This document discusses best practices for managing large Firebird databases, highlighting performance tests, backup strategies, and monitoring tools. It emphasizes the importance of proper backup schemas, health checks, and transaction monitoring to avoid corruption and downtime. Recommendations include using tools like fbdataguard and fbscanner for effective performance monitoring and management.

1. Life with big Firebird databases
Alexey Kovyazin
www.IBSurgeon.com

2. 2
• Tools and consulting
• Platinum Sponsor of Firebird Project
• Founded in 2002: 12 years of
Firebird and InterBase recoveries
and consulting
• Based in Moscow, Russia
• Firebase is our Brazil partner (since
2006)

3. Big databases 3
Series of performance tests
with databases 9Gb... 30Gb... 1.7Tb
http://ib-aid.com/en/articles/firebird-performance-degradation-tests-myths-and-truth/

4. Non-optimized performance 4
results

5. 5 Optimized test results

6. 6 What we did
• SuperServer → Classic or SuperClassic
• Tuned Firebird config parameters
Optimized config are available here:
http://ib-aid.com/en/optimized-firebird-configuration/

7. 7 The difference between big and
small databases
• Small
– Optimize your SQLs
– In case of any trouble
do backup/restore
(gbak)
• Big
– Where is the problem?
– Why it happens?
– Backup/restore takes 1
days... Will it solve the
problem or it will be
waste of time?

8. 8 Maintenance tasks
• Backups
• Performance monitoring
– Transactions
– SQLs and plans
– Database structure

9. 9 Backups
• Usual backup: new backup rewrites old backup
Firebird database
New backup
Old backup

10. 10 Wrong!
• If backup fails, there will be no good old
backup, no new backup, and corrupted
database
Firebird database
New backup
Old backup

11. 11 Correct schema
Firebird database
New backup
Finished backup Old backup
Database space for backups:
(Number_of_stored_backups+1)*Size

12. 12 Gbak vs Nbackup
• NBACKUP
+ fast
- does not check data
- not reliable till 2.5.2
- delta problems
• Gbak
+ checks data
- slow (and speed
degrades)
- test restore needed

13. 13 Big databases backup schema
Requirements
● delta monitoring
● health monitoring
Requirements:
● gbak backup
● test restore
Production server Backup server
Nbackup gbak

14. 14 Big databases backup schema
FBDataGuard 1 FBDataGuard 2
Production server Backup server
Nbackup gbak

15. 15 FBDataGuard
• Backups (in correct way)
• Health checks of the database
• Performance parameters monitoring
– Transactions
– Users, Indices, database statistics
• Corruption monitoring
• Email alerts

16. 16 Health monitoring
• Critical metadata check and backup
– Can be used for recovery with FirstAID
• Database limitations checks
– Transactions limits, format limits, space limits
• Errors
– Firebird.log

17. 17 Indices maintenance
• Indices health
– Idea of statistics
– Recalculation of indices statistics
• Manual
• Automatic

18. 18 Demo

19. 19
Performance monitoring

20. 20 Tasks and Tools
• SQL queries and plans: FBScanner and
FBPerfMon
• Transactions: FBDataGuard (alerts, database
statistics) and IBTM (visualization)
• Database structure analysys: IBAnalyst

21. 21
Recommended setup for
monitoring
Firebird
Production server
Users
FBScanner
remote server
Administrator has:
1) FBScanner Analyzer
2) MON$Logger
3) TraceAPI
4) IBTM
5) IBAnalyst
MON$
TraceAPI
FBDataGuard
& Trace API

22. Examples of problem resolution 22
Long running active transaction — prevent
performance problem
1.Administrator got email from FBDataGuard about
transaction gap
2.IBTM shows long running active transaction
3.MON$ logger identified source of transaction, and
admin disconnected client

23. 23 Transactions monitoring
• Transaction markers (NEXT, OIT, OST, OAT)
dynamics is good indicator of problems
– Long running active transactions (stuck OAT)
– Forced Rollback (stuck OIT)
– Sweep and autosweep success

24. 24

25. MON$ 25

26. Examples of problem resolution 26
Bad performance — fix performance problem
– User reported problem with performance in application A
– Quick check with MON$logger does not show the
problem
– Admin analysed logs from FBScanner (permanent
monitoring) and found bad query, reported to developer,
with SQL plan and fresh gstat statistics from FBDataGuard
– Developer checked gstat and plan, found that new index
is needed
– Admin applied index, performance is good again

27. 27 SQL Queries and Plans
• For all Firebird versions — FBScanner
– Works as a proxy
– Connection string changes required
– Can be installed on remote server
• For Firebird 2.5 — FBPerfMon
– Mon$ support
– TraceAPI support

28. Trace 28

29. 29 FBScanner Log

30. Database structure 30

31. 31 Conclusion
• To sleep well and live long you need:
– Relialble backups
– Continious monitoring and alerts
– Quick identification of problem
– Full details how to fix it

32. 32
Backups
Health
monitoring
Typical tasks
Indices maintenance
Transactions dynamics
SQL Queries
& plans
Database structure analysys
Database

33. 33
FBDataGuard
IBTM
FBScanner
&
FBPerfMon
IBAnalyst

34. 34 Only at FDD 2014
IBSurgeon Optimization Pack
5-in-1 (FBDataGuard+FBScanner+FBPerfMon
+IBTM +IBAnalyst)
• EUR 299 R$400 per server
• EUR 1290 R$850 Unlimited Subscription 1 year
• EUR 349 R$400 FirstAID 50 database

35. 35
• Thank you!
• Questions?
Web: www.ib-aid.com www.ibsurgeon.com
Email: support@ib-aid.com