SQL Server Hardware

I've rated this book highly as I found it contained some very useful advice about how to a) determine the best combination of hardware, operating system and SQL Server edition, and b) how to optimise SQL Server for the best performance possible. Considering the fairly dry nature of the subject, Glenn does a good job of explaining the material and writes in an easy to understand and follow manner. I particularly like how he relates the advice and recommendations to his own experience, as this lends more authenticity to the book. Although the book is certainly not perfect, I can't actually think of any major faults with it. Perhaps the only comment would be that the section on editions of Windows Server and on SQL Server were perhaps too long. This sort of information is freely available on Technet and so on. What I was more interested in was what would an experienced DBA recommend for hardware, OS and SQL configuration, disk sub-system and so on, and he certainly delivers on this.I'd recommend the book to anyone who is responsible for administering SQL Server, regardless of your skill level. The book is not overly technical, but provides enough depth to be of great value to the professional, or the accidental, DBAs out there.

I've been an avid fan of Glenn's SQL Server Performance blog for a couple of years now in which he talks about chipsets, CPUs and performance. Glenn's blog is also the go to place for SQL Server diagnostic information queries which can be used to look at various aspects of SQL performance (check them out you won't be disappointed).When I first learned that Glenn was writing a book dedicated to SQL Server Hardware I was very excited and preordered it. Somehow it got lost amongst a hundred other books and I came upon it recently. At that time I cracked it open immediately and started reading.The book has a nice easy to read style and Glenn does an excellent job of putting forth clear and concise information. Glenn's passion for this stuff really shines through and that makes what could easily be a boring technical book something so much better. I think one of the most telling things about the book for me was that I immediately wanted to go out and benchmark my systems to compare them to various specifications listed in the book.I wound up jotting down quite a lot of notes as I was reading (which is really unlike me). I thought I might share a few of my personal highlights:Chapter 1: Processors and Associated HardwareThe history of CPUsA clear explanation of multi-core CPUs and Hyper-threading and how they differHow to identify your CPU and what the model numbers actually meanAn overview of NUMASystem configuration recommendationsChapter 2: The Storage SubsystemA wonderful description of the different kinds of spinning mediaSCSISASSATAIDEPATAHow spinning media differs from SSD/FusionIO drivesStraightforward description of the different RAID types, their strengths and drawbacksDMV queries to help you recognize the read/write ratio on your system to help you choose an appropriate RAID levelChapter 3: Benchmarking ToolsWhat the TPC benchmarks are and how they differ (plus how the database vendors would try to game the system)A breakdown of TPC-E benchmarks by CPU along with providing comparative performance dataAn easy way to test the performance of components in your new (and old) serversChapter 4: Hardware DiscoveryDetailed information on CPU-Z and how to read the results you get from itWhat MSINFO32 can teach you about your systemChapter 5: Operating System Selection and ConfigurationWhy you should use X64 hardware instead of X32How to configure a 32-bit system to use greater than 4GB of RAMAn explanation of the difference between each OS version (and edition)Actual numbers to demonstrate the impact of power saving modes on CPU performanceChapter 6: SQL Server Version and Edition SelectionAn explanation of the difference between each version of SQL ServerBonus Enterprise Edition features you may not know about (like Enhanced Read-Ahead and Advanced Scan)Chapter 7: SQL Server Installation and ConfigurationHow to prep for your SQL Server installAn installation walk-thruSlipstreamingSQL Server post install configurationThe IT world changes very quickly and so despite this book being released in 2011 some parts are out of date (for example several time the costing model for SQL Server is mentioned as being per processor which Microsoft decided to change with the upcoming release of SQL Server 2012).I'd love to see a revised edition of this book come out every year which keeps up to date with new CPU releases and SQL Server changes (I mean it's not like Glenn has a job or anything).If you are a SQL Server professional then this book should definitely be at your disposal. While there may be some things in here that you do know there will be a lot that you don't. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Also don't forget to read Glenn's blog and follow him on TwitterFinal note, thanks Red Gate Software for supporting books like this that would not see the light of day otherwise.

I highly recommend reading this book to anyone contemplating setting up new SQL Server hardware. Glenn covers the entire gamut of server hardware from processors, multiple cores, cache, and speed to all of the various kinds of I/O devices - SAN, DAS, internal drives and their RAID levels and why.I'm one of those folks that likes to know "why" something should be done in one way versus another. Glenn always offers thoughts and his rationale about why he recommends configuring an item in one particular way - or what considerations might drive a choice of decision-paths.His writing style is easy to read and understand.I probably would've appreciated a little more help in deciding what items to locate on what drives and why. I'm still going to have to take a guess at how to split up my drive allocations to achieve the best performance in my environment, but he's given me lots of information on which to base my decisions.Larry

As claimed, "SQL Server Hardware" is entirely different from other "performance" books as of this writing. Entirely up to date through SQL 2008 R2.I believe it is the best available guide to building new SQL Servers. He goes well beyond "many spindles good!", understanding that most of us no longer have a simple relationship with physical spindles. When I need to explain to a boss, SAN administrator, or security administrator why we should do it THIS way on a SQL Server (despite how we might be running a file server, mail server, or other system), this is the place I turn most.My one disappointment (and it's not a fault, just a disappointment) is that he doesn't go deeper into high-end SANs or VMware. But he does not just leave SAN and virtualization as "beyond the scope" and tell you to "consult your vendor". He helps you understand what you're consulting your vendor about.I would love to see a second edition co-written with tech reviewer Denny Cherry, who writes quite a lot on higher-end shared storage for SQL Server.Glenn Berry is a well know SQL Server performance blogger from whom I have borrowed many excellent stored procedures.

The latest SQL Server version covered is SQL Server 2008 R2 where the licensing model was per socket so many of the recommendations in the early part of the book can't be applied to the post 2012 licensing landscape.Hopefully at some point we'll see a new edition covering this and also hardware implications of new features such as Hekaton and the buffer pool extensions.

It is in a class of its own, so nothing else to compare it to.Not 100% comprehensive, but better than nothing I guess...