SQL Performance Tuning Techniques

Execution of SQL performance tuning is a dynamic skill for any software team that relies on relational databases. Vital is not the only adjective that can be applied to it. Unfortunately, rare also comes to mind.

Most software professionals think it will be OK to leave all RDBMS settings as they are default settings, but they are all wrong.

Generally, the default setting of the RDBMS comes configured, which is far from the standard settings.

If you are not optimizing these settings, it will result in performance issues that could have been avoided easily.

Various programmers believe that even via SQL performance tuning is essential, only the DBAs can do it. They are also wrong.

Firstly, all the companies will have a person with an official DBA as a title. It also depends on the size of the company, which is more than anything else.

However, if you have a dedicated DBA in your team, it does not mean you should overwhelm them with tasks that the developers could have easily performed.

Also, if a developer can diagnose and fix a slow query, then there is no reason they should perform it. The most relevant word here is that most of the time, they cannot.

But how to fix the problem?

The answer is simple – equipping the developers with the fantastic knowledge they require to find the slow SQL queries and do the performance tuning in the server of SQL.

Here are five tips for the same

1. Use the database engine tuning advisor

It analyses the performance of transact SQL statement, which runs against the database intended to be tuned. The database engine tuning advisor can be used to analyze the performance implications.

2. Find slow queries with the help of SQL DMVs

The best feature of the SQL server is the DMVs,i.e., dynamic management views, which are built into it. There are plenty of them which can offer a wealth of information about a massive range of topics.

3. Query reporting with the help of APM solutions

The most remarkable feature of the APM (application performance management) tool is the ability to track queries of SQL. It will tell you how often the query was executed, how long it will take on average, and with what transactions.

4. SQL Server extended events

Microsoft has replaced the SQL server profiler with the SQL server extended events. So now, it is the standard way for all Microsoft-related technologies to expose diagnostic data.

5. SQL Azure query performance insights

With the Azure portal, you can quickly get access to the massive array of performance optimization and very helpful reporting tips.

Also read: Server Side Scripting vs. Client Side Scripting: What’s the Difference?

Conclusion

Now, if you have to do performance tuning with the help of an SQL server, then you have a few options at your disposal for consideration. Some odds are that you will need to use more than one of these fantastic tools based on what goal you are trying to reach.