Craig Shallahamer : “Oracle Tuning Is Like War”
October 26th, 2004 by Mark Rittman
"Performance War", Craig Shallahamer : "Every great Greek battle
commander (Pausanias, Themistocles, Aristides, just to name a few) was either
exiled, sacked, indicted, or fined by the very people he sought to save. Do you
DBAs feel like that sometimes? We often think, "Well, why even try?" But we
continue on because performance optimization is what many of us love to do and
do best! Yet, it requires teamwork, bravery, expediency, and rest.
Those of us who love extremely intense performance situations, who love to
battle, get a kind of strange thrill out of it all — whether performance is
bad, good, or stupendous. And while it may look to many that the performance
recovered was because of our epic single-handed exploits, those of us who
continually thrive in real performance crises will tell you, the complexities
are so intense that a mature DBA’s desire for personal distinction must be
subordinate. It’s the young DBA who commonly tries to do it all himself and goes
home dissatisfied, frustrated, and confused …
… Before you enter the battle, you need to do
everything you can to set it up in such a way so as to ensure you will win
quickly, enabling a season of rest –time to return to the farm and family. It’s
the young DBA who never rests, is always looking for the next battle instead of
training and fortifying when there is no battle. Slowly his energy will be
sapped and when the battle comes, he will die.
Being a fantastic performance specialist, just like being a great Greek
battle commander, is not easy and the very people you try to help may hate you
the most. But we can take steps to continue on from battle to battle and day to
day. Don’t be too proud to ask for help. Be brave when you need to be. Savor
peace when it’s around. Most DBAs have not discovered these secrets. Look around
and you’ll notice there are not too many performance specialists in their
forties and beyond. When you find one, ask them their secrets and their stories.
You’ll be amazed."
