Some objects, like the dbo.Servers table, are shared across many (or all) modules.
Tables
Archive.Config
This table provides the retention period and batch size for data archival routines (i.e., the stored procedure Archive.Drive).
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ID | bigint | Primary key row identifier. |
| SchemaName | sysname | Schema name. |
| TableName | sysname | Table name. |
| ArchiveDays | int | Number of days to retain configuration data, for this table. |
| RowsInBatch | int | The number of rows to delete per batch. |
Archive.Servers
This table keeps a record of the dbo.Servers table, in case the dbo.Servers table is truncated or otherwise messed up. It is populated by the Archive.Servers stored procedure, which is run by the job ArchiveServersInsert.
The columns in Archive.Servers are the same as the columns in dbo.Servers, with the addition of the ExecutionDateTime column, which marks the date that the data was collected from dbo.Servers.
dbo.ClusterNode
This table holds the node names of clustered instances. At this time, the dbo.ClusterNode must be updated manually.
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ID | Int | Primary key row identifier. |
| InstanceID | Int | The instance ID of the instance in question, as defined in the table dbo.Servers. Note: Any time you see InstanceID = 0 in Minion Enterprise, it represents a global default. |
| LocID | int | The location ID, as defined in the table dbo.Location. |
| ServerName | varchar | The name of the SQL Server instance; or, if it is a cluster, the name of the SQL Server virtual instance. Note that Minion Enterprise can monitor Windows servers that do not have an instance of SQL Server installed. Examples: “Server1”, “Server3\NewInstance”. |
| DNS | varchar | DNS address of the server. |
| IP | char | IP address of the server. |
| WinClusterName | Varchar | The name of the Windows cluster. |
| WinClusterIP | Varchar | IP address of the Windows cluster. |
dbo.Servers
The dbo.Servers table is the central axis point of the entire system. You must insert a bare minimum of information about servers that you wish to manage: ServerName, ServiceLevel, Port, IsSQL, and IsActive.
Once this is done, Minion Enterprise automated processes will start according to their schedules, to fill in the rest of the dbo.Servers table and to begin collection, alerts, and reporting on the active instances.
| InstanceID | Int | The instance ID of the instance in question. This is the instance ID of record throughout Minion Enterprise tables and objects. | Minion |
| Name | Type | Description | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| InstanceID | Int | The instance ID of the instance in question. This is the instance ID of record throughout Minion Enterprise tables and objects. | Minion |
| LocID | int | The location ID, as defined in the table dbo.Location. | Manual |
| ServerName | varchar | The name of the SQL Server instance; or, if it is a cluster, the name of the SQL Server virtual instance; or, if SQL Server is not installed, the name of the computer. Note that Minion Enterprise can monitor Windows servers that do not have an instance of SQL Server installed. Example values: “Server1”, “Server3\NewInstance”. | Manual |
| Suffix | nvarchar(100) | Adds a string onto the end of the ServerName when connecting to the server for collections. A good use-case for this is if you need to access a server using the FQDN. Here you would put ".domain.com". | Manual |
| AlternateName | nvarchar(200) | When populated, this is used to connect to the server for connection instead of the ServerName. This would be used in a situation where you have a server named Server1, but you need to connect to it using an alternate DNS name like App1.domain.com. | Manual |
| DNS | varchar | DNS address of the server. | Minion |
| IP | char | IP address of the server. | Minion |
| Port | int | The port to be used for the connection to the target SQL Server. | Manual |
| Descr | varchar | A description of the server, as provided by the user. | Manual |
| Role | Varchar | Server role. | Manual |
| ServiceLevel | varchar | A simple label for the level of the server’s importance, which determines the level of service that Minion Enterprise provides. Valid values: Gold, Silver, Bronze. | Manual |
| IsSQL | Bit | Denotes whether the server (the row) in question is an instance of SQL Server, or not. | Manual |
| SQLVersion | varchar | The current version of SQL Server. Example: 2014. | Minion |
| SQLEdition | Varchar | The current edition of SQL Server. Example: Ent. | Minion |
| SQLServicePack | Varchar | The current SQL Server service pack. Examples: RTM, SP1. | Minion |
| SQLBuild | Varchar | The current SQL Server build. Example: 12.0.2000. | Minion |
| IsCluster | bit | Denotes whether the server in question is a clustered instance, or not. | Minion |
| IsNew | bit | Determines whether the current row is a new (to Minion Enterprise) server, or not. To be used in future editions of Minion Enterprise. | Manual |
| IsActive | bit | Determines whether the current row is active, and should be used. | Manual |
| IsActiveDate | date | The date that the server was first active. Like “Descr”, this column is for the DBA’s use; the system itself doesn’t fill in or use this column. | Manual |
| InstanceMemInMB | int | Not in use. See Collector.ServersOSDetail. | Minion |
| OSVersion | varchar | The operating system version. Example: “ 2012 R2 Standard”. | Minion |
| OSServicePack | varchar | Not in use. | Minion |
| OSBuild | Varchar | Not in use. | Minion |
| OSArchitecture | tinyint | The operating system architecture (32 bit or 64 bit). | Minion |
| CPUSockets | tinyint | Number of physical processors. | Minion |
| CPUCores | tinyint | Number of cores. | Minion |
| CPULogicalTotal | int | Number of logical CPUs. | Minion |
| ServerMemInMB | varchar | The amount of physical memory, measured in MB. | Minion |
| Manufacturer | nchar | The manufacturer of the virtual platform, if any. Examples: “Hyper-V”, “VMWare” | Minion |
| Vendor | varchar | This can be used to specify either on-prem, or a cloud provider like Azure or Amazon. You can call them anything you like. | Manual |
| ServerType | varchar | This would be the type of offering from the Vendor. For Azure it would be either Azure DB, Managed Instance, VM, etc. You can call them anything you like. | Manual |
| ServerOrder | int | Specifies an order the servers will be processed in. This is essentially a group of servers to be processed before any others. It is a weighted list so higher numbers get processed first. For more info: https://minionware.desk.com/customer/portal/articles/2885612 | Manual |
| ServerGroupOrder | int | Specifies an order within the ServerOrder group that the servers will be processed in. It is a weighted list so higher numbers get processed first. For more info: https://minionware.desk.com/customer/portal/articles/2885612 | Manual |
| CollectionZone | tinyint | The zone that the current server is being collected for. For more info: https://minionware.desk.com/customer/portal/articles/2885588-collection-zones | Minion |
| Comment | Varchar | For your reference only. Label each row with a short description and/or purpose. | Manual |
| UTCOffset | smallint | You may have servers in different time zones. For alerting purposes we need to know where they are so we use the UTC offset and do the math. | Minion |
Stored Procedures
Archive.Data
The job “ArchiveServersInsert” runs this procedure, which performs data archival to remove outdated data from “Collector” tables. The retention period for each Collector table is configured in the Archive.Config table.
Archive.Servers
This procedure archives the dbo.Servers table to Archive.Servers, in case the dbo.Servers table is truncated or otherwise messed up.