This book offers practical, task-based, and immediately usable recipes covering a wide range of advanced techniques for administering a high-performance SQL Server 2008 R2 system. In addition to its cookbook style, which ensures the solutions are presented in a clear step-by-step manner, its explanations go into great detail, which makes it good learning material for everyone who has experience in SQL Server and wants to improve. The book is designed in such a way that you can either read it chapter by chapter or refer to recipes that you want in no particular order. Although the book is focused on specific Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2, most of the concepts and explanations are also applicable to SQL Server 2008. If you are an experienced database administrator and database architect who wants to design, administer, and manage a scalable and high-performance SQL Server 2008 R2 system, then this book is for you. The book assumes that you have a good understanding of database management systems, specifically experience in Microsoft SQL Server 2008 administration.