IBM Db2 on Cloud News

If you are thinking about, or have already adopted Db2 in the cloud, there is some recent news you should know about. But before we explore that news, let’s take a look at the quick highlights of using Db2 in the cloud.

IBM’s Db2 on Cloud offering is a fully-managed operational data store running the IBM Db2 11.5 engine offering 24x7x365 availability. So if you know Db2 on Linux, Unix, and Windows platforms, you know Db2 on Cloud… but there’s more.

Db2 on Cloud runs containerized Db2 on with a dedicated DevOps team managing the maintenance and updates required to run your mission-critical workloads. This includes features like seamless data federation, point-in-time recovery, HADR with multizone region support and independent scaling. So many of the administrative burdens of managing Db2 on-premises are handled by IBM in the cloud.

Now if you know me, and have been reading my “stuff” on cloud and DBA, you know that this does not mean that you can entirely offload you DBA. But it is cool and it does help, especially with DBA teams being stressed to their limits these days.

So yes, you can run Db2 on Cloud! And there are many good reasons to consider doing so, such as scalability, pay-as-you-use pricing, and to take advantage of managed services.

OK, So What is New?

I promised some news in the title of this blog post and so far we have just set the stage by examining IBM’s cloud offering of Db2 (albeit at a high level). So, what’s new?

Well, IBM is revamping its pricing plans. Before digging into the news, you need to know that IBM offers two high-level pricing plan options.

• The Lite plan uses a shared multi-tenant system designed for application development and evaluation of IBM Db2 on Cloud. It is offered free-of-charge, without any time limitations.
• Enterprise plans are for usage and deployment of business applications and systems. It includes one database per service instance with 4 vCPU x 16 GB RAM x 20 GB storage on dedicated compute slices with the option to use a three-HA-node configuration with multizone region support. Pricing starts at $989/month.

What is new is that on August 19 IBM introduced two new plans, the Enterprise non-HA plan, and the Standard non-HA plan.  This means that there are now four options, other than the free Lite plan: Enterprise HA, Enterprise non-HA, Standard HA, and Standard non-HA.

As is typical with IBM pricing, it is not really all that simple and it is getting more complex.  But options are always good (I think).

So what is this Standard plan that does not appear on the IBM Db2 on Cloud: Pricing page? Well, we can find this on the IBM Db2 on Cloud catalog page Here we see that (as one might expect) it is a lower-cost option between Lite and Enterprise starting at 8 GB RAM with 20 GB storage.

IBM also noted that IBM Db2 on Cloud is now available in the following six data centers: Dallas, Frankfurt, Tokyo, London, Sydney, and Washington. And your instances can be provisioned either with or without the Oracle compatibility feature.

It is important to note that IBM also notes that customers on older, legacy plans (how about that, cloud legacy already) will be required to upgrade their to one of the newer plans.

 Summary

So, there are more options to choose from with your Db2 on Cloud implementations. And if you have an older plan take some time to familiarize yourself with the new pricing plan options and be ready to choose accordingly for your workload requirements.

A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers

DBAs: are you looking for a way to help train your developers to code more efficient Db2 application programs? 

Programmers: do you want to understand the best practices for writing high-performing Db2 applications?

Well, my latest book, A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers, is just what you are looking for! Available in both printed and eBook formats, this is the book you need to assure that you are building effective, efficient Db2 applications.

This book will make you a better programmer by teaching you how to write efficient code to access Db2 databases. Whether you write applications on the mainframe or distributed systems, this book will teach you practices, methods, and techniques for optimizing your SQL and applications as you build them. Write efficient applications and become your DBA's favorite developer by learning the techniques outlined in this book!

The methods outlined in this book will help you improve the performance of your Db2 applications. The material is written for all Db2 professionals, whether you are coding on z/OS (the mainframe) or on Linux, Unix or Windows (distributed systems). When there are pertinent differences between the platforms it is explained in the text.

The focus of the book is on programming, coding and developing applications. As such, it does not focus on DBA, design, and data modeling issues, nor does it cover most Db2 utilities, DDL, and other non-programming related details. If you are a DBA, the book should still be of interest to you because DBAs are responsible for overall Db2 performance. Therefore, it makes sense to understand the programming aspect of performance.

It is important also to understand that the book is not about performance monitoring and tuning. Although these activities are important, they are typically not the domain of application developers. Instead, the book offers guidance on application development procedures, techniques, and philosophies. The goal of the book is to educate developers on how to write "good" application code that lends itself to optimal performance. By following the principles in this book you will be able to write code that does not require significant remedial, after-the-fact modifications by performance analysts. If you follow the guidelines in this book your DBAs and performance analysts will love you!

The assumption is made that the reader has some level of basic SQL knowledge and therefore it will not cover how to write Db2 SQL code or code a Db2 program. It is also important to point out that the book does not rehash material that is freely available in Db2 manuals that can be downloaded or read online.

What you will get from reading this book is a well-grounded basis for designing and developing efficient Db2 applications that perform well.

You can order your copy of A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers today at:

• Bookbaby
• Amazon
• Barnes & Noble

Published and Available to be Ordered: A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers

The print version of my new book, A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers, can now be ordered directly from the publisher. (If you want the ebook, it can be ordered from the same link below).

Just click on the book cover below and you can order it right now! The link provides more details on the book as well as options for buying the book.

 



Quick information about the book: The purpose of A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers is to give advice and direction to Db2 application developers and programmers to help you code efficient, well-performing programs. If you write code and access data in a Db2 database, then this book is for you. Read the book and apply the advice it gives and your DBAs will love you!

The book was written based on the latest and greatest versions of Db2 for z/OS and Db2 for LUW... and, yes, the book covers both.

If you buy the book and have any thoughts for me, drop me a comment here on the blog!

A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers: Pre-order Now Available

I have blogged about my new book, A Guide to Db2 Performance for Application Developers here before, to let everybody know that I was writing the book. And I promised to keep you informed when it was available to order and pre-order.

Well, this is one of those informative posts I promised. The ebook is available for order immediately at this link.  




And you can pre-order the book at Amazon here.




When print copies are available I will let you know with another blog entry to keep everyone informed. Until then, if you are interested in the ebook, order it now... and if you want to make sure you get a printed copy of the book when it is available, pre-order it now!

Remember, the book is geared toward the things that application programmers needs to know to write efficient code that will perform well. And it covers both Db2 for z/OS and Db2 for LUW.

Thanks!

DB2 -- What's in a Name?

Versions of DB2 exist for a large array of platforms, of which the mainframe (z/OS) is only one. Of course, it is my favorite one since I’ve been working on mainframe technology now for decades and have worked with DB2 since Version 1.

It used to be easy: DB2 meant IBM’s mainframe SQL database management system based on the relational model. But you can’t just say the term “DB2” any more and expect people to understand what you mean.

Today there are variations of DB2 that run on the iSeries (AS/400), on Linux, Unix, and Windows (LUW) platforms, and even one that runs on PDAs and smart phones called DB2 Everyplace. Not to mention the mainframe variations that run on z/OS, VM, and VSE.
These products are all collectively referred to by IBM as the DB2 Family. Individually, each DBMS is referred to as DB2, or sometimes DB2 Universal Database Server. There was a period of time when DB2 for LUW was called UDB and DB2 for z/OS was just called DB2. Then IBM tried to rebrand both as DB2 UDB. But that seems to have gone away several versions ago now.
The proper way to refer to any individual offering in the DB2 family is DB2 for (operating system) (for example, DB2 for z/OS or DB2 for Windows).

Different Code Bases

There are four distinct code bases for the products under the DB2 brand. The mainframe has its own code base, as does the iSeries, and VSE/VM. The fourth code base is for Linux, Unix, and Windows (LUW) platforms—and the other DB2 offerings (e.g. DB2 Everyplace) originate from this code base.

Having a separate code base means that each of these DB2 “products” was developed independently from the others. So, for example, the process used by DB2 for z/OS to optimize SQL differs from the process used by DB2 for Linux. Usually, though, the result is similar—an efficient SQL statement.

But keep in mind that there will be some differences between the DB2s.

Some of the Differences

It is obvious that the different DB2 products are not “plug and play” commodities simply because they all share the name DB2. There are some big differences among these products in their current releases. The biggest differences are relatively easy to detect and include the following:

• Differences imposed due to operating system constraints
  (OS/400 versus z/OS versus AIX)
• Back-level compatibility issues
• Workstation orientation differences such as GUI interfaces and drag-and-drop menus
• Subsystem-centric implementation (z/OS) versus database-centric implementation (workstation)

Most of these differences are minor and easy to handle. Indeed, IBM has slowly but surely been making these disparate implementations of DB2 more and more alike with each new release and version. The interface (or API) by which most people access any of the DB2 Family is SQL and there is broad compatibility among the SQL implementations of the members of the DB2 Family (though not 100 percent, of course).

A misconception “out there” in DB2-land is that the LUW platform drives new features, but a review of the changes that have been introduced to DB2 over the past several versions and releases does not bear that out. Some features are introduced on the mainframe first; others on the distributed platforms first.

Of the basic differences mentioned earlier, the only one that might not be obvious is the focus of the DBMS implementation. DB2 for LUW is database-centric. This implies that each new database carries its own system catalog with it. Additionally, it is not possible to simply access tables across different databases; distributed access is required.

On z/OS, DB2 is subsystem-centric. A single system catalog spans databases. Each subsystem has a unique identification, and you can create multiple databases within it. Distributed requests are not required to access databases within the same subsystem (or, indeed, across multiple subsystems in a data-sharing environment).

Another concept that is different at the workstation level is that of a directory. The DB2 for z/OS Directory houses DBMS system-related information regarding DBD structure, skeleton plan and skeleton package tables, RBA log ranges, and utility control data. The information cannot be updated by the user but is managed and controlled by DB2.

At the workstation level, a directory is another matter altogether. For example, the directory structure used by DB2 for LUW controls the overall environment.

• The System Database Directory identifies the databases that can be accessed from the workstation and contains an entry for each local and remote one. Each database entry contains the database name, alias, entry type, and location.
• One Volume Database Directory is allocated per disk drive that contains a workstation database. Each entry identifies the location of a specific database on the drive.
• The Workstation Directory is used to make a connection to a remote database server. It is used in conjunction with the Database Connection Services Directory to make a connection to a remote host server.
• The Database Connection Services Directory is used by DB2 Connect to make a connection to a remote host server.

Not only is it possible for the user to update these directories, it is required. The workstation directories define the environment of DB2 for LUW. Without the proper information recorded in these directories, DB2 might not function in the desired manner. The information in these directories is somewhat analogous to DB2 for z/OS DSNZPARMs and the SYSDDF system catalog tables.

Database Structures

Not all the objects available to DB2 for z/OS users are supported at the workstation level. For example, hardware-specific DB2 objects such as table spaces and storage groups are not available for DB2 on other platforms, at least not in the same way that mainframers are used to dealing with them. Partitioning and segmenting as it is done on z/OS is not done on other platforms.

However, DB2 for LUW does provide a feature known as a segmented table. But this is not the same concept as a DB2 for z/OS segmented table space. DB2 for LUW segmented tables are used to span volumes, enabling DB2 to get around file size limitations.

The file structure used for databases differs from platform to platform. For example, DB2 for z/OS uses VSAM Linear Data Sets (LDS) or Entry Sequenced Data Sets (ESDS). A database deployed on DB2 for LUW uses two files for table data: one for normal data and a second to store long fields. These workstation files are flat files, not VSAM files.

Although tables are basically the same for all of the DB2 environments, not all of the DDL options are provided in all of the environments.

Optimizer Differences

One of the most significant benefits of relational databases is that they provide built-in optimization. The DB2 for z/OS optimizer is well-known to mainframe DB2 users, but how similar are the other DB2 optimizers?

DB2 for LUW uses the latest and greatest optimization technology from IBM -- the Starburst optimizer (which arose from IBM’s Almaden research lab). Starburst is a database optimization research project that has been covered quite extensively in the academic press.

As one example of the difference, consider that the DB2 for LUW optimizer has varying levels of optimization that can be selected by the user. This concept is not implemented in DB2 for z/OS.

Although some Starburst technology will find its way to DB2 for z/OS, the mainframe DB2 optimizer will not be completely replaced by Starburst technology. Doing so would not be wise because the DB2 for z/OS optimizer has been finely tuned for its environment over the course of almost three decades.

Another interesting tidbit is that DB2 for iSeries provides an access method for programmers in which they can bypass the relational engine. This is not encouraged, but it is available.

Other Differences

Other differences exist between the different implementations of DB2. Some of these are caused by the different release cycles IBM has created for the differing platforms. The bottom line is that you need to be aware that there are differences between the DB2s on different platforms. Whenever you use a specific implementation of DB2, you need to be aware of the features it supports that other DB2 platforms do not, as well as the features it does not support that other DB2 platforms do support.

Packaging and Naming Issues

The actual name of the DB2 edition can be tricky to master on non-mainframe platforms. On the mainframe you just say “I want DB2,” and that is what you get. Well, almost. You also have to decide whether you want IBM’s utilities or not, too.

But things are more difficult in the LUW world. The following packages are all available for DB2 on Linux, Unix, and Windows:

DB2 Workgroup Server Edition (WSE) is a multi-user, single host, DBMS at the departmental user. It should be deployed for smaller systems with a limited number of users.

DB2 Enterprise Server Edition (ESE) is the highest level of DB2 database version with intra-partition parallelism support (the database engine can process SQL statement segments in parallel), and inter-partition parallelism support (process a query in parallel across all of the nodes). ESE has Partitioning and Clustering options as additional add-on features. So, this is the enterprise DB2.

DB2 Advanced Enterprise Server Edition (AESE) sounds like a step up from ESE, and it is, kind of... but not really in terms of key DBMS technology. The advanced means that IBM integrates Optim and InfoSphere technologies into the product.

DB2 Express Edition is targeted at entry level users at a low price point. Small shops, partners, and new users can build applications on top of DB2 Express.

And DB2 Express-C is IBM’s “free” DBMS offering providing all the “core” capabilities of DB2 at no charge. So why use an open source DBMS when you can get a free version of DB2?
A handy comparison of the editions is available on IBM’s web site.

Summary

So you see, saying DB2 is no enough any more. Which DB2? They’re all great, but it can take some time to wrap your arms around all of this…