Obtaining and Interpreting

Execution Plans using

DBMS_XPLAN
David Kurtz
Go-Faster Consultancy Ltd.

[email protected]
www.go-faster.co.uk
 Who Am I?
• Oracle Database Specialist • Book
– Independent consultant
– www.psftdba.com
• System Performance
tuning
– PeopleSoft ERP
– Oracle RDBMS

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 2

o.uk
 Resources

• If you can’t hear me say so now.

• Please feel free to ask questions as we go
along.
• The presentation is available from
• Conference website
• www.go-faster.co.uk

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 3

o.uk
 My Motivation

• Performance problems are instinctively

routed to the DBA
• SQL Trace can locate a database problem
• Execution plan will show you what Oracle
is doing.
• Many problems are caused by ‘poor SQL’
• I often have to rewrite the SQL.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 4

o.uk
 Your Motivation

• How to ask your DBA the right questions.

• How to answer some of those questions
yourself
• How to find out how the database is
executing a problematic SQL statement

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 5

o.uk
 Caveat

• I cannot, in one session, cover everything

you need to know.
• But I can give you enough to get started on
your own.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 6

o.uk
DBA’s Chief Weapons in the
Performance Fight with Development

• Surprise and Fear

– “Surprise! Surprise! The application runs
slowly”
– “I’m afraid I can’t do anything about it. It’s a
problem with the application code.”

• It doesn’t have to be like this.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 7

o.uk
 Agenda

• SQL Trace
• Execution Plans
– Explain Plan For
– DBMS_XPLAN
– AWR
– Licensing

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 8

o.uk
 What is SQL trace?

• Oracle shadow process writes a file on the

database server
• Trace file contains
– User and recursive SQL statements
– Execution plan, physical & logical reads
– Timing information
– Wait and bind information (optional)

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 9

o.uk
What’s the advantage of SQL Trace?

• You know how long each statement took to

execute
– Not just an estimate of how long
• The execution plan is what really happened
• You can find out how long each line of an
execution plan took to execute
– So you know where in the plan the problem is
located.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 10

o.uk
 What’s the problem with SQL
Trace?

• If you’re not the DBA:

– The trace file is on the database server
• udump/bdump directories
– It is usually only readable by members of the
DBA group.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 11

o.uk
 What’s the problem with SQL
Trace?

• Reactive
– Run process with trace and respond to what
happened.

• And sometimes
– You don’t get the execution plan because the
plan is only written to the trace file when the
cursor is closed.
DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 12
o.uk
 Alternatives to Trace

• Explain Plan For

• DBMS_XPLAN

• Assumption:
– You know which SQL statement is your
problem!

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 13

o.uk
 Example: Two HR tables
• PS_NAMES • PS_DEPT_TBL
Name Null? Type Name Null? Type
----------------------- -------- ------------ ----------------------- -------- ------------
EMPLID* NOT NULL VARCHAR2(11) SETID* NOT NULL VARCHAR2(5)
NAME_TYPE NOT NULL VARCHAR2(3) DEPTID* NOT NULL VARCHAR2(10)
EFFDT NOT NULL DATE EFFDT* NOT NULL DATE
EFF_STATUS NOT NULL VARCHAR2(1) EFF_STATUS NOT NULL VARCHAR2(1)
COUNTRY_NM_FORMAT NOT NULL VARCHAR2(3) DESCR NOT NULL VARCHAR2(30)
NAME NOT NULL VARCHAR2(50) DESCRSHORT NOT NULL VARCHAR2(10)
… …

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 14

o.uk
 A sample SQL
SELECT d.setid, d.deptid, d.descr,
n.emplid, n.name
FROM ps_dept_tbl d, ps_names n
WHERE d.effdt = (
SELECT MAX(d1.effdt)
FROM ps_dept_tbl d1
WHERE d1.setid = d.setid
AND d1.deptid = d.deptid
AND d1.effdt <= SYSDATE)
AND d.eff_status = 'A'
AND n.emplid = d.manager_id
/

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 15

o.uk
 Explain Plan For

• Writes to plan_table table

– This is the way we used to do it up to Oracle 8i

EXPLAIN PLAN
SET statement_id = 'TST‘
INTO plan_table
FOR
<SQL>
/

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 16

o.uk
 Explain Plan For
• Then you had to query the plan table

SELECT id, parent_id,

lpad(' ', 2*(level-1))||operation||' '||
options||' '||object_name||' '||
decode(id, 0, 'Cost = '||position) query_plan
FROM plan_table
START WITH id = 0
AND statement_id = 'TST'
CONNECT BY prior id = parent_id
AND statement_id = 'TST'
;

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 17

o.uk
 Explain Plan For
• And you get an execution plan with a cost

ID P Query Plan
--- --- ------------------------------------------
0 SELECT STATEMENT Cost = 13
1 0 NESTED LOOPS
2 1 HASH JOIN
3 2 TABLE ACCESS FULL PS_DEPT_TBL
4 2 VIEW VW_SQ_1
5 4 HASH GROUP BY
6 5 INDEX FAST FULL SCAN PS1DEPT_TBL
7 1 TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID PS_NAMES
8 7 INDEX RANGE SCAN PS_NAMES

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 18

o.uk
 Explain Plan For
• Then you had to query the plan table

SELECT id, parent_id,

lpad(' ', 2*(level-1))||operation||' '||options||' '||
object_name||' '||
decode(id, 0, 'Cost = '||position) query_plan
FROM plan_table
START WITH id = 0
AND statement_id = 'TST'
CONNECT BY prior id = parent_id
AND statement_id = 'TST'
;

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 19

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN

• Oracle supplied package procedure

– Documented in PL/SQL Package and Types
Reference manual.
• DISPLAY – 9i
• DISPLAY_CURSOR – 10g
• DISPLAY_AWR -10g
• DISPLAY_SQLSET – 10g
• DISPLAY_SQL_PLAN_BASELINE – 11g

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 20

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY

• Displays contents of the plan table

– Most recently explained statement
– Or a named statement

• Available in Oracle 9i
– No licence restrictions

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 21

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY

• Usage

DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY
( table_name IN VARCHAR2
DEFAULT 'PLAN_TABLE'
, statement_id IN VARCHAR2 DEFAULT NULL
, format IN VARCHAR2 DEFAULT 'TYPICAL'
, filter_preds IN VARCHAR2 DEFAULT NULL);

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 22

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY
• Formats
– BASIC: basic execution plan, no metrics
– TYPICAL: default. Most of the relavent information
– SERIAL: like typical, but without any parallel
execution information
– ALL: like typical but also include projection, alias and
remote SQL.
– ADVANCED: like all but also includes the OUTLINE
• Not in the Oracle 10g documentation, but it works on 10g

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 23

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY

SELECT * FROM
table(dbms_xplan.display());

• Autotrace in SQL*Plus 10 now uses

dbms_xplan.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 24

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( null,
null, 'TYPICAL'));
Plan hash value: 454993881

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Bytes | Cost (%CPU)| Time |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 0 | SELECT STATEMENT | | 2 | 176 | 13 (16)| 00:00:01 |
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 2 | 176 | 13 (16)| 00:00:01 |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 65 | 11 (19)| 00:00:01 |
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 330 | 14850 | 6 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 660 | 13200 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 660 | 13860 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 660 | 13860 | 3 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 2 | 46 | 2 (0)| 00:00:01 |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 2 | | 1 (0)| 00:00:01 |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predicate Information (identified by operation id):

---------------------------------------------------

2 - access("D"."EFFDT"="VW_COL_1" AND SYS_OP_DESCEND("D"."EFFDT")=SYS_OP_DESCEND(

"VW_COL_1") AND "SETID"="D"."SETID" AND "DEPTID"="D"."DEPTID")
3 - filter("D"."EFF_STATUS"='A')
6 - filter(SYS_OP_UNDESCEND(SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT"))<=SYSDATE@! AND
SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT")>=SYS_OP_DESCEND(SYSDATE@!))
8 - access("N"."EMPLID"="D"."MANAGER_ID")

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 25

o.uk
 More Formats
• `ROWS - if relevant, shows the number of rows estimated by the
optimizer
• BYTES - if relevant, shows the number of bytes estimated by the
optimizer
• COST - if relevant, shows optimizer cost information
• PARTITION - if relevant, shows partition pruning information
• PARALLEL - if relevant, shows PX information (distribution method and
table queue information)
• PREDICATE - if relevant, shows the predicate section
• PROJECTION -if relevant, shows the projection section
• ALIAS - if relevant, shows the "Query Block Name / Object Alias"
section
• REMOTE - if relevant, shows the information for distributed query (for
example, remote from serial distribution and remote SQL)
• NOTE - if relevant, shows the note section of the explain plan

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 26

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( null,
null, 'TYPICAL,-BYTES'));
Plan hash value: 454993881

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Cost (%CPU)| Time |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 0 | SELECT STATEMENT | | 2 | 13 (16)| 00:00:01 |
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 2 | 13 (16)| 00:00:01 |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 11 (19)| 00:00:01 |
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 330 | 6 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 660 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 660 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 660 | 3 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 2 | 2 (0)| 00:00:01 |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 2 | 1 (0)| 00:00:01 |
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predicate Information (identified by operation id):

---------------------------------------------------

2 - access("D"."EFFDT"="VW_COL_1" AND SYS_OP_DESCEND("D"."EFFDT")=SYS_OP_DESCEND(

"VW_COL_1") AND "SETID"="D"."SETID" AND "DEPTID"="D"."DEPTID")
3 - filter("D"."EFF_STATUS"='A')
6 - filter(SYS_OP_UNDESCEND(SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT"))<=SYSDATE@! AND
SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT")>=SYS_OP_DESCEND(SYSDATE@!))
8 - access("N"."EMPLID"="D"."MANAGER_ID")

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 27

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( null,
null, ‘ALL'));

• Additional Information
Query Block Name / Object Alias (identified by operation id):
-------------------------------------------------------------

1 - SEL$C772B8D1
3 - SEL$C772B8D1 / D@SEL$1
4 - SEL$683B0107 / VW_SQ_1@SEL$7511BFD2
5 - SEL$683B0107
6 - SEL$683B0107 / D1@SEL$2
7 - SEL$C772B8D1 / N@SEL$1
8 - SEL$C772B8D1 / N@SEL$1

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 28

o.uk
 Specify Query Block Names
SELECT /*+QB_NAME(MAIN_QUERY)*/
d.setid, d.deptid, d.descr, n.emplid, n.name
FROM ps_dept_Tbl d, ps_names n
WHERE d.effdt = (
SELECT /*+QB_NAME(DEPT_SUBQUERY)*/ MAX(d1.effdt)
FROM ps_dept_tbl d1
WHERE d1.setid = d.setid
AND d1.deptid = d.deptid
AND d1.effdt <= SYSDATE
)
AND d.eff_status = 'A'
AND n.emplid = d.manager_id
/

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 29

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( null,
null, ‘ALL'));

• Additional Information
Query Block Name / Object Alias (identified by operation id):
-------------------------------------------------------------

1 - SEL$3787FDDA
3 - SEL$3787FDDA / D@MAIN_QUERY
4 - SEL$71F31171 / VW_SQ_1@SEL$4A7F38AA
5 - SEL$71F31171
6 - SEL$71F31171 / D1@DEPT_SUBQUERY
7 - SEL$3787FDDA / N@MAIN_QUERY
8 - SEL$3787FDDA / N@MAIN_QUERY

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 30

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( null,
null, ‘ALL'));

• Additional Information
Column Projection Information (identified by operation id):
-----------------------------------------------------------
1 - (#keys=0) "D"."SETID"[VARCHAR2,5], "D"."DEPTID"[VARCHAR2,10],
"D"."DESCR"[VARCHAR2,30], "N"."EMPLID"[VARCHAR2,11], "N"."NAME"[VARCHAR2,50]
2 - (#keys=4) "D"."SETID"[VARCHAR2,5], "D"."DEPTID"[VARCHAR2,10],
"D"."DESCR"[VARCHAR2,30], "D"."MANAGER_ID"[VARCHAR2,11]
3 - "D"."SETID"[VARCHAR2,5], "D"."DEPTID"[VARCHAR2,10], "D"."EFFDT"[DATE,7],
"D"."DESCR"[VARCHAR2,30], "D"."MANAGER_ID"[VARCHAR2,11]
4 - "VW_COL_1"[DATE,7], "SETID"[VARCHAR2,5], "DEPTID"[VARCHAR2,10]
5 - (#keys=2) "D1"."SETID"[VARCHAR2,5], "D1"."DEPTID"[VARCHAR2,10],
MAX(SYS_OP_UNDESCEND(SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT")))[7]
6 - "D1"."SETID"[VARCHAR2,5], "D1"."DEPTID"[VARCHAR2,10],
SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT")[RAW,12]
7 - "N"."EMPLID"[VARCHAR2,11], "N"."NAME"[VARCHAR2,50]
8 - "N".ROWID[ROWID,10], "N"."EMPLID"[VARCHAR2,11]

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 31

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( null,
null, ‘ADVANCED'));
• An outline is a set of hints
Outline Data
-------------

/*+
BEGIN_OUTLINE_DATA
INDEX(@"SEL$2" "D1"@"SEL$2" "PS_DEPT_TBL")
USE_HASH(@"SEL$1" "N"@"SEL$1")
LEADING(@"SEL$1" "D"@"SEL$1" "N"@"SEL$1")
INDEX_FFS(@"SEL$1" "N"@"SEL$1" "PS0NAMES")
FULL(@"SEL$1" "D"@"SEL$1")
OUTLINE(@"SEL$1")
OUTLINE(@"SEL$2")
OUTLINE_LEAF(@"SEL$1")
OUTLINE_LEAF(@"SEL$2")
ALL_ROWS
OPTIMIZER_FEATURES_ENABLE('10.2.0.1')
IGNORE_OPTIM_EMBEDDED_HINTS
END_OUTLINE_DATA
*/

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 32

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY

• Filter Predicates
– Applied to the plan table
– Simply get a partial execution plan

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 33

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display(null, null,
null, 'object_name like ''%DEPT
%'''));
Plan hash value: 454993881

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Bytes | Cost (%CPU)| Time |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 330 | 14850 | 6 (0)| 00:00:01 |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN| PS1DEPT_TBL | 660 | 13860 | 3 (0)| 00:00:01 |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predicate Information (identified by operation id):

---------------------------------------------------

3 - filter("D"."EFF_STATUS"='A')
6 - filter(SYS_OP_UNDESCEND(SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT"))<=SYSDATE@! AND
SYS_OP_DESCEND("EFFDT")>=SYS_OP_DESCEND(SYSDATE@!))

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 34

o.uk
 SQL Developer Explain Plan

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 35

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY

• Rolled-up cost of each operation

– Estimate of time (converted from cost to time)
– Number of rows returned from each operation.

• Remember this is an prediction of what will

happen based upon the CBO statistics and
not reality.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 36

o.uk
 The problem with EXPLAIN PLAN

• It is the execution plan now in this session

with the statistics and environment in force
now.
• It may be what will happen next time the
statement is executed, but it may not be
what happened last time.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 37

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_CURSOR

• Displays the execution plan of a cursor in

the library cache
– Based upon view
V$SQL_PLAN_STATISTICS_ALL
– A SQL Statement might have multiple
execution plans
• So it is what happened – sort of

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 38

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_CURSOR

• Usage

DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_CURSOR(
sql_id IN VARCHAR2 DEFAULT NULL,
child_number IN NUMBER DEFAULT NULL,
format IN VARCHAR2 DEFAULT 'TYPICAL');

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 39

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_CURSOR

• Get SQL ID
– V$SQL
– V$SQLAREA
– V$OPEN_CURSOR
– V$SESSION

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 40

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display_cursor( '
bh01rt8q2820q'));
PLAN_TABLE_OUTPUT
-------------------------------------------------------
SQL_ID bh01rt8q2820q, child number 0
-------------------------------------
SELECT d.setid, d.deptid, d.descr, n.emplid, n.name
FROM ps_dept_Tbl d, ps_names n WHERE d.effdt =
( SELECT MAX(d1.effdt) FROM ps_dept_tbl d1 WHERE
d1.setid = d.setid AND d1.deptid = d.deptid AND
d1.effdt <= SYSDATE ) AND d.eff_status ='A' AND
n.emplid = d.manager_id
…

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 41

o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display_cursor( '
bh01rt8q2820q'));
Plan hash value: 454993881

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Bytes | Cost (%CPU)| Time |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 0 | SELECT STATEMENT | | | | 13 (100)| |
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 2 | 176 | 13 (16)| 00:00:01 |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 65 | 11 (19)| 00:00:01 |
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 330 | 14850 | 6 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 660 | 13200 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 660 | 13860 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 660 | 13860 | 3 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 2 | 46 | 2 (0)| 00:00:01 |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 2 | | 1 (0)| 00:00:01 |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predicate Information (identified by operation id):

---------------------------------------------------

2 - access("D"."EFFDT"="VW_COL_1" AND SYS_OP_DESCEND("D"."EFFDT")=SYS_OP_DESCEND(

"VW_COL_1") AND "SETID"="D"."SETID" AND "DEPTID"="D"."DEPTID")
3 - filter("D"."EFF_STATUS"='A')
6 - filter((SYS_OP_UNDESCEND("D1"."SYS_NC00051$")<=SYSDATE@! AND
"D1"."SYS_NC00051$">=SYS_OP_DESCEND(SYSDATE@!)))
8 - access("N"."EMPLID"="D"."MANAGER_ID")

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 42

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_CURSOR

• The execution plan is the one that was used

to execute the statement
– But the costs and metrics are still based upon
the CBO statistics
– There may be a discrepancy between estimated
and actual cost of operations in the plan

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 43

o.uk
 Descending and Function-Based
Indexes
SELECT uic.index_name, uic.column_name,
uic.descend, uie.column_expression
FROM user_ind_Columns uic
, user_ind_expressions uie
WHERE uic.column_name = 'SYS_NC00051$'
AND uic.index_name = 'PS1DEPT_TBL'
AND uie.index_name = uic.index_name
AND uie.table_name = uic.table_name
/

INDEX_NAME COLUMN_NAME DESCEND COLUMN_EXPRESSION

------------ ------------ ------- -----------------
PS1DEPT_TBL SYS_NC00051$ DESC "EFFDT"

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 44

o.uk
 Extra Format Options

• IOSTAT: assumes basic statistics are

collected when SQL executed
• MEMSTATS: if PGA management enable
display memory management stats
• ALLSTATS: IOSTATS and MEMSTATS
• LAST: last execution only

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 45

o.uk
 Collecting Execution Statistics
• Hint one statement

/*+ gather_plan_statistics */

• Set for session

ALTER SESSION
SET statistics_level = 'ALL'

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 46

o.uk
 select * from

table(dbms_xplan.display_cursor( 'fz3
qdn0z07n8n',null,'IOSTATS'));
SQL_ID fz3qdn0z07n8n, child number 0
-------------------------------------
SELECT /*+ gather_plan_statistics */ d.setid, d.deptid, d.descr, n.emplid, n.name FROM ps_dept_Tbl d
ps_names n WHERE d.effdt = ( SELECT MAX(d1.effdt) FROM ps_dept_tbl d1 WHERE d1.setid = d.setid
AND d1.deptid = d.deptid AND d1.effdt <= SYSDATE ) AND d.eff_status = 'A' AND n.emplid = d.manager

Plan hash value: 454993881

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Starts | E-Rows | A-Rows | A-Time | Buffers |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 1 | 2 | 65 |00:00:00.01 | 793 |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 1 | 618 |00:00:00.01 | 40 |
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 1 | 330 | 658 |00:00:00.01 | 23 |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 1 | 660 | 620 |00:00:00.01 | 17 |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 1 | 660 | 620 |00:00:00.01 | 17 |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 1 | 660 | 660 |00:00:00.01 | 17 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 65 |00:00:00.01 | 753 |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 65 |00:00:00.01 | 691 |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 47

o.uk
 select * from

table(dbms_xplan.display_cursor( 'fz3
qdn0z07n8n',null,'MEMSTATS'));
SQL_ID fz3qdn0z07n8n, child number 0
-------------------------------------
SELECT /*+ gather_plan_statistics */ d.setid, d.deptid, d.descr, n.emplid, n.name FROM ps_dept_Tbl d
ps_names n WHERE d.effdt = ( SELECT MAX(d1.effdt) FROM ps_dept_tbl d1 WHERE d1.setid = d.setid
AND d1.deptid = d.deptid AND d1.effdt <= SYSDATE ) AND d.eff_status = 'A' AND n.emplid = d.manager

Plan hash value: 454993881

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Starts | E-Rows | A-Rows | A-Time | OMem | 1Mem | O/1/M
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 1 | 2 | 65 |00:00:00.01 | | | |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 1 | 618 |00:00:00.01 | 746K| 746K| 1/0/0|
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 1 | 330 | 658 |00:00:00.01 | | |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 1 | 660 | 620 |00:00:00.01 | | | |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 1 | 660 | 620 |00:00:00.01 | | | |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 1 | 660 | 660 |00:00:00.01 | | |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 65 |00:00:00.01 | | |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 65 |00:00:00.01 | | | |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 48

o.uk
 MEMSTATS Columns

• 0Mem : The estimated amount of memory

needed for an optimal execution
• 1Mem : The estimated amount of memory
needed for one-pass execution.
• 0/1/M : Then number of times the execution
was performed in optimal/one-
pass/multipass mode.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 49

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_AWR

• Displays the execution plan of a cursor

stored in the Automatic Workload
Repository (AWR)

• Extracts information from AWR tables

– DBA_HIST_SQL_PLAN
– DBA_HIST_SQLTEXT

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 50

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_AWR

• AWR is the replacement to Statspack

– It is licensed as a part of Diagnostic Pack
– Therefore, use of this function is similarly
licensed.
• Statspack doesn’t report SQL_IDs

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 51

o.uk
 Statspack and DBMS_XPLAN
select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display( 'stats$sql_p
lan',null, 'all', 'hash_value =
740558870 and snap_id=4200'))

• If you use 10g STATSPACK, use

hash_value, not plan_hash_value

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 52

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_AWR

• Usage

DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_AWR(
sql_id IN VARCHAR2,
plan_hash_value IN NUMBER DEFAULT NULL,
db_id IN NUMBER DEFAULT NULL,
format IN VARCHAR2 DEFAULT TYPICAL);

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 53

o.uk
DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 54
o.uk
 select * from
table( dbms_xplan.display_awr( 'bh0
1rt8q2820q'));
PLAN_TABLE_OUTPUT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SQL_ID bh01rt8q2820q
--------------------
SELECT d.setid, d.deptid, d.descr, n.emplid, n.name FROM ps_dept_Tbl d, ps_names n
WHERE d.effdt = ( SELECT MAX(d1.effdt) FROM ps_dept_tbl d1 WHERE d1.setid =
d.setid AND d1.deptid = d.deptid AND d1.effdt <= SYSDATE ) AND d.eff_status =
'A' AND n.emplid = d.manager_id

Plan hash value: 454993881

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Bytes | Cost (%CPU)| Time |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 0 | SELECT STATEMENT | | | | 13 (100)| |
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 2 | 176 | 13 (16)| 00:00:01 |
| 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 65 | 11 (19)| 00:00:01 |
| 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 330 | 14850 | 6 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 660 | 13200 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 660 | 13860 | 4 (25)| 00:00:01 |
| 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 660 | 13860 | 3 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 2 | 46 | 2 (0)| 00:00:01 |
| 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 2 | | 1 (0)| 00:00:01 |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 55

o.uk
 Multiple Execution plans
SQL_ID bxu9sk3q91trn
--------------------
INSERT INTO TMP_ACTSEARCH1 (ACTIVITY_PK) SELECT ACT.ACTIVITY_PK FROM
TBL_TMX_ACTIVITY ACT WHERE CONTAINS(ACT.ACTIVITYDESC, :B1 ) > 0

Plan hash value: 2274164979

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Bytes | Cost (%CPU)| Time |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 0 | INSERT STATEMENT | | | | 379K(100)| |
| 1 | TABLE ACCESS FULL| TBL_TMX_ACTIVITY | 1 | 74 | 379K (8)| 00:00:30 |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SQL_ID bxu9sk3q91trn
--------------------
INSERT INTO TMP_ACTSEARCH1 (ACTIVITY_PK) SELECT ACT.ACTIVITY_PK FROM
TBL_TMX_ACTIVITY ACT WHERE CONTAINS(ACT.ACTIVITYDESC, :B1 ) > 0

Plan hash value: 4216380757

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Rows | Bytes | Cost (%CPU)|
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 0 | INSERT STATEMENT | | | | 1 (100)|
| 1 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| TBL_TMX_ACTIVITY | 1 | 73 | 0 (0)|
| 2 | DOMAIN INDEX | FT_TABLE_RAJLCU1R | | | 0 (0)|
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 56

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_SQLSET

• Displays execution plan of a statement in a

tuning set.
– It is licensed as a part of Diagnostic Pack or
Tuning Pack

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 57

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_SQLSET

• Usage
DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_SQLSET(
sqlset_name IN VARCHAR2,
sql_id IN VARCHAR2,
plan_hash_value IN NUMBER NULL,
format IN VARCHAR2 'TYPICAL',
sqlset_owner IN VARCHAR2 NULL)

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 58

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.
DISPLAY_SQL_PLAN_BASELINE

• New in Oracle 11g

• Displays execution plan of a statement in a
SQL base line.
– It is licensed as a part of Tuning Pack(?)

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 59

o.uk
 DBMS_XPLAN.
DISPLAY_SQL_PLAN_BASELINE

• Usage

DBMS_XPLAN.DISPLAY_SQL_PLAN_BASELINE (
sql_handle IN VARCHAR2 := NULL,
plan_name IN VARCHAR2 := NULL,
format IN VARCHAR2 := 'TYPICAL')

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 60

o.uk
 What is Wrong with this plan?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Starts | E-Rows | Cost (%CPU)| A-Rows | A-Time | Buffers |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 1 | 2 | 13 (16)| 65 |00:00:00.06 | 793 |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 1 | 11 (19)| 618 |00:00:00.04 | 40 |
|* 3 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 1 | 330 | 6 (0)| 658 |00:00:00.01 |
| 4 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 1 | 660 | 4 (25)| 620 |00:00:00.02 | 17 |
| 5 | HASH GROUP BY | | 1 | 660 | 4 (25)| 620 |00:00:00.01 | 17 |
|* 6 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 1 | 660 | 3 (0)| 660 |00:00:00.01 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 2 (0)| 65 |00:00:00.02 |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 1 (0)| 65 |00:00:00.01 | 691
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predicate Information (identified by operation id):

---------------------------------------------------

2 - access("D"."EFFDT"="VW_COL_1" AND SYS_OP_DESCEND("D"."EFFDT")=SYS_OP_DESCEND(

"VW_COL_1") AND "SETID"="D"."SETID" AND "DEPTID"="D"."DEPTID")
3 - filter("D"."EFF_STATUS"='A')
6 - filter((SYS_OP_UNDESCEND("D1"."SYS_NC00051$")<=SYSDATE@! AND
"D1"."SYS_NC00051$">=SYS_OP_DESCEND(SYSDATE@!)))
8 - access("N"."EMPLID"="D"."MANAGER_ID")

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 61

o.uk
 Skewed distribution of Data
SELECT eff_status, count(*)
FROM ps_dept_tbl
GROUP BY eff_status

EFF COUNT(*)
--- ----------
I 2
A 658

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 62

o.uk
 Collect Stats with Histograms
• This is the default option in 10g
begin
sys.dbms_stats.gather_table_stats
(ownname=>'SYSADM'
,tabname=>'PS_DEPT_TBL'
,estimate_percent=>DBMS_STATS.AUTO_SAMPLE_SIZE
,method_opt=>'FOR ALL COLUMNS SIZE AUTO'
,cascade=>TRUE);

end;
/

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 63

o.uk
 Any Better?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Id | Operation | Name | Starts | E-Rows | Cost (%CPU)| A-Rows | A-Time | Buffers |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 1 | NESTED LOOPS | | 1 | 11 | 21 (10)| 65 |00:00:00.06 | 823 |
|* 2 | HASH JOIN | | 1 | 5 | 11 (19)| 618 |00:00:00.04 | 70 |
| 3 | VIEW | VW_SQ_1 | 1 | 660 | 4 (25)| 620 |00:00:00.01 | 17 |
| 4 | HASH GROUP BY | | 1 | 660 | 4 (25)| 620 |00:00:00.01 | 17 |
|* 5 | INDEX FAST FULL SCAN | PS1DEPT_TBL | 1 | 660 | 3 (0)| 660 |00:00:00.01 |
|* 6 | TABLE ACCESS FULL | PS_DEPT_TBL | 1 | 658 | 6 (0)| 658 |00:00:00.01 |
| 7 | TABLE ACCESS BY INDEX ROWID| PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 2 (0)| 65 |00:00:00.02 |
|* 8 | INDEX RANGE SCAN | PS_NAMES | 618 | 2 | 1 (0)| 65 |00:00:00.01 | 691
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Predicate Information (identified by operation id):

---------------------------------------------------

2 - access("D"."EFFDT"="VW_COL_1" AND SYS_OP_DESCEND("D"."EFFDT")=SYS_OP_DESCEND("VW_COL_1"

) AND "SETID"="D"."SETID" AND "DEPTID"="D"."DEPTID")
5 - filter((SYS_OP_UNDESCEND("D1"."SYS_NC00051$")<=SYSDATE@! AND
"D1"."SYS_NC00051$">=SYS_OP_DESCEND(SYSDATE@!)))
6 - filter("D"."EFF_STATUS"='A')
8 - access("N"."EMPLID"="D"."MANAGER_ID")

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 64

o.uk
 The data is skewed

• 37 setids
• 435 departments
• 37 distinct managers

• 1.06 rows per setid & deptid

• 19 distinct effective dates.

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 65

o.uk
 Acknowledgements

• 10g/11g DBMS_XPLAN
– Carol Dacko, University of Michigan
• Collaborate 08 Conference presentation
– Blog to be launched soon

• Rob van Wijk

– http://rwijk.blogspot.com/2008/03/dbmsxplandi
splaycursor.html

DBMS_XPLAN UKOUG2008 ©www.go-faster.c 78

o.uk
Questions?
Obtaining and Interpreting
Execution Plans using
DBMS_XPLAN
David Kurtz
Go-Faster Consultancy Ltd.

[email protected]
www.go-faster.co.uk