DATA B A S E E X P E RT O P T I O N

F O R SY B A S E ® A DA P T I V E S E RV E R ™ E N T E R P R I S E

TECH GROUP
P R O D U C T DATA S H E E T
DATA B A S E E X P E RT O P T I O N F O R SY B A S E ® A DA P T I V E S E RV E R ™ E N T E R P R I S E

The Database Expert Option for Adaptive Server™ Enterprise enables IT professionals to analyze, predict, preempt, diagnose, opti-
mize and manage performance changes to ensure that mission-critical business applications run optimally.

Sybase Database Expert maximizes application performance by focusing on those database factors that contribute up to 90% of
performance problems: SQL statements, indexes, and database changes. Sybase Database Expert allows for the management and
diagnostics of performance changes; therefore, changes that will affect the database environment can be managed with the high-
est degree of certainty.

Sybase Database Expert is the optimal performance assurance solution for production and quality assurance teams.

BUSI N ESS CHALLENGE

Managing RDBMS performance is an ongoing challenge that ultimately affects many business
processes within any organization. Database Expert addresses this challenge by offering users
a window into performance at its most cost-effective and most fundamental level of concern,
that of the applications that run within your enterprise. Database Expert ensures that those who
manage performance, and understand the benefits of doing so, have a technology in place that
not only finds the problem, but to also test and solve those problems before they affect your
business processes. Optimally running applications ensure that all mechanisms that comprise an
IT infrastructure are used to their maximum. Database Expert makes performance benchmarks
a standard within your organization.

PERFORMANCE CHALLENGE
Achieving optimal application performance is an elusive task; once achieved it is a constant
challenge to continually maintain a high level of performance. The dynamic nature of RDBMS
makes it a never-ending cycle. Database Expert makes it possible to achieve and maintain opti-
mal performance, while preempting performance variations due to database environment
changes such as migrations, database upgrades, the addition of indexes, Adaptive Server configu-
ration changes and more.
TECH NOLOGY SOLUTION
Predict
Database Expert ensures reliable database performance by giving users the means to predict database perform-
ance changes with the Migration Analyzer and Configuration Analyzer modules. Whether you are planning
a database version upgrade, moving applications from development to production, or changing configuration
parameters in Adaptive Server, Database Expert diagnoses overall performance improvements or degradations,
and identifies SQL statements that might be affected by environment changes.

Preempt
Creating indexes to improve the performance of SQL in a database can have significant impact on other areas
of the database system. Index Impact Analyzer evaluates the performance effect that given indexes may have
on other SQL statements thereby removing the uncertainty associated with index creation.

Analyze
The SQL Scanner extracts SQL statements in existing applications, database objects or files, and analyzes the
query plans to proactively identify inefficient SQL statements.

The Unused Index Analyzer identifies unused indexes by analyzing query plans from SQL statements in appli-
cations. These unused indexes can then be deleted to free up space and improve the speed of DML statements.

Diagnose
The Performance Monitor captures a broad range of database performance statistics and identifies those
elements consuming the most resources, thereby allowing users to view the status of current database perform-
ance. For identifying SQL related bottlenecks, the Visual SQL Inspector is used to monitor and collect SQL
performance statistics from the Adaptive Server's monitoring tables. Captured statistics are graphically displayed
to enable the identification of resource intensive SQL. Conversely, the SQL Monitor captures running SQL
statements from the Sybase Monitor Server for analysis of potential performance inefficiencies.

Optimize
Due to the complex nature of SQL, there may be many SQL statements that return the same result set, but only
a few that may be efficient. The Syntactical SQL Optimizer applies advanced SQL transformation technology
to provide the most efficient SQL statements while avoiding the traditional trial and error methods used with
manual SQL tuning approaches.

Indexing also offers an approach for improving SQL performance. The Index Advisor proposes new index
scenarios to improve the performance of a given SQL statement. The index recommendations can be bench-
marked to identify which index yields the greatest performance gain.

Manage
Abstract Plans can be maintained with the Abstract Plan Manager, making it possible to improve and manage
SQL performance without changing source code. The Database Explorer allows users to navigate database
objects. The SQL Worksheet allows users to create, modify, and execute T-SQL scripts. The Object
Extractor provides DDL scripts for multiple database objects.

VALU E PROPOSITION
Optimizing database performance offers immediate ROI in terms of productivity gains and application depend-
ability. Database Expert maximizes current IT resources by establishing benchmarks and performance standards
within an organization.
KEY BEN EFITS
■ Ensures reliable database performance.
■ Maximizes performance through SQL optimization, Abstract Plans and Indexing.
■ Ensures successful Adaptive Server upgrades.
■ Preempts performance problems before deploying applications into production.
■ Improves productivity of QA and production teams.
■ Provides a performance assurance strategy across the application life-cycle.

MODU LES
Migration Analyzer
■ Preempts performance degradation when performing database migrations,
upgrades and application rollouts.
■ Ensures reliable database performance by tracking query plan and cost changes.
■ Compares query plan changes between different Adaptive Server instances.
■ Identifies performance bottlenecks before they occur in production.

Configuration Analyzer
■ Evaluates the effect on SQL performance when changing Adaptive Server’s
configuration parameters.
■ Enables users to make concise decisions of which configuration changes to
implement.

Database Expert gives insight into potential configuration

parameter changes and their effect on SQL performance.

[ Diagram 1 ] Configuration Analyzer

Index Impact Analyzer

■ Analyzes the impact that index creation has on application performance.
■ Views those SQL statements that are affected by the creation of an index.
■ Identifies the index scenario that yields the highest performance gain with
the least impact on the database.

Unused Index Analyzer

■ Analyzes query plans to identify indexes unused in applications.
■ Reports unused indexes that can be deleted to free up space, improve speed
of DML statements and decrease maintenance.
Performance Monitor
■ Monitors database performance activity from Adaptive Server's monitoring tables (12.5.0.3
or later).
■ Collects Adaptive Server's performance metrics by means of snapshots, real-time monitoring,
and scheduled monitoring.
■ Graphically presents performance metrics from overall database activity down to individual
process statistics.
■ Enables user to identify where the top database resource consumption occurs.

Quickly diagnose performance issues from graphic

display of captured statistical information.

[ Diagram 2] Performance Monitor

SQL Inspector
■ Collects SQL performance statistics from Adaptive Server's monitoring tables (12.5.0.3
or later).
■ Displays SQL activity statistics in a graphical view for easy analysis.
■ Reports top N resource intensive SQL statements.

SQL Monitor
■ Provides a graphical interface to capture currently executing SQL statements from the Sybase
Monitor Server.

SQL Scanner
■ Extracts embedded SQL statements from database objects, text and binary files, abstract plan
groups, and application source codes.
■ Identifies the SQL statements that need to be optimized without physical execution of the
applications or manual intervention.
■ Displays the query plan and classifies every SQL statement according to suspected levels
of performance problems.
 Index Advisor Abstract Plan Manager
■ Analyzes a SQL syntax and structure and advises ■ Simplifies the procedure of Abstract Plan
potential new index scenarios to help improve maintenance.
performance. ■ Provides a graphical interface to maintain
■ Provides detailed information on the suggested Abstract Plans.
indexes such as space requirements and selectivity. ■ Supports Abstract Plans, which are available
■ Allows users to submit their own indexes for testing. in Adaptive server 12 or later.
■ Integrates controls for creating and dropping of
indexes. Database Explorer

Database Expert proposes new index scenarios for

■ Provides detailed information about database
a SQL statement and identifies which index yields objects including columns, indexes, keys, statistics,
the greatest performance gain.
DDL and procedure text.

SQL Worksheet
■ Allows users to write and execute SQL statements,
database objects and Transact-SQL commands.

SQL Formatter
■ Formats SQL statements with indenting which
enables easier reading and maintenance.
■ Highlights variables and invalid column names
[ Diagram 3 ] Index Advisor
to make them easily identifiable.
Syntactical SQL Optimizer ■ Checks syntax to validate SQL statements.
■ Streamlines the SQL optimization process.
■ Rewrites SQL statements with artificial intelli- Code Finder
gence based Feedback Searching algorithm. ■ Locates database objects and files that contain
■ Generates every possible equivalent alternative specific text.
SQL and query plan for any given statement.
■ Benchmarks the original and alternative SQL Object Extractor
to automatically find the most efficient statement ■ Generates DDL scripts for databases and database
for a database and application. objects, including dependents.
■ Rewrites SELECT, SELECT INTO, UPDATE,
INSERT and DELETE statements.
■ Integrates Abstract Plans for source-less SQL
optimization.

Database Expert generates every possible SQL

alternative, presenting query plans Minimum System Requirements
and corresponding run-times.

■ Windows® 2000, NT 4.0, XP

■ 486DX or above
■ 64 MB RAM
■ 60 MB hard disk space
■ CD-ROM Drive
■ Adaptive Server Enterprise 11 or later

[ Diagram 4 ] Syntactical SQL Optimizer

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