Real-time database performance and availability monitoring method and system

• US 20060106851A1
• Filed: 11/03/2005
• Published: 05/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Enteros, Inc.
• Original Assignee: DBA Infopower Incorporated
• Inventors: Warshawsky, Ron
• Granted Patent: US 7,756,840 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2358 Change logging, detection, and notification replication G06F16/27

Abstract

Database performance and availability monitoring of changes impacting database performance, availability and continuity to the underlying business may be performed. A method for doing so may include analytical and visual real-time analysis engines to identify and provide alert notifications on changes in database performance statistics (such as CPU consumption, physical I/O, etc.) related to a sample period of time on a single database or across multiple databases. Result data may be displayed through a series of charts and/or summary tables that may indicate whether correlations exist between unexpected database performance and relative changes in database performance statistical parameters.

Claims

1. A computer readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method of database performance analysis comprising:

setting a value of a time window size TP, where TP is a time period between a current moment of time t and a moment of time TP periods ago, t−

TP+1;

obtaining a value of a database performance statistic in the current moment of time t as VAL(t);

obtaining a highest value of the database performance statistic within a time period from t−

TP+1 to t, as HV(t);

obtaining a lowest value of the database performance statistic within the time period from t−

TP+1 to t, as LV(t);

calculating a normalized value of a data point at time t as (VAL(t)−

LV (t) )/(HV(t)−

LV(t) ).

2. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein said obtaining a value of a database performance statistic comprises:

choosing VAL(t) from a database performance statistic data set, DS, comprising data elements DS(t), wherein a data element value DS(t) at time t is calculated as D(t)−

D(t−

1), where D(t) is a value of a database performance statistic at time t and D(t−

1) is a value of the database performance statistic at a previous time, t−

1;

wherein said highest value and said lowest value are determined based on said data set, DS; and

wherein said normalized value at time t is calculated based on the data set DS, using VAL(t) and said highest and lowest values.,

3. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein said obtaining a value of a database performance statistic comprises:

setting VAL(t) equal to a function of at least one database performance statistic, wherein said highest value, said lowest value, and said normalized value are determined based on the same function of at least one database performance statistic.

4. The computer readable medium of claim 3, wherein said function comprises a moving average of a database performance statistic.

5. The computer readable medium of claim 1, having further computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method that further comprises:

identifying sets of data points from a set of single database performance statistics for a single database, wherein a corresponding time stamp value is recorded for each data point; and

displaying the data points of at least one of said sets of data points on a chart, said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time.

6. The method, system and computer readable medium of claim 2, having further computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method that further comprises:

identifying sets of data points from a set of single database performance statistics for a single database, wherein a corresponding time stamp value is recorded for each data point; and

displaying the data points of at least one of said sets of data points on a chart, said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time.

7. The method, system and computer readable medium of claim 3, having further computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method that further comprises:

identifying sets of data points from a set of single database performance statistics for a single database, wherein a corresponding time stamp value is recorded for each data point; and

displaying the data points of at least one of said sets of data points on a chart, said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time.

8. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said sets of data points correspond to a single similar statistic across multiple physical databases, and wherein said sets of data points are displayed on a single chart.

9. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said sets of data points are displayed on a single chart for a single similar statistic for a logical database cluster, wherein said logical database cluster comprises two or more physical databases.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said sets of data points are displayed on a single chart for multiple database performance statistics for a single physical database.

11. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said sets of data points are displayed on a single chart for multiple database performance statistics for multiple physical databases.

12. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said sets of data points are displayed on a single chart for multiple database performance statistics for a logical database cluster, wherein said logical database cluster comprises two or more physical databases.

13. The computer readable medium of claim 5, further comprising additional computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

calculating at least one set of data points on a same database performance statistic using data from historical time periods to thus obtain one or more sets of historical data points; and

displaying said one or more sets of historical data points on said chart, along with said one or more sets of data points.

14. The computer readable medium according to claim 4, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period;

wherein said moving average uses said moving average period.

15. The computer readable medium according to claim 4, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

computing a database performance statistic moving average period as a user defined ratio of an overall time span of underlying data values of a database parameter data set;

wherein said moving average uses said moving average period.

16. The computer readable medium according to claim 5, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period; and

calculating a database performance statistic moving average data set based on the sets of data points using said moving average period.

17. The computer readable medium according to claim 8, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period; and

calculating a database performance statistic moving average data set based on the sets of data points using said moving average period.

18. The computer readable medium according to claim 9, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period; and

calculating a database performance statistic moving average data set based on the sets of data points using said moving average period.

19. The computer readable medium according to claim 10, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period; and

calculating a database performance statistic moving average data set based on the sets of data points using said moving average period.

20. The computer readable medium according to claim 11, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period; and

calculating a database performance statistic moving average data set based on the sets of data points using said moving average period.

21. The computer readable medium according to claim 12, further comprising computer-executable instructions such that the method further comprises:

obtaining from a user a database performance statistic moving average period; and

calculating a database performance statistic moving average data set based on the sets of data points using said moving average period.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said one or more database performance statistics are based on SQL statistics associated with one or more SQL statements executed in one or more databases.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein said one or more database parameters are related to SQL statistics associated with one or more SQL statements executed in one or more databases.

24. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein said normalized value is compared with a threshold value selected from the group consisting of:

a user defined threshold value and a default threshold value.

25. The computer readable medium of claim 2, wherein said normalized value is compared with a threshold value selected from the group consisting of:

a user defined threshold value and a default threshold value.

26. The computer readable medium of claim 3, wherein said normalized value is compared with a threshold value selected from the group consisting of:

a user defined threshold value and a default threshold value.

27. A computer readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method of obtaining descriptive metadata about database agent monitoring configuration, the method comprising:

calling at least one configuration self-descriptive function of the database monitoring agent from external application,

wherein an output of said self-descriptive function comprises a list of metadata elements.

28. The computer readable medium of claim 27, said metadata elements comprising at least one of the items selected from the group consisting of:

names of configured monitored parameters, corresponding lengths of configured monitored parameters, and other output format information.

29. The computer readable medium of claim 27, further including additional instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

producing a chart panel for every received parameter metadata element and using such chart panel to display corresponding parameter data generated by database monitoring agent.

30. A computer readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method comprising:

displaying a plurality of graphical representations of a plurality of respective database performance statistics related to a common database on a same chart, wherein the database performance statistics to be displayed are selected by a user;

said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time; and

adding a new data point to the display upon receiving each new database performance statistic data point.

31. The computer readable medium of claim 30, including further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

displaying a plurality of graphical representations corresponding to a plurality of database performance statistics obtained from at least one of the group consisting of;

multiple databases, logical database clusters, and physical database clusters.

32. A computer readable medium of claim 30, including further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

displaying a plurality of graphical representations of a plurality of a respective function of at least one database performance statistic.

33. A computer readable medium of claim 31, including further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

displaying a plurality of graphical representations of a plurality of a respective functions of at least one of said plurality of database performance statistics.

34. A computer readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method comprising:

displaying a plurality of textual representations of a plurality of database performance statistic values related to multiple databases in a form of table/grid within a frame, where at least one row of said table/grid represents multiple database performance statistics related to a single database and a first cell of said at least one row represents a database connection name, wherein every other cell of said at least one row represents a value selected from the group consisting of;

a value of a single database performance statistic and a value of a function of at least one database performance statistic;

said table/grid further including a header to display names of the database performance statistics; and

changing a value in at least one cell of the table/grid upon receiving new data corresponding to at least one database performance statistic.

35. The computer readable medium of claim 34, containing further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

changing a color of a cell of said table/grid when a current change in a value of a database performance statistic corresponding to said cell causes a monitoring alert condition to be triggered.

36. The computer readable medium of claim 34, containing further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

moving a row of said table/grid corresponding to a database that most recently triggered a monitoring alert to the top of the table/grid.

37. The computer readable medium of claim 34, containing further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

upon table cell selection by a pointing device, displaying a separate frame containing a graphical representation of the corresponding selected database performance statistic in a chart, said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time.

38. The computer readable medium of claim 34, containing further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

upon table header selection by a pointing device, displaying a separate frame that contains a graphical representation of a corresponding selected database performance statistic across all databases in the table/grid in a single chart, said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time.

39. The computer readable medium of claim 34, containing further instructions that cause the method to further comprise:

upon database connection name selection by a pointing device, displaying a separate frame that contains a graphical representation of the database performance statistics related to the corresponding selected database as a single chart, said chart comprising a data set display area, a vertical database performance statistic value axis, and a horizontal axis of time.

40. A computer readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method of database performance analysis comprising:

calculating a database performance statistic moving average based on a database performance statistic using a database performance statistic moving average period, wherein said database performance statistic moving average period is one of the group consisting of;

a user-defined period and a predetermined default period; and

comparing a value of the database performance statistic with the value of the moving average to identify a percent difference between the value of the database performance statistic and the value of the moving average;

wherein said database performance statistic is selected from the group consisting of;

a direct database performance statistic and a derived database performance statistic.

41. A computer readable medium having computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method of database performance analysis comprising:

comparing a current value of a database performance statistic with a previous value of the same database performance statistic obtained during a previous monitoring period to identify a percent difference between said current value and said previous value;

wherein said database performance statistic is selected from the group consisting of;

a direct database performance statistic and a derived database performance statistic.