SQL Server: Intro to Monitoring I/O at SQL Saturday Redmond

For many engineers, interpreting disk I/O is a black art. Yet analyzing perfmon, wait stats, and virtual file stats is often straightforward. I wish someone would have told me this 15 years ago!

Next week, at SQL Saturday Redmond (#SQLSat511), I will be sharing authoritative, clear guidance on collecting & interpreting disk I/O metrics – here’s a sneak peak.

The Counters That Count

This is the session I wish someone had offered me 15 years ago:

• There are at least 46 disk I/O counters in perfmon. I will introduce the six authoritative counters—including the unequivocally single most important counter in diagnosing storage bottlenecks.
• Wait stats are vital for SQL Server performance troubleshooting. To interpret them effectively, I’ll demonstrate how to filter benign weights and derive columns revealing actionable info.
• The raw output of virtual file stats DMV is nearly useless. Yet leveraging straightforward derivations easily exposes essential insights.
• There’ll be live demos that will show real-time use cases. I’ll put my scripts to work and find your environment’s hot spots in moments, and you can learn how to build a #DataDriven evaluation of your own environment.

SQL Saturday Redmond

On Saturday, April 2, 2016, more than 200 SQL Server users from the Seattle area and around the country will parachute into SQL Saturday Redmond (#SQLSat511) to enjoy a full day of free training.

Twenty-four sessions are slotted. Speakers include local SMEs, MVPs, and world-famous experts from Microsoft’s SQL CAT, SQL Program Group, Tiger Team, and Premier Field Engineer Team.

And of course, yours truly.

Register here for your free day of training and join us on Microsoft’s main campus!

Want more SanDisk® flash and SQL Server? See us at these events:

• WEBINAR: SQL Server 2016 and SanDisk – the #DataDriven Channel OpportunityTuesday, March 29 at 10am PDT – Register
  Tuesday, April 5 at 10am PDT – Register
  Tuesday, April 12 at 10am PDT – Register

  David Reeves explains in this post how our colleague Peter Plamondon will share new findings, including how consolidating on flash can deliver 3x the workloads and significantly reduce licensing costs. Dear readers, this is a very exciting story.

• WEBINAR: Running Your Mission Critical Line of Business Applications Thursday, April 7 at 10am PDT – Register/Join our partner Microsoft Technology Center Ross LoForte and me as we stream live from his shiny new studio in Chicago in this, Part 1 of Microsoft’s “Unlocking the Power of Your Data Platform Webcast Series”

• EVENT: SQL Saturday Silicon Valley (#SQLSat493)I have two sessions here at the Left Coast’s Largest SQL Saturday on Saturday, April 9  – Register Hardware for Nothing, Get Your Flash for Free
  By now, Tier 1 apps deployed on flash are ubiquitous. However, Tier 2 apps often remain relegated to spinning media. This presentation explains the economics of consolidating on flash. Owing to the SQL Server core licensing model, licensing a 2-socket commodity server can cost up to $500,000 or more! Consolidating instances on flash can—and does—save hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars. This presentation provides real-life case studies showing such real-life savings.SQL Server 2016 AlwaysOn AGs Break-through Perf Enhancements
  SQL Server 2016 provides significant performance enhancements which permit us to more fully leverage hardware and licensing investments including processors, storage, network, and core licensing. Learn the new! improved! AlwaysOn AGs feature set, including the exciting new performance enhancements—and how flash is required to leverage them.
• ON-DEMAND: You Don’t Know Jack About Flash: SQL Edition!The funniest flash event ever. Click to stream this on-demand webcast sponsored by SpiceWorks and SanDisk in which I’m joined by two colleagues, a customer, and two of the finest gameshow hosts SpiceWorks could muster.

Questions? Leave your comment here, or ping me on Twitter.