Welcome at the SAP on IBM i update! This time I have the pleasure to forward a contribution out of our development team, stuff you really will benefit from:
Database monitoring is a key element to support performance analysis in SAP installations. Information about table sizes and growth, usage statistics and SQL statements can be analyzed using SAP transactions DB02, ST04 and DBACOCKPIT. Up to now, database performance analysis on DB2 for IBM i was bound to an ABAP application server, because the background jobs to collect statistical data for the database were all executed in the ABAP application server. As SAP is integrating more and more monitoring functions into the SAP Solution Manager, this old concept is no longer working well. Beginning last year, the SAP on IBM i Porting team has started a major project to rework the database monitoring functions with SAP on DB2 for IBM i.
Independent Backend for Data Collection
The first step consisted in the separation of the collection component from the ABAP application server. The new SAP Database Performance Collector for IBM i can run on IBM i V5R4 and higher releases. It is shipped through the SAP Software Distribution Center with the latest SAPHOSTAGENT package in release 7.20 or 7.20 EXT and can be installed independent from any SAP system, so it can monitor even Java only or MDM systems. Note 1031096 - Installing Package SAPHOSTAGENT explains how to install the SAPHOSTAGENT package, Note 1622665 - IBM i: SAP Database Performance Collector explains how to setup the SAP Database Performance Collector and has a detailed documentation for it attached as a PDF file. The SAP Database Performance Collector for IBM i is a prerequisite for the next two steps.
Integration of the Backend
In the second step, the existing transactions DB02, ST04 and DBACOCKPIT were reworked to allow using the new SAP Database Performance Collector for IBM i instead of the performance collector jobs that were integrated in the ABAP application server. These changes were implemented in all SAP Basis releases 4.6C and higher. Note 1634283 - IBM i: Changes to Show Data of SAP Database Perf. Collector lists the support packages or correction instructions that are needed to implement these changes. You can activate the changes by setting profile parameter as4/dbmon/central_collector to 1, “on” or "ON". By activating these changes for all systems in your landscape, you avoid duplicate data collection between the SAP Database Performance Collector for IBM i and the existing ABAP systems.
Performance Warehouse
A third step was completed right now and will be available with SAP Solution Manager 7.1 Support Package Stack 06 plus the correction instructions in Note 1672318 - IBM i: Database Performance Warehouse BI content/extractors or Support Package Stack 07: With these changes, SAP is introducing the extractors and report definitions for the SAP Performance Warehouse for IBM i. The Performance Warehouse offers remote monitoring capabilities, graphical representation of the data, performance history and many reporting and configuration options for reports. Note 1666390 - IBM i: Solution Manager 7.1 Database Performance Warehouse describes how to setup the Performance Warehouse in the SAP Solution Manager and how to register remote SAP systems for reporting. The note also contains an attachment with a detailed description of the reports that are shipped with the Performance Warehouse.
Not the End of the Story
Please stay tuned for future enhancements in the Performance Warehouse and transaction DBACOCKPIT based on the SAP Database Performance Collector for IBM i. There is more to come, and we will inform you through this blog when it is ready.
And not to forget: let us know your opinion, comment to the blog or email to the author - we are always eager to improve.
