Chapter 31. Hardware 201: selecting and sizing database server hardware
The absolute foundation of database performance is the underlying server hardware and storage subsystem. Even the best designed and optimized database application can be crippled by an inadequate hardware and storage infrastructure. Recent advances in new processors and chipsets, along with improvements in magnetic and SSD storage, have dramatically changed the hardware evaluation and selection process as compared to the past. Many database professionals struggle to keep up with new technology and often simply let someone else make their hardware selection and sizing decisions. Unfortunately, the DBA usually gets the blame for any performance or scalability issues that crop up later. This chapter covers current and upcoming hardware from both Intel and AMD, and gives you the tools and techniques to make better hardware selection decisions to support SQL Server OLTP workloads.
Why does database server hardware matter? After all, isn’t it someone else’s job to worry about all the gory details of your database hardware and storage subsystem? I’d argue that as a database professional, you have an ethical responsibility to have a decent level of knowledge about your hardware and storage environment. Your server hardware, and the underlying storage subsystem, form the foundation of your database environment, which will affect the success of your applications and of your organization’s business.
