Book excerpt: "Geoff Ingram has met the challenge of presenting the complex process of managing Oracle performance. This book can support every technical person looking to resolve Oracle8i and Oracle9i performance issues." -Aki Ratner, President, Precise Software Solutions Ensuring high-performance and continuous availability of Oracle software is a key focus of database managers. At least a dozen books address the subject of "performance tuning"-- that is, how to fine-tune the Oracle database for its greatest processing efficiency. Geoff Ingram argues that this approach simply isn't enough. He believes that performance needs to be addressed right from the design stage, and it needs to cover the entire system--not just the database. High-Performance Oracle is a hands-on book, loaded with tips and techniques for ensuring that the entire Oracle database system runs efficiently and doesn't break down. Written for Oracle developers and DBAs, and covering both Oracle8i and Oracle9i, the book goes beyond traditional performance-tuning books and covers the key techniques for ensuring 24/7 performance and availability of the complete Oracle system. The book provides practical solutions for: * Choosing physical layout for ease of administration and efficient use of space * Managing indexes, including detecting unused indexes and automating rebuilds * SQL and system tuning using the powerful new features in Oracle9i Release 2 * Improving SQL performance without modifying code * Running Oracle Real Application Clusters (RAC) for performance and availability * Protecting data using Recover Manager (RMAN), and physical and logical standby databases The companion Web site provides the complete source code for examples in the book, updates on techniques, and additional documentation for optimizing your Oracle system.