Sigma Suite

I’ve worked with many SQL Server multi terabyte databases containing billions of rows running on Windows. With VLDB (Very Large DataBases), the performance almost always comes down to disk access in one way or another.  Unfortunately Windows always creates the partition starting at the sixty-forth sector, therefore misaligning it with the underlying physical disk.

To make sure your disk alignment is correct, use diskpart.exe which is a disk partition tool. Diskpart.exe is a utility provided by Microsoft in the Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 Support Tools that can set the starting offset in the master boot record (MBR). By setting the starting offset, you can set the track alignment and improve disk performance. SQL Server writes data in multiples of 4 KB – 32 KB depending on your configuration, therefore, make sure that the starting offset is a multiple of 4 KB. If you don’t, you may cause a single I/O operation to span two tracks which will of course cause significant performance degradation.

Warning!

Diskpart is a data destructive utility. When used against a disk, all data on the disk will be wiped out during the storage track boundary alignment process. Therefore, if the disk on which you will run Diskpart contains data, backup the disk before performing the following procedure!  We accept no responsibility for any loss of data!

Procedure

Using diskpart.exe to align Windows disk I/O with storage track boundaries

If the disk you are aligning is already blank (raw), carry on to Step 3, if the disk contains data, backup the disk before proceeding.

Delete all partitions on the disk.

Open a cmd prompt, and run diskpart.exe.

At the diskpart cmd prompt, type List Disk and hit Enter. If the disk you want to align doesn’t appear in the list, make sure it exists and it’s accessible using the Disk Management snap-in.

At the diskpart cmd prompt, type Select Disk X, where X is the number of the disk s shown in the output of the List Disk command.

Diskpart should return a message that shows Disk X is the selected disk.

At the diskpart cmd prompt, type Create Partition Primary Align=X, where X is either 32 or 64, if your storage vendor does not have any specific recommendations, we recommended you use 64.

At the diskpart cmd prompt, type Assign Letter=. E.g. to assign letter Z to the disk, type Assign Letter=Z.

Once the drive letter is assigned, type exit to exit out of the Diskpart utility.

Use the Disk Management snap-in or the Windows Format command to format the partition as an NTFS-formatted partition.

You’re now ready to move your database data and logs onto your new disk configurations

Maric Gregory

The SigmaSuite.com online CRM is the perfect environment in which to automate a sales process. Customer relationships within its integrated CRM are enhanced and maintained outside of the sales process, which is why the web based CRM software is ideal for a small business and makes it easy to automate your customer care and any objection management calls you may encounter.

The Sigma CRM role starts from the prospecting stages where you are able to enter your prospects, create opportunities and track the sales process making notes and tasks along the way. As an alternative to entering your leads manually, you can use the API to route leads into the small business CRM software from predefined sources such as the forms on your web page or email surveys.

All communications from this point can be logged against your leads to create individual snap shots for all your relationships, available for reference at any point in the sales cycle. Aside from increasing the accuracy of sales forecasting, our small business CRM software assists with reselling and cross selling. You can then track probability to see how your forecasts compare with real outcomes to constantly review your performance. Give your sales process the data it needs to grow alongside your customers by using the Sigma Suite set of tools provided for free. Unlike many other online CRM software packages, you get the benefits of all the other modules you may need with your hosted CRM small business package.

One of the many advantages a small business has when using Sigma web based CRM software is the integration with Sigma Order Management which allows the sales force to produce accurate quotes that don’t conflict with your ability to deliver, based on both time and availability of product or service. Once a customer sends back their order confirmation the order is then put into production where it is scheduled for an appropriate time for fulfilment. You won’t have the usual conflicting reports between departments with one system saying one set of numbers and another department saying another set of numbers (which is a scenario most people know far too well), but simply a true set of numbers based on accurate and non conflicting core business data. From this you can have real time monitoring of your business performance as well as accurate tracking of your business KPI’s (key performance indicators).

Small Business CRM Software

Both new and existing small businesses need some sort of CRM application, usually it’s kept in Excel at the beginning which is fine to start as it comes with MS office and simple to use, as the company grows and the spreadsheets no longer are suitable, it’s always a nightmare to migrate to another system, using a free CRM software application like Sigma is the ideal alternative, not only does it hold all your company data centrally, it also helps you to maintain data quality and accuracy which you wouldn’t get using spreadsheets. It’s very easy to use and very powerful.