The Art and Science of Oracle Performance Tuning

Complete and approachable guide to tuning best practice. For novice to intermediate Oracle DBAs and developers.

Solving or planning for performance issues is a core part of the database professional's toolkit. The Oracle database is very flexible, making it suitable for a wide range of applications. Consequently, it is highly tunable, presenting a bewildering set of choices to the inexperienced. Tuning Oracle is as much about approach as about understanding the technology. It is more than tweaking parameters, or following a set prescription - it involves matching application-specific knowledge with what's happening inside the database.

Based on the Lawson's long experience working with Oracle, the book uses a five-step model to help identify and isolate the cause of non-performance. This book shows you how to approach problems, get the information you need from Oracle, and follow the process through to success.

The Challenge of Performance Tuning; Why Many Tuning Strategies Fail; The Oracle Physician; Dealing with Humans; The Oracle Detective; Gathering More Clues; The Oracle Pathologist; Analyzing SQL Bottlenecks; Analyzing SQL Joins; The Pathologist' s Toolkit: Other Tactics; The Oracle Artist; The Artist' s Palette: More on Devising Solutions; The Oracle Magician; Case Studies; Appendix A: Useful V$ View Definitions.