Policy Based Management Fundamentals

Over the past few years, the role of database servers has dramatically increased its importance in almost every industry. Meanwhile, SQL Server has increased its feature set and its ability to scale in enterprise environments. As a result, the management of database servers has become a complex, manual and brittle process, with limited insight for troubleshooting problems. Aiming at improving, SQL Server manageability, as part of an ongoing effort by Microsoft to reduce the total cost of ownership, SQL Server 2008 introduces Policy-Based Management. Policy-Based Management enables users to manage SQL Servers by declarative intent, a.k.a., policies, that is, by specifying how the system should be and not the means to achieve it. By raising the level of management abstraction, Policy-Based Management simplifies the management process, provides policy automation, and provides greater insight into the system.