Introduction

This article is intended to cover the answers to BizTalk Database related questions which a BizTalk developer can face during an interview.

Questions and Answers

1. What effect does creating a new Host have on the Database?
   When the new host is created it results in a new entry in the Host table in the Management database and also a new Host queue in the MessageBox.
   
   
2. The MessageBox database holds all the messages that are processed, what about messaging Objects?
   Messaging objects viz. Receive Ports, Receive Locations, Send ports, etc. are stored in the Management Database.
   
   
3. Is there any change in the database when the filter is added to Send port or when Activate property of Receive shape is set to true?
   Yes. An entry is added in subscription table.
   
   
4. What databases are part of every solution?
   BizTalk Server Management database, MessageBox databases, Tracking database, and SSO database are four databases which are used by BizTalk server runtime operations. It is the component that encapsulates and abstracts the database component and is the interface used by BizTalk Server to interact with the MessageBox. The Message Agent is a Component Object Model (COM) component that provides interfaces for publishing messages, subscribing to messages, retrieving messages, and so on. This interface is the only mechanism used by other BizTalk Server components, including the adapter framework and orchestrations, to interact with the MessageBox.
   
   
5. Which service looks after known issues in the database?
   Monitor BizTalk Server, this job scans the BizTalkMgmtDb, BizTalkMsgBoxDb and BizTalkDTADb database for any known issues, including orphaned instances.
   
   
6. How would you define database role in context to BizTalk?
   The database is used to store the data about the Message and other data required for processing it, along with the help of SQL Server Agent Jobs.
   
   
7. Which SQL Agent job runs continuously?
   MessageBox_Message_ManageRefCountLog_BizTalkMsgBoxDb is the job which runs continuously in spite of scheduled to run once per minute.
   
   
8. Messages without subscribers are removed, how?
   MessageBox_Message_ManageRefCountLog_BizTalkMsgBoxDb determines when a message is no longer referenced by any subscriber. When no subscriber found it starts MessageBox_Message_Cleanup_BizTalkMsgBoxDb which removes the unused message.
   
   
9. Does implementing BAM require more database?
   Yes. BAM Analysis, BAM Archive, BAMAlertsApplication, BAMAlertsNSMain, BAM Primary Import database and BAM Star Schema can be used to implement BAM solution.
   
   
10. Which database stores the configuration information for receive locations?
    Single Sign-On database (SSODb) securely stores the configuration information for receive locations, other known secret information is stored in the BizTalkMgmtDb.
    
    
11. How many databases are used for implementing BRE?
    In addition to the default 4 databases only one database, i.e. Rule Engine Database.
    
    
12. What are the options for upgrading BizTalk Server Database?
    There are two ways for upgrading
    1.In Place upgrade
    2.Transfer Upgrade.
    See More

Author

Maheshkumar S Tiwari
http://tech-findings.blogspot.com/

See Also

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