Q1.11: Certified Sybase Professional - CSPDBA
Here's a list of commonly asked questions about becoming a
CSPDBA:
What are the exams like?
The exams are administered by Drake Testing and Technologies and are
given at Drake authorized testing centers. The Environment and Operations
exams each take an hour, and the Fundamentals exam takes an hour and a half.
Each exam contains between 60 and 90 questions. Many of the questions are
multiple choice, some are select all that apply and some are fill in
the blank. Depending on the exam, a score of 67% - 72% is required to pass.
The exams are challenging, but fair.
Before taking an exam, Drake provides you with a short tutorial exam
that you can take to get an idea of the format of the exam questions.
You receive a report each time you complete an exam. The report shows
the passing score, your total score, and your score in various sections of
the exam. (You aren't told which specific questions you answered correctly
or incorrectly.)
How do I register for the exams?
Call 1-800-8SYBASE, select option 2, then option 2 again. You will be
connected to a Drake representative. Currently each exam costs $150.
What happens once I pass?
You will receive a certificate in the mail about a month after you've
passed all the exams. When you receive your certificate, you'll also have
the opportunity to enter into a licensing agreement that will allow you to
use the Certified Sybase Professional service mark (logo) in your office and
on your business cards. If your company is an Open Solutions partner, your
certification is acknowledged by the appearance of the CSP logo with your
company's name in the Open Solutions Directory. If you have a CompuServe
account, you can obtain access to a private section of Sybase OpenLine, a
technical forum on CompuServe.
What topics are covered?
- Sybase SQL Server Fundamentals Exam Topics:
- Sybase client/server architecture
- SQL Server objects
- Use of tables
- Use of indexes
- Use of columns
- Use of defaults
- Use of triggers
- Use of keys
- Use of check constraints
- Use of datatypes
- Use of cursors
- System datatypes
- Views
- Data integrity
- Rules
- Select statements
- Transaction management
- Locking
- Stored procedures
- Local and global variables
- Sybase SQL Server Environment Exam Topics:
- Configuration and control
- Starting the SQL Server
- Accessing remote servers
- Stopping the SQL Server
- Using buildmaster
- Installing the SQL Server
- Using the standard databases
- Admin Utilities and Tools
- System stored procedures
- Using system tables
- Load and unload utilities
- Resources
- Disk mirroring
- Creating databases
- Managing segments
- Managing transaction logs
- Managing thresholds
- Managing audit logs
- Devices
- Security
- Establishing security
- Roles
- Managing user accounts
- Sybase SQL Server Operations Exam Topics:
- Monitoring
- Starting the Backup Server
- Monitoring the errorlog
- Diagnostics
- Resolving contention and locking problems
- Managing application stored procedures
- Recovery
- Backup
- Load
- Backup strategies
- Security
- Establishing security
- Roles
- Managing user accounts
- Admin utilities and tools
- System stored procedures
- Using system tables
- Load and unload utilities