Managing the Modern Database

It goes without saying that information and applications are at the center to

today’s business processes. Database and information management are

evolving to become a part of a business—rather than—technology architecture.

So what does that mean for the modern database and the people who help

manage the related technology?

This brief provides an updated perspective on database management,

including core support functions, DBA roles, and technology trends. Also

included is a guide for evaluating providers, based on modern database needs.

Inside: > Snapshot: Trends and Evolution pg. 2

> Core Support Areas pg. 3

> The Modern DBA pg. 4

> Building a Custom Approach—Questions for Providers pg. 5

Strategy Brief

The Modern

Database

Technology Trends and Issues

Examples: Data migrations, volume,

unstructured data, more inputs, MDM, data

marts/warehouses, I/O bottlenecks, mixed

workloads, cloud strategy, mobility, row-

based, column-based, collaboration,

virtualization, Big Data, etc.

IT Architecture Evolution

The move from technology focus to a

business-centric IT architecture built on

strategy, data, and applications. Introduction of

“business architect.” IT metrics driven by

customer service, ease of access to

information, and revenue goals. Growing

number of internal BI consumers.

@# +

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INSTALL

MDM

Core Database Support Meeting Today and Tomorrow’s Needs

Complex Projects

˃ Data warehousing—development and

beyond

˃ Database migrations

˃ Database server consolidation

˃ Updates and patches

˃ Virtualization, cloud, and Big Data

˃ New feature recommendations

˃ Master data management (MDM)

˃ Tuning and performance Business Intelligence

˃ Project planning, budgeting, and

management

˃ Data modeling and design

˃ Mobile intelligence

˃ On-demand report development

˃ Managed services for business

intelligence

˃ Cloud-based business intelligence

˃ Mobile solutions

Ongoing Operations

˃ Administration

˃ Monitoring through native or advanced

tools

˃ Troubleshooting

˃ Backup and recovery

˃ Application support

˃ Ongoing support and maintenance

On-Demand Experts

˃ Platform-specific knowledge

˃ Cross-technology experience

˃ 24x7 availability

˃ Dedicated DBA resource

˃ Senior-level, technical program

managers

˃ Elastic staffing (specialties, efficiencies,

and cost savings)

Str

ate

gy

The Modern DBA Supporting Tech, Strategy, and Efficiencies

System DBA

˃ Technical focus vs. business/strategy

˃ System administrator

˃ Tuning and performance

˃ OS work and interaction with network

components

˃ Complex DBMS parameters

Application DBA

˃ Designs database around specific

application and business needs

˃ Expertise in complex coding, requests,

and debugging

Database Architect

˃ Design and implement new databases

for new or existing applications

˃ Typically not involved in maintenance,

administration, or tuning

Data Modeler

˃ Logical database design; corporate data

model

˃ Assessing data requirements

˃ Designing conceptual and logical data

models

˃ Educating other DBAs on data models

Ty

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f D

BA

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The modern DBA often specializes in strategic aspects of database management, while

maintaining an understanding of basic requirements. Larger organizations sometimes

opt to hire specialist DBAs to handle complex environments. While other organizations

choose to partner with a database management provider for elastic staffing to meet

fluctuating needs.

How to Ask the Tough Questions A

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Custom SLAs and Extended

Availability: Will the provider’s lights be

on when yours are? Will an expert who is

familiar with your environment be there

when needed?

Senior Experts: Does your provider

offer a dedicated database resource or

team? Will that resource have the

necessary areas of expertise to support

a modern business model, as well as

your project needs?

Well-Defined Roles, Practices,

and Procedures: Designing a

detailed scope of work (SOW),

including process flows, specialized

roles, modern best practices, daily

maintenance, and agreed-upon

procedures based on your precise

database needs is imperative.

When most people think about strategic information, they don’t normally associate

the underlying database technology with anytime-availability of the data that they

need (e.g., internal SLAs, configuration, best practices, administration, scalability).

End-users and C-levels alike expect their business intelligence to be quickly

accessible without having to worry—now more than ever. So, how do you help to

ensure 24x7 access to your company’s data, as part of your unique business

information architecture?

Senior Database Experts A

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You need on-demand access to proven database experts to

balance strategic initiatives and ongoing database

challenges. As mentioned earlier, the DBA role can cover a

wide variety of functions—all critical to the success of

modern database management.

While it might not be practical to hire full-time or specialized

DBAs, it can be very cost-effective to right-source to

trusted senior experts, as needed.

It’s important to ensure your provider doesn’t take a

“one skill set fits all” approach to database management.

Equally crucial is that your main point-of-contact is a

technical subject matter expert and not simply a project

manager or junior-level DBA.

Will the provider:

˃ Assess your needs to ensure your DBA resources bring the right skill set?

˃ Provide a dedicated team of domestic DBA experts who are assigned to your

organization?

˃ Disclose the average number of years’ experience of all team members?

˃ Offer the assigned team and back-up resources on a fixed-fee basis?

Custom SLAs and Extended Availability A

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The modern database often requires direct, anytime-support

from the appropriate skilled DBA resource—whether it’s to

troubleshoot an issue or to accommodate off-hours testing.

And those needs vary by industry, region, and many other

factors, which makes customizable SLAs crucial.

For example, a retail company might require on-demand,

24x7 support during holiday peak months. A public accounting

firm might need intensive support from January to April,

through tax season. Alternatively, a manufacturer might need

extra support during the implementation of an inventory

tracking database during production hours to help ensure

accuracy.

In other words, your provider should be available when your

lights are on or your needs spike.

Ask your provider to define:

˃ Standard service levels

˃ Options for custom service levels

˃ Severity levels by incident type

˃ Lights-on and lights-off support hours, along with response times

˃ Escalation procedures

˃ Back-up and recovery service levels

˃ The level of monitoring offered

˃ Off-shoring policies as related to coverage

Well-Defined Roles, Practices, and Procedures A

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Designing a detailed scope of work (SOW), process flows, best practices, daily

maintenance, and agreed-upon procedures based on your database challenges is

imperative. Your provider should thoroughly describe the following areas as part of

planning your assessment and support.

Lifecycle Management

˃ Technical assessment

˃ Space management

˃ System updates and new installations

˃ Backup and recovery

Monitoring and Performance

Management

˃ Document a detailed plan

˃ Long-running application requests

˃ Tuning memory usage and database

data storage

˃ Lock contention

˃ Sorting

˃ Validate table structures

˃ Identity top resource consumers

Configuration Management

˃ Security maintenance

˃ User ID and role maintenance

˃ Data file maintenance

˃ Log file maintenance

˃ Integrity checks

˃ Statistics maintenance

˃ Index maintenance

˃ Table maintenance

˃ Stored procedure maintenance

˃ Scheduled job maintenance

Database Administration and

Support Management

˃ Problem and incident management

˃ Root cause analysis (RCA)

documentation

˃ Proactive bug alerts

˃ Problem analysis support

˃ Communication with database

software vendor

Modern Databases: Complex Projects A

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Your provider should operate with an elastic support model in order to assist with project

work for modern, specialized needs—large or small—which are typically impossible to

predict. From server consolidation to distributed databases, and everything in between,

behind-the-scenes support for your modern database approach will help position you as

the business intelligence hero for your organization.

The right provider can help you inventory your current environment and find solutions to

complex IT and business needs.

Modern Database Complexities:

˃ What data do you house today and who owns it?

˃ How does that data relate to the goals of your organization, e.g., decision

making, revenue goals, cost savings, efficiencies?

˃ What data silos are connected by business need?

˃ Data consumption trends

˃ Internal SLAs for availability of business information

˃ Cloud, mobile, Big Data, and virtualization strategies

˃ Data inputs and sources of unstructured data

˃ Volume and velocity trends

About ManageForce R

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We're here to help. With deep business and technical expertise, sound financials,

and strong business ethics, ManageForce has leveraged our deep experience in

supporting the world’s most demanding database needs to develop leading Oracle,

SQL Server, DB2, and MySQL support services.

ManageForce helps organizations worldwide, including Fortune 500, public sector,

and SMBs, to plan, implement, and manage their databases via a cost-effective,

proven global delivery model. Our experience and expertise as a leading database

administration organization can help you achieve measurable results—and maximum

performance—from your database.

Areas of Expertise

˃ Databases: Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, IBM DB2, MySQL, and Hadoop

˃ Platforms: AS400/iSeries, Windows, UNIX, and Linux

˃ Services: Monitoring, performance, configuration, backup and recovery,

administration, production support, reporting and business intelligence, cloud

computing, mobility solutions, and Big Data

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