6014.Optimizing SQL Server for Temenos T24_FINAL

Best Practices for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server Ser ver and Windows Server Guidance for fine-tuning T24 implementations on Windows Server 2008 R2 and on the SQL Server 2008 R2 database platform

V1.0 Published: October, 2010 Produced by the Temenos Database Technology Group and contributors from Microsoft: Lonnye Bower, Konstantin Dotchkoff, Roger Toren - writing Peter Carlin and Kun Cheng - reviewing

Abstract TEMENOS T24 (T24) is a complete banking solution designed to meet the c hallenges faced by financial institutions in today’s competitive market. T24 provides a single,  real-time view of

clients across the entire enterprise, making it possible for banks to maximize returns and kee p costs down. Microsoft® SQL Server® provides the ideal database platform for T24. By choosing the Microsoft platform, T24 customers experience faster funds t ransfers, higher security-trade volumes, and quicker close-of-business processes; T24 customers can also benefit from open, state -of-the-art technologies to accelerate innovation, greatly increasing the speed and effectiveness with which new products and services are created. Using Windows Server® 2008 R2 as the operating system makes it possible for T24 to exceed performance standards in a scalable, reliable environment that offers ease of management. This white paper provides best practices for co nfiguring and running TEMENOS T24 on Windows Server and on the SQL Server database platform. Implementing these best practices can help you avoid or minimize common problems and optimize the performance of your TEMENOS T24 implementation.

This document is provided “as“as -is.” Information and views expressed in this document, including UR L and other Internet Web site references, may change without notice. You bear the risk of using it.

This document does not provide you with any legal rights to any intellectual property in any Microsoft  product. You may copy and use use this document for your internal, reference purposes.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

Table of Contents 1

OVERVIEW ....................................................................................................................................... 5

2

BEST PRACTICES FOR THE DATABASE SERVER .................. ............................. ....................... ....................... ...................... ...................... ................... ........ 7 2.1 2.1.1

Use the Latest Software Versions....................... Versions.......................................... ...................................... ...................................... ....................................... ...................... .. 7 

2.1.2

Use a 64-Bit Server ......................................... ............................................................ ....................................... ........................................ ....................................... ........................ ..... 7 

2.1.3

Use a Dedicated Server ...................................... ......................................................... ...................................... ...................................... ....................................... ...................... .. 8

2.2

SIZING RECOMMENDATIONS ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................. ............................ ............. 8

2.3

STORAGE DESIGN RECOMMENDATIONS ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................ .............. 9

2.3.1

Use SAN and RAID 10 ............................................... ................................................................... ....................................... ...................................... .................................. ............... 9

2.3.2

Set the Partition Offset ...................................... ......................................................... ...................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................10

2.3.3

Set the File Allocation Unit Size and Stripe Size........................................ Size........................................................... ....................................... ....................10

2.3.4

Dedicate a High Percentage of SAN Cache to Writes ...................... ......................................... ...................................... ............................. .......... 11

2.3.5

Configure Windows Drives .................................... ....................................................... ...................................... ....................................... .................................... ................ 11

2.4

Use a Private Network Segment ..................................... ........................................................ ...................................... ...................................... .......................... ....... 11

2.4.2

Enable Receive-Side Scaling ..................................... ........................................................ ....................................... ....................................... ................................ ............. 12

2.4.3

Consider NIC Teaming .................................... ....................................................... ....................................... ....................................... ....................................... ....................... ...12

2.4.4

Use Multiple HBAs and Set the HBA Queue Depth ...................................... .......................................................... .................................... ................12

DATA, LOG, TEMPDB, AND BACKUP FILE RECOMMENDATIONS .......................... ........................................ ............................ .......................... ............ 13

2.5.1

Configure Data Files.................................................... ........................................................................ ....................................... ....................................... ............................. .........13

2.5.2

Configure the Log File .................................... ....................................................... ....................................... ....................................... ....................................... ....................... ... 13

2.5.3

Configure tempdb Files ...................................... ......................................................... ...................................... ...................................... ....................................... .................... 13

2.6

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MEMORY SETTINGS ............................ ........................................... ............................. ............................ ............................ ................ .. 14

2.6.1

SQL Server Memory Settings ................................................. .................................................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................14

2.6.2

Lock Pages in Memory ....................................... .......................................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................................... ...................14

2.7

GUIDANCE FOR SQL SERVER CONFIGURATION SETTINGS .......................... ........................................ ............................ ............................. ................... .... 15

2.7.1

Consider Lower Fill Factor ..................................................... ........................................................................ ...................................... ....................................... ....................15

2.7.2

Increase the SQL Server Recovery Interval ...................................... ......................................................... ....................................... ............................. ......... 16

2.7.3

Use Trace Flag 834 ............................................. ................................................................ ...................................... ....................................... ....................................... ................... 16

2.7.4

Keep Default Setting for Degree of Parallelism ........................ ........................................... ....................................... .................................... ................16

2.7.5

Keep D efault Setting for Number of Worker Threads ........................................ ........................................................... ............................. .......... 16

2.7.6

Encrypt Client Communication if Required ........................ ............................................ ....................................... ....................................... ....................... ... 16

BEST PRACTICES F OR THE APPLICATION SERVER ..................... ................................ ...................... ...................... ...................... ..................... .......... 17 3.1 3.1.1

3.2

4

HARDWARE AND NETWORK GUIDANCE ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ .......................... ............ 11

2.4.1

2.5

3

SERVER RECOMMENDATIONS ........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................. ............................ ............. 7

SOFTWARE RECOMMENDATIONS ........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................. ..................... ...... 17 Use the Latest Software Versions....................... Versions.......................................... ...................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................17 

T24 CONFIGURATION RECOMMENDATIONS ........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ..................... ....... 17

3.2.1

Configure the T24 Bulk Factor Parameter ......................... ............................................. ........................................ ....................................... ...................... ... 17 

3.2.2

Configure the T24 Handle Cache Parameter ............................... ................................................... ....................................... ................................ ............. 17 

3.2.3

Consider Using Hyper-Threading ....................................... .......................................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................... ... 18

BEST PRACTICES FOR PROVIDING HIGH AVAILABILITY ...................... ................................. ...................... ...................... ....................... ............ 19

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

5

4.1

HIGH AVAILABILITY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE DATABASE ........................... ......................................... ............................ .......................... ............ 19

4.2

HIGH AVAILABILITY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE STORAGE ........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................ .............. 20

4.3

T24 RECOVERY........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................. ............................. ............................ ............................ ............................ ................ .. 20

4.3.1

Online Recovery .................................... ....................................................... ....................................... ....................................... ...................................... ................................ .............20

4.3.2

Close of Business (COB) ............................................ ............................................................... ....................................... ....................................... ................................ ............. 20

BEST PRACTICES FOR DISASTER RECOVERY ..................... ................................ ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ................... ........ 21 5.1

SAN MIRRORING ........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................ ............................ .............. 21

5.2

SYNCHRONOUS DATABASE MIRRORING ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ .......................... ............ 21

5.3

ASYNCHRONOUS REPLICATION METHODS ........................... .......................................... ............................. ............................ ............................ ....................... ......... 22

5.4

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CONNECTION BANDWIDTH ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................. ..................... ...... 22

6

BEST PRACTICES FOR REPORTING ............................... .......................................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ....................... ............ 23

7

BEST PRACTICES FOR PERFORMANCE TUNING ...................... ................................. ...................... ...................... ....................... ....................... ........... 24 7.1 7.1.1

Optimize Standard T24 Queries ...................................... ......................................................... ...................................... ...................................... .......................... ....... 24

7.1.2

Optimize Customer-Specific T24 Queries ..................................... ........................................................ ...................................... ................................ ............. 25

7.2

8

GUIDANCE FOR IMPROVING Q UERY UERY PERFORMANCE ............................ ........................................... ............................. ............................ ....................... ......... 24

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MONITORING PERFORMANCE OF THE DATABASE TIER .................................... ......................................... ...... 30

BEST PRACTICES FOR SYSTEM MAINTENANCE ......................... .................................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ..................... .......... 31 8.1

GUIDANCE FOR BACKING UP THE DATABASE ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................ ............................ ................... ..... 31

8.1.1

Use Backup Compression ...................................... ......................................................... ...................................... ....................................... .................................... ................ 31

8.1.2

Implement a Backup Schedule ..................................... ........................................................ ...................................... ...................................... ............................. .......... 31

8.1.3

Back Up System Databases ................................................... ...................................................................... ...................................... ....................................... .................... 32

8.2

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR UPDATING STATISTICS ............................ .......................................... ............................ ............................. ............................ ............. 32

8.3

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR REORGANIZING OR REBUILDING INDEXES .......................... ........................................ ............................ ................... ..... 32

8.3.1

Reorganize Indexes ..................................... ........................................................ ....................................... ....................................... ....................................... .......................... ......33

8.3.2

Rebuild Indexes when Necessary ....................................... .......................................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................... ... 34

8.4 8.4.1

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR UPDATE MANAGEMENT ........................... ......................................... ............................ ............................. .......................... ........... 34 Maintain Your Microsoft Software ....................................... .......................................................... ...................................... ....................................... ....................34

9

SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................... 35

10

APPENDIX 1: CREATE A MAINTENANCE PLAN TO BACK UP THE TEMENOS DATABASE ................... ................... 37

11

APPENDIX 2: CREATE A MAINTENANCE PLAN TO BACK U P THE SYSTEM DATABASES .................... .................... 43

12

APPENDIX 3: UPDATE STATISTICS ...................... ................................. ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ..................... .......... 49

13

APPENDIX 4: REORGANIZE AND REBUILD INDEXES .................... ............................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ................... ........ 53

14

APPENDIX 5: INSTALLATION CHECK LIST .............................. ......................................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... .............. ... 60

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

1 Overview To help financial institutions face the challenges posed by today’s around-the-clock, global marketplace, Temenos Group AG, the leading provider of integrated core banking systems, offers TEMENOS T24 (T24). T24 pairs comprehensive and powerfully flexible business functionality with the most advanced and scalable architecture available today. T24 is built on an open architecture, and it uses established standards such as HTTP, XML, and Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE). The design of T24 supports multiple application servers and provides horizontal scalability with true non-stop resilience. The capabilities of T24 can be enhanced by the choice of an enterprise-ready database platform. Customers running T24 on a Windows Server® o perating system and Microsoft® SQL Server® data management software benefit from a wide range of products and tools that can be used to further improve the performance and exte nd the capabilities of the T24 banking solution. Figure 1 shows a logical model of the interaction of the various services and components that make up a T24 banking implementation. In this white paper, we focus on best practice guidance for the database layer (in green). gree n).

Figure 1. Logical architecture of T24.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

This white paper, intended for database administrators (DBAs), describes optimizations that you can make to the database tier and describes the database tier’s interaction with the application tier to help ensure a successful deployment of T24 on SQL Server. The paper first discusses best practices for c onfiguring the database server and the application servers and provides guidance for building scalability and high availability into the T24 banking solution. The paper then looks at the options for disaster recovery. Best practices for reporting are presented, and best practices practice s for monitoring the performance of the database tier and for system maintenance are discussed. The paper also provides appendices with step-by-step guidance and extensive links for further information. Implementing these best practices can he lp you optimize the performance of your TEMENOS T24 implementation and can also help you avoid or minimize common problems.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2 Best Practices for the Database Server Following are some best practices you should use to configure your database server.

2.1 Server Recommendations 2.1. 2.1.1 1 Use the Latest Softw are Versions For best performance, you should use t he latest software versions. Currently, you should use: T24 Version R10 SP5. T24 version R10 SP5 contains key per formance and scalability improvements for running T24 on Windows Server and SQL Server.

Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2 . SQL Server 2008 R2 contains performance and scalability improvements for running on computes with many cores, such as those commonly used in banking implementations.

Windows Server® 2008 R2 operating system . Windows Server 2008 R2 provides many benefits, including: 

 A more efficient efficient TCP/IP stack than in previous versions of Windows Server. In addition to reducing latency of transaction processing, this benefits the disaster recovery (DR) options described in detail in section Best Practices for Disaster Recovery. Recovery.



Receive-side scaling (RSS), which makes it possible for network packet processing to be distributed across more CPUs. For more information, see Receive-Side Scaling. Scaling.



Support for up to 256 logical processors (cores) . On previous versions of Windows Server, only up to 64 cores were supported.



Optimizations for 64-bit processors.



Improved failover clustering capabilities .



Optimized partition offsets when disks are formatted , reducing complexity in I/O system configuration.

For more detailed information, see Windows Server 2008 R2. R2. running Windows Server 2008 R2, you should apply Windows® Note: On a database server running hotfix KB976700 to avoid exce ssive kernel time when an application performs many large I/O operations. The excessive kernel time occurs if the total I/O bandwidth of the c omputer is not large enough, decreasing application performance. For more information, see Microsoft Support Article 976700. 976700.

2.1.2 2.1.2 Use a 64-Bit Server 64-bit servers provide efficient access to the memory and the number of core s required by T24. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2.1.3 2.1.3 Use a Dedic ated Server If you are mixing workloads on one physical computer, you should use virtual machines or Windows/SQL Server mechanisms to control and monitor resource usage. Diagnosing performance problems requires more effort and pre cision on a system with mixed workloads.

2.2 Sizing Recommendations You can use Table 1 for guidance on hardware resources and time required to complete the daily close-of-business (COB) workload of a T24 Retail Model Bank system. The table contains resource utilization results for several installation sizes based on the number of customer accounts, i.e., 1 million (1M), 5 million (5M), 10 million (10M), and 25 million (25M) accounts.

Size

1M

5M

10M

Accruals

Accruals

Accruals

COB Total Time

0hr 52min

2hr 17min

1hr 56min

3hr 17min

IC.COB Time

0hr 13min

0hr 59min

0hr 54min

1hr 20min

64

120

128

320

32 Xeon 5435

188 (X6550,

+

E5540, E5650,

32 AMD 2384

X7560)

Transactions Workload

#TAFC Agents

#Cores Application

32 Xeon 5435

48 Xeon 5435

25M Accruals & Capitalizations

Tier CPU utilization

28%

42%

50%

73%

9

17

32

137

24 Xeon 7460

32 Xeon 7560

64 Xeon 7560

19%

29%

34%

70%

5

7

11

45

Memory

64GB

64GB

128GB

1TB

Memory used

48GB

60GB

80GB

600GB

NIC bandwidth

1Gbps

1Gbps

10Gbps

10Gbps

1

1

1

1

Cores used if CPU at 100% #Cores CPU utilization Database Tier

Cores used if CPU at 100%

24 Xeon 7460

Network #NICs in DB

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

IOPS avg IOPS peak

660

970

2,000

7,000

3,000

2,800

53,000

62,000

I/O

Data IOPS avg

260

510

1,500

6,000

System

Log IOPS avg

400

440

610

1,000

Data IOPS peak

1,340

2,100

52,000

60,000

Log IOPS peak

2,680

2,800

4,930

1,500

Table 1. T24 COB resource utilization.

These results are based on lab testing with a standardized workload; every application has different functionality and different close-of-business processes. You should work with the Temenos Performance and Sizing Team to properly size your system based on the expecte d workload. Temenos also provides a Universal Performance Measurement (UPM) tool that c an be used to verify a hardware configuration before T24 is installed. In some cases, te sts that model your business processes as closely as possible may be necessary to confirm the server sizes required to support your business scenario.

2.3 Storage Design Recommendations Processing large volumes of banking transactions and providing high availability and disaster recovery (HADR), as well as reporting and extracting to data warehouse (DW) systems, requires substantial I/O system resources. Following are best practices you should use when designing storage for your T24 implementation.

2.3.1 2.3.1 Use SA N and RAID 10 You should use RAID 10 if possible for all logical unit numbers (LUNs). RAID 10 offers better performance and availability than RAID 5 and offers better support for write-heavy environments. For optimum and predictable performance, the LUNs must be made up of physical drives that are not used by other applications. It is generally better to have a larger number of small drives than a smaller number of large drives. If your storage area net work (SAN) has multiple buses (sometimes called shelves), create each LUN using drives from each bus to improve the internal bandwidth. Table 2 shows how to choose drives from multiple buses to make up one LUN.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

LUN 1

LUN 2…

…LUN 4

Bus 1

1

4

7

10

13

…

46

Bus 2

2

5

8

11

14

…

47

Bus 3

3

6

9

12

15

…

48

Table 2. Choosing drives from multiple buses to create a LUN.

You should refer to the article Predeployment I/O Best Practices for procedures to test your I/O subsystem performance.

Note: For an online transaction processing (OLTP) system the ideal latency values on a welltuned I/O subsystem are: 

< 5 milliseconds (ms) for log (ideally 1 ms on arr ays with cache)



< 20 ms for data on OLTP systems (ideally 10 ms or less)

2.3. 2.3.2 2 Set the Partition Offset If you are using the Windows Server® 2003 operating system, you should use t he Diskpart.exe tool to create the disk partition. Use Diskpart.exe to specify a starting offset of 1 megabyte (MB) to avoid split writes and reads, as these can seriously degrade performance. If the offset is not optimal, a single logical I/O becomes multiple physical I/Os. Some storage manufacturers claim to handle this within their architecture, but there usually is some degradation that can be easily avoided by setting the appropriate offset. For more information about DiskPart.exe, see the article DiskPart DiskPart.. In Windows Server® 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2, the partition offset is set appropriately by default for new storage. (Note that the offset of existing storage is not changed when upgrading from Windows Server 2003.)

2.3. 2.3.3 3 Set the File Allo cation Unit Size and Stripe Size Size When formatting the partition that will be used for SQL Server data files, you should use a 64kilobyte (KB) allocation unit size for data, logs, and t he tempdb database. The stripe size is also important to reach an optimal configuration. This is set in the SAN management software, not through Windows Server. The following two equations can be used to determine if you have an optimal configuration. Each should result in an integer value: Partition_Offset ÷ Stripe_Unit_Size Stripe_Unit_Size ÷ F ile_Allocation_Unit_Siz ile_Allocation_Unit_Size e For details on managing disk partition sector alignment, see Disk Partition Alignment Best Practices for SQL Server. Server. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2.3. 2.3.4 4 Dedicate a High Percentage of SAN Cache to Writes Most SANs have a large cache that can be split between a read cache and a write cache. SQL Server provides read-ahead and read caching, and SQL Server does not benefit much from a SAN read cache. If you have the option (within the constraints of SAN usage by applications), you should dedicate 90% of the SAN cache to writes to improve write performance (a cache ratio of 10/90 read/write). Note that virtually all SANs sold today have battery-backed cache. If this is not the case with your SAN, you must disable write caching or risk losing committed data in the event o f a power outage.

2.3. 2.3.5 5 Config ure Wind ow s Drives Once you have configured LUNs on your SAN, yo u need to assign the LUNs to drives in Windows, using disk management to create the drives. Table 3 shows a sample Windows Server storage configuration for use by SQL Server.

Physical Drive

LUN

Drive

Usage

1 – 12 12

1

E

data

13 – 24 24

2

F

data

25 – 36 36

3

G

tempdb

37 – 48 48

4

H

log

Table 3. Sample storage configuration for SQL Server.

You can also present storage to SQL Server through mount points, disk volumes that are mounted as folders on other physical disks, without incurring a performance penalty. For further information about storage design for SQL Server, see Storage see Storage Top 10 Best Practices. Practices.

2.4 Hardware and Network Guidance The following are some important best practices for the hardware and networking of your T24 database implementation.

2.4. 2.4.1 1 Use a Private Network Segment The traffic between T24 application servers and SQL Server and the traffic between SQL Server and the storage system is quite high. You should use a private network segment for T24 –SQL Server communication. This should be at least a 1 -Gigabit Ethernet network, and a 10-Gigabit Ethernet network for installations with more than 5 million accounts. This can be in addition to a standard 100-Mb Ethernet connection to SQL Server for administration purposes. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2.4. 2.4.2 2 Enable Receive-Side Receive-Side Scaling You should enable Receive-Side Scaling (RSS) on the SQL Server network interface card (NIC) that is serving the application servers. This setting is found on the Advanced Property tab of the network card. Also, be sure that o ffloading options are enabled. See the Microsoft® Developer Network (MSDN®) articles Introduction to Receive-Side Scaling and Receive-Side Scaling Enhancements in Windows Server 2008 for more information. If your NIC does not support these options, consider replacing it with one that does. You should configure the maximum number of RSS processors by setting t he MaxNumRssCpus registry key value to 8 on a computer system with 32 or more CPU cores. For computer systems with less than 32 cores, use the default setting. The RSS base CPU number (RssBaseCpu) is the CPU number of the first CPU that RSS can use. RSS cannot use the CPUs that are numbered below the base CPU number. You should set RssBaseCpu carefully so it does not overlap with the starting CPU. Lab testing has shown good results with setting both registry key values to 8 (on a computer system with more than 32 cores); this means that 8 RSS processors are used starting with core number 8 to process network traffic.

Note: You should use the Windows RSS registry keys to configure these values instead of NIC settings because NIC settings can be overridden by the Windows registry keys.

2.4. 2.4.3 3 Cons ider NIC Teamin Teamin g If you have three or more application servers, NIC teaming on the SQL Server side of the network segment may help, but often this type of NIC teaming disables RSS and other offloading options. Check with your vendor to select a NIC teaming option that can support RSS o r provide equivalent features. You should be sure to test this configuration against your original performance to be sure that any benefit of NIC teaming is not offset by the disabling of any of the RSS and offloading options.

2.4. 2.4.4 4 Use Multiple HBAs and Set the HBA Queue Depth You should use at least two host bus adapters (HBAs) to provide redundancy and to increase bandwidth between the SAN and SQL Server . The HBA cards should be set as load balanced and configured to provide high availability among them. Connections between the SAN and se rver are ideally 8 gigabyte (GB)/sec (but not less than 2 GB/sec). The HBA queue depth may need to be increased if you have a small number of LUNs. A queue depth value between 128 (if there are few LUNs) and 32 (if there are many LUNs) should be considered. Note that this is a new recommendation; queues now default to “per LUN” rather than “per target.” When the queue depth is set too low, you may get increasing latency and less-than-expected throughput given the bandwidth between host/storage and the number of disks in a particular configuration. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2.5 Data, Log, tempdb, and Backup File Recommendations The location of SQL Server files affects performance. You should use multiple files for each filegroup supporting your databases, and use distinct LUNs for each of the data, tempdb, log, and backup files. Using separate LUNs also helps you monitor the disks based on t he type of use. You should avoid using very large LUNs (several hundred GB or more ) so that chkdsk does not run for an excessive length of time if it is invoked by the operating system on startup.

2.5.1 2.5.1 Con fig ure Data Files The filegroup used for the T24 data should be composed of multiple files. Best practice is to use one file for every two CPU cores on computer systems with 32 or more cores. On computer systems with less than 32 cores, use the same number of files as the number of CPU cores (the ratio should be 1:1). The data files should be equal in size. Note that the out-of-the-box configuration uses only one file in the primary filegroup, so you need to add additional files for optimal configuration. You should pre-allocate enough space in the data files based on the initial size of the computer system. You should monitor the database free space and if necessary extend each file simultaneously so that all of the files have the same amount of free space. SQL Serve r optimizes writes by spreading its write operations across the files based on the ratio of free space among the files, so extending all files at once maintains this optimization. You can leave the autogrowth sett ing on as an “insurance policy” so that SQL Server does not stop when it runs out of space; however, do not rely on autogrowth to extend the database files as a standard way of operating. While you should not allocate space for the data files in small units, if you allocate in very large units during autogrowth, the application must wait (possibly several minutes) while the space is allocated. Since you cannot control when autogrowth engages, allocate only by the space needed for a few days of operations.

2.5. 2.5.2 2 Config ure the Lo g File The transaction log file, generally a se quentially written file, must be written as quickly as possible—even before the data is written writte n to the data files (the data portion can be rebuilt from the log if necessary). While there is no performance benefit from using more than one file, multiple files can be beneficial for maintenance purposes (for example, if you are running out of space on the log drive). Adding physical devices to support t he LUN can benefit performance. To avoid autogrowth operations on the transaction log file, monitor its size on a regular basis and adjust it as necessary. As a starting point, you can use the 80-GB transaction log size for T24 installations with 10 million accounts.

2.5. 2.5.3 3 Config ure temp db Files SQL Server tempdb files are used for the storage of temporary data structures. The tempdb files are responsible for managing temporary objects, row ve rsioning, and online index rebuilds. T24 Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

uses a read-committed snapshot isolation level as its default isolation level, which uses row versioning. For more information, see Isolation Levels in the Database Engine. Engine. To ensure efficient tempdb operation: 

Create one tempdb file per physical CPU core . This reduces page free space (PFS) contention.



Pre-size the tempdb files, and make the files equal in size . As a starting point, you can use a 64-GB total size for T24 installations with 10 million accounts.



Do not rely on autogrow (see previous section).



Use startup trace flag 1118. When this trace flag is set, SQL Server allocates full extents for tempdb objects (instead of using mixed extent allocations).

For more information about this SQL Server trace flag, see the article Concurrency Enhancements for the tempdb Database. Database. For information on how to set startup settings for SQL Server, see the article Configure Server Startup Options (SQL Server Configuration Manager. Manager. For further information, see the MSDN article Optimizing tempdb Performance. Performance.

2.6 Recommendations for Memory Settings Following are recommendations for the memory settings for SQL Server.

2.6. 2.6.1 1 SQL Server Memory Setting Setting s See section Sizing Recommendations (and Table 1) for appropriate memory sizing for the database system. You should then configure the SQL Server “max server memory (MB)” setting by taking the amount of memory allocated to the database system and subtracting one GB for eve ry four cores (round up). This leaves the operating system with enough memory t o work efficiently without having to “grab” memory back from SQL Server. For example, if the server has 64 GB of

RAM and 24 cores, set the maximum memory to 58 GB (64 GB minus 6 [24 cores divided by 4]).

2.6. 2.6.2 2 Lo ck Pages in Memor y To reduce SQL Server paging, you can grant the SQL Server service account “Lock Pages in Memory” privilege through the Windows Group Policy editor. Enable this privilege for both 32-

bit and 64-bit servers. For detailed instructions, see How to reduce paging of buffer pool memory in the 64-bit version of SQL Server on the Microsoft® Support site

.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2.7 Guidance for SQL Server Configuration Settings Following is guidance for SQL Server configuration settings.

2.7. 2.7.1 1 Cons ider Lo wer Fill Factor In high-volume deployments (installations with 10 million accounts and more), you should consider a lower fill factor with PAD_INDEX on for indexes on hot tables with high latch contention. Consider a lower fill factor only if there is need to improve the performance and if excessive latch contention has been observed. Lab t esting has shown good results using a fill factor of 10% for small tables (less t han 1 GB) and 50% for bigger tables. Page latch contention can be id entified by examining the “SQL Server: Wait Statistics – Page Latch waits” performance counter and querying the dynamic management view sys.dm_os_wait_stats using this query:

SELECT * FROM sys sys. .dm_os_wait_stats WHERE wait_type WHERE  wait_type LIKE 'PAGELATCH%' To identify which tables and which pages experience latch contention, you can use the following queries:

SELECT * FROM sys sys. .dm_db_index_operational_stats (DB_ID DB_ID( ('T24' 'T24'), ), NULL, NULL, NULL) ORDER BY [page_latch_wait_in_ms] [page_latch_wait_in_ms] DESC DESC, , tree_page_latch_wait_in_ms DESC and

SELECT * FROM sys sys. .dm_os_waiting_tasks WHERE wait_type WHERE  wait_type LIKE 'PAGELATCH%' Table 4 shows tables that have been identified as likely candidates for a lower fill factor setting during lab testing:

Table

Fill factor

Pad_index

FBNK_PL_C002

10%

On

F_LOCKING

10%

On

FBNK_EB_C004

50%

On

FBNK_ACCT_ACTIVITY

50%

On

FBNK_ACCOUNT

50%

On

Table 4. Table candidates for lower fill factor.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

Note: This testing has been done with a standardized workload. Every application has different functionality, and if high latch contention is observed, you must identify these candidates for the application-specific workload profile. For more information on the fill-factor option for indexes, see the article Fill Factor. Factor.

2.7. 2.7.2 2 Increase the SQL Server Recovery Interval Increasing the recovery interval server configuration option causes the checkpoint process to occur less often. This can reduce the I/O load driven by checkpoints and improve the overall performance. During lab testing, a recovery interval of 5 –10 minutes has been determined to be the best setting for T24. Before changing the recovery interval, you should consider its implication on the mean time to recovery and recovery point objectives. Note that when using failover clustering, a longer recovery interval also influences the failover time of the database instance. For more information about the recovery interval option, see the article Recovery Interval Option.. Option

2.7.3 2.7.3 Use Trace Flag 834 On computer systems with 64 or more CPU cores, use startup trace flag 834. When this trace flag is set, SQL Serve r uses Windows large-page memory allocations for the buffer pool. Allocating buffer pages is expensive, and turning on trace flag 834 boosts performance. For more information about this SQL Server trace flag, see Microsoft Support Article 920093

2.7. 2.7.4 4 Keep Default Default Setting for Degree of Parallelism Parallelism Leave the default setting of max m ax degree of parallelism option unchanged. 2.7. 2.7.5 5 Keep Default Default Setting for Num ber of Worker Threads Threads Leave the default setting of max worker threads option unchanged. 2 .7 .7 .6 .6 E n c r y p t C l ie i e n t C o m m u n i c a t i o n i f R e q u i r ed ed If required, you can enable e ncrypting client connection communication to SQL Server. S QL Server supports Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to encrypt the data transmitted between a client and the database server. SQL Server can be configured to require encrypted connections, in which case it rejects connections from clients who are not able t o support encryption. Clients can also request encryption when connecting to SQL Server. For more Information, see Encrypting Connections to SQL Server and How to: Enable Encrypted Connections to the Database Engine (SQL Server Configuration Manager). Manager).

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

3 Best Practices for the Application Server Following are some best practices you should use for configuring your T24 application server.

3.1 Software Recommendations 3.1. 3.1.1 1 Use the Latest Softw are Versions For best performance, you should use the latest software versions. Currently, you should use: Use TAFC Version R10 SP5 . TAFC version R10 SP5 contains key performance and scalability improvements for running T24 on Windows Server and SQL Server.

3.2 T24 Configuration Recommendations Following are recommendations for some T24 parameters.

3.2. 3.2.1 1 Config ure the T24 T24 Bulk Factor Parameter Parameter The T24 Bulk Factor parameter (in PGM.FILE, Record IC.COB, Attribute 14) defines how many Data Manipulation Language (DML) statements are included within each database transaction. There is a trade-off for increasing t his parameter value: increasing the bulk factor value improves throughput by processing more statements within each transaction but also increases the possibility of longer transactions tr ansactions and blocking. You should leave the default value for the bulk factor parameter (currently 5), unless you have a large installation with 10 million accounts or more. For such high-volume installations, increasing the bulk factor may improve performance. Lab testing has demonstrated good results using a bulk factor of 20 for deployments with more than 10 million accounts deployment and a bulk factor of 40 for a deployment with 25 million accounts.

3.2. 3.2.2 2 Config ure the T24 Handle Cache Cache Parameter Parameter T24 provides a caching mechanism for OLEDB statement handles. This improves performance by caching and reusing the handles of frequently used statements, instead of releasing and preparing them each time. Each T24 table can have a maximum of 5 different handles (i.e., for the following T24 operations: READ, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, and SELECT). Each handle consumes a fixed amount of memory (64 KB) and consumes additional memory needed for data cache.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

The T24 Handle Cache parameter ( JEDI_XMLDRIVER_HANDLE_ JEDI_XMLDRIVER_HANDLE_LIMIT) LIMIT) specifies the maximum number of statement handles that can be cached. The default value (currently 500) should be adjusted based on the available application server memory as shown in Table 4 .

App Server Memory

Handle Cache Parameter

< 8 GB

500 (default)

>= 8 GB and < 32 GB

5000

>= 32 GB and < 64 GB

12000

>= 64 GB

15000

Table 5. Handle cache parameter scale based on application server memory.

3.2. 3.2.3 3 Cons ider Using Hyper-Threadin Hyper-Threadin g Hyper-Threading should be off by default for T24 application servers. Lab testing has shown performance gain on application servers with the latest chipsets (e.g., (e.g., Intel Nehalem-EX+); you should consider turning hyper-threading on when using the newer chipsets and observe the influence on performance.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

4 Best Practices for Providing High  Availability Failover clustering―a high-availability (HA) solution ―can keep applications running in the event of the failure of hardware components. Failover clustering is therefore recommended to provide database-tier HA for SQL Server in a T24 deployment.

4.1 High Availability Recommendations for the Database In a T24 implementation, SQL Serve r is typically installed in a two-node failover cluster to provide an alternate server for the database. This protects the system from the failure o f server components such as the network adapters, t he processors, or the SAN connectivity. Typically, the data resides on a SAN with disks configured as RAID 10 (recommended) or RA ID 5, providing redundancy for the LUNs used by SQL Server. The SAN is connected to the servers serve rs via two or more HBAs. The time t ime to detect a fault and switch to the alternate node is typically less than one minute. (Note that the time is dependent on the current transactional tr ansactional load and on the configuration, such as the number of drives or o ther resources in the resource group.) The cluster can also be used for planned maintenance. With SQL Server 2008, you can apply service packs to inactive nodes, and then you can fail the active SQL Server group over to the patched nodes. (Note that this results in a brief usage outage.) For more information on applying service packs to a failover cluster instance, see SQL Server 2008 Failover Cluster Rolling Patch and Service Pack Process. Process. T24 uses a “lock arbiter” called jDL S to maintain locks in a multi-application server setup. When

an application lock needs to be taken, a request is sent to the jDLS socket server. jDLS can be installed: 

In a resilient mode on two application servers.



On the database server if enough r esources are available. (Note that approximately 20% more CPU utilization on the database server is expected in this case.)



On a separate application server.

In a cluster configuration with jDLS installed on the database server, you can c onfigure jDLS in resilient mode and place jDLS on both database server nodes, with the primary jDLS being on the active cluster node. For general overview on the high-availability features of SQL Server, see High Availability — Always On Technologies and High Availability with SQL Server 2008 R2. R2 .

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

4.2 High Availability Recommendations Recommendations for the Storage As described in section Storage Design Recommendations, Recommendations, your storage solution should be a fault-tolerant SAN solution made up of a redundant disk configuration such as RAID 10. The SAN is still a single point of failure, but the m ajority of its components are redundant. You should be sure to consider the disaster r ecovery options described in the section Best Practices for Disaster Recovery to Recovery to mitigate the effect of a total SAN failure.

4.3 T24 Recovery When an error or c onnection failure occurs (e.g., a database failover event) during the processing of transactions either online or as a COB agent, the controlling T24 process terminates. Because the exact transaction state cannot be ascertained between connection failures and reconnects, the current curre nt transaction is completely rolled back and restarted on another process.

4.3. 4.3.1 1 Online Recovery For the T24 online processes (Web services, Browser, and MQ batch), an agent listener process is started on each application server. The listener process spawns and monitors child processes, which pr ocess the transaction requests. Should a child agent fail, the aborted tr ansaction is resubmitted by the application and is started on a new agent process. This in turn connects to t he secondary database node that is active after the failover, and the transaction is then processed as normal.

4.3. 4.3.2 2 Close of Bu siness (COB) (COB) Under normal operation, the T24 COB processes (agents or tSAs) are started starte d and monitored by a manager process (tSM) on each application server. If an agent (tSA) fails or aborts because of an error or failover, then the tSM initiates a new agent to replace the failed agent. The new agent resubmits the request, and this causes a connection to be established to the secondary database node which lets the COB jobs restart res tart and continue. If the error or failover occurs while the tSM is accessing tables in the database (e.g., JOB.LIST) and is “connected” to the database server, the tSM also terminates, leaving no monitoring process to automatically restart the tSAs. The tSM needs to be manually restarted, which then restarts the tSAs letting the COB processes continue from where they left off. You cannot automatically restart the tSM by design, bec ause an assessment of the failure is required to ensure that it’s a “real” disconnection rather than a temporary network interruption.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

5 Best Practices for Disaster Recovery Disaster recovery (DR) provides alternate services in the event of a catastrophic physical disruption of the infrastructure at the primary site. For protection from natural disasters such as earthquakes, the DR site is frequently located far from the primary site. SQL Server provides various technologies for transferring data changes from the primary database to a disaster recovery site. One of the main decisions that you nee d to make is whether or not you are willing to tolerate potential data loss in the event of complete destruction of the primary site. Loss-less DR methods require the use of synchronous replication to the D R site. This means that all writes write s to the storage systems must complete at both sites before the transaction tr ansaction is committed, which can increase the time to perform pe rform the transaction significantly, depending on the line speed. The two primary methods of synchronous replication are SAN mirroring and database mirroring in “high-safety” mode. SAN mirroring requires additional features provided by the SAN vendor.

Database mirroring is a feature included with SQL Server.

5.1 SAN Mirroring SAN mirroring synchronizes the contents of one S AN with another and requires very high bandwidth between the two SANs―usually dark fiber is recommended. A benefit of S AN mirroring is that it mirrors all of the storage, not just the database. SAN mirroring is provided by the storage vendor (it is not part of the Windows Server operating system).

Note: Asynchronous SAN mirroring is not recommended because i t is not possible to determine if the mirror is synchronized after a disaster, and you cannot easily discover any differences.

5.2 Synchronous Database Mirroring Also known as high-safety mode, synchronous database mirroring guarantees that the mir ror and the primary databases are synchronized on all committed transactions. It is important to note that only the one database being mir rored is synchronized―no other databases or files are synchronized in the same operation. Database mirroring can use any form of TCP connectivity between the two servers, but as with SAN mirroring, a large bandwidth is important in providing responsive, low-latency service. One option to mitigate the cost of the network between the primary site and the DR site is to use two levels of DR sites: 

One site is geographically close to the primary site (under 100 kilometers [km]) and uses mirroring to maintain an exact mirror o f the primary site.



A second site is geographically remote from the primary site and is synchronized using one of the asynchronous methods that can use a lower, less-expensive bandwidth.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

For more information, see Synchronous Database Mirroring (High-Safety Mode). Mode).

5.3  Asynchronous Replication Methods If a small potential for loss of rece ntly committed transactions is acceptable, synchronization performance can be improved by using asynchronous protocols between primary and secondary database servers. Using asynchronous protocols means that there is no dependency between the database servers when committing a transac tion. A transaction may be committed on one server, but not on the other ot her until much later. The primary methods of asynchronous replication are asynchronous database mirroring, log shipping, or transactional replication (server-to-server transactional replication or peer-to-peer replication). With these methods, there is a window o f a few seconds to a few minutes where the transactions committed on the primary site are not yet committed on the DR site. Note that when using asynchronous database mirroring or log shipping, the log from the primary site cannot be applied to the DR site once the DR site has been used to store new transactions in its new role as the primary database. Transactions that were not shipped to the DR site before switching to the secondary database server are lost. For more information, see Log Shipping Overview, Overview, Database Mirroring Overview, Overview, and Transactional Replication Overview. Overview.

5.4 Recommendations for Connection Bandwidth An important consideration is the connection bandwidth between the primary and DR sites. Lab testing with 10 million accounts showed peak log usage of 34 MBytes/sec during COB, with values above approximately 15 MBytes/sec for more than an hour during IC processing. COB is the most intensive workload, and can generate large numbers of log records. With an e stimated log compression ratio of 1:4, you should plan at least a 40-Mbit/sec (or 5 MByte/sec) link to the DR site for configurations with 10 million accounts.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

6 Best Practices for Reporting In the default implementation of T24, reports are generated from the same database as online services. If you find that this has an unacceptable impact on online performance, you can shift the reporting workload to another database server. Transactional replication is recommended for maintaining a near real-time copy of the database for reporting purposes. For reducing the data volume of the reporting database and network utilization between the servers, it is also possible to replicate only a subset of the T2 4 tables that are relevant for reporting. T24 system tables can be omitted from replication as they do not contain business data. Temenos provides a list of system tables that do not need to be replicated. The reporting database may be configured for simple database recovery because it is not updated by client transactions; this lets you skip the backup process, but it means that if the database becomes corrupted, you need to re-initialize the subscription from the primary backup. There are alternatives that can be considered, including snapshots, log shipping, and database mirroring, but these are generally not as effective as replication. 

Snapshots give only point-in-time data (typically once per day). When you update the snapshot, all connections to the previous snapshot are broken, providing a poor user experience. Snapshots can be generated by the SAN or you can use database snapshots.



Log shipping or database mirroring keeps the target database in “recovery” mode, and it cannot be accessed for reading except through a database snapshot. This again means that it is only point-in-time data, and when updating, all previous connections are broken.



Database mirroring can only mirror to one othe r server. You cannot mirror a database to both the DR site and to a reporting site.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

7 Best Practices for Performance Tuning Following is guidance for performance tuning for a T24/SQL Server implementation.

7.1 Guidance for Improving Query Performance Performance A typical T24 application consists of T24 core functionality, a number o f T24 modules for specific banking industry areas, and a custom application code that reflects the particular business requirements. The following sections describe the various performance considerations for the standard T24 core components and for customer-specific queries.

7.1. 7.1.1 1 Optim ize Standard T24 T24 Queries Temenos provides a post-installation script for creating indexes on the fie lds that the standard T24 application code uses most often. You should run this script after installation on all your T24 environments to ensure proper performance of the standard T24 queries. As every application has different functionality, close-of-business processes, and a specific transaction mix profile, you should monitor the usage of the st andard indexes and consider dropping indexes that are rarely used. You can use the following query to identify indexes that have not been used since the last time SQL Server was started:

SELECT object_name( object_name (i.object_id object_id) ) AS AS object_name  object_name, , i.name AS AS index_name  index_name FROM sys sys. .indexes indexes i  i JOIN sys sys. .objects objects o  o ON ON i  i. .object_id = o.object_id WHERE o WHERE  o. .type = 'U' AND i AND  i. .index_id NOT IN (SELECT SELECT s  s. .index_id FROM sys sys. .dm_db_index_usage_stats dm_db_index_usage_stats s  s WHERE s WHERE  s. .index_id = i.  i.index_id AND s AND  s. .object_id = i.  i.object_id AND s AND  s. .database_id = db_id db_id()) ()) ORDER BY object_name object_name( (i.object_id object_id) ) ASC The sys.dm_db_index_usage_stats dynamic management view provides statistics about the index usage from the last time SQL Server was started.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

You can use the following query to monitor the index usage on a regular re gular basis:

SELECT object_name( object_name (i.object_id object_id) ) AS AS object_name  object_name, , i.name AS AS index_name  index_name, , s.  s.index_id, index_id, user_seeks + user_scans + user_lookups AS AS user_reads  user_reads, , system_seeks + system_scans + system_lookups AS system_reads, system_reads, user_updates, user_updates, system_updates FROM sys sys. .dm_db_index_usage_stats dm_db_index_usage_stats s  s JOIN sys sys. .indexes indexes i  i ON s ON  s. .index_id = i.  i.index_id AND AND s  s. .object_id = i.  i.object_id WHERE s WHERE  s. .database_id = db_id db_id() () AND i AND  i. .type  0  0 ORDER BY BY user_reads  user_reads DESC 7.1. 7.1.2 2 Optim ize Custo mer-Specific T24 Queries For queries used by customer-specific code, you should go through the following steps in order to identify performance issues, consider optimizations, and verify the benefit of the optimizations.

1. Identify slow-running queries. To improve query performance, start by identifying slow-running queries. 

COB queries:

The close-of-business (COB) calculations are generally the most processing-intensive tasks in T24. The optimization of COB queries is critical for reducing t he total duration of the COB. To identify slow-running queries (or just queries which can be optimized to help shorten the COB time), you can use the sys.dm_exec_query_stats dynamic management view. The following query selects the top 50 SQL Server statements ordered by the total CPU time (i.e., total amount of CPU time, in microseconds, for all executions of each statement):

SELECT TOP TOP 50  50 SUM( SUM (query_stats. query_stats.total_worker_time total_worker_time) ) AS AS "total  "total CPU time", time", SUM( SUM (query_stats. query_stats.total_worker_time total_worker_time)/ )/SUM SUM( (query_stats. query_stats.executio n_count) n_count) AS AS "avg  "avg CPU Time", Time", SUM( SUM (query_stats. query_stats.execution_count) execution_count) AS AS "executes"  "executes", , SUM( SUM (query_stats. query_stats.total_logical_reads total_logical_reads) ) AS AS "total  "total logical reads", reads", SUM( SUM (query_stats. query_stats.total_logical_reads total_logical_reads)/ )/SUM SUM( (query_stats. query_stats.execut ion_count) ion_count) AS AS "avg  "avg logical reads", reads", SUM( SUM (query_Stats. query_Stats.total_logical_writes total_logical_writes) ) AS AS "total  "total logical writes", writes", SUM( SUM (query_Stats. query_Stats.total_logical_writes total_logical_writes)/ )/SUM SUM( (query_stats. query_stats.execu tion_count) tion_count) AS "avg logical writes", writes", MIN( MIN (query_stats. query_stats.statement_text) statement_text) AS AS "statement  "statement text" FROM (SELECT SELECT QS  QS.*, .*, Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

SUBSTRING(ST. SUBSTRING( ST.text text, , (QS. QS.statement_start_offset statement_start_offset/ /2) + 1,  1, ((CASE (( CASE statement_end_offset statement_end_offset WHEN -1 THEN DATALENGTH DATALENGTH( (ST. ST.text text) ) ELSE QS ELSE  QS. .statement_end_offset END - QS.  QS.statement_start_offset statement_start_offset)/ )/2 2) + 1)  1) AS statement_text FROM sys sys. .dm_exec_query_stats AS AS QS  QS CROSS APPLY sys sys. .dm_exec_sql_text dm_exec_sql_text( (QS. QS.sql_handle sql_handle) ) as as ST  ST) ) AS query_stats GROUP BY BY query_stats  query_stats. .query_hash ORDER BY BY 1  1 DESC After completion of the COB, you should look at F_JOB_TIMES for long COB job times. When you have identified the long-running jobs, search the conte nt of the T24 log file &COMO& to match the jQL queries corresponding to t he long-running jobs. Compare these jQL queries to the previously identified SQL Server statements to select queries that are good candidates for optimization. 

Online Processing:

For online processing, identify slow-running operations in the user interface ( UI) based on user feedback and try to reproduce them (on a test database system). Use the SQL Server Profiler to capture the corresponding SQL Server queries. After identifying the SQL statements, you should test them and measure the CPU time and I/Os. This can be done using the sys.dm_exec_query_stats dynamic management view and the query described in the previous section. If you identify multiple long-running queries involved in the online operations, sort the queries based on the average CPU time, and consider the number of executions of each query. Optimizing a query which is executed very often is more important than optimizing queries executed only few times.

2. Consider optimizations. After identifying slow-running queries that are good candidates for optimization, consider the following: 

If there are queries on tables STMT_ENTRY, CATEG_ENTRY, or RE_CONSOLSPEC_ENTRY RE_CONSOLSPEC_ENTRY using a “where” clause that is different from RECID = , then these are most likely  jQL SELECT queries in a custom-developed code. There should generally be no queries on the se tables with a search condition using any fields (other than the RECID). These are the biggest T24 tables, containing huge number of records, and there is usually heavy activity on these tables. The application logic and the jQL SELECT queries o n these tables should be reconsidered and, if possible, rewritten. For example, instead of using STMT_ENTRY, you can use the table ACCT_ENT_TODAY in many cases. ACCT_ENT_TODAY is much smaller in size; the

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

key is the account number, and the rows in the table contain the key of the entries that have been made into that account during the current business day. 

If a query has a search condition on a single-value field, then consider scalar promotion (see step 3). An example of this type of query is:

SELECT t. SELECT t .RECID, RECID,t.XMLRECORD FROM FROM F_HOLD_CONTROL  F_HOLD_CONTROL t WHERE t.XMLRECORD. XMLRECORD.exist( exist(N'/row/c2[.="NEW.LOAN.REPORT"]' N'/row/c2[.="NEW.LOAN.REPORT"]') ) = 1 

If a query has a search condition on a specific multi-valued field (specific local reference field), then consider scalar promotion (see step 3). For example, the following query uses spec ifically the eighth value of a multi-value field in the search condition:

SELECT t.RECID,t.XMLRECORD t.RECID,t.XMLRECORD FROM  FROM FBNK_CARD_ISSUE t WHERE t.XMLRECORD.exist( t.XMLRECORD.exist(N'/row/c14[@m="8"][.=12345]' N'/row/c14[@m="8"][.=12345]') ) = 1 

Consider the number of promoted columns and indexes per table. Indexes improve the performance of select queries, but also increase the time that is required to perform modifications (i.e., inserts, updates, deletes) to the underlying table. Too many indexes may degrade the overall performance. As a general rule, you should avoid creating more than seven indexes on a table.



Do not create XML indexes on T24 XMLRECORD fields. The impact on transaction latency is too high, and the be nefit in query performance is usually not significant.

3. Use scalar promotion. A single-value field (or even a specific value o f a multi-valued field) that is part of the XMLRECORD can be “promoted” as computed column of the table and be used in relational search conditions. Further, a relational index can be created on the computed column to improve the query performance. The minimum required T24 version for scalar promotion is R10 SP5. The detailed steps to promote a single-value XML field are as follows:

1.) Create a persisted computed column for the specific field . Create a user-defined function that evaluates the value of the field. The return value of the function should be a single scalar value. Using this function, t he computed column should be added to the table and per sisted.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

Following are two examples of scalar promotion:

-- example 1 -- scalar promotion of single valued field CREATE FUNCTION udf_HOLD_CONTROL udf_HOLD_CONTROL_C2 _C2( (@xmlrecord XML XML) ) RETURNS nvarchar nvarchar( (35) 35) WITH SCHEMABINDING BEGIN RETURN @xmlrecord RETURN  @xmlrecord. .value( value('(/row/c2/text())[1]' '(/row/c2/text())[1]', , 'nvarchar(35)') 'nvarchar(35)' ) END ALTER TABLE TABLE F_HOLD_CONTROL  F_HOLD_CONTROL ADD C2 ADD  C2 AS AS dbo  dbo. .udf_HOLD_CONTROL_C2 udf_HOLD_CONTROL_C2( (XMLRECORD) XMLRECORD) PERSISTED -- example 2 -- scalar promotion of specific multi-valued field CREATE FUNCTION udf_CARD_ISSUE_C udf_CARD_ISSUE_CUSTOMER USTOMER( (@xmlrecord XML XML) ) RETURNS integer WITH SCHEMABINDING BEGIN RETURN @xmlrecord. @xmlrecord.value( value('(/row/c14[@m="8"]/text())[1]' '(/row/c14[@m="8"]/text())[1]', , 'integer') 'integer' ) END ALTER TABLE FBNK_CARD_ISSUE ADD C14_8 ADD  C14_8 AS AS dbo  dbo. .udf_CARD_ISSUE_CUSTOMER udf_CARD_ISSUE_CUSTOMER( (XMLRECORD) XMLRECORD) PERSISTED 2.) Create non-clustered index on the computed column.

After creating the per sisted computed column, create an index for this co lumn:

-- example 1 CREATE INDEX ix_HOLD_CONTROL_C2 ix_HOLD_CONTROL_C2 ON ON F_HOLD_CONTROL  F_HOLD_CONTROL( (C2) C2) -- example 2 CREATE INDEX ix_CARD_ISSUE_CUSTOMER ix_CARD_ISSUE_CUSTOMER ON FBNK_CARD_ISSUE( FBNK_CARD_ISSUE(C14_8) C14_8) Once there is a promoted column for a specific field in the t able, T24 automatically translates the queries to use that column relational in the “where” clause if there is a search condition on that field.

4. Verify optimizations. Verify that the changes are successful succ essful and measure the impact of the optimizations. 

For scalar promotion (promoted and indexed fields):

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server



Verify the query translation. Without scalar promotion, T24 uses a query syntax such as:

SELECT t.RECID,t.XMLRECORD FROM FBNK_CARD_ISSUE t WHERE t.XMLRECORD.exist( t.XMLRECORD.exist(N'/row/c14[@m="8"][.=12345]' N'/row/c14[@m="8"][.=12345]') ) = 1 The execution of this query usually uses a table scan to retrieve the results. After promoting the field “c2”, T24 should translate the query as:

SELECT t. SELECT t .RECID, RECID,t.XMLRECORD FROM FBNK_CARD_ISSUE FROM  FBNK_CARD_ISSUE t WHERE c14_8 WHERE  c14_8 = 12345 In this case, index lookup on ix_CARD_ISSUE_CUSTOMER is used. 

Prove that the index is used by reproducing the query and verifying the actual execution plan. You can run the query in SQL Server Management Studio and activate the icon “Include Actual Execution Plan” on the SQL Editor toolbar.

Alternatively, you can use the SET STATISTICS PROFILE ON statement to display execution plan information. 

Verify the performance of the query has improved.



After using the application for a period of time (e.g., couple of hours or days) or after running COB, use the sys.dm_db_index_usage_stats  dynamic management view to verify the index usage . Consider the ratio between index r eads and index writes, keeping in mind that an index usually improves the performance for read operations but slows down modifications (i.e., inserts, updates, deletes) at the same time. You can use the queries described in section Standard T24 Queries for this purpose. You should monitor the index usage statistics on a re gular basis.



For jQL queries changed in the application: 

Execute the jQL query on the jsh> interface, and verify the performance. Additionally, you should measure the CPU time and I/O operations on the SQL Server. You can use the query described in the Close-of-Business Close-of-Business section  section of the document for this purpose.

5. Use T24 logical optimization. If you are not able to achieve sufficient performance improvement to specific queries or COB jobs by applying steps 1 –4 above, then consider using concat files, tables used for

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

application-specific purposes in the application layer. In some cases, concat files can also be used as a “logical index” in T24.

7.2 Recommendations Recommendations for Monitoring Performance of the Database Tier You should perform system monitoring during development of your system and periodically during production. Before “going live,” look for bottlenecks and gauge your ability to scale to

your expected long-term workload. Once in production, you should create a per formance baseline and monitor trends in resource consumption against the performance baseline so that you can predict future bottlenecks and determine when resource limitations might begin to impact performance as your customer base grows. You should not worry about seeing short spikes in utilization or high consumption during processes that are operating at an acceptable performance level. Note that SQL Server 2008 R2 introduces application and multi-server management, which can help you manage the T24 database environment more efficiently at scale, with visibility into resource utilization for consolidation and improved efficiencies across the application lifecycle. For more information, see SQL Server 2008 R2 - Application and Multi-Server Management. Management. Table 5 shows metrics that your monitoring plan should include.

Metric

Predicts

Database File Sizes (including tempdb)

Need for expansion of files or storage.

Log File Sizes

Need to backup transaction log more often .

Processor/% Processor Time: All Instances

Additional processors.

Average Disk Queue Length

Storage configuration too slow.

Average Disk sec/transfer

May indicate a large amount of disk fragmentation, slow disks, or disk failures. (Should be 10 ms or less.)

Disk Bytes/sec for each LUN

Need to spread data across more LUNs.

Paging in Pages/sec

Need for additional memory.

Network Interface Bytes Received/sec and Network Interface Bytes Sent/sec

Need for increased network capacity or segmentation.

Table 5. Monitoring plan. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

8 Best Practices for System Maintenance You should perform regular maintenance tasks to keep S QL Server running optimally. Your maintenance schedule should include implementing a backup strategy, updating database statistics, rebuilding and reorganizing indexes, and identifying and correcting excessive fragmentation. For more information about creating maintenance plans, see Appendix 1: Create a Maintenance Plan to Back Up the Temenos Application Database and Appendix 2: Create a Maintenance Plan to Back Up the System Databases. Databases.

8.1 Guidance for Backing Up the Database You should back up the T24 database regularly to protect your data. You should also back up the transaction log frequently to protect your data and to keep the transaction log file from growing too large.

8 .1 .1 .1 .1 U s e B a c k u p Co Co m p r e s s i o n Backing up a large database can require a significant amount of time and a large amount of disk space for the backup file(s). With SQL S erver 2008 backup compression, the backup file is compressed as it is written; this requires r equires less storage, less disk I/O, and less time but incurs more CPU cycles as overhead. The compression is achieved by specifying the WITH COMPRESSION clause in t he BACKUP command or by selecting compression the Options page in the Back Up Database dialog box. There is also a global setting to compress all backups taken on a server instance by default. (This setting is accessed by using the Database Settings tab in the Server Properties dialog box or by running sp_configure  with backup compression default set to 1 .) The RESTORE command automatically detects that a backup is compressed and decompresses the backup during the restore operation. For more information, see the artic le Tuning the Performance of Backup Compression in SQL Server 2008 on SQLCAT.com.

8.1. 8.1.2 2 Implem ent a Back up Schedu le A suggested schedule is a weekly full backup, a daily differential backup, and a log backup every hour. Frequent log backups can keep the size of the log file smaller and can also minimize data loss when implementing log shipping for disaster recovery. Frequent full backups can improve the speed of recovery since it is not necessary to rrestore estore as many log files. Your organization may have specific requirements for recovery times, and you should discuss these with a qualified database administrator to determine a backup profile that meets these requirements.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

It is recommended to schedule the full backup to run after the C OB processing and after any index maintenance tasks (e.g., index reorganize or index rebuild). If you implement peer-to-peer replication, you must also implement a backup schedule for the target database(s). The distributor database operates in simple recovery mode, so it does not need to be backed up.

8.1. 8.1.3 3 Back Up System Databases Databases SQL Server maintains a set of o f system-level databases (called system databases) that are essential for the operation of a server instance. Several of the system databases must be backed up after every significant update: msdb, master, and model. If any database uses replication on the server instance, there is a distribution system database that must also backed up. Backups of these system databases let you restore and recover the SQL Server system in the event of system failure, such as the loss of a hard disk. For more information, see the artic le Considerations for Backing Up and Restoring System Databases.. Databases

8.2 Recommendations for Updating Statistics SQL Server collects statistics stat istics about individual columns (single-column (single-column statistics) or sets of columns (multi-column statistics). Statistics are used by the query optimizer to estimate the selectivity of expressions and thus the size of intermediate and final query results. Reliable statistics let the optimizer accurately assess the cost of different query plans and then choose a high-quality plan. For a typical T24 installation, it is recommended to keep the AUTO_CREATE_STATISTICS and AUTO_UPDATE_STATISTICS database options on (which is the default setting). For more information, see the article Statistics Used by the Query Optimizer in Microsoft SQL Server 2008. 2008. For step-by-step guidance for manually updating statistics using a maintenance job, see Appendix 3: Update Statistics. Statistics.

8.3 Recommendations Recommendations for Reorganizing Reorganizing or Rebuilding Indexes The SQL Server Database Engine automatically maintains indexes whenever insert, update, or delete operations are applied to the underlying data. Over time, these modifications can cause the information in the index to become scattered or fragmented in the database. Fragmentation exists when indexes have pages in w hich the logical ordering, based on the key value, does not match the physical ordering inside the data file. Heavily fragmented indexes can degrade query performance and cause your application to respond slowly. You can defragment indexes by either reorganizing or rebuilding. For partitioned indexes built on a partition scheme, you can re build or reorganize a complete index or a single partition of an index. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

To decide which defragmentation method to use, analyze the index to determine the degree of fragmentation. By using the DMF sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats , you can detect fragmentation in a specific index, all indexes on a table or indexed view, all indexes in a database, or all indexes in all databases. Using this function, you have ac cess to the fragmentation levels available in defined columns at any given time. Table 6 shows some of the information ret urned by the sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats function.

Column avg_fragmentation_in_percent

fragment_count

Description The percent of logical fragmentation (out-of-order pages in the index). The number of fragments (physically consecutive leaf pages) in the index.

avg_fragment_size_in_pages

Average number of pages in one fragment in an index.

page_count

The total number of index or data pages.

Table 6. Columns returned from sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats.

You can then use Table 7 as a guide to determine the best method to correct the fragmentation.

avg_fragmentation_in_percent

Corrective statement

> 10 percent and < = 80 percent

ALTER INDEX REORGANIZE

> 80 percent

ALTER INDEX REBUILD

Table 7. Corrective defragmentation method to use.

Note that very low levels of fragme ntation (less than 10%) should not be addressed by either of these commands because the benefit from removing such a small amount of fragmentation is almost always vastly outweighed by the cost of reo rganizing or rebuilding the index. The white paper Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Index Defragmentation Best Practices can provide additional guidance.

Reorganize Indexes  Reorganize an index when the index is not heavily fragmented. Use the ALTER INDEX statement

8.3.1

with the REORGANIZE clause (replaces the DBC C INDEXDEFRAG statement in Microsoft® SQL Server® 2000). To reorganize a single partition of a partitioned index, use the PARTITION c lause of ALTER INDEX.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

The reorganize process uses minimal system resources. Also, reorganizing is automatically performed online. The process does not hold long-term blocking locks; t herefore, it does not block running queries or updates.

8.3. 8.3.2 2 Rebuild Indexes wh en Necessary Rebuilding an index drops the index and creates a new one. In doing this, fragmentation is removed, disk space is reclaimed by compacting the pages using the specified or existing fillfactor setting, and the index rows are reordered in contiguous pages (allocating new pages as needed). This can improve disk performance by reducing the number of page reads required to obtain the requested data. The following methods can be used to rebuild clustered and non-clustered indexes: 

ALTER INDEX with the REBUILD clause. This st atement replaces the DBCC DBREINDEX statement.



CREATE INDEX with the DROP_EXISTING clause.

Each method performs the same function, but there are advantages and disadvantages to consider. See Reorganizing See Reorganizing and Rebuilding Indexes for more information. Note, that the clustered index cannot be rebuilt online if the underlying table contains XML data type. Appendix 4: Reorganize and Rebuild Indexes provides step-by-step guidance on creating maintenance plans for these operations.

8.4 Recommendations for Update Management Following is guidance for updating management.

8.4. 8.4.1 1 Maintain Your Microso ft Softw are It is recommended to keep your Microsoft software up to date with the most recent software updates. Software Updates (e.g., hotfixes, Cumulative Updates, service packs, etc.) can help prevent or fix problems, enhance the security of your computers, and improve how the computers work. Consider testing and applying software updates on a regular basis. For more information on applying updates, see Update Management TechCenter and SQL Server 2008 failover cluster rolling patch and service pack process. process.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

9 Summary TEMENOS T24, coupled with Microsoft SQL Server database software, provides financial institutions with a complete banking solution. Using the best practices described in this white paper can help optimize the performance o f the database tier. The links in the section that follows provide even more information. For benchmarking results from a S QL Server/TEMENOS T24 implementation at the North Shore Credit Union in British Columbia, Canada, see: TEMENOS T24 Core Banking Optimized on Microsoft SQL Server D atabase Platform. Platform. Following is a list of technical articles that can help you learn more about specific Windows and SQL Server topics: 







Windows Configuration: 

Receive-Side Scaling



Introduction to Receive-Side Scaling



Receive-Side Scaling Enhancements in Windows Server 2008



Desktop Heap Overview



Desktop Heap, part 2

Storage Configuration: 

Predeployment I/O Best Practices



Storage Top 10 Best Practices



DiskPart



Disk Partition Alignment Best Practices for SQL Server

SQL Server Configuration: 

Isolation Levels in the Database Engine



Optimizing tempdb Performance



Configure Server Startup Options



Recovery Interval Option



Fill Factor



How to reduce paging of buffer pool memory in the 64-bit version of SQL Server

High Availability and Disaster Recovery: 

High Availability with SQL Server 2008



Failover Clustering in Windows Server 2008 R2



SQL Server 2008 Failover Clustering



Database Mirroring Overview



Synchronous Database Mirroring (High-Safety Mode)



Database Mirroring Best Practices and Performance Considerations

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server





Log Shipping Overview



Transactional Replication Overview



Best Practices for Replication Administration



Replication Security Best Practices



Peer-to-Peer Transactional Replication

Database Maintenance 

Considerations for Backing Up and Restoring System Databases



Tuning the Performance of Backup Compression in SQL Server 2008



Best Practices for Recovering a Database to a Specific Recovery Point



Statistics Used by the Query Optimizer in Microsoft SQL Server 2008



Reorganizing and Rebuilding Indexes



SQL Server 2008 R2 - Application and Multi-Server Management



SQL Server 2008 failover cluster rolling patch and service pack process



Update Management TechCenter



Troubleshooting Performance Problems in SQL Server 2008

See the SQL Server Best Practices portal for technical white papers, the SQL Server Best Practices Toolbox, Top 10 Lists, and other r esources.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

10  Appendix 1: Create a Maintenance Plan to Back Up the Temenos Database It is important to create a maintenance plan to back up the Temenos database. The following step-by-step instructions guide you through the process. 1. Open SQL Server Management Studio , expand the Management node, and then expand the Management Plans node. 2. Right-click Maintenance Plans, click Maintenance Plan Wizard, and then type an appropriate name for this Temenos application database backup plan.

Figure 2. Click Maintenance Plan Wizard.

3. Click Separate schedules for each task , because you will later select both full and transaction log backups. Click Next.

Figure 3. Select the plan properties.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

4. On the Select Maintenance Tasks dialog box, select Clean Up History, Back Up

Database (Full), Back Up Database (T ransaction Log), and Maintenance Cleanup Task. Click Next twice.

Figure 4. Select maintenance tasks.

5. As you complete the Maintenance Plan Wizard, you should select options based on the needs of your organization. The following figures show examples of options you may want to select. a. On the Define History Cleanup Task  dialog box, select the historical data you want to delete and the schedule. Click Next.

Figure 5. Options to define the his tory cleanup task.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

b. On the Define Back Up Database (Full) Task dialog box, click on These

databases, and select the T24 user database in the Database(s) box. Click OK.

Figure 6. Options to configure the backup database task.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

c.

On the Job Schedule Properties dialog box, select the frequency and duration of full backups. It is recommended to schedule the full backup to be executed, after the COB processing. Click OK.

Figure 7. Options to select for the job schedule properties.

d. On the Define Back Up Database (Full) Task  dialog box, specify information about the full backup. Click Next.

Figure 8. Options to set the backup parameters. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

e. On the Job Schedule Properties dialog box, select the frequency and duration of transaction log backups. Click OK.

Figure 9. Options to set the fre quency and duration of transaction log backups.

f.

On the Define Back Up Database (Transaction Log) Task  dialog box, configure the transaction log backup. Click Next.

Figure 10. Options to configure the transaction log backups. Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

g. On the Define Maintenance Cleanup Task  dialog box, configure the cleanup tasks. Click Next.

Figure 11. Options to define the maintenance cleanup tasks.

h. On the Select Report Options dialog box, select whether to write the report to text file or send the report through email. Click Next. 6. Review your selections, and then click Finish.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

11  Appendix 2: Create a Maintenance Plan to Back Up the System Databases You should create a maintenance plan to back up the system databases. The following step-bystep instructions guide you through the process. 1. Open SQL Server Management Studio , expand the Management node, and then expand the Management Plans node. 2. Right-click Maintenance Plans, click Maintenance Plan Wizard, and then type an appropriate name for this Temenos system database backup plan.

Figure 12. Click Maintenance Plan Wizard.

3. On the Select Plan Properties dialog box, click Single schedule for the entire plan or no t he frequency and duration of transaction log schedule, and click Change to select the backups. Click Next .

Figure 13. Select the plan properties.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

4. On the Select Maintenance Tasks dialog box, select Clean Up History, Back Up

Database (Full), and Maintenance Cleanup Task. Click Next.

Figure 14. Select the maintenance tasks.

5. On the Select Maintenance Task Order dialog box, make sure that the tasks appear in the order shown in Figure 15. Click Next.

Figure 15. Verify the order of the maintenance tasks.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

6. As you complete the Maintenance Plan W izard, you should select options based on the needs of your organization. The following figures show examples of options you may want to select. a. On the Define Back Up Database (Full) Task  dialog box, select System

databases. Click OK.

Figure 16. Select the system databases.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

b. Define the full backup task by selecting from the various options. Click Next.

Figure 17. Options to define the full backup.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

c.

Define the maintenance cleanup task by selecting from the various options. Click Next.

Figure 18. Options to define the maintenance cleanup tasks.

d. Define the history cleanup task by selecting from the various options. Click Next.

Figure 19. Options to define the history cleanup tasks.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

e. Select the report options you want. Click Next .

Figure 20. Options for reporting.

7. Review your selections, and click Finish.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

12  Appendix 3: Update Statistics You should create a maintenance plan to update stat istics. The following step-by-step instructions guide you through the process. 1. Open SQL Server Management Studio , expand the Management node, and then expand the Management Plans node. 2. Right-click Maintenance Plans, and click Maintenance Plan Wizard.

Figure 21. Click Maintenance Plan Wizard.

3. On the Select Plan Properties dialog box, type an appropriate name for this statistics update plan, and click Single schedule for the entire plan or no schedule . Click Change to select the fre quency and duration of statistics updates.

Figure 22. Select the plan properties.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

4. Based on your organization’s needs, select the frequency and duration of the statistics updates on the Job Schedule Properties  –  Update  Update Temenos Statistics (FullScan)  dialog box. Click OK, and then click Next.

Figure 23. Select the frequency and duration of updates.

5. On the Select Maintenance Tasks dialog box, select only Update Statistics. Click Next.

Figure 24. Select the update statistics task.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

6. On the Select Maintenance Task Order dialog box, make no changes. Click Next.

Figure 25. Make no changes on the task order dialog box.

7. On the Define Update Statistics Task dialog box, click on These databases, and select the T24 user database in the Database(s) box. Click OK.

Figure 26. Select the Temenos user database.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

8. On the Define Update Statistics Task dialog box, select Tables and views  in the Object box. Under Scan type, click Full scan. Click Next.

Figure 27. Define parameters for the update statistics task.

9. On the Select Report Options dialog box, select r eport options based on your organization’s needs. Click Next.

Figure 28. Select report options.

10. Review your selections, and then click Finish.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

13  Appendix 4: Reorganize and Rebuild Indexes The following script samples automatically reorganize or rebuild all partitions in a database. The first one reorganizes all indexes that have an average fragmentation between 10% and 80%. The second script rebuilds all indexes with an average fragmentation g reater than 80 perce nt. Executing these scripts requires the VIEW DATABASE STATE permission. These examples use DB_ID() instead of specifying particular database name. Note that an error is generated if the current database has a compatibility level of 80 or less. To resolve the error, re place DB_ID() with a valid database name. For more information about database compatibility levels, see sp_dbcmptlevel (Transact-SQL). For more information, see the artic le sys.dm_db_ind sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats ex_physical_stats (Transact-SQL).

-- Reorganize indexes -- Ensure that a USE statement has been executed first. SET NOCOUNT ON ON; ; DECLARE @objectid DECLARE  @objectid int int; ; DECLARE @indexid DECLARE  @indexid int int; ; DECLARE @partitioncount DECLARE  @partitioncount bigint bigint; ; DECLARE @schemaname DECLARE  @schemaname nvarchar nvarchar( (130); 130); DECLARE @objectname DECLARE  @objectname nvarchar nvarchar( (130); 130); DECLARE @indexname DECLARE  @indexname nvarchar nvarchar( (130); 130); DECLARE @partitionnum DECLARE  @partitionnum bigint bigint; ; DECLARE @partitions DECLARE  @partitions bigint bigint; ; DECLARE @frag DECLARE  @frag float float; ; DECLARE @command DECLARE  @command nvarchar nvarchar( (4000); 4000); -- Conditionally select tables and indexes from the sys.dm_db_index_physical_stats sys.dm_db_index _physical_stats function -- and convert object and index IDs to names. SELECT object_id AS AS objectid  objectid, , index_id AS AS indexid  indexid, , partition_number AS AS partitionnum  partitionnum, , avg_fragmentation_in_percent AS AS frag  frag INTO #work_to_do INTO  #work_to_do FROM sys sys. .dm_db_index_physical_stats (DB_ID DB_ID(), (), NULL, NULL , NULL, 'LIMITED') 'LIMITED' ) WHERE avg_fragmentation_in_percent avg_fragmentation_in_percent > 10.0 AND avg_fragmentation_in_percent avg_fragmentation_in_percent  1

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

SET @command = @command + N' PARTITION=' + SET @command CAST( CAST (@partitionnum AS nvarchar nvarchar( (10)); 10)); EXEC (@command); @command); PRINT N'Executed: ' + @command;  @command; END; END ; -- Close and deallocate the cursor. CLOSE partitions partitions; ; DEALLOCATE partitions partitions; ; -- Drop the temporary table. DROP TABLE TABLE #work_to_do  #work_to_do; ; GO

You should generally create a nightly job for index reorganization (using the 1 sample script) and a weekly job for index rebuild (based o n the 2 sample script). Ideally, the index maintenance tasks (reorganization or rebuild) should be performed after COB processing and before a full backup is executed. To create a nightly or weekly job to perform the reorganizing or rebuilding, perform the following steps: 1. Right-click Jobs, and click New Job.

Figure 29. Click New Job.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

2. Name the job so it can be easily identified as the reorganization or rebuilding index.

Figure 30. Name the maintenance job.

3. Click Steps, and then click New. Enter the step name (e.g., Reorg or Rebuild), select the type Transact-SQL script (T-SQL), specify the T24 database name, and copy the script sample into the Command field. To make sure that there are no errors in the T-SQL script, click Parse. Click OK.

Figure 31. Copy the script sample, and parse it.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

4. Select the Advanced page, change the On Success action to Quit the job reporting

success, and click OK.

Figure 32. Configure job step advanced options.

5. On the New Job Schedule  dialog box, schedule the job to run nightly or weekly, depending on the needs of your organization. Click OK.

Figure 33. Options for scheduling jobs.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

6. On the Job Properties –  Temenos  Temenos Index Reorg/Rebuild  dialog box, configure the notifications for the  job based on your organization’s needs. (Note that database email must be configured correctly for the notifications to work.) Click OK.

Figure 34. Configure job notifications.

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server

14  Appendix 5: Installation Check List To assure successful T24 installation, the following items should be fulfilled: 

Windows Server version : 64-bit edition of Windows Server® 2008 R2 Enterprise



SQL Server version : Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 Enterprise Service Pack 2 (SP2), or Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2 Enterprise, or Microsoft® SQL Server® 2008 R2 Datacenter



T24 / TAFC Version : R10 SP5 or higher





Configuration settings: 

Windows Hotfix KB976700



Lock pages in memory privilege granted to SQL service account

SQL Server configuration : 

Trace flag 1118 added to SQL Server startup parameters



Database log and data files are properly sized



AUTO_CREATE_STATISTICS and AUTO_UPDATE_STATISTICS options for T24 database are turned on (default setting)

 

SQL Server maintenance jobs created and active

T24 indexes on standard fields created (post-installation script)

Best Practice Guidance for Running TEMENOS T24 on Microsoft SQL Server and Windows Server