DB2 LUW Version 11 Features: 5 More to Improve Performance

The new DB2 LUW Version 11 was released June 15, 2016.  The release announcement described many interesting items which are included in the new DB2 LUW 11.  Being part of the DB2 LUW 11 Beta program has been exciting. Now that IBM has released it, here are five more ways DB2 LUW Version 11 features make your database management life better.

1. Improved Disaster Recovery backup functionality
   Since our DB2 LUW database continue to get bigger, everyone is migrating to hardware solutions for their DB2 LUW tablespace backups.  These hardware backups can leverage a variety of functionality such as Storage Flash technology, replication technology, or other hardware DB2 LUW backup solutions.  With the DB2 LUW Version 11 new feature of “BACKUP with NO TABLESPACE option” the backup only does the various other components captured during a backup such as the DB2 configuration files, DB2 bootstrap files, and DB2 history files.
   
   What is great about this “BACKUP with NO TABLESPACE option” is that the backup is only a minimal size and can be restored quickly.  Also it takes away all the messy customization for trying to capture the history file within the storage system after a flash copy or other storage based backup process.  Now this new NO TABLESPACE option gets everything, all the configuration information, history file details and other DB2 system information which can be restored to speed your subsequent database recovery.  This new DB2 11 feature, along with all storage backup solutions, help keep our systems and databases safe and minimize our backup time and configuration efforts.
   
   
2. INPLACE Table Reorganization for range partitioned table
   Range partitioning is a main design pattern for many of our bigger tables. Now a new DB2 LUW Version 11 feature provides functionality to do INPLACE table reorganization of single partitions of our bigger tables.  This is a major DB2 LUW Version 11 feature because it can do the table reorganization INPLACE requiring no need for any other additional storage for the reorg and its partition.  
   
   Of course, there are some restriction caveats for this new feature, no non-partitioned indexes (NPIs) can be on the table, the utility can only reorg one partition at a time, and a few other restrictions detailed in the manuals.  The good news is this new INPLACE DB2 LUW feature can be used with most of the other INPLACE options and can be monitored through all the usual reorganization monitoring functions and DB2PD functions. 
   
   
3. Streamlined GPFS configuration with new db2cluster commands
   Since big data continues to come into DB2 LUW, it is really advantageous to use a General Parallel File System (GPFS) infrastructure. GPFS infrastructure provides seamless capacity expansion capabilities, availability, and reliability through storage policy definitions and automation.  Through the GPFS related tools your environment can be configured properly for usage and replicated easily for disaster recovery, performance improvements and simplified storage management for your DB2 LUW system components and database objects.
   
   The GPFS IBM DB2 LUW Version 11 features have simplified the “db2cluster” commands related to the set-up, configuration, monitoring, and management of the GPFS replication infrastructure.  The new GPFS commands combine a number of functions and streamline create, convert, and add/remove disk(s) from the GPFS infrastructure.  These new easy streamlined GPFS storage commands are a great IBM DB2 LUW Version 11 feature that everyone should use to protect their systems and data easily.
   
   
4. Improved availability for DB2 pureScale GDPC systems
   Another new DB2 LUW Version 11 feature improves the high availability features within the large geographically dispersed DB2 pureScale clustered (GDPC) systems by adding dual switch configuration support for TCP/IP and RoCE configurations. Most of the pureScale systems continue to get bigger and need mirrored systems or replication services to provide high availability failover to another remote location to handle any type of outage contingency.  The new IBM DB2 pureScale GDPC features provide multiple adapter ports and better bandwidth within the DB2 pureScale cluster.
    
   By configuring multiple adapter ports, the DB2 purescale GDPC system can eliminate any single point of failure and improve performance for the DB2 cluster local and remote systems.  These DB2 pureScale enhancements provide the best open database GDPC system solution for business requirements which need active local and active remote systems for availability and disaster recovery.
   
   
5. dsmtop provides better in-memory monitoring
   Within the past DB2 LUW versions we have all come to love the “db2top” text base user interface for quickly getting DB2 metrics.  The new DB2 LUW Version 11 features “dsmtop” that provides similar DB2 db2top metrics using the new lightweight in-memory facilities.  The new DB2 LUW Version 11 dsmtop provides increased metrics for all the DB2 options including the recentDB2 BLU and pureScale versions, additional REORG utility information, menus for DB2 DBA beginners, and is now supported on the Windows platform.
   
   Also the dsmtop facilities provide additional new information on DB2 ‘time-spent’ metric information.  This dsmtop time-spent information is great for analyzing performance aspects.  All of this ‘time-spent’ information can quickly and easily help you understand the many different system and application performance aspects.
    
   The new dsmtop can also be used against DB2 LUW Version 10.1 and 10.5 by downloading it from IBM support here, so you can get all the great information even before you migrate your system to leverage all the new DB2 LUW Version 11 features.

There are many new DB2 LUW 11 features and capabilities and these are only five more that everyone should try out.  The first blog detailing five other great features of DB2 LUW Version 11 features is here.

Dave Beulke is a system strategist, application architect, and performance expert specializing in Big Data, data warehouses, and high performance internet business solutions. He is an IBM Gold Consultant, Information Champion, President of DAMA-NCR, former President of International DB2 User Group, and frequent speaker at national and international conferences. His architectures, designs, and performance tuning techniques help organization better leverage their information assets, saving millions in processing costs. Follow him on Twitter here  or connect through LinkedIn here.