Memory performance requirements

RAM performance metrics such as seek time or memory bandwidth, are strictly dependent on the memory type, which is linked with the processor type.

Restriction: Do not run your server on a virtual machine for which memory compression was enabled, for example in x86 virtualization that is provided by VMware. It is especially important in case of the computer on which the DB2® database is running.
Pay particular attention to the amount of memory that is available for License Metric Tool and the DB2 application. It is important to monitor the RAM usage on a daily basis because memory usage differs greatly depending on how the application is being used. The main factors besides the environment size include:
  • The number of concurrent web UI users
  • The frequency of data imports
Memory monitoring is especially important on the database computer as insufficient amount of RAM can significantly slow down background tasks, such as PVU data aggregation because of memory swapping. Swapping, also known as paging, is the use of secondary disk storage to store and retrieve application data for use in RAM. It is automatically performed by the operating system and typically occurs when the available RAM is depleted. Swapping can have a significant impact on DB2 performance and should be avoided. To avoid swapping, ensure that sufficient RAM is available on the computer so processes do not consume all the available RAM. Use the following Linux® tools to monitor RAM usage and memory swapping:
  • top
  • free
  • vmstat
  • or sar

If you notice that there is almost no free memory available to License Metric Tool and the DB2 processes are being swapped to disk, the best solution is to increase the RAM memory size.