Blog | Pythian (41)

MySQL

Rails and Database Session Variables

Ruby's ActiveRecord provides a very robust means of manipulating database table structures especially in the context of ...

Oracle

What's in your Exadata Smart Flash Cache?

One of the exclusive Exadata features is the Smart Flash Cache ( Oracle White Paper PDF). On a full rack, there is 5 TB ...

Oracle

Updating ASMLIB Driver Using "update-driver"

It is a controversial question whether to use ASMLIB for managing disks for an ASM instance, but I don't want to start ...

Oracle

Secrets of Oracle's Automatic Degree of Parallelism

Background: Automatic degree of parallelism, or Auto DOP, is a new feature in 11gR2 that promises to help manage ...

Oracle

Oracle Database Appliance: Storage Performance -- Part 1

Today I want to show what kind of IO performance we can get from Oracle Database Appliance (ODA). In this part, I will ...

Microsoft SQL Server

SQL server:opening errorlog:Failed to retrieve data for this request

After an in place upgrade of SQL server 2005 to SQL server 2008 R2 , I tried to open SQL errorlog from Management> ...

MySQL

Why are your indexes larger than your actual data?

It’s a common but startling sight for any DBA: you look at your database statistics and realize your indexes are ...

Oracle

Linux Patching and Oracle: Detect RPM conflicts before they happen

A common scenario in the life of a DBA on a linux server looks something like this: From: Sue-the-sysadamin To:the-dba ...

MySQL

InnoDB error: Total number of locks exceeds the lock table size

Recently, one of our customers had a problem with one of their replication slaves where a sql statement gave an error ...

MySQL

Exporting the mysql.slow_log table into slow query log format

Using pt-query-digest is an excellent way to perform a SQL review. However, sometimes you don't have access to the ...

MySQL

How and why tmp_table_size and max_heap_table_size are bounded.

Overview In some cases, MySQL creates internal temporary tables while processing queries. On the base of the dimensions ...

MySQL

Hashing Algorithm in MySQL PASSWORD()

Investigating the MySQL PASSWORD() Hashing Algorithm Recently we had a question from a customer: what is the hashing ...

Oracle

DBA_SCHEDULER_RUNNING_JOBS, where have you been?!

Backstory Where: Meeting room, Pythian office, Sydney, Australia. When: Afternoon, after lunch time. What: Discussion ...

Oracle

Unofficial Oracle Database Appliance FAQ

Introduction I’ve started putting together some information about the Oracle Database Appliance in question-and-answer ...

Microsoft SQL Server

Troubleshooting SSPI handshake error

I have seen lots of questions floating in the msdn forums about SSPI Handshake error, the main question is around error ...

Microsoft SQL Server

SQL server: Create missing indexes with unmessing names

If you do any performance tuning, and everyone does, then you’ll come to a point where you want to know if your tables ...

Oracle

CheckSystemSpace ignorance

Context Every installation is unique. It can be the same software and hardware but one installation will squease you ...

MySQL

Rounding Errors in MYSQL with DECIMAL Type

It seems to be assumed that fixed-point values, DECIMAL and NUMERIC, in MySQL are not susceptible to rounding errors ...

Oracle

Swappiness

Swappiness, as the name suggests, affects the swapping in the Linux systems. Introduction Its kind of slider value. 0 ...

MySQL

Once again about innodb-concurrency-tickets

I had to refresh my knowledge on how InnoDB threads queue works the other day when debugging activity spikes on one of ...

MySQL

Change Views DEFINER Without ALTER VIEW: How to Fix Thousands of Views

Recently I faced an interesting challenge: modify over 26k views on a single mysqld instance. Altering the view one by ...

Oracle

RDBMS Online Patching

If you support Oracle RDBMS 11.2.0.2 and want to zero downtime applying patches to databases then it is time to have a ...

Oracle

RMAN duplicate in details

Its all started from the question on communities.oracle.com An “enhancement” in 11.2 prevents RMAN duplicating non ...

ORA-00214 and Control File Mismatch

One of the many reasons a clean Oracle database shutdown should always be a ‘must have’ ingredient of a server reboot ...

Oracle

Exadata Patching Overview

Introduction Hello everyone ! For my first time posting here on the Pythian Blog, I would like to share some of my ...

Oracle

Comparing Oracle Database Appliance and Exadata

Introduction Oracle Database Appliance (ODA) is in many ways similar to an Exadata quarter rack: they both use two ...

Oracle

Viewing RMAN jobs status and output

Checking RMAN backup status via database views Yesterday I was discussing with a fellow DBA about ways to check the ...

Oracle

Encryption RMAN Backup

There are 2 configurable items related with RMAN encryption backup : CONFIGURE ENCRYPTION FOR DATABASE OFF; # default ...

Oracle

Exadata Memory Expansion Kit

It’s always interesting to dig into the spec sheets for Exadata hardware, especially when those "minor" details like ...

MySQL

How to Run a Streaming Backup with innobackupex

On many of our clients, we have a need to run XtraBackup as a regular OS user. Aside from running into the issue where ...

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Rails and Database Session Variables

What's in your Exadata Smart Flash Cache?

Updating ASMLIB Driver Using "update-driver"

Secrets of Oracle's Automatic Degree of Parallelism

Oracle Database Appliance: Storage Performance -- Part 1

SQL server:opening errorlog:Failed to retrieve data for this request

Why are your indexes larger than your actual data?

Linux Patching and Oracle: Detect RPM conflicts before they happen

InnoDB error: Total number of locks exceeds the lock table size

Exporting the mysql.slow_log table into slow query log format

How and why tmp_table_size and max_heap_table_size are bounded.

Hashing Algorithm in MySQL PASSWORD()

DBA_SCHEDULER_RUNNING_JOBS, where have you been?!

Unofficial Oracle Database Appliance FAQ

Troubleshooting SSPI handshake error

SQL server: Create missing indexes with unmessing names

CheckSystemSpace ignorance

Rounding Errors in MYSQL with DECIMAL Type

Swappiness

Once again about innodb-concurrency-tickets

Change Views DEFINER Without ALTER VIEW: How to Fix Thousands of Views

RDBMS Online Patching

RMAN duplicate in details

ORA-00214 and Control File Mismatch

Exadata Patching Overview

Comparing Oracle Database Appliance and Exadata

Viewing RMAN jobs status and output

Encryption RMAN Backup

Exadata Memory Expansion Kit

How to Run a Streaming Backup with innobackupex

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