Topic Sections

• Tuning Overview
• Configuring Database Files for Optimal Perfomance
• Configuring SQL Server for Optimal Performance
• Latches
• Optimization Tips & Techniques
• Query Processing
• Recommended Best Practices for Tuning
• Hardware Tuning
• Performance Baselines - why you need to capture a baseline and measure performance once a quarter.
• SAN Performance Tuning with SQLIO
• SQL Server Query Optimizer
• SQL Server Profiler - includes videos on how to get started with Profiler.
• Wait Events
• Writing a SQL Server Performance Report - includes a video explanation tutorial.
• Using the Right Indexes for Optimal Performance

Denny Cherry, Performance Tuning Editor

Denny Cherry

Welcome to the Performance Tuning section of the wiki. I am Denny Cherry (mrdenny on the net) and I’ll be your guide on this page through Microsoft SQL Server.

I have been working in IT for about 13 years now, with the last 10 working on Microsoft SQL Server. I have worked at small shops with just a few SQL Servers to large shops running hundreds of SQL Servers with over half a billion transactions per second through out the farm. This experience with such large databases give me a fairly unique understanding of how SQL Server works under such a high load.

Currently I hold the dual position of Senior Database Administrator / Architect. This gives me the opportunity to not only guide the design of the databases during the development phase of the projects but also to support the product once it is in production not only at our facility but also within our enterprise customers data centers.

While I do consider myself knowledgeable about SQL Server I am always learning more about SQL Server. In the last two releases the SQL Server product has grown dramatically which has drastically increased the learning curve for newcomers. Through this wiki I hope to share the information which I have learned and employee in my daily work in the hopes of saving others some of the same headaches which I have had to deal with in the past.

You can find some of my writings posted on SearchSQLServer.com where in addition to posting tips and articles I also answer questions as a site expert. In addition you can find me over on Tek-Tips and the IT Knowledge Exchange as well as a few other haunts.

In addition to holding several Microsoft Certifications in SQL Server 2000, SQL Server 2005 and SQL Server 2008, I am also a Microsoft MVP in SQL Server.