating Rows in a Table Updating Rows Based on Data in Other Tables

Appendix 1. Ranking Grouped Data

Ranking Data Using Ranking Functions Using ROW_NUMBER Using RANK Using DENSE_RANK Using NTILE Summary of Ranking Functions Based on Their Functionality