04/07/2024

Executions plan—complex maps charted by the SQL Server optimizer, dictate the most efficient route for data retrieval. However, the plans are not static. They morph and adapt, influenced by a host of factors ranging from data volume changes to system upgrades. Each of the execution plan changes in SQL Server has the potential to sway performance dramatically.

Understanding the reasons behind these shifts, and more importantly, how to effectively manage them translates to maintaining optimal performance in SQL Server environments.

• Blog
• Microsoft SQL
• Performance Monitor

27/06/2024

Performance issues rarely occur in isolation. Often, a single problem can trigger a cascade of related issues, each compounding the overall impact on the system. This case study explores such a scenario in the T10 database on the g1rush server. 

• Blog
• Microsoft SQL
• Oracle
• Performance Monitor
• PostgreSQL

20/06/2024

Execution plans choose the way in which SQL queries are executed by the database engine. As such, they are a difference between a smoothly running database and one that stumbles under load. Sometimes, an execution plan changes, for various reasons—often silently and without warning—and the far-reaching fallout can be huge.

The most immediate impact seen as the execution plan changes is a decline in query performance. A query that once ran smoothly in milliseconds might, due to an altered plan, start consuming seconds. This increase in query time can cascade into longer load times for applications, frustrated end-users, and severe financial repercussions in high-stakes environments such as financial trading platforms or real-time data services.

• Blog
• Microsoft SQL
• Performance Monitor

06/06/2024

If no one sees the database issues, do they really happen?  – Contrary to the popular philosophical dilemma, this question can be answered quite easily – Absolutely yes. Unseen or unmonitored problems in database systems do occur and can indeed cause significant disruptions. It doesn’t matter if they’re not immediately apparent. Without monitoring of the database performance metrics and proactive management, these underlying issues can compound, leading to decreased performance, potential data loss, and even system failures that by their nature demand urgent and often extensive interventions to rectify.

The cost of ignoring database performance metrics is just too great.

• Blog
• Microsoft SQL
• Oracle
• Performance Monitor
• PostgreSQL

23/05/2024

On the 20th of April, query load times usually ranged from 12 to 15 seconds per snapshot, but there was a notable spike exceeding 2,000 seconds during certain periods. This anomaly suggested a deeper issue, prompting a detailed investigation. By examining the correlation between locks and application issues, executions, disk reads, and buffer writes, a significant overlap was found between increased query durations and intensified locking issues. Accessing the lock history tab provided detailed data on each lock event, including the time, duration, and specific database elements affected.

• Blog
• Performance Monitor