The Oracle Database Performance Solution

Ignite for Oracle is the one Oracle database monitoring, analysis and tuning solution designed specifically to solve and prevent the toughest performance problems. It's not a general purpose monitor - OEM does that. Ignite goes where conventional tools cannot.

In just four clicks, Ignite users drill down to find the most important performance problem in the database. With easy to understand graphical displays, and automatically emailed graphic reports, Ignite is the one Oracle tool that all DBAs, Developers and DBA Managers can use to collaborate. From real-time to historical trends, Ignite specializes in saving DBA and developer time and helping them measurably improve Oracle service. 

Response Time Analysis

Ignite applies Response Time analysis, measuring the time for query response, rather than focusing only on server health metrics.  Ignite measures time associated with each tiny operation - or wait event - and uses it to expose delays in end user service. This is the most important indicator, since it shows applications waiting on Oracle to respond.

But Ignite does not stop there. It gathers real time session data, server resource levels, and query information of your Oracle database performance. It also analyzes historical trends of response time over multiple dimensions - such as wait event, program, explain plan or object. Then Ignite correlates the data to lead the DBA through the most important problems and solutions.

To learn more about how Ignite can pinpoint database performance issues, click here to view a demo.

New Features for Expert Oracle Performance Monitoring

Ignite 8.3 for the enterprise is targeted at database professionals who work with large deployments of Ignite.  The enhancements in this release are designed for Oracle professionals faced with distributed environments, enterprise authentication, security and compliance, and proactive monitoring of large numbers of instances around the world. 

Ignite Central

Ignite Central provides a unified view of both database performance and alert status across all of your database servers managed by Ignite.

Ignite Central works across the datacenter or across the world

The Ignite Central dashboard focuses your attention on top problems by providing a summary of monitored instances in alarm.    In addition, you can perform a custom search across all monitored instances, both local and remote, then drill into any instance’s Ignite server for detailed performance analysis with a single click. 

Identify the top problem database instances across your entire enterprise

Ignite Central provides a platform that is ideally suited for large scale and/or geographically distributed database deployments, delivering many key benefits including:

• Scalability to tens of thousands of monitored instances.  This high level enterprise view lets you see you entire operation from an interconnected Ignite environment.
• Exception-based management focuses on the top problems without the information overload that can mask critical problems. 
• Global monitoring around the world and around the clock
• Access to all monitored database instances gives your entire team the knowledge to make informed decisions

Ignite Central’s distributed architecture communicates over HTTPS using a low-overhead protocol ( REST ) to minimize bandwidth.  Unlike federated IT architectures, Ignite Central functions without the duplication or synchronization of data, and adds only a negligible amount of network traffic.  This offers optimal efficiency, even over WANs.  Industry standard SSL encryption can be used to maintain the security for all data passed between Ignite Servers.

Active Directory Authentication

Numerous companies have embraced Windows Server Active Directory to manage domain users and security settings. Ignite 8.3 integrates with Active Directory (2003 and higher) to allow domain users to login and use Ignite. This eliminates the need to maintain separate logins, while ensuring that the password strength and expiration policies specified in Active Directory are fully enforced.

Domain credentials and "single sign on" simplify authentication

Once you have configured Ignite to point at your Active Directory server, you can add groups from your domain into Ignite and assign permissions to them.  To add groups, go to Options then the Administration tab User Administration. Here you will find the Add Active Directory Group button.   The Search group function shown below makes it easy to find specific groups within the domain.

Quickly configure domain access using Active Directory security groups

To get started using Active Directory in Ignite refer to this Knowledge Base article.

Alert Groups

Maintaining consistent alerting across multiple database instances can be difficult, even with as few as two monitored instances.  An alert group provides a mechanism for simplifying the maintenance of alerts, while ensuring consistent alerting across multiple database instances. To create an alert group just click on the Alert link at the top right of Ignite then the Alert Group tab. 

  

Alert groups standardize alerting across database instances

Once an alert group is created, Ignite runs each of the selected alerts on the entire list of selected database instances, drastically simplifying alert setup and maintenance. Alert groups with a heterogeneous collection of databases (Oracle, SQL Server, Sybase, or DB2) are supported.  Ignite applies the selected alerts to only the appropriate databases automatically, allowing a single alert group to be used across multiple databases types.

When setting up a new database for monitoring, Ignite 8.3 reminds you to add alert groups, making sure that no database goes without alerting. This is done using a new page that automatically appears in the database instance registration wizard, prompting you to select the alert groups to use for the newly added database instance.

New Preconfigured Alerts

In 8.3 Confio introduces new additions to its family of preconfigured alerts. 

Ignite allows you to easily select from a lists preconfigured alerts

 New Oracle Alerts

• Oracle Session Limit: This alert compares the number of active sessions to the maximum number of sessions as configured in the v$parameter 'sessions' row. The result is returned as a percentage.
• Oracle Redo Log Switching Frequency: This alert will determine the number of log switches that occurred within the last X minutes (X = alert execution frequency). Specify the hours of the day the alert should include or ignore, and specify the time as 'Inclusive' or 'Exclusive' accordingly.
• Oracle Alert Log Entries: This Oracle (11g and up) alert searches for the specified string in the alert log (from the x$dbgalertext table) and returns all unique matching entries and the count of each entry.
• Oracle Stale Statistics: This alert will return a list of all tables and indexes that have stale or empty statistics. All tables and indexes meeting this criteria are reported each time this alert is run. To reduce repetitive results, it is recommended to configure this alert with an execution interval of at least one day.
• Oracle Long Running Transaction: This alert queries the length of time that active transactions have been running. To limit the result set and reduce Ignite Repository space, set the Minimum transaction run time.

New Oracle, SQL Server, and Sybase Alerts

• Total Blocking Wait Time: This alert will report the amount of time that sessions waited due to blocking. Applies to wait time as seen on the Ignite Blocking tab.

In addition you can create custom alerts and custom metrics, adapting Ignite to meet your specific requirements.

Configurable Password Encryption

Ignite 8.3 provides the ability to select a password encryption to match your requirements.  In addition to Ignite’s default encryption, you now have the ability to choose from industry standard AES 128-bit or AES 256-bit encryption. 

AES is a form of password-based encryption (PBE), utilizing a passphrase to generate the encryption key.  One  advantage of AES encryption is that it produces a different encryption string every time it encrypts the same value, improving security.

 

Choose an encryption algorithm to match specific security policies

Ignite Management Options

This new interface exposes many Ignite features that were previously hidden, helping you better leverage the power of Ignite.   After detailed analysis, our user experience experts have organized the controls into 3 tabs: Monitor Setup, Administration, and Support.  

 

Management Options provide easy access to all settings

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Ignite 8.2 extends Confio's mission to deliver Oracle tools that identify, pinpoint, and resolve the biggest issues impacting performance. With support for new Oracle wait events focused on Exadata, RAC, and ASM, Ignite gives you unparalleled visibility on not only the amount of wait time, but specific details that make resolving these issues easier than ever before. 

Oracle Performance Dashboard

Utilizing Confio's analysis to separate the routine from the important data, the new Ignite 8.2 dashboard, covering all instanstances and all database types, identifies the instances with changes in response time that require attention.  

Database instances, including Oracle, SQL Server, Sybase and DB2, are all displayed within one web browser based dashboard. From dashboard alarms, the root cause of the problem can be identified in four clicks or less. 

Exadata

As Tanel Põder points out in the book, Expert Oracle Exadata, "… in order to avoid wasting effort on fixing the wrong problem, we really need to measure what matters! For database performance, nothing matters more than response time, …" Ignite 8.2 has added capability that tracks the Exadata wait events, helping you get the most out of your Exadata investment.

 Specifically for Exadata, Ignite now monitors:

1. I/O Saved By Cell Offload
2. Flash Cache Hit Ratio
3. Smart Scan Efficiency
4. Cell Single Block Physical Read Latency
5. Cell Multiblock Physical Read Latency
6. Cell Smart Table Scan Latency

Exadata is a big investment. When this hardware is offline or underperforming it is not delivering value to your organization. Ignite 8.2 provides fine grained visibility on the Oracle performance bottlenecks, giving you the ability to maximize the return on investment.

Real Application Clusters (RAC)

Because of RAC overhead in accessing the RAC global cache,  it is possible for applications to perform worse on RAC environments. OLTP and OLAP, and especially hybrid servers processing both, place a unique load on RAC often causing bottlenecks. Wait time created by node inter-communication managed by the Global Cache Services (GCS) is common, but not always easy to identify. Without proper tuning, GC wait time can become a bottleneck.  Do you know if your active and passive RAC nodes are tuned for optimal performance?    Ignite can show you how Oracle performance changes after adding additional instance(s), specifically using the GC waits wait events.   In this chart, Ignite separates productive response from RAC overhead wait time. 

The new Ignite 8.2 metrics for RAC include:

1. Average GC CR Block Receive Time
2. Average GC Current Block Receive Time
3. LMS Service Time
4. Average GC CR Block Build Time
5. Average GC CR Block Send Time
6. Average GC CR Block Flush Time
7. Current Block Service Time
8. Average Current Block Pin Time
9. Average Current Block Send Time
10. Average Current Block Flush Time

Since RAC frequently receives a mix of SQL directed at either a load-balancing service or a specific node within the cluster, identifying the bottlenecks can be challenging. Ignite 8.2 focuses your attention on the top waits that degrade RAC performance.

Automated Storage Management (ASM)

As Oracle's recommended storage management solution for both RAC and single-instance Oracle databases, ASM delivers many advantages including simplifying the administration of Oracle related files. Unfortunately, the tools provided with ASM to monitor performance are strictly command line. Looking holistically at the database, including both hardware and software, I/O response time can play a key role in Oracle ASM performance. With Ignite 8.2, new ASM summary metrics have been added to monitor ASM performance and correlate it to query response time..

 These new monitors include:

1. ASM Summary Reads
2. ASM Summary Writes
3. ASM Summary Read Time
4. ASM Summary Write Time
5. ASM Summary Bytes Read
6. ASM Summary Bytes Written

Custom metrics, described below, give you the ability to configure Ignite to monitor specifics of your storage usage and performance. These preconfigured monitors, in conjunction with the custom metrics, provide visibility on the overall performance of ASM. 

Custom Metrics

In addition to expert determined metrics, Ignite 8.2 contains a new user interface that enables custom Oracle performance metrics to be easily added. This limitless extensibility provides you the ability to monitor any metric accessible from any database instance through a SQL Query.

License Request Wizard

Once you have moved from a free trial to a licensed copy of Ignite,  the process of requesting, updating, and managing license keys is easier in Ignite 8.2. The process is as simple as clicking on the appropriate button, then letting the wizard guide you through the license request process. When you receive your new key, just cut and paste it in the license key text area.    As before, there is no need to re-install Ignite to upgrade or change a license. 

 Multi-Byte Character Support

The latest version of Ignite includes support for multi-byte character sets used in many languages including Chinese (simplified and traditional), Japanese, Hebrew, Vietnamese, and Korean. Ignite can now be used in applications storing multi-byte character data in the Oracle instance. 

There is no cost for any Ignite upgrades.  All supported customers have unlimited access to each new release when it becomes available. 

Agentless Oracle Performance Monitoring

Ignite for Oracle monitors Oracle databases without installing any software on the production systems. Ignite is built on a three tier architecture, with software installed only in the middle tier. DBAs, developers and managers access the tool from their browser. Ignite is installed on any Windows, UNIX, or Linux server capable of running Java. The repository database is configured in an Oracle or SQL Server instance, often a test or development system. Ignite's agentless probes reach across the network to the monitored databases - Oracle as well as other vendors - and pull performance statistics back to the repository for analysis and reporting.

 

No Load on Production Systems

Using the agentless architecture, Ignite for Oracle places less than 1% load on the monitored servers. For production use in the most sensitive environments, Ignite captures data continuously without impacting the target system. When it is time to upgrade Ignite to access new features, all the change takes place on the Ignite server, with nothing to change on Clients or Monitored servers. For detailed system requirements, see Specs and Install.

Ignite System Requirements

A single Ignite installation can simultaneously monitor multiple Oracle instances on different types of platforms, as well as SQL Server, Sybase, and DB2. There are two choices for download, depending on the type of server that Ignite will be installed on: Windows or UNIX/Linux. For each, a single download and packaged installation sets everything up, so you are running in minutes. 

Server Running Ignite Software

• The Ignite software can be installed on almost any Windows, Unix or Linux server, either physical or virtual. It only needs an operating system that can support Java JRE 1.5 or higher. Repository hardware and configuration must meet minimum requirements as shown below.

# Number of monitored instances	Minimum # of CPU	RAM	Architecture
<20	1	1 GB	32 or 64 bit
20-50	2	2 GB	32 or 64 bit
51-100	4	4 GB	64 bit
101-250*	4	8 GB	64 bit

* For over 250 monitored instance enable Ignite Central.

Ignite Repository Server:

• An Oracle or Microsoft SQL Server instance is utilized by Ignite to collect and process data from monitored servers.  A dedicated instance is not required, but it cannot be the "monitored" instance. The data collection server is defined as the Ignite Repository server, and the requirements are listed below.
• Ignite Repository requires either:
  • Oracle 8.1.7 or higher (8i, 9i, 10g, 11g)
  • Microsoft SQL Server 2000 SP3 or higher (2000, 2005, 2008, 2012)
• "Express" editions of both Oracle and SQL Server can hold a repository but will likely run out of space due to the 4GB limitations.
• Do not put the repository into an instance that will be monitored. Doing so will affect the performance of that instance.
• Installation requires access to a DBA (Oracle) or Sysadmin (MSSQL) user for the install which will hold the repository.
• Repository hardware and configuration must meet minimum requirements as shown below.

# Number of monitored Instances	Minimum # of CPU	RAM	Architecture
<20	1	2 GB	32 or 64 bit
20-50	2	4 GB	64 bit
51-100	4	8 GB	64 bit
101-250	4	16 GB	64 bit

Note: if Ignite software and repository server are co-located the numbers are additive.

Ignite Repository Storage:

Free Disk Space in Repository Instance: varies with number of monitored database instances and level of activity on each:

Monitored Database Activity	Repository Disk Space per Monitored Instance
Light	1 GB
Medium	3 GB
Heavy	5 GB

Client Browser

• Internet Explorer 8 and higher
• Firefox 3.6 and higher
• Chrome (latest stable)

Monitored Database Instances

These requirements apply to monitored database instances, hosted on either physical or virtual servers. 

Oracle Monitored Database Instances:

• Ignite for Oracle supports monitoring of Oracle 8.1.7 and higher (8i, 9i, 10g,11g) 
• • SYS user privileges are required for initial setup
• The server holding the Ignite software must be able to connect to the monitored Oracle server

SQL Server Monitored Database Instances:

• Ignite for SQL Server supports monitoring of SQL Server 2000 SP3 and higher ( 2000, 2005, 2008, 2012)
• SYSADMIN privileges are required to setup Ignite
• The server holding the Ignite software must be able to connect to the monitored MSSQL server.

Sybase ASE Monitored Databases:

• Ignite for Sybase supports monitoring of ASE 12.5.0.3 and higher.
• SA_ROLE privileges are required to setup Ignite
• The server holding the Ignite software must be able to connect to the monitored Sybase server.

DB2 Monitored Databases:

• Ignite for IBM DB2 LUW supports monitoring of DB2 LUW 8.1 FixPack 13 and higher (8.2.2,...) 
• SYSADM privileges are required to setup Ignite
• The server holding the Ignite software must be able to connect to the monitored DB2 server.

VMware Monitoring

These requirements apply to monitoring of the vCenter server for use with IgniteVM.  

VMware vCenter Servers:

Confio supports connections to ESX/ESXi and/or vCenter.  vCenter is not required, but highly recommended.

• VMware ESX/ESXi 4.0 and higher
• VMware vCenter 4.0 and higher 
• Ignite VM installs on any Windows, Linux, or UNIX server with Java JRE 1.5 or higher
• One time entry of a read-only VMware password will be required. Password is not visible to IgniteVM users.

Learn more about Oracle on VMware monitoring.

Detailed Oracle Performance Analysis and Monitoring

Ignite is unique in combining the most important analysis technique, response time analysis, with a full set of customizable server resource monitors, advisors, alerts and reports into a tool dedicated to Oracle database application tuning and performance. Working alongside OEM, which handles routine management, Ignite solves and prevents the serious performance issues for the DBA and development teams. 

Ignite for Oracle Features for DBAs and Developers

• Cross-Platform Dashboard »
• Oracle Query Response Time »
• Historical Trend and Drill Down »
• Wait Time Data in Real Time »
• Wait Event Alerts and Reports »
• Oracle Tuning Advisors »
• Correlated Resources and Response Time »
• 11 Dimensions of Wait Time Drill Down »

Cross-Platform Dashboards

The Ignite dashboard includes all the instances in a multi-vendor environment, grouped however your DBA team needs it. Only Ignite identifies the most serious problems from Oracle, SQL Server, Sybase and DB2 on one screen so that the extended DBA team can all use the same tool. Alarms for changing response time and critical server resources all appear in one place, 3 clicks from the root cause of any problem.  

 

Oracle Query Response Time

Only Ignite can show one screen with the three essential facts required to isolate an Oracle performance problem: which query, which wait event bottlenecks, and what is the time impact of each.  When tuning Oracle, Ignite gives an uniquely simple view of exactly what is causing the problem.   

 

Historical Trend and Drill Down

Ignite excels at showing long term historical performance trends in Oracle and giving the DBA and developer the ability to drill down to any point of interest.  Since Ignite keeps detailed wait event statistics in its data warehouse repository, the team can track response of Oracle queries, explain plans, programs and more, over days, weeks and months.  Then a DBA can display a bar chart to show the exact situation - such as changed query, missing index, excessive log file sync -  that occur at the exact time of a problem.  When an application owner calls, Ignite illustrates the situation at the historical time of interest.  

Wait Time Data in Real Time

With data as granular as one second, and real time updates, the Ignite for Oracle current view shows real time Oracle performance.  When a customer opens a trouble ticket, the DBA can respond instantly and see exactly why an Oracle session was locked, why a batch job was hung, or what I/O bottleneck caused the problem. Unlike Oracle tools that just show server resources, Ignite gives real time insight into tuning specific Oracle query processing delays. 

 

Wait Event Alerts and Reports

Ignite is unique in using Oracle wait events to trigger proactive alerts and generate trend reports so that DBAs and developers can use response time as their primary metric.  Whether being alerted on query SLA response violations, or excessive Log File Sync times, Ignite gives DBAs menus to build customized alerts and reports, and set automatic delivery based on alert priority and report schedules.   

Oracle Tuning Advisors

Oracle performance tuning advisors in Ignite are based on thousands of hours of analysis by Confio's senior DBAs in diagnosing problems based on response time analysis.  The Ignite engine captures tiny data points in our data warehouse, and the tuning advisors which problems need attention based on direct impact on users. Then clicking on the alarm trail takes DBAs to the root cause in 4 clicks or less. 

Correlate Resources and Response Time

Conventional tools show server and instance resources like CPU, memory, logical and physical I/O. But do they help in finding the source when a problem arises?  Ignite for Oracle puts wait event based response time and server resources on one screen, so the DBA can see how they are tied together.  Does a CPU spike correspond to a delay for a specific query? How much are selected Programs being held up by high physical reads?  Only Ignite correlates over 20 different resource metrics with response time to make Oracle tuning faster and more effective.  

11 Dimensions of Wait Time Drill Down

Built from a base of reponse time analysis, Ignite for Oracle gives the most detailed response time analysis of any Oracle monitoring tool.  Users can drill down to focus on response for 11 different Oracle wait time dimensions in our data warehouse, including SQL, Wait Event, Explain Plan, Program, Objects, and even Oracle E-Business specific application dimensions.  Many tools have wait event data, but only Ignite lets you see a chart to answer a question such as "which Explain Plan had the highest delays when hitting a certain index?".