Customer Conference

Navision SQL System Performance Maintenance & Auditing

Floyd Chan, Senior Technical Analyst Axentia Solutions Corp.

2005 Axentia Solutions Corp.

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Overview

Navision Architecture
Navision Server Option (C/SIDE) Microsoft SQL Server Option

Maintenance
Backing Up Data Expanding the Database Advanced SQL Maintenance Plans Other SQL Settings

Performance & Auditing

SQL Performance Bottlenecks Performance Counters

Questions
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Section 1

Navision Architecture

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Workstations

Navision is a fat 2-tier client server system

Business logic is executed on the client side Objects are cached in the local session

Depending on the scale of the business process being executed, RAM and CPU could be important on the workstation Note: the Navision Application Server (NAS) provides the ability to create a true 3-tier system, for environments that require it
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Networking

LAN:
Minimum 100 Mbit throughout Avoid :
Mixing 10Mbit Using network hubs

WAN:
Avoid running Navision clients on local workstations Use an application server like Citrix or Terminal Server

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Navision Server Options

Two server options:

Navision Database Server Microsoft SQL Server

Navision front-end user typically cannot tell the difference visually or process-wise

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Navision Server Options

Microsoft SQL Server

Navision Database Server (C/SIDE)

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Navision Server Options

Microsoft SQL Server Advantages
Scalability Integration Automate routine administrative processes Powerful backup/restore features

Navision Database Server (C/SIDE) Advantages

Consistent Data / Versioning Sum Index Flow Technology Very reliable technology Simple setup and maintenance Migrates to SQL easily Lower implementation costs

Potential Limitations
Higher implementation costs Record locking / system tuning Requires a database administrator

Potential Limitations
Single threaded (only 1 CPU used) Server memory usage is capped

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Server Hardware

Server hardware configuration for Navision is highly dependent on:

The database server technology selected The number of concurrent users The type of and volume of transactions occurring at any given point in time The desired system performance point The constraints of budget

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SQL Server Hardware

Typical Minimum SQL Server Hardware:

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard (Max. 4GB/4 CPU) Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Enterprise (Max. 64GB/32 CPU) 2 x 3.0 GHz Xeon Processors, 2MB Cache 4GB RAM

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SQL Server Hardware

Typical Minimum SQL Server Hardware (continued) RAID Configuration:

C: Drive
36 GB RAID 1 (2 x 36GB, U320 SCSI, 15K RPM) Operating system files Microsoft SQL Server executables PAGEFILE.SYS SQL TEMPDB

D: Drive
72 GB RAID 10 (4 x 36GB, U320 SCSI, 15K RPM) Navision SQL Data

E: Drive
36 GB RAID 1 (2 x 36GB, U320 SCSI, 15K RPM) Navision SQL Log

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Section 2

Maintenance

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Backing Up Data

Microsoft SQL Server Backups

Key Points:
Performed at the server Can be automated in a SQL Server Job Considerably faster than Navision backups Can do full, differential and/or transaction log backups Can use third-party backup applications SQL restore is faster than a Navision restore

Microsoft SQL Server documentation is available from Microsoft

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Backing Up Data

Navision Server Backups

Key Points
Performed at the client Manual process Saves backup to .FBK file on specified directory Slower than SQL Server backups An FBK is a fraction of the size of a SQL backup Takes much longer to restore than a SQL restore *** Performs database integrity tests before backup ***

Navision backup documentation is available on the Navision installation CD

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Backing Up Data

SQL Server Backups vs. Navision Server Backups

So which backup is better?

Axentias Recommendation:
Create a SQL Server backup schedule Perform SQL Server regular backups as per schedule Occasionally, perform Navision backup manually
Executes data validity tests Depending on transactional load, weekly or monthly

Axentia will occasionally require FBKs for support and test purposes
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Expanding the Database

Microsoft SQL Server
Manually expand database as needed Make sure database is offline 50% - 75% full is OK Expand before 80% mark Do not rely on AUTOGROW !!!

Navision Database Server

Manually expand database as needed Make sure database is offline 50% - 75% full is OK Expand before 80% mark

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Advanced SQL Server Maintenance Plans

As SQL Server performance thresholds are reached, advanced SQL maintenance plans may be implemented Depending on desired performance thresholds, plans may include:
SQL Index Rebuilds SQL Index FillFactors SQL Server Statistics Navision Index / SIFT Rebuilds RAID Array Reconfiguration

Axentia technical services can advise on these topics

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Other SQL Settings

TEMPDB
Is used by SQL Server internally to process queries Is reinitialized each time SQL Server is restarted To avoid AUTOGROW on TEMPDB, set the default size to a large value

Disable Find As You Type

In SQL, Find As You Type can generate excessive database queries and network traffic

Consider periodic disk de-fragmentation

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Section 3

SQL Performance & Auditing

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SQL Bottlenecks

Every SQL system contains bottlenecks The bottleneck will appear once the system demands exceeds the system limitations and negatively impacts productivity Always eliminate major hardware bottlenecks first Then assess any remaining bottlenecks to deduce if they are hardware, software or process related Eliminate those bottlenecks Repeat the process until the cost exceeds the value

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SQL Bottlenecks

Potential hardware bottlenecks (in order of likelihood):

Hard drive configuration (RAID array configuration)
Never use RAID 5 Split very active files onto their own RAID 10 arrays Data files Log files TEMP DB

Insufficient memory
SQL inherently only uses a maximum of 2GB Use AWE SQL switch, and /3GB /PAE BOOT.INI switch, to break this barrier

CPU (number and/or speed) Network bandwidth

Can be identified by SQL Database Administrator

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SQL Bottlenecks

Potential software bottlenecks (in no particular order):

Inefficient index usage Inefficient code design Unnecessarily large and/or complex functions SIFT requirements

Requires Axentia technical services resources

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SQL Bottlenecks

Potential process bottlenecks (in no particular order):

Typically large and/or complex processes Perhaps split into smaller steps Perhaps should not occur during peak hours Perhaps simplify the process

Requires your business process manager and Axentia implementation services resources

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What Can I Do?

Maintain your Navision system properly Measure hardware bottlenecks using your operating system Performance Counters and Trace Logs Eliminate the hardware bottlenecks

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Performance Counters
Target Value <55% Avg <2 <5 ms <5 ms

Physical Disk Performance Counters Physical Disk: % Disk Time Physical Disk: Avg. Disk Queue Length Physical Disk: Avg. Disk sec/Read Physical Disk: Avg. Disk sec/write

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Performance Counters
Target Value >>5MB <10 Avg ~0 ~0 <5 <5 >99% ~0

Memory Performance Counters Memory: Available Bytes Memory: Pages/sec Memory: Pages Faults/sec Memory: Pages Inputs/sec Memory: Pages Reads/sec Memory: Pages Writes/sec SQL Server Buffer: Buffer Cache Hit Ratio Page File: % Usage

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Performance Counters
Target Value <30% Avg <2

Processor Performance Counters Processor: % Processor Time System: Processor Queue Length

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What Can Axentia Do For Me?

Make Initial Hardware Sizing Recommendations Conduct Server Hardware Performance Audits Perform Software Performance Reviews Conduct Process Analysis Provide Written Audit Summaries and Recommendations Advise on Advance SQL Maintenance Plans

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References

Navision Installation CD:

w1w1ism.pdf Navision Server Option w1w1isql.pdf Microsoft SQL Server Option w1w1bkup.pdf Backups

Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Administrators Pocket Consultant Microsoft SQL Server: Books Online SQL Server Technical Bulletin How to resolve a deadlock
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=832524

Microsoft SQL Server 7.0 Performance Tuning Technical Reference, Chapter 4: Tuning SQL Server
http://www.microsoft.com/mspress/books/sampchap/4090.asp#9

Windows NT Performance Monitor in Depth

http://www.windowsitlibrary.com/Content/113/02/5.html

2005 Axentia Solutions Corp.