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Comanche
Starting Member

4 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:06:21
I finally decided to do our ASP application using VB, .NET and MSSQL.

My questions are simple, but I cannot find all the answers, so anything you can offer will be greatly appreciated.

Please explain how licenses (CALS) work with regard to Windows Server and MSSQL. For example, suppose we have 200 clients all logged into our application, but only say 40 are currently active (meaning they are adding data, running reports, etc....), but they are not all clicking the "DO" button at the same time. So how many Windows server and/or MSSQL seats, licenses, CALS, cpu's etc.... (whatever they are called) will I need?

How many users do you think a "well designed" ASP application built using AJAX, ActiveX, VB, .NET and MSSQL can a single cpu reasonably support? This application will serve east coast to west coast with heavy traffic from say 7am to 9am and 2pm to 4pm in each time zone. At what point (or what should I look for) to say, you need more memory, more processors, more servers, etc......????

How does one protect (or build in) a method to deal with index corruptions, etc???? Does that occur in MSSQL? If so, generally, what are causes and fixes?

The application will serve many chapters. Many chapters will be solo (by themselves), but we also expect district wide, where multiple chapters (25 to 75) in one district will use the application. We can expect, during time frames mentioned above, that each chapter will have 200 to 400 transactions per am time and same per pm time.

has anyone had great success with IronSpeed?

Lastly, can anyone suggest some good windows web hosting companies?

Thank you.

Kristen
Test

22859 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:16:34
"At what point (or what should I look for) to say, you need more memory, more processors, more servers, etc......????"

Probably day one! Much easier to have a beefier server from day one, than fit one later.

I think you need 2 CPUs - less that that seems a bit pointless to me.

We have some web servers running SQL Server and IIS (cheapskate clients!). They run like dogs. Sites for clients who have well spec'd (but not to ridiculous levels!) dedicated SQL boxes run like the wind.

A good spec SQL box, for me, is:

2 x CPU - 4 or more if very high CPU application and very high demand.

2GB RAM for SQL - again, more for very high demand [but needs enterprise licenses of SQL and O/S] (Note that more than 2GB RAM installed is needed for this so that the O/S has some too!)

4 separate disk channels (can have 3 with something sharing the backups):
1 = O/S
2 = Data
3 = Logs
4 = Backup files

Data / Logs / Backup files to be stored on RAID1+0, not RAID5

"what are causes and fixes"

Hardware failure. Only route I know is to run integrity checks regularly and have a plan to deal with them when they occur. For example, we had a RAID5 [see above!] disk fail (during a write cycle) which trashed that sector on the other disks in the array, and corrupted the database ... we just hit the Disaster Recovery plan ...

Kristen
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Comanche
Starting Member

4 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:25:05
Kristen

>>we just hit the Disaster Recovery plan<<

Please describe. Is this something you created or is built into MSSQL? If it's something you created, could you share it with me?

Thank you.
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Kristen
Test

22859 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:30:17
Something we created (its a written process rather than being automated, but is supported up by bits of SQL Script ready and tested etc).

It needs to answer this question:

1) Our database is hosed
or
2) Our SQL Server box is hosed

What now?

The plan depends on the database / application / available alternative hardware / business continuity requirements and so on.

At the most extreme you would have fail-over servers that would automatically switch in and not miss a beat (well, almost not miss a beat!)

At the other end of the spectrum you would sit and wait for Dell to deliver a new server, restore last weeks backup from Tape, and resume from there!

Kristen
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Comanche
Starting Member

4 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:30:37
You mention two other items

>>4 separate disk channels<< and
>>run integrity checks<<

Please elaborate, as I'm a MSSQL newbie and am asking DAQ's (dumb a** questions). Your patience is appreciated.
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Comanche
Starting Member

4 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:33:25
Kristen

Wouldn't you regularly do ftp backups, so that in such an event, you could get backup and running faster?

A second "fail safe" machine --- nice thought. I'm wondering if we could host our main site remotely (with a hosting company) and run that backup box here? Any thoughts???

Thanks.
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Kristen
Test

22859 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:34:19
"4 separate disk channels"

Errmm ... not sure how to simplify that! You have 4 separate disk controllers, each with their own set of RAID1+0 disks. (I suppose there may not physically be separate disk controllers, as multiple controllers may exist on a single board .. but the Logs and Data are on separate physical devices, not sharing the same space on the same drivers)

"run integrity checks"

SQL Server has inbuilt commands for testing the integrity of a database - e.g. DBCC CHECKDB or the Maintenance Plans in Enterprise Manager

Kristen
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PSamsig
Constraint Violating Yak Guru

384 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 00:57:47
How does one protect (or build in) a method to deal with index corruptions, etc???? Does that occur in MSSQL? If so, generally, what are causes and fixes?

Generally it will be due to hardware, don't expect to ever see corruption (but be prepared for it) unless you have crappy hardware.

-- This one's tricky. You have to use calculus and imaginary numbers for this. You know, eleventeen, thirty-twelve and all those.
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derrickleggett
Pointy Haired Yak DBA

4184 Posts

Posted - 2006-06-06 : 08:18:55
Nice sig PSamsig.



MeanOldDBA
derrickleggett@hotmail.com

When life gives you a lemon, fire the DBA.
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