“With the integration of high-availability technologies in SQL Server 2012, our typical downtime scenarios go from an hour to less than 5 minutes—or more than a 90 percent reduction.”

Shaun Westermeyer, IT Architecture Manager, Derivco

To reduce downtime for its complex databases, Derivco will implement a Microsoft solution with support for multiple secondary database instances. The company will use the new solution’s integration of high-availability and disaster-recovery features to reduce downtime, even during software and hardware updates. It will also use the solution to reduce storage hardware costs and improve scalability.

Business NeedsDerivco develops software for the gaming industry. A Microsoft partner with Gold competencies in Advanced Infrastructure Solutions and Data Management Solutions, Derivco has 600 employees and is based in Durban, South Africa.

Derivco uses a complex set of databases: front-end, intermediate data transfer, warehousing, and back-office systems totaling 140 instances of the Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 data management software. Derivco has generally been happy with the software but has felt constrained by its approach to high availability and disaster recovery.

“Disaster recovery is inherently expensive, especially for large data centers,” says Shaun Westermeyer, IT Architecture Manager at Derivco. “We can’t afford downtime, so our needs are mission-critical.”

Ischal Karysingh, IT Architect at Derivco, says, “In SQL Server 2008 R2, failover cluster instances forced the use of shared storage, which required a second storage device for mirroring.” Purchase of these storage devices was expensive. Derivco could not use high-availability mirroring because it could use only a single secondary instance with SQL Server 2008 R2, and Derivco was already using that mirroring for disaster recovery.

Furthermore, Derivco suffered downtime when migrating between servers—for example, when it upgraded its hardware or its Windows Server 2008 R2 operating system.

Derivco wanted to reduce downtime as it found more efficient and cost-effective ways to manage its high-availability and disaster-recovery capabilities.

SolutionIn November 2011, Derivco started working with a prerelease version of Microsoft SQL Server 2012. Because its developers have deep Microsoft skills, the company did not consider alternative database solutions. Derivco decided to first implement the software on its in-house human resources system. “We wanted to test the functionality, to see, for example, how availability groups work under certain scenarios. That testing will directly translate to implementation scenarios on our core systems,” Westermeyer says.

Assisted by Microsoft Services consultants, Derivco has completed testing most SQL Server 2012 functions in the new application, such as mirroring, backups, and replications. After front-end functional testing, Derivco will unveil the human resources system to about 700 internal users in March. It will then start working on converting its core online transaction

Customer: DerivcoWebsite: www.derivco.comCustomer Size: 600 employeesCountry or Region: South AfricaIndustry: Professional services—Software engineering

Customer ProfileDerivco is a developer of software for the gaming industry. Founded in 1996, it is located in Durban, South Africa.

Solution Spotlight Uses AlwaysOn availability groups,

with support for multiple secondaries, to reduce downtime by 90 percent.

Reduces dependence on expensive shared storage.

Improves scalability by reducing the load on the primary server.

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Microsoft SQL ServerCustomer Solution Case Study

Gaming Software Development Firm Will Use New Solution to Cut Downtime and Storage Costs

processing (OLTP) systems to SQL Server 2012, a process that could take up to a year. Westermeyer says, “Our setup is so complex that we have a huge internal testing process before we can get our entire environment upgraded.”

The Derivco core systems will take advantage of SQL Server 2012 AlwaysOn availability groups, which support up to four secondary databases. They will also use AlwaysOn active secondaries, which make it possible for report queries and backup operations to run on secondary instances.

With these features, Derivco will be able to migrate between servers—or between instances of SQL Server 2012—to upgrade its operating system or SQL Server 2012 without downtime. It will use the multiple secondary capabilities to replace failover cluster instances with AlwaysOn availability groups, which will mean it can use direct-attached solid-state devices (SSDs) instead of shared storage. The multiple secondaries increase the survivability of the system because shared storage is a single point of failure. Furthermore, because the secondaries will be active, Derivco will be able to offload backups, log shipping, and reporting to those secondary instances.

“We have always used log shipping, mirroring, and different types of backups,” says Westermeyer, who notes that these technologies are now more fully integrated. “SQL Server 2012 offers complete integration of all the high-availability technology.”

Derivco also plans to investigate using SQL Server 2012 xVelocity memory-optimized columnstore index to improve query times on its tables, which are as large as 1.2 terabytes. It may also look into business intelligence capabilities such as Power View, a feature of SQL Server 2012 Reporting Services.

BenefitsDerivco will use SQL Server 2012 to reduce downtime, save money by moving away from shared storage, and improve scalability.

Reduced DowntimeDerivco will use SQL Server 2012 to reduce planned and unplanned downtime. “With SQL Server 2012, we will never have a

downtime scenario even when we update and move our hardware and software,” says Westermeyer. “Furthermore, with the integration of high-availability technologies in SQL Server 2012, our typical downtime scenarios go from an hour to less than 5 minutes—or more than a 90 percent reduction.”

Reduced IT CostsDerivco will use SQL Server 2012 to reduce its dependence on expensive shared storage. “For us, moving onto SSDs is considerably cheaper,” says Karysingh. “With SQL Server 2012, we can fully exploit direct-attached SSDs.”

Improved ScalabilityBecause Derivco can use active secondaries in SQL Server 2012 to take some of the high-availability and disaster-recovery and reporting load off the primary server, it can also improve scalability. Karysingh says, “With SQL Server 2012 reducing the load on the primary server, we can support more data on a single database.”

Westermeyer says that this will reduce costs. “If we can scale data within an instance instead of scaling out the number of instances, that’s going to save us a lot in management overhead.”

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published March 2012

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