Ignite for DB2
Ignite solves DB2 performance problems. For DBAs, IT managers and developers, Ignite goes further than any tool to find the source of bottlenecks in DB2 LUW.
Conventional tools measure server health; Ignite measures wait time. Conventional tools show just current statistics; Ignite uses Performance Intelligence to analyze historical trends and uncover the root cause of slow queries.
Ignite cuts costs, allowing DBA teams to do more with less, and avoids unnecessary investment to resolve performance problems.
DB2 Performance Highlights
- Cuts hours and days from time to close support problems
- Identifies key offenders – queries using excess DB2 resources
- Illustrates development changes causing DB2 to slow down
- Maximizes existing servers, eliminating need for excess investment
- Always on, with no load on production servers, to see all the problems
Ignite is the only tool that captures and graphically analyzes all the DB2 wait event data, showing exactly which queries are waiting on critical resources and what can be done to fix them. The result is that DBAs find DB2 performance problems and fix them fast.
DB2 Performance Intelligence
DB2 Performance Intelligence in Confio Ignite applies business intelligence analysis techniques to IT performance. It captures detailed data in the Ignite Performance Data Warehouse, then mines the data for historical trends, correlates problems, and exposes anomalies. Performance Intelligence ensures that the DBA and development teams can get quick answers to the key questions – what is my biggest database problem, and why? Which SQLs are slow and why? Which code changes caused problems?
Ignite Performance Data Warehouse
DB2 Performance Intelligence analyzes millions of granular data points, captured over weeks or months, in the Performance Data Warehouse. It then charts the collected data and quantifies issues that most impact the IT end user. The Data Warehouse tracks performance along multiple dimensions, then lets the DBA “slice and dice” the data to see relationships across SQL queries, DB2 stored procedures, programs, databases, time of day, user, session and more.
Common monitoring systems capture only broad statistics across the entire database, which is useful for determining “health” but not sufficiently detailed to find root cause. Ignite measures wait time for each query at the most granular level. Performance Intelligence gives the performance answers based on what matters most to end users – how long their application has to wait on DB2.
Agentless Monitoring
Ignite for DB2 performance monitors DB2 databases without installing any software on the production systems, and its browser based interface requires no client software for the user. The Igniter Suite is built on the three tier architecture shown. DBAs, developers and managers access the solution from any browser. The Ignite PI Server is installed on a server with access to a SQL Server or Oracle test or development database, which houses the Performance Data Warehouse. And the Ignite agentless probes reach across the network to the monitored servers – DB2 as well as other vendor databases – and pull performance statistics back to the data warehouse.
No Load on Production Systems
Using the agentless architecture, Ignite for DB2 performance places less than 1% load on the monitored servers. For production use in the most sensitive environments, Ignite gives continuous Performance Intelligence without impacting the target system. When it is time to upgrade Ignite to access new features, all the change takes place on the Performance Data Warehouse, with nothing to change on the Client or Monitored servers. Ignite is self contained with its own captive web server, so all you need is a non-dedicated SQL Server or Oracle instance to house the Performance Data Warehouse.
Wait Time Analysis
Ignite for DB2 Performance brings best practice Wait Time analysis techniques to DB2 performance management. Wait Time techniques focus on the most important performance question – why is an application waiting on the DB2 database, and what can be done? Ignite measures wait time associated with each tiny operation database operation and uses it to expose delays in end user service.
DB2 Wait Events
Typical systems focus on counting server operations, which shows server health but is not a good indicator of IT service. Measuring the time taken for each step a query takes in DB2 translates directly into how well the application performs. In SQL Server, each step is called a “wait event”, and Ignite tracks the time spent by each query on each wait event. For developers trying to optimize their code, and for DBAs needing to identify the most important bottleneck in the database, Ignite tells clearly which problem steps are most important to the end user system response.
New in Ignite for DB2
Ignite for DB2 includes new capabilities in the Ignite PI 4.3 release.
Proactive Alerts
Better to know about the problem before the phone rings. Ignite PI 4.3 adds the capability for proactive management of DB2 databases through alerting. By setting alerts on wait time thresholds for SQL queries, programs, availability, freespace, or any other value for which a procedure or query can be written, a DBA can be notified in advance if a potential problem begins. Since a buildup of wait time is often a precursor to user visible problems, alerts allow DBAs to stay ahead of the problem before users see them.
Email Reports Subscriptions
Ignite PI 4.3 lets DBAs automatically distribute Performance Intelligence reports on a regular basis. Now every manager on a list can see the trend of wait time for the week, or developers can see a graphical view of how their specific SQL query performance changed daily. Set up the report and it will run automatically, sending email to designated users with the most current reports.
