Sizing Your Content Databases- Understanding The Limits

Sizing your content databases Understanding the limits

Randy Williams • Enterprise Trainer & Evangelist • Based in San Diego, CA • SharePoint MVP alum (2009 – 2011) • Speaker at many global conferences• 20+ years in IT ● Developer, consultant, trainer, author• Columnist: SharePoint Pro magazine• randy.williams@avepoint.com• @tweetraw

Agenda Understanding Remote BLOB new limits storage (RBS) 1 2 Achieving 3 4 Summary larger Q&A capacities

Agenda Understanding new limits 1

The SharePoint storage dilemma• Documents, databases, and BLOBs• Storage growth SharePoint SQL Server 2008/R2 Content Database Content Content Database Database Active Content Actual Content

Previously supported limits Large, single -site repositories 1 TB and archives General use (records 200 GB scenarios center) 100 GB site collection ** A larger site collection is supported if itis the only site collection in the database

Revised limits (July ‘11) Document No archive explicit scenario: All scenarios: limit caveats 4 TB caveats apply General use apply200 GB scenarios Site collection No explicit size – limit by scenario, database size, item count

Understanding scenarios• SharePoint is multi-purpose• Scenario primarily refers to needs and usage patterns ● Read/write centric ● Concurrent users ● Average/peak loads ● Recovery objectives• Isolate different usage patterns to separate databases

Common scenariosRecord Center Team Site• Long term retention • Day to day collaboration• Low volatility – few write w/ shorter retention operations • Heavy read and write• Very limited reads operationsLarger databases Smaller databases

What are the 4TB-level caveats? • A larger db requires faster storage ● Between 0.25 – 2.0 IOPS/GB ● 4TB DB : 1000 IOPS minimum • Plans developed for DR/HA • Capacity planning/perf testing • Recognize added complexity ● Skilled architects and proactive admins • 60M total item limit per dbhttp://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc262787.aspx

What are the >4TB caveats? • All 4TB caveats, plus • Document Center or Record Center only • In any given month ● <5% of content accessed ● <1% of content modified • No alerts, user workflow, item-level security, et alhttp://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc262787.aspx

Why is 200GB still a good target?• Support operations are much easier• Better performance ● The larger the db, the slower it gets• Easier to meet backup and recovery objectives ● Most recoveries begin with a db restore ● Can you meet your recovery objectives?• Patching / upgrading is faster 200 GB

Book giveaway• What is the maximum number of items that can be stored in a single content database?

Why are larger DBs slower?• Read queries take longer ● More rows to filter, group and sort• Write queries take longer• Increased lock contention ● Causes more blocking• More data, but data cache same size• DB maintenance takes longer ● reindex ● dbcc checkdb

What happens as size increases?http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh395916.aspx

DemoSIZE AFFECTS PERFORMANCE

Agenda 2 Achieving larger capacities

Achieving storage performance• Storage array (RAID 1+0) ● 10 300GB SAS drives, 15k RPM ● 1.5 TB effective space ● ~1500 IOPS = 1.0 IOPS/GB• Set of drives (RAID 1+0) ● 4 750GB SATA drives, 10k RPM ● 1.5 TB effective space ● ~300 IOPS = 0.2 IOPS/GB• Go with higher quality storage ● SAS > SATA ; SAN > DAS

Scaling storage• Multiple storage arrays (RAID 1+0)• Break out into multiple LUNs• Add additional data files to DB, one per array F:SP_DocCenter_1.mdf• Advice G: SP_DocCenter_2.ndf Data ● Many smaller drives > H: SP_DocCenter_3.ndf I: SP_DocCenter_4.ndf fewer larger ones J: SP_DocCenter.ldf Log ● RAID 1+0 > RAID 5

Additional performance guidance • How many data files? ● Advice varies – between 0.25 to 1 per physical CPU ● Each on a different spindle/LUN • Adjust database growth settings ● Use 50-100MB for each data file ● Use 20-40MB for log • Enable instant file initialization • Optimize tempdb ● Use multiple data files ● Pre-size to 25% of largest db ● RAID 1+0http://slidesha.re/pwVlJM

Demo (if time permits)DB SETTINGS AFFECTPERFORMANCE

Achieving Recovery Objectives • Built-in SharePoint backup is incapable of working with large capacities ● Site collection backup limit : 15GB ● Practical database backup limit : 200GB • Look at your backup/recovery objectives ● Most recoveries involve a database restore • Deploy SP1 – site recycle bin • Look for third-party solutionshttp://slidesha.re/rlv3u1

Agenda Remote BLOB storage (RBS) 3

Remote BLOB Storage (RBS)• Storing document (BLOB) outside database• Cannot be used to scale beyond database limits ● Effective size = DB size + BLOB store• Can externalize based on document size• Built in RBS support with SQL Server 2008 (FILESTREAM provider)

Overview of BLOB externalization Pointer (stub) RBS Upload SQL Server Web Front-endExternalized BLOB istransparent to both File SystemSharePoint and its users

Advantages of externalizing BLOBs• Reduce storage costs• Increase performance ● Read & write of BLOBs ● All other database activities• Access to features of BLOB storage platform• Efficient content restructure ● Shallow copy in SP1

Advantages of keeping BLOBs inSQL• One storage container to ● Maintain ● Monitor ● Recover• Tier I storage ● Performance relative to lower tiers of storage benefits all content access• SQL caching ● Performance of reads/writes of small documents ● SQL caching benefits reads

RBS Guidance • Consider using in document-heavy databases • Trade off ● Storage cost & performance benefits versus ● More complex architecture (support, DR, HA) • Consider third party providers ● More full-featured solutions • In general ● Do not externalize documents <1MB ● Ideal number varies widelyFor more, see bit.ly/v4iMMm

Book giveaway• What is the SQL Server command that checks for database corruption?

Agenda 4 Summary Q&A

In review• 4TB is the new supported limit for all scenarios• No limit for record/document centers• Keys to achieving larger sizes ● Storage performance planning/testing ● DR/HA planning/testing• RBS offers benefits but does not extend these limits

Questions? randy.williams@avepoint.com http://linkd.in/plEEb1 @tweetraw

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Sizing Your Content Databases- Understanding The Limits

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