Re: Should DBA have access to sar and top?

From: Tim Barkley <notmyemail_at_msnn.com>
Date: Sat, 27 Mar 2004 05:29:45 GMT
Message-ID: <Xns94B95272FB28teulen@66.185.95.104>

Hans Forbrich <forbrich_at_yahoo.net> wrote in news:b479c.9639$wg1.3503_at_edtnps84:

> Tim Barkley wrote:
>

>> I came to a new shop as a DBA  recently and discovered I am not
>> allowed to use either sar or top on a Unix server where Oracle
>> database is installed. Unix system administrator gave me some
>> explanation why DBA is not allowed to have access to sar and top, but
>> to me it sounds ridiculous, to put it modestly. I can't see how can
>> one be expected to do serious Oracle performance tuning  and
>> troubleshooting without those tools. I'm curious if any of you ever
>> ran into similar nonsense and how have you handled it. Here's what
>> I've was told: 
>> 
>> "SAR and Top are system administrator tools and are therefore not
>> required by any other users.  System performance monitoring is an
>> expressed function
>> of the systems administrator.  It is clearly stated in our job
>> descriptions
>> as being part of our responsibilities.  This responsibility is not
>> indicated in the job description of DBA's.
>> 

>
> Are you in a Union shop? It sounds like someone has read a rule book
> and believes that 'rules is rules and they ain't gonna change for
> nuttin'. My gut says 'get out now'.
>
> In other similar situations, I've found the SA is trying to put you in
> your place, pull seniority, pull weight or hide something (such as
> ignorance) - or it's in the union book on page 17, paragraph 5,
> subsection 1.3.9 and "I'm (*&^-well gonna teach you to follow the
> rules".
>
> I'm of the school that believes in holistic tuning - things interact
> and you have to understand the big picture as well as the little
> details. Therefore I believe you should have access to the results of
> both SAR and top, if not access to the utilities them selves.
> However, there are a number of other tools that you can use within the
> Oracle toolkit that you might want to reach for first (statspack,
> Oracle Enterprise Manager Diagnostic and Tuning packs) and then come
> up with a specific request for info from the SA - preferrably at
> awkward hours <g>.
>

>> Additionally, these tools inflict an overhead of system resources,
>> which could compromise the running of a server if not controlled
>> properly.  SAR especially utilizes a great number of resources
>> (especially if all of the parameters are used).  Currently TNG is
>> running performance monitoring (SAR
>> in the background) and we run performance metrics as well.  If other
>> users also run these same monitors it would be a gross and
>> unnecessary misuse of server resources and undermine the integrity of
>> the system with which we are charged to maintain.  Systems
>> administrators are responsible for the monitoring of all applications
>> on the platform (Oracle, Unicenter, FTP etc.)  DBA's are responsible
>> for the performance of their own individual application and as such
>> may use the dedicated OEM and statsback utilities."
>> 
>> Any comments are appreciated.

>
> A DBA is NOT other users. A DBA works on behalf of other users AND on
> behalf of the SA to ensure that the processes are operating properly.
> As a matter of fact, the DBA and the SA SHOULD^H^H^H^H^H^H^H MUST work
> as a complementary team.
>
> However, as long as you have access to the data when you need it, you
> don't really need to run the tools themselves.
>
> You may want to look at Chapter 1 of the Database Administration
> Guide, one of the first manuals in 'List of Books' within the doc set
> for your database version at http://docs.oracle.com ... that chapter
> discusses roles and responsibilities.
>
> It also seems the SA has some background or history, possibly a myth
> taought in some UNIX class (I've seen those as well). You may also ask
> the SA if he's had any bad run-ins with the tools that are causing
> this reaction.
>
> One other tip - while CA Unicenter, BMC Patrol, etc. have their good
> points, Oracle is going full bore on Enterprise Manager. Within a few
> version I suspect you will have no choice but to use that to manage
> the environment. You might want to talk to the the local Oracle (OEM)
> presales guys and have them work with your SA for a while.
>
> Bottom line - brush up your people skills if you intend to stay there.
>
> HTH
> /Hans
> BTW - cross posting is not necessary - please move this to cdo.misc
>

Thanks a lot Hans, and sorry for the crosspost. Your response is mirroring my thoughts. Received on Fri Mar 26 2004 - 23:29:45 CST