OPINION
BACK TO BASICS
Joe Brockmeier is head of community, Percona.
"There is an old saying: if things aren’t broken, don’t try to fix them. This is especially true in IT, where some of the systems we rely on every day have been in place for decades. These systems are ingrained in their organisations, and trying to replace them without good reason may end up being a career limiting decision. However, there are many things in our IT systems that can be quietly going wrong. Here, I’m talking about database queries. A query is used to retrieve a set of data from your database, or carry out an action on it. A query can help your customer find what they want, understand information, or deliver the result they need. Queries deliver what you want from your data over time. Yet what you need might change: you might want more detail from your data, add indexes, or you may update your apps. You might want to use data held across multiple database instances all at the same time. All these steps can lead to poor query performance. Auditing your queries as often as you make these changes shows you where you need to improve. Poor performance can cost money and sabotage productivity. Sometimes, it is better to start again and look at what you want to achieve. Analysing things with fresh eyes can help you improve your results and reduce costs."