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Foglight for SQL Server (Cartridge) 5.9.3.10 - User Guide

Introduction to this Guide Using Foglight for SQL Server
Viewing the Databases Dashboard Overview Dashboard Advisories Dashboard Monitoring Data Replication Monitoring SQL Performance Reviewing Memory Usage Reviewing the Instance Activity Reviewing Database Usage Reviewing the Services Using the HADR Drilldown Using the Logs Drilldown Reviewing Configuration Settings Viewing User-defined Performance Counters and Collections
Monitoring Business Intelligence Services Administering Foglight for SQL Server
Configuration Settings Managing Foglight for SQL Server Agent Settings Reviewing Foglight for SQL Server Alarms Generating Reports Monitoring SQL Server instances on VMware servers
Glossary
A
Access methods Adhoc SQL Plans Alarm Alert Allow updates Anonymous subscription Authentication AutoClose AutoGrow Automatic Discovery AutoShrink B Batch BCP (Bulk Copy Program) Blocking Books Online Bound trees Buffer Buffer cache Buffer pull Bulk copy Bulkinsert Bulk load C Cache CAL Calibration Cardinality Cartridge Chart Checkpoint process Client network utility CLR Compile Connect Connection Connectivity software CPU Usage Cursors D Data access components Data file Data storage engine Database Database object DataFlow DBCC DBID DBO Deadlock Disk queue length Disk transfer time Disk utilization DiskPerf Distributing instance Distributor DMO Drilldown DTC DTS E Error log Event alert Execution contexts Extended stored procedures Extent External procedures F File Filegroup File cache Foglight Agent Manager Foglight Management Server Foreign key Forwarded records Free buffers Free list Free pages Free potential Free space Freespace scans Full text search G GAM Ghosted records Growth increment GUID H Hash buckets Hashing Heap Hit rate Hit ratio Host name Host process I I/O Index Indid Integrated security Intent Locks J Job K Kernel memory Kernel mode Kill L Latch Lazy writer Licensing Lightweight pooling Lock Lock area Lock escalation Lock mode Log Log cache Log writer Logical I/O LRU LSN M Master MaxSize MDAC Metric Misc.normalized trees Model Monitor page file N Named pipes Net library NIC Null O OBID Object plans OLAP OLAP service OLTP Optimizer Optimizer cache osql P Page life expectancy Paging Panel Parse Parser Per seat licensing Per server licensing Performance alert Physical I/O Physical read Physical write PID Pinned Plan Plan cache Potential growth Prepared SQL plans Primary key Privileged mode Procedure cache Procedure plans Process Profiler Publication database Publisher Publisher databases Publishing server Pull subscription Pulse Push subscription Q Query plan R RAID Random I/O Read ahead Recompile Referential integrity Relational data engine Replication procedure plans Role Rollback S sa Schema locks Sequential I/O Session Severity SGAM Shared locks Show advanced options SMP Sort, Hash, Index Area SPID Spike Spinner SQL Agent Mail SQL Mail SQL Plans SQL Server Agent SQL Server authentication SQL Server books online Standard deviation Stolen pages Stored procedure Support service SYSADMIN role T TDS TempDB Temporary tables and table variables Threshold Torn page detection Transaction Trigger Trigger plans Truncate Trusted U UMS Unused space User connection area User mode V Virtual log file VLF W Waitfor Windows authentication mode Working set
Reference
SQL PI Repository Cold Backup Procedure SQL Performance Investigator Metrics
Active Time All SQL Agents CPU Usage All SQL Agents Resident Memory Usage Availability Average Physical I/O Operations Average SQL Response Time Backup Recovery Wait Blocked Lock Requests Checkpoint Pages CLR Wait CPU Usage CPU Wait Cursor Synchronization Wait Database Replication Wait Deferred Task Worker Wait Degree of Parallelism Disk Utilization DTC CPU Usage DTC Resident Memory Usage Distributed Transaction Wait Executions Ended Executions Started External Procedures Wait Full Scans Full Text Search CPU Usage Full Text Search Resident Memory Usage Full Text Search Wait Free Buffer Wait Hosted Components Wait IO Bulk Load Wait IO Completion Wait IO Data Page Wait IO Wait Latch Buffer Wait Latch Wait Latch Savepoint Wait Lazy Writes Lock Wait Lock Bulk Update Wait Lock Exclusive Wait Lock Intent Wait Lock Requests Lock Schema Wait Lock Shared Wait Lock Update Wait Lock Wait Log Buffer Wait Log Flushes Log Other Wait Log Synchronization Wait Log Wait Log Write Wait Memory Wait Network IO Wait Network IPC Wait Network Mirror Wait Network Wait Non SQL Server CPU Usage Non SQL Resident Memory Usage OLAP CPU Usage OLAP Resident Memory Usage OLEDB Provider Full Text Wait Other CPU Usage Other Miscellaneous Wait Other Wait Overall CPU Page Life Expectancy Page Splits Parallel Coordination Wait Physical I/O Physical Memory Used Physical Page Reads Physical Page Writes Probe Scans Plan Cache Hit Rate Range Scans Rec Ended Duration Remote Provider Wait Run Queue Length Samples Service Broker Wait Session Logons Session Logoffs SQL Agent CPU Usage SQL Agent Resident Memory Usage SQL Executions SQL Mail CPU Usage SQL Mail Resident Memory Usage SQL Recompilations SQL Response Time SQL Server Background CPU Usage SQL Server Cache Memory SQL Server Connections Memory SQL Server Connections Summary SQL Server Foreground CPU Usage SQL Server Resident Memory Usage SQL Server Swap Memory Usage Synchronous Task Wait Table Lock Escalation Target Instance Memory Total CPU Usage Total Instance Memory Virtual Memory Used
Rules Collections and Metrics

Migrating Agents

The SQL Performance Investigator extension is only supported on Windows 64-bit. As a result, you may need to migrate SQL Server agents from an Agent Manager running on Linux to a Windows Agent Manager.

In addition, the migration tool allows you to perform resource balancing between the agent managers running SQL Server agents with and without the SQL PI extension installed.

To migrate an agent to a different Agent Manager:
1
Open the migration wizard by navigating to Dashboards > Databases > Support Dashboard > Databases Technical Support > Database Agents Migration > SQL Server.
2
Select the Agent Manager that is the destination host for the migrated SQL Agents. Click Next.
3
On the SQL Agents for Migration pane, the left-hand column displays a list of available Agent Managers. Select an Agent Manager to view a list of the agents installed on it.
4
From the list, select the agents that you want to migrate and move them to the Agent Manager Destination column.
5
If necessary, select agents and set the Windows credentials.
6
Click Next to migrate the agents.
7
When migration has completed, click Finish to exit the Wizard.

About Monitoring Extensions

During the installation process you can choose to install and configure one or more of the monitoring extensions. The monitoring extensions provide a more in-depth analysis of the monitored instance and the environment it is running on, creating a whole and unified status.

Understanding the Foglight for SQL Server Architecture

The communication architecture of Foglight for SQL Server is presented below.

Figure 2. Communication Architecture overview.

SQL Performance Investigator Extension

SQL Performance Investigator allows you to rapidly identify bottlenecks, anomalies, and application trends by focusing on top resource consumers and providing multi-dimensional SQL domain drilldowns. SQL PI allows you to:

•
Monitor real-time SQL Server database performance at a glance
•
Gather and diagnose historical views
•
Identify and anticipate performance issues
•
Analyze and optimize execution plan changes
•
Compare day-to-day values to identify anomalies and application changes
 
* 
NOTE: SQL Performance Investigator requires a license. If you are using a trial version and would like to request pricing, contact Quest Support.
* 
NOTE: SQL PI requires a repository database that is installed automatically on the Agent Manager.
Operating System Extension

Monitoring the operating system allows you to identify resource consumption and provides a full view of the server health. An Infrastructure agent, which is created automatically as part of the monitoring process, monitors the operating system.

 
* 
NOTE: The Operating System extension is enabled by default.
VMware Extension

Monitoring the VMware system allows you to identify resource consumption and provides a full view of the data center and ESX health when the server is part of a VMware environment.

Installing and Monitoring a Single SQL Server Instance

Enabling the Foglight Management Server to monitor SQL Server instances requires the creation of the Foglight agents that monitor these instances and ensuring that these agents communicate properly with the Foglight Management Server.

Foglight for SQL Server provides a graphic, intuitive method for creating and configuring multiple agents, which can be used instead of Foglight’s default method for creating agents and editing their properties using the Agent Administration dashboard (see About the Foglight for SQL Server Agent in the Foglight for SQL Server Reference Guide). Foglight for SQL Server allows running a wizard that provides a common entry point for adding and discovering all database instances within a user-specified range, and then configuring these instances for monitoring.

 
* 
IMPORTANT: When running Foglight for SQL Server in a Federation architecture, neither the creation nor the administration of agents can be accomplished from the central Foglight Management Server (the Federation Master). These two tasks should be carried out from the stand-alone Management Servers (the Federated Children).
To run the instance installation wizard:
1
On the navigation panel, click Homes > Databases.
2
Click the SQL Server tab in the middle of the Databases View, and then click Monitor.
The Monitor SQL Server Instance dialog box appears.
 
* 
NOTE: If a user-defined database group is selected, the databases table's title displays the name of this group instead of All; however, all newly discovered or created databases are added to the general (All) group of databases.
3
Choose the agent manager on which the agent is running. The default is the agent manager with the least agents installed.
a
Click the Agent Manager Host link located in the bottom left corner of the dialog box.
A dialog box appears with a list of all agent managers connected to the Foglight management server.
b
Select the appropriate host name and click Set.
 
* 
IMPORTANT: You have the option set this host as the default for all future installations.
4
On the Monitor SQL Server Instance dialog box, provide Connection Details by typing:
•
Server name — for the default instance, specify the host name. If you have more than one instance on the server, you must name the instances using the format: domain\user name.
•
Port — Optional. This field can be left empty, unless the TCP/IP connection port is not the default port: 1443.
5
Specify the SQL Server credentials using either of the following authentication methods:
•
Active Directory (AD) Authentication — log in using the Active Directory account running on your agent manager or typing a new AD account. The user name should be typed in the following format: domain\user name.
•
SQL Server Authentication — log in using a SQL Server account
6
Select an Alarm Sensitivity Level to determine what level of alarms the system stores and displays for this instance. The default is Normal. Alarm levels include:
•
Essential — Store and display only critical or fatal alarms.
•
Normal — Store and display most alarms — essential and best practices; only critical and fatal statistical alarms.
•
Tuning — Store and display all SQL Server alarms sent to Foglight.
•
Performance — Store and display only availability and SQL PI related alarms.
7
Optional — In the Monitoring Extension pane, click the Click for Licensing Information link under SQL PI. You are prompted to contact Quest Sales for an add-on license to enable SQL Performance Investigator (PI).
8
Optional — In the Monitoring Extension pane, click the Operating System link.
To configure the extension, choose the connection details of the host on which the SQL Server instance is running:
•
Log in to the host using the same account used for monitoring SQL Server — This option is set by default when the SQL Server connection details are of types: Active Directory (AD) Authentication or Using the Active Directory account running your agent manager.
•
Log in to the host using different log in credentials — logging in through either of the following authentication methods:
•
Windows: Log in through a Windows account. The user name should be entered in the domain\username format (for example, COLUMBIA\JSmith).
•
Local User: Log in through the same credentials that are used to run monitored software on the SQL Server host. The user name should be entered in the domain\username format (for example, COLUMBIA\JSmith).
•
SSH (login credentials): Log in through a user account on Linux.
•
SSH (RSA): Log in through a RSA key on Linux.
•
SSH (DSA): Log in through a DSA key on Linux.
9
Optional — In the Monitoring Extensions pane, click Collect VM statistics.
To configure the extension, select the connection details of the vCenter or ESX on which the SQL Server instance is running:
•
The name of IP address of the vCenter server that hosts the SQL Server instance virtual machine, or the name of its parent ESX server
•
The port number used by the vCenter server system or by ESX server for listening to the connections from the vSphere Client (default: 443).
•
The name and password of the user that has the privileges required for connecting to the vCenter server or ESX server and retrieving information.
10
Click Monitor.
 
* 
IMPORTANT: If the monitoring verification fails click the message that is displayed on the Status column and resolve the issue according to the instructions that appear in the dialog box. For example, (for example: insufficient privileges, incorrect credentials or an Agent Manager that reached its full monitoring capacity.
11
When the installation completes successfully, the Monitoring Initialized Successfully dialog box appears. Click Add another Database or Finish to exit.

Discovering Multiple Instances to Monitor

You can use the instance installation wizard to discover existing instances. This option allows you to discover instances and monitoring them by entering several methods:

•
By host name
•
By IP range
•
By entering a file with a predefined instance.
To discover additional instances to monitor:
1
Click the SQL Server tab in the middle of the Databases View, and then click Monitor.
The Monitor SQL Server Instance dialog box appears.
2
Click the Use this option to discover multiple SQL-Server instances link. The Select an Agent Manager dialog box appears.
3
Choose an Agent Manager host, click Validate to validate the Agent Manager system resources, and then click Next.
 
* 
IMPORTANT: At the bottom of the pane you can select a default agent manager for all future installations.
4
Click Add instances and select one of the following methods for adding instances:
•
(Windows and Linux) Adding instances manually — see Adding instances manually
•
(Windows only) Discovering instances by hosts — see Discovering instances by host name
•
(Windows and Linux) Discovering instances by IP range — see Discovering instances by IP range .
•
(Windows and Linux) Importing instances names from a file — see Importing Instances from a File
5
After the discovery process is successfully completed, the newly discovered instances appear on the table, with the status Set credentials.
6
Click the check boxes beside the instances whose credentials are to be configured.
7
Click Set credentials to provide the instances' log in credentials and monitoring configuration.
8
Follow the steps described in Installing and Monitoring a Single SQL Server Instance , starting with Step 5 to enter the monitoring credentials and enable the monitoring extensions for this instance.
* 
IMPORTANT: There is an additional option for the SQL Server connection details to use an SSL connection. The default is set to Optional, or you can choose Off or Mandatory.
 
* 
NOTE: To use stored credentials when enabling the Operating System monitoring extension, click the Operating System > Select from stored credentials link to open the Stored Credentials dialog box. Here you can review the log in credentials and authentication methods used for logging in to Foglight. Foglight stores encrypted credentials in lockboxes, which may be password-protected for added security. Database agents store all user log in credentials in a default lockbox called DB-Agent Lockbox. If credentials have already been entered in another lockbox, use the Lockbox list to select from that lockbox.
 
9
Click Monitor
The Monitoring progress bar appears.
At the end of this process, the Status column of the instance table displays either the status
Monitored for the instances that connected successfully to the database, or a status that indicates failure of the connectivity verification process and the reason for the failure. Click this text to view a dialog box that allows changing the credentials or to grant privileges, depending on the message that appears on the Status column:
•
If the message is Insufficient database privileges, this issue can be resolved using the Insufficient Database Privileges dialog box that appears. For details, go to Step 10.
•
For all other messages, the Database Connection Failed dialog box appears. For details, go to Step 11.
10
Click the text Insufficient Database Privileges.
The Insufficient Database Privileges dialog box appears.
This dialog box allows you to specify a SYSAdmin (System Administrator) user with sufficient privileges.
Enter a SYSAdmin user and password, and then click Grant Privileges. Alternatively, click the View script link, to the right of the Grant privileges button, to grant privileges manually with a script.
11
Click the message’s text.
A dialog box that shows the message details appears.
a
Click Show details to view the error’s description.
b
Click Set credentials to display the dialog box used for entering the credentials, and enter the required changes.
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