Author: Robert Agar
The working life of a DBA is often centered on optimizing their systems to provide users with the best performance. There are many aspects of a MySQL implementation that can be tuned to increase its functionality. These improvements will result in a more efficient system and enhanced user experience.
One of the problems facing the DBA responsible for instituting performance tuning is to identify the particular areas to address that will impact the system in a positive manner. Approaching this task in a haphazard fashion is not advisable. Randomly modifying parameters is just as likely to cause further issues than to lead to performance gains. Luckily, there is a solution to this dilemma.
Conducting focused monitoring can be instrumental in enabling the DBA to pinpoint the source of performance degradation. Armed with this knowledge, informed decisions can be made regarding how to tune the MySQL system to reach its peak efficiency. Let’s look at some methods that can be used to produce the insight required to address your performance issues in a structured way. They will increase the probability that your modifications deliver results.
How to Monitor a MySQL System
Here are some methods and tactics to use when monitoring your MySQL system.
Begin by Gathering Baseline Metrics
Attempting to address performance issues without an understanding of the current environment is not a productive way to go about monitoring your system. For this reason, it is imperative that you start your journey by accumulating baseline metrics from which future decisions can be made. Some of the specific metrics to concentrate on are:
- Rows examined and sent;
- Length of time for queries to run;
- Transaction throughput;
- Wait and thread states.
Building a more complete picture of your system’s present state and levels of performance will allow you to make the right choices when tuning it.
Create a Monitoring Plan
The benefits of developing a good monitoring plan allow you to address these issues that impact your MySQL installation.
- Performance – This may be your primary reason for being concerned with monitoring your system. Observing the system’s performance can alert you to bottlenecks or point you to SQL statements that can be written in a more efficient manner.
- Security – Monitoring can alert you to security weaknesses and should be incorporated into your plan.
- Growth – Your plan should include provisions to monitor user and data traffic. This allows you to be better prepared to address the growth necessary to handle the workload.
When Monitoring Should be Performed
Based on the critical nature of your database, monitoring in real-time may be essential. If a problem with the system could lead to serious consequences, you need to be alerted immediately so you can take corrective action. This is a vital component of any monitoring strategy.
You also want to be able to obtain a historical perspective regarding the metrics you are monitoring. Comparative analysis of regularly collected data and statistics can identify potential issues and allow you to proactively address them. This type of monitoring is also the best way to gauge the success of any tuning efforts that have been made by comparing performance before and after the change was implemented.
Some Specific Areas to Monitor
These aspects of your database form a great place to start monitoring your system.
- Throughput – Tracking the number of requests your database handles daily is a key metric that can have an impact on the direction you take with your tuning efforts.
- Execution time – Related to the number of requests is the time required to process them.
- Utilization – An overall metric that reports on the availability of the database. This metric is important when considering the performance of the system.
The Importance of Your Monitoring Tools
The tremendous amount of metrics that are available to a MySQL DBA make it imperative that they have quality tools at their disposal. It should offer the ability to create custom alerts which allow timely corrective action to be taken. The tool should present historical data for long-term analysis. Another important quality is the ability to generate reports and visually present data for better comprehension.
SQL Diagnostic Manager for MySQL (formerly Monyog) is a comprehensive monitoring solution for your MySQL databases. It provides customizable real-time monitoring and the ability to track all changes made to your MySQL configuration. You can create custom charts and dashboards that enable you to convey the data to all interested parties. It’s an excellent tool for discovering ways to optimize your system.
