January 13, 2003 at 4:32 pm
I am in the process putting together a specification for a new server (Compaq). It will run SQL Server with a single 30GB database (log file can grow to 30 GB as well). I only have licences for Standard Edition SQL which means I am limited to how much RAM I can take advantage of. In light of this I am buying Xeon's with 2 MB's of cache.
I have about $50k to spend and I was wondering if there are any factors that I have not thought of. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to spec out the server to maximize performance and value?
January 13, 2003 at 8:24 pm
Have not looked at a Compaq in a while. However performance issue around read and writes should be looked at. I assume from Large TL lots of writes and RAM being a factor you may realy heavier on Swap file and tempDB. But for best performance you want raid 10for read/write heavy drives.
Also, factors in reads and writes work better when sperated, you should get multiple SCSI controllers with multiple channels if an option within you cost.
Card 1
Chan 1
OS RAID 1
Chan 2
Page File RAID5 or RAID10
Card 2
Chan 1
master and other system dbs RAID5
Chan 2
data files RAID5 or RAID10
Card 3
Chan 1
log files RAID5 or RAID10
Chan 2
tempdb RAID5 or RAID10
Not sure if any controller cards have more than 2 channels at this poitn so I am basing on last look I had. Also, raid 5 for redundancy and throuput. However due to parity you will have a higher number of writes so RAID 10 offers redundancy, synchronous drive access, and lower write amounts, but at a high Drive cost.
Also, keep enough money to purchase a couple of matching drives for emergency purposes unless you can purchase two servers. Manager may want you to utilize everything so consider trying to talking into Ent Edition and setup a cluster server.
Just a lot of factors and some others will jump in on this.
January 16, 2003 at 6:33 am
quote:
I am in the process putting together a specification for a new server (Compaq).
Just wondering...why Compaq? Corporate deal?
January 16, 2003 at 9:05 am
Well I like to stick with one brand so that I only have to learn one product line. Makes server support more streamlined. I have been buying Compaq servers for some time and I like them. Their support level consistently impresses me. Also, since I have been exclusively using Compaq for a few years, all my racks are Compaq too.
Rebuttal?
January 16, 2003 at 9:11 am
quote:
Rebuttal?
None at all. I was just wondering whether you were bound by contract or not. As far as hardware specs go, I would agree with Antares, but I suppose the choices would depend on your priorities. Performance vs. stability. Backup speed an issue? Failover an issue? How many concurrent users? What is the middleware like? What purpose does the database serve? How much application logic is built into SP calls? What kind of jobs/procedures fill most of the TL data?
January 16, 2003 at 9:16 am
If you are using Compaq, be aware they have sizers on their ActiveAnswers site to help you. Also, whoever your reseller is should be able to put you in touch with an engineer to help you properly size the box.
Take it with a grain of salt. They are going to want to go big. Make sure you have definite answers to the questions posed here. They impact the final design a lot.
K. Brian Kelley
http://www.truthsolutions.com/
Author: Start to Finish Guide to SQL Server Performance Monitoring
http://www.netimpress.com/shop/product.asp?ProductID=NI-SQL1
K. Brian Kelley
@kbriankelley
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