Identifying Application Performance Requirements

Identifying Application Performance Requirements

This section contains the following topics:

Overview

Establishing Performance Requirements for Transactions

Prioritizing Transactions

Determining How Often Transactions Will Be Executed

Identifying Access Requirements

Determining the Database Entry Point and Access Key for Each Transaction

Projecting Growth Patterns

Determining the Number of Entities in Each Relationship

Determining How Often Each Entity Will Be Accessed

Overview

After creating the preliminary data structure diagram, you need to interview company employees who can help you determine the application requirements for the database so that you can refine that database structure.

Performance and storage requirements

As you gather information from users, you need to identify both the performance and storage requirements of the system:

• Establish performance requirements for transactions.
• Prioritize transactions.
• Determine how often each transaction will be executed.
• Identify access requirements for each transaction.
• Determine the database entry point and access key for each transaction.
• Project growth patterns.
• Determine the number of entity occurrences in each relationship.
• Determine how often each database entity will be accessed.

The requirements of the system determine how you should design the physical database model. For example, the requirements of a particular application can help you to define the page size for a database area.

Making design decisions

You will use the information that you gather at this stage in the physical design process to make several design decisions later on, as shown below.