Understanding Hardware: The Right Fights for the DBA to Pick with the Server Team
0 likes540 views
This document summarizes a presentation given by Joey D'Antoni on how database administrators should pick their battles when working with server, storage, and virtualization teams. Some of the key points made include: avoiding fights over issues like RAID levels, virtual vs physical servers, and storage layouts; ensuring databases are on the latest versions of Windows; using features like Group Managed Service Accounts; working with storage administrators on space allocation and backups; and understanding virtualization best practices when databases are virtualized. The overall message is that relationships with other teams are important, and DBAs should focus on collaborating rather than arguing over issues that don't significantly impact databases.
Understanding Hardware: The Right Fights for the DBA to Pick with the Server Team
- 1. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIESEMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES The Right Fights for the DBA to Pick with the Server Team Joey D’Antoni August 17, 2015
- 3. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Joey D’Antoni • Joey has over 15 years of experience with a wide variety of data platforms, in both Fortune 50 companies as well as smaller organizations • He is a frequent speaker on database administration, big data, and career management • He is the co-president of the Philadelphia SQL Server User’s Group • MSCE, Business Intelligence, Data Platform • He wants you to make sure you can restore your data Joeydantoni.com
- 4. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Survey How is your team structured? • Do you report through— • Infrastructure • Applications • Development • Other
- 5. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Agenda Why does this matter to your databases? What Fights You Shouldn’t Pick Servers Windows Storage Virtualization
- 6. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Why Does All of This Matter?
- 7. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES What Fights Not to Pick
- 8. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Battles to Avoid RAID 5—it doesn’t matter with modern storage Whether or not your database servers are virtual or physical Likewise with the cloud—it’s just a VM in someone else’s data center Storage layouts—more on this later, it CAN matter, but not always
- 10. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Servers You may or may not have much say in this—depends on the size of your org If you are buying a few servers: • Minimize the amount of cores to what you need • Faster, fewer cores (E7-8893 v3, E5-2637 v3) • ALL THE RAM • OS Drives/Install • Consider requesting local SSD if you are using physical server—TempDB
- 11. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Servers Cont’d • High Availability and Disaster Recovery servers should have the same hardware as primary
- 13. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Poll: Versions of Windows The Oldest OS in Your Environment
- 14. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Always Run SQL Server on the Latest Version of Windows Cluster Aware Updating Dynamic Quorum SQL Server will run the same on any supported version of Windows
- 15. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Group Managed Service Accounts Never have to change a password again Active Directory manages passwords for accounts Permissions are granted for accounts to be used on servers Introduced in Windows 2012, fully supported in SQL 2016 (HA/DR)
- 16. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Windows and AD Permissions Instant File Initialization Servers in a Database OU Same File Systems Everywhere
- 18. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Your SAN Admin
- 20. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Modern SANs Cont’d Your SAN admin can’t tell you where the data is This is good—the array is optimizing performance and minimizing hotspots TempDB—should be pinned if it needs performance Transaction Logs should avoid flash tier for optimal storage performance
- 21. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES All Flash Arrays Talk to your vendor for best practices Things like compression may be different Arrays typically do their own compression Randomize sequential operations to make them faster Spreads workload across the array similar to tiered storage
- 22. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Fighting for Space • Be honest • Work with SAN admin to reclaim space where you don’t need it • Try to define standards for space allocations, and standard upgrade units • Don’t waste space
- 23. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Backups • Always use compression (SQL Backup Compression) • Deduplication is awesome, unless you want to restore your data
- 25. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Virtualized Database Servers Virtual servers are here to stay Get used to them—most things stay the same Once again—buy the VM team a beer(s)
- 26. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES VMs—What to Ask For Memory Reservations—only for production, but insist on it Read-only access to vCenter/SCVMM—you need to see host activity A clear understanding of storage subsystem and config No overprovisioned CPUs Snapshots are not backups—you still need database backups Paravirtual SCSI storage drivers Minimize your vCPU count
- 27. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Summary This is all about relationships It helps to be able to speak the language of the other teams Understanding storage is good for your career All of this stuff matters in the cloud, too
- 28. EMBARCADERO TECHNOLOGIES Thank you for attending! Connect with us 29 Read Joey’s Blog Community.embarcadero.com Take our word for it & try it out! http://www.embarcadero.co m/products/DBArtisan Take our survey Located in the chat window https://www.surveymonkey. com/r/RightFights