Tips and Tricks for Optimizing

Performance with SAP Sybase

IQ

Mark Mumy
IQ Technology Specialist
SAP
mark.mumy@sap.com
2 November 8, 2012
Disclaimer
In this session we will be giving tips and guidelines for IQ to
provide novices and experienced DBAs with information they
may not know
This is by no means exhaustive. We strongly suggest taking
advantage of the education course offerings available to
enhance your in-depth knowledge of IQ
3 November 8, 2012
Agenda
Sizing
Configuration
Indexes
Monitoring


4 November 8, 2012
Sizing
5 November 8, 2012
Memory Summary
Operating System .5 to 1 GB RAM
Filesystem Cache 20% of RAM
All Other Applications
IQ Catalog Memory -c/-cl/-ch parameters
IQ Thread Memory stack size * thread count
Load Memory (pre 15.2) per concurrent load
Bitmap Memory per concurrent load
IQ Main Cache 40% of remaining RAM
IQ Temporary Cache 60% of remaining RAM
Backup Memory per backup instance
Monitor the IQ Dynamic
Memory in sp_iqstatus
Lists the current, and
maximum RAM that IQ has
allocated for all memory
structures
Swap recommendation is
still 1x virtual memory
Some customers run with 4-
8 GB
I prefer to run with 25-100
GB depending on total RAM
May seem excessive, but it
can help avoid the dreaded
all available virtual memory
exhausted error!
6 November 8, 2012
Quick Sizing Reference
RAM: 4-8 GB per core (prefer 8, settle for 4)
RAM: Give IQ 75% of available RAM (assumes there are no other major
consumers of RAM on the host)

Storage: Prefer RAID 10 for write intensive systems and temp store
IQ can drive 50-500 MB/sec on and off disk per core in the multiplex so
size disks accordingly, but ground the sizing in reality and service levels

MAIN Store disk: 2-5 drives per core on the host or in the entire
multiplex
TEMP Store disk: 2-5 drives per core on the host
The number of drives does NOT include any overhead needed by RAID

MAIN Store Fiber Controllers/HBAs: 1 per 5-10 cores
TEMP Store Fiber Controllers/HBAs: 1 per 5-10 cores

7 November 8, 2012
Sizing CPUs for Load
For systems with 4 or fewer CPUs, expect to load roughly 10-20
GB of data per hour per CPU
A 4 CPU system should be able to load about 40 GB of raw data per hour
For systems with 8 or more CPUs, expect a load rate of 20-50 GB
per hour per CPU
An 8 CPU system should be able to load between 160 and 400 GB of raw
data per hour
Load times with this approach will vary greatly based on CPU
count / speed and the number and types of indexes on the table
being loaded
For each BLOB or CLOB being loaded into IQ a single CPU will be
necessary for maximum performance
IQ 16 will change these ratios as we move to a 100% parallel load
engine

8 November 8, 2012
Sizing CPUs for Queries
On average, 1-2 CPU per active query more if queries are
complex and can be run in parallel
As IQ matures, we constantly push the engine to run more
queries fully parallel
This changes the sizing from how many cores per query to what is the
service level we need to achieve and how many cores will that take
Most queries are now run in parallel and can consume all
CPU resources on the host
IQ will blend single and multi-user query performance and
rebalance resources as the workload changes
As more queries appear on the run queue, the available resources will
change and IQ will adjust accordingly

9 November 8, 2012
Sizing Memory
Total system RAM should be based on 4-8 GB RAM per core
Threads do not matter
Allocate no more than 75% of total RAM to the main and temp caches
Shared memory is not used by Sybase IQ except in small amounts for
client/server communication where both are on the same host
Typically, we want more temp cache for loading as the HG
indexes are built in temp cache
For queries the mix of main to temp will vary depending on
a few factors:
If there are temp tables, we want more temp cache
If the queries contain a lot of ordering and grouping, this will use work
tables based in temp cache
Typically, we weigh main and temp cache at 50/50 or 40/60 split
10 November 8, 2012
Configuration
11 November 8, 2012
Creation Options
Uppercase and lowercase?
Can force IQ to treat all text data as CASE IGNORE or CASE RESPECT
CASE RESPECT has slightly better performance but puts a burden on
applications to compare data with the appropriate case
Page size
Default is 128k which is acceptable for most sites
Increase the page size as the database and table sizes (rowcounts)
increase
Increasing the page size should be accompanied by an increase in
RAM
Collation and sort orders
Can only be set at database creation
If it needs to be changed the database must be rebuilt
12 November 8, 2012
Runtime Options (config file)
-iqnumbercpus
Should be set to match the physical core count, not the total
processing threads that are on the host
Caveat is IBM p-series where this can be tested and adjusted to a
value between physical cores and total SMT threads
-gm
Total number of users that can connect
Keep this setting low as memory is carved based on this value. This
can impact query performance.
-gn
Should be set to 1.5x the gm setting (default is gm + 5)
13 November 8, 2012
Database Options (set options)
FORCE_NO_SCROLL_CURSORS
Should always be set to ON
Very few applications require this to be OFF
Can improve query performance
Append_Load
Can be used to improve load performance
Will not reuse Row IDs or the space occupied by those Row IDs
Great for systems where large, contiguous chunks of data are deleted

14 November 8, 2012
Indexes
15 November 8, 2012
Key Characteristics

Most columns will have at least one index

Index selection decisions based on column
cardinality (number of unique values)

Multiple indexes used to resolve a query

Indexes are self maintaining

No optimizer statistics to update

Indexes are compressed

Index advisor demystifies index selection

TYPE USAGE
Fast Projection Compressed raw data for result sets
(Default)
Low Fast Low cardinality data (up to 1000
unique values)
High Non-Group Aggregation on the fly and range
searches
High Group Key fields and groupings for cross-
tabular
Date, Time, DT Date ranges, date part operations
Multi-Column Concatenated indexes
Word, Text Sophisticated key word or phrase
string searches with boolean,
ranking, proximity, fuzzy features
Compare Column comparisons
SAP Sybase IQ Index Types
16 November 8, 2012
Should We Index?
Is the column searchable?
Is the column a join column?
Is the column a date/time/datetime
datatype?
Will the column be part of an
aggregation?
Will the column be part of a group
by?
17 November 8, 2012
When To Use Indexes
TYPE When to use it
Fast Projection
This is the default storage for a column. You can only influence the type of Fast
Project via the IQ UNIQUE() syntax or Minimize_Storage option
High Group
Low cardinality data (over 2000 unique values) where the columns are used in a
WHERE clause for searching or joins. Also include columned used in a GROUP BY.
Low Fast
Low cardinality data (up to 2000 unique values) where the columns are used in a
WHERE clause for searching or joins
High Non-Group
Not used that much as the functionality has been implemented in other indexes
(date, hg, lf)
Date, Time, DTTM
All date fields should have these indexes
Word, Text
Use only if you will be using the word or text search capabilities in IQ
Compare
Use when comparing 2 columns in the same table.
Multi-Column
Usually used for primary keys and for columns in a GROUP BY. Make sure that
every column has an LF or HG as well!
18 November 8, 2012
Monitoring
19 November 8, 2012
Monitoring
Hardware and storage utilities
iostat, vmstat, top, glance, gpm, sar, etc.
Use tools to monitor the hardware and storage for any potential
bottlenecks outside of IQ
IQ utilities
sp_iqsysmon
Sybase Control Center
3
rd
party tools like Bradmark Surveillance DBA and White Sands
ProActive DBA



20 November 8, 2012
Monitoring via sp_iqsysmon
sp_iqsysmon is a great tool to consolidate the individual
monitoring!!
SAP Sybase IQ Monitor offers a series of views of the
counters to showing differing aspects of the server and
buffer cache workload
A consolidated interface for the iq utilities command that is
much easier to use and provides a way to run multiple
reports with a single command


21 November 8, 2012
Monitoring via Sybase Control Center
Sybase Control Center
Sybase Central is being deprecated in version 16
Is a separate download via the product download center
Leverages a lightweight client (browser) with a server component so
that users need not install software
Graphical interface that presents the data in a way that
highlights issues visually
Most counters that are in sp_iqsysmon are available in
Sybase Control Center

22 November 8, 2012
Monitoring Guidance
Use sp_iqsysmon or Sybase Control Center when issues arise
and active monitoring is needed
Frequency and key items
Run at 10-15 second intervals for the duration of the issue
(sp_iqsysmon), or actively via Sybase Control Center
Thread use/starvation
Cache usage
Cache hit rates
Dirty page grabs
Page rereads
Physical and logical i/os


23 November 8, 2012
Query Monitoring
Leverage HTML query plans!
Query plan settings (off by default) to provide optimal query information to
DBAs and engineering
set temporary option query_plan='off';
set temporary option query_plan_as_html='on';
set temporary option query_plan_as_html_directory=qplans';
set temporary option query_plan_after_run='on';
set temporary option query_timing='on';
set temporary option query_detail='on';
set temporary option DML_options10='on';
set temporary option Query_Name = Query Name
Should not be set globally as the Sybase IQ MSG file or query plan directory
will grow rapidly
No need to set both Query_Plan and Query_Plan_As_HTML
Query_Plan is on by default, but should be turned off immediately to keep the IQ
message file output to a minimum
This is much more difficult to read than the HTML plans and is note widely
used
24 November 8, 2012
Index Monitoring
Index advice and monitoring is off by default
Turn on the index advisor globally and keep 1000 rows of advice
set option public.index_advisor='on';
set option public.index_advisor_max_rows=1000;
Will output data to HTML and text based query plans, if on
Will output advice to an in-memory structure that can be accessed
via sp_iqindexadvice()
Captures the advised index type, where it was used, the last time the
advice was generated, and the number of times this piece of advice
was made
The advisor will recommend any index that will cost less
This could be 1 ms or 1 i/o less
Be smart about the advice and whether or not you want to implement
it


25 November 8, 2012
Troubleshooting Advice
Determine where the issue is
External to IQ
Monitor the OS, hardware, and storage for any bottlenecks or issues
Look for high CPU use, high CPU system time, low CPU user time, high wait time
Look for I/O service times that are more than 10 ms
Internal to IQ
Enable the index advisor and look for missing indexes (this is usually the culprit)
Enable HTML query plans and the index advisor if the issue is with a single query
If the overall health is in question, leverage sp_iqsysmon at 30-60 intervals for a
few days
Sysmon output can then be parsed looking for the key items previously discussed
26 November 8, 2012
27 November 8, 2012
Useful links
SAP Sybase IQ Users Group
http://iqug.dssolutions.com/
Send an email to iqug-subscribe@dssolutions.com - follow the info in
the reply email to finalize subscription
SAP Sybase Education Curriculum
https://training.sap.com/us/en/courses-and-curricula/sybase
Sybooks IQ 15.4 Documentation
http://infocenter.sybase.com/help/index.jsp?topic=/com.sybase.infoc
enter.help.iq.15.4/title.htm
SAP Sybase IQ Sizing Guide
http://www.sybase.com/detail?id=1093493