User-Agent: Microsoft-Entourage/11.2.5.060620
Date: Mon, 07 Aug 2006 18:10:41 -0700
Subject: Re: Postgresql Performance on an HP DL385 and
From: "Luke Lonergan" <llonergan@greenplum.com>
To: steve.poe@gmail.com,
	pgsql-performance@postgresql.org
Message-ID: <C0FD32A1.2D871%llonergan@greenplum.com>
Thread-Topic: [PERFORM] Postgresql Performance on an HP DL385 and
	SmartArray 642
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In-Reply-To: <1154819438.15224.24.camel@amd64-gentoo-laptop>
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Steve,

On 8/5/06 4:10 PM, "Steve Poe" <steve.poe@gmail.com> wrote:

> I am do some consulting for an animal hospital in the Boston, MA area.
> They wanted a new server to run their database on. The client wants
> everything from one vendor, they wanted Dell initially, I'd advised
> against it. I recommended a dual Opteron system from either Sun or HP.
> They settled on a DL385 8GB of RAM with two disc U320 SCSI and a 6-disc
> U320 SCSI array. I recommended they add a RAID adapter with at 128MB and
> battery backup, they added a HP SmartArray 642 to connect to the drive
> array in addition to the SmartArray 6i which came with the server.
> 
> Has anyone worked with server before. I've read the SmartArray 6i is a
> poor performer, I wonder if the SmartArray 642 adapter would have the
> same fate? 
> 
> The database data is on the drive array(RAID10) and the pg_xlog is on
> the internal RAID1 on the 6i controller. The results have been poor.
> 
> My guess is the controllers are garbage.

Can you run bonnie++ version 1.03a on the machine and report the results
here?

It could be OK if you have the latest Linux driver for cciss, someone has
reported good results to this list with the latest, bleeding edge version of
Linux (2.6.17).

- Luke