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Tier. Each row corresponds to an instance. The All row displays the average availability (%) of all instances. The following table shows the information displayed in the Instance table.
Table 4-1 Instance table
Column Description
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| Column | Description |
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| Icon | Indicates whether or not the instance is available. |
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| Instance | Name of the instance. |
| In MS- |
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| SQL | Breakdown of In MS-SQL duration of the instance. |
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| Executions | Total statements executions. |
| Availability |
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| Average percentage of time the instance was available. |
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Table 4-2 Information displayed in the Instance Details area
| Tab |
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Tab Information displayed
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| Information Displayed | |
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| Overview | The Overview tab displays In MS-SQL data and performance findings for the selected instance. |
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| Applications | The Applications tab displays the top resource-consuming databases, programs and machines. |
| More |
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The following options are available in the More tab: |
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| Info |
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If you select the All row, the information displayed reflects the average availability of all instances. The "Current" option and the Findings table will not be available. |
About gaining an overview of your system's performance
The Overview tab displays In MS-SQL data and performance findings for the selected instance. You can continue investigating a problem as follows:
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Table 4-3 General instance data
General instance data Description
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Details for ... Finding Provides quick links to additional tabs and views that would be helpful in your analysis of a particular problem.
About observing top resource-consuming entities
The Applications tab displays the top resource-consuming databases, programs and machines. All entities in this display launch the Activity tab, in context of the instance.
The following table describes the information displayed in the Databases table.Table 4-4 Database applicationsthe Databases table.
Table 4-4 Database applications
Column Description
Database The name of the top resource-consuming databases.
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Table 4-5 Program applications
Column Description
Program The name of the top resource-consuming programs.
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Table 4-6 Machine applications
Column Description
Machine The name of the top resource-consuming machines.
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Click on the respective icons to display the data in this column in a stacked graph, bar graph or numerical format.
About examining statistics for an instance
The Statistics tab, accessed from the More tab, displays statistical information for the selected instance, as reported by the SQL Server and collected by the Precise for SQL Server Collector.
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Server CPU Displays the SQL Server instance CPU utilization for the selected instance with respect to the CPU utilization of other processes (non-SQL Server).
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All entities in this display launch the Activity tab, in context of an instance or Tier. The following table describes the information displayed in the Statements table.
Table 4-8 Statement activities8 Statement activities
Column Description
Statement Displays the ID of the top resource-consuming statements.
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Table 4-9 Logical files activities
Column Description
Database Displays the name of the file's database.
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The following table describes the information displayed in the Storage Devices table.
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This information is only displayed if storage points are installed. |
Table 4-10 Storage device activities
| Column | Description |
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Column Description
Device Type Indicates a type of storage device, such as, Windows, HP, Symmetrix.
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Click on the respective icons to display the data in this column in a stacked graph, bar graph or numerical format.
About viewing the availability of SQL Server instances
The Availability tab, accessed from the More tab, displays the average percentage of time the SQL Server instance was available (that is, it met the SLA Availability requirements configured in the SLA settings over the specified time period) and a detailed log of the changes in availability status.
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The following table describes the information displayed on instance availability.Table 4-11 Instance availabilityavailability.
Table 4-11 Instance availability
| Item | Description |
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Item Description
Availability The average percentage of time the SQL Server instance was available.
Log A detailed log of the changes in availability status.
About viewing your system's current activity
The Current tab displays the overall activity and active sessions that occurred within the last minute for the selected instance.
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The following table describes the information displayed in the Session Activities area.
Table 4-12 Sessions
Item Description
Sessions Total number of sessions connected to the selected instance.
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Table 4-13 Active sessions (last minute)
Column Description
Icon Represents the current session's state (such as, Lock Wait, Request Wait).
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Table 4-14 Current activity graphs
Item Description
Overall activity (Last minute) Provides a graphical display of the overall activity that occurred within the last minute, for the selected instance, broken down into the following states: Idle Wait, Parallel Exchange Wait, Request Wait and In MS-SQL.
In MS-SQL (Last minute) Provides a graphical display of In MS-SQL activity that occurred within the last minute, for the selected instance, broken down into states, such as, Using CPU, I/O wait, and Lock Wait.
About the Findings area in the Dashboard tab
The Findings area in the Dashboard tab displays performance problems detected in the select instance(s). The findings list is displayed according to severity (highest to lowest).
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- Identifying the most resource-consuming instance
- Analyzing top performance findings per instance
- Identifying the highest resource consumers in various entities
- Examining instance statistics
- Monitoring a session's activity during the last minute
- Checking SQL server instance availability
Identifying the most resource-consuming instance
Precise for SQL Server enables you to determine which are the most resource-consuming instances, indicating a potential performance problem.
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- In the Time Frame list, choose the period of time you want to analyze.
- In the All SQL Server Instances table, observe the total In MS-SQL statistics and statement executions of the instance you want to analyze.
- Select the row of the instance you want to analyze.
- In the Instance Details area, on the Overview tab, check the In MS-SQL graph to view its resource consumption, over time, to identify problematic time periods and observe its general resource consumption trend.
- Check the Findings table to view the top problematic findings per instance.
Analyzing top performance findings per instance
The Dashboard tab helps you pinpoint performance problems by letting you observe the top problematic findings per instance, statement or object. You can then drill down on a finding and continue your analysis in the SmarTune tab, which provides important guidelines and clues as to what may be causing the performance problem.
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- In the Time Frame list, choose the period of time you want to analyze.
- In the All SQL Server Instances table, observe the total In MS-SQL statistics and statement executions of the instance you want to analyze.
- Click on an instance in the All SQL Server Instances table.
- In the Instance Details area, on the overview tab in the Findings table, observe the top findings for the selected instance. The findings displayed in this table are sorted by severity. Additional information and hot links for the selected findings is displayed in the Details area below the Findings table.
- In the Type column, click on the link to the instance that you want to analyze further or on the Findings link located above the table.
- In the SmarTune tab observe the data displayed on the finding in the various tables and graphs, and follow the links provided to view additional information on the problem in other tabs. The SmarTune tab also provides details and recommendations on how to solve a problem.
Identifying the highest resource consumers in various entities
Precise for SQL Server enables you to determine which are the most resource-consuming application components (such as, Databases, Programs, and Statements).
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- In the Time Frame list, choose the period of time you want to analyze.
- In the All SQL Server Instances table, determine which instance consumes the most resources.
- Select the row of the instance you want to analyze.
- In the Instance Details area, on the Applications tab, identify the highest application resource consumers for the selected instance.
- In the Instance Details area, on the Activities tab, identify the highest activity resource consumers for the selected instance.
- Launch to the Activity tab to continue the performance tuning process on the selected component.
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The entities displayed in the Application tab will differ according to the ERP installed and will take into account that ERP's specific entities. For example, if you have SAP installed, the following types of entities are displayed: Work Types, Logins, SAP Users and Programs, and SAP Transactions. |
Examining instance statistics
You can examine instance statistics over time to confirm that CPU and memory usage are within normal ranges. A continually high CPU usage may indicate the need to improve the application or to add more processes to the machine to enhance performance. In addition, a high number of page faults may indicate an inefficient SQL statement or lack of memory.
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- In the Time Frame list, choose the period of time you want to analyze.
- In the Instance Details area, click More... and select Statistics. Observe CPU usage vs. load (number of transactions, batches and logins) and paging statistics.
- Launch to the Statistics tab to observe additional instance statistics that can help you locate performance problems in various other aspects of your system, such as I/O and Network statistics.
Monitoring a session's activity during the last minute
Monitoring a session's activity during the last minute in SQL Server, can help you locate activities that deviate from the norm, such as locking and latch waits.
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- In the Instance Details area, click More..., and select Current, observe all active sessions (sessions that executed statements during the last minute) and the In MS-SQL breakdown into states, such as, Using CPU, I/O wait, and Lock wait states.
- Launch to the Current tab to view additional information on current sessions. For example, if you identify a session suffering from lock wait during the last minute of activity, launch to the Current tab and analyze the locking tree to discover what is locking the session and why.
Checking SQL server instance availability
It is possible to examine the availability of SQL Server instances and observe their current status as well as their level of availability over time. In addition, you can determine whether their level of availability meets the SLA standard defined in the SLA availability setting in AdminPoint.
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- In the Time Frame list, choose the period of time you want to analyze.
- In the All SQL Server Instances table, check the current availability state of the instance you want to analyze. A status icon, located in the first column, shows the current availability of the instance. Move the pointer over the icon to display a ToolTip showing the current status of the instance and the date its status changed.
- Select the row of the instance you want to analyze. The average availability of the instance is displayed in the Availability column.
- In the Instance Details area, click More... and select Availability. Check the Availability graph to view the availability of the selected instance with respect to the configured SLA and the log. See “How Precise for SQL Server monitors availability” on page 38.
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