Describe a time when you had to troubleshoot a critical database issue under pressure. How did you resolve it?

Question

Accepted Answer

Resolved a critical database outage during peak hours by quickly identifying the root cause and implementing a fix.

Identified the issue: A sudden spike in database connections caused a performance bottleneck.
Analyzed logs: Reviewed error logs to pinpoint the source of the connection overload.
Implemented a temporary fix: Increased the maximum connections limit to alleviate immediate pressure.
Communicated with the team: Informed stakeholders about the issue and the steps being taken to resolve it.
Conducted a root cause analysis: After stabilizing the system, I investigated the application code that led to the spike.
Optimized queries: Worked with developers to optimize the queries that were causing excessive connections.

Interview Questions Asked to SQL Database Administrator at Other Companies