How the Next Generation of Flash Storage is Changing the Economics Of SaaS Businesses (Recorded Webinar)

This week I had the opportunity to record a webinar on a subject very close to my heart, the Software-as-a-Service industry. From 2003 to 2007 I managed the production infrastructure for a global SaaS company through the transition from startup to acquisition (partly by Salesforce.com). At the time, SaaS was a relatively new phenomenon, predating any concept … Continue reading How the Next Generation of Flash Storage is Changing the Economics Of SaaS Businesses (Recorded Webinar)

Understanding Flash: The Fall and Rise of Flash Memory

This month sees the four year anniversary of some interesting events. Commonwealth countries around the world celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Whitney Houston was tragically found dead in a Beverly Hills hotel. The Caribbean was hit hard by a sargassum seaweed invasion. And I made the decision to leave the comfort of … Continue reading Understanding Flash: The Fall and Rise of Flash Memory

Paris Oracle Meetup (Jeudi 26 Mars 2015 @ 7pm)

A quick post to say that this week, on Thursday 26th, I will be giving a talk (in English!) on the subject of Flash for DBAs (and architects, designers, developers, managers etc) at the Paris Oracle Meetup: Flash for DBAs: A new technology is sweeping the world of storage. Flash, a type of non-volatile memory, is … Continue reading Paris Oracle Meetup (Jeudi 26 Mars 2015 @ 7pm)

Postcards from Storageland: Three Years At Violin

A few weeks ago, in what seems to be a truly modern phenomenon, I became aware that it was my third anniversary of joining Violin after I noticed a number of people congratulating me on LinkedIn. In many ways it feels like I've already been here for a lifetime, but it was only twelve months ago … Continue reading Postcards from Storageland: Three Years At Violin

Oracle, Parallelism and Direct Path Reads… on Flash

Guest Post This is another guest post from my buddy Nate Fuzi, who performs the same role as me for Violin but is based in the US instead of EMEA. Because he's an American, Nate believes that "football" is played using your hands and that the ball is actually egg-shaped. This is of course ridiculous, … Continue reading Oracle, Parallelism and Direct Path Reads… on Flash

Oracle 12.1.0.2 ASM Filter Driver: Advanced Format Fail

[Please note that a more up-to-date post on this subject can be found here] In my previous post on the subject of the new ASM Filter Driver (AFD) feature introduced in Oracle's 12.1.0.2 patchset, I installed the AFD to see how it fulfilled its promise that it "filters out all non-Oracle I/Os which could cause accidental overwrites". … Continue reading Oracle 12.1.0.2 ASM Filter Driver: Advanced Format Fail

Oracle 12.1.0.2 ASM Filter Driver: First Impressions

This is a very quick post, because I'm about to log off and take an extended summer holiday (or vacation as my crazy American friends call it... but then they call football  "soccer" too). Before I go, I wanted to document my initial findings with the new ASM Filter Driver feature introduced in this week's … Continue reading Oracle 12.1.0.2 ASM Filter Driver: First Impressions

New My Oracle Support note on Advanced Format (4k) storage

In the past I have been a little critical of Oracle's support notes and documentation regarding the use of Advanced Format 4k storage devices. I must now take that back, as my new friends in Oracle ASM Development and Product Management very kindly offered to let me write a new support note, which they have … Continue reading New My Oracle Support note on Advanced Format (4k) storage

The Ultimate Guide To Oracle with Advanced Format 4k

It's a brave thing, calling something the "Ultimate Guide To ..." as it can leave you open to criticism that it's anything but. However, this topic - of how Oracle runs on Advanced Format storage systems and which choices have which consequences - is one I've been learning for two years now, so this really … Continue reading The Ultimate Guide To Oracle with Advanced Format 4k