Methodology - Expert Oracle RAC Performance Diagnostics and Tuning - page 19

Conclusion
Tuning of applications and databases is a very important task for optimal performance and for providing good
response times to user requests for data from the database. Performance tuning tasks could be highly intensive during
initial application development and may be less intensive or more of a routine when monitoring and tuning the
database and/or application after the code is moved to production. Similarly, when migrating from a single instance
to a RAC environment, the test phases maybe extensive for enterprise resource planning (ERP), Systems Applications
and Products in Data Processing (SAP) software, and so forth and may be less intensive when migrating smaller
home-grown applications. Either way, the testing and migration process should adhere to a process or methodology
for smooth transitions and for easily tracing the path. When such methodologies are followed, success for most
operations is certain.
Performance testing is not a process of trial and error; it requires a more scientific approach. To obtain the best
results, it is important that a process or method is followed to approach the problem statement or performance issue
in a systematic manner. A process or methodology that is repeatable and allows for controlled testing with options to
create baselines through iterations should be followed.
The primary goal of any performance workshop or exercise is to tune the application and database or system to
provide better throughput and response times. Response times and throughputs of any system are directly related
to the amount of resources that the system currently has and its capacity to make available the resources to the
requestors. In the next chapter, we will look at capacity planning.