Quick Setup Evaluation Guide
Nitrosphere exists to make the most out of every millisecond.
If you would like to discuss the setup process or if the results within your NitroAccelerator console show less than 80% compression, reach out to us for a tuning call.
For SMB testing, we recommend running a baseline file transfer test before install to simplify your process. More info >
Server OS
Windows Server 2016 or later*
*If you are running an earlier OS, please contact the Nitro team.
Clients/ Workstations
Windows OS 10 or later*
Client-server Applications
SQL Server (TDS) & SMB connections are accelerated by default.
Additional TCP-based protocols can be added directly within the NitroAccelerator Console.
Linux
It is possible to reduce latency by using a Linux system as an endpoint with Nitro installed to a Windows system as a proxy. Instructions below:
Proxy Setup for Use with NitroAccelerator.pdf
452KB
PDF
Replication Acceleration
2-Tier Application Acceleration
3-Tier Application Acceleration
NitroAccelerator accelerates the connections between install points and allows for mixed connections. It is not required on all servers and endpoints to operate, though the benefits of doing so will reduce congestion throughout the environment.
NitroAccelerator must be installed to two systems to accelerate the connection between them.
For additional performance improvements while proving Nitro, we recommend the following:
- (Optional) Increase your network packet size to 32k to improve NitroAccelerator impact. If SQL Server Force Encryption is enabled, set the packet size to 16k. The packet size is negotiated by both sides of the connection.
Microsoft documentation provides instructions to configure packet sizes and states that the configuration change should only be made by an 'experienced database administrator or certified SQL Server professional', but it does not dive into the pros and cons of making changes.
Endpoints negotiate packet sizes, so we view this configuration change as a non-issue. If you are working with a very old custom application or you are unsure, please reach out to our team for a free personalized recommendation.
NitroAccelerator automatically monitors, and accelerates your existing TDS & SMB ports. If a connection cannot be established during testing, the issue will most likely be related to settings within NitroAccelerator. Reach out to us and we will assist.
All clients and servers are not required to have NitroAccelerator installed. Only connections that have NitroAccelerator on both ends will see a performance improvement. Your 14 day free trial countdown will not begin until installation.
- Run the NitroAccelerator install file on the SQL Servers, Application Servers, and Clients of your choosing.
We recommend starting with endpoints correlated to the highest number of IT support tickets, bandwidth usage, and/or connection latency.
You can also install directly from the command line:
msiexec /i NitroTurbo.msi /qn
Your inbound and outbound connections will display within the NitroAccelerator Console: Tools > Connections
Accelerated connections will show as blue text
Non-accelerated connections will show as red text
- To accelerate SQL Server Replication, restart your SQL agent.
- To accelerate Client/Server applications, restart correlated services and relaunch your applications.
A Server reboot is not required.
SET STATISTICS TIME ON
SET STATISTICS IO ON
GO
USE master;
GO
SELECT * FROM sysobjects,sysprocesses;
Clients experience up to 20x speed improvements in SMB File Transfers and improved SMB Application Performance.
- This feature is on by default and can be disabled within compression settings: Tools > Compression Settings > Named Pipe Acceleration
Keep in mind that Named Pipe Acceleration must be enabled to accelerate all types of SQL Server TDS traffic.
- To accelerate SMB traffic, existing client connections need to be recreated. A server reboot is the easiest way to reestablish all accelerated client connections.
Applications that use .NET Remoting may benefit greatly from NitroAccelerator but requires identifying the ports used for your specific implementation.
- Additional ports must be added to both the server and client console to accelerate: Tools > Configure Additional Protocols
If the protocol that you are trying to accelerate is not mentioned above, but is running on Windows (Oracle, DB2, or other databases), the configure additional protocol dialogue is available.
- Ports must be added to both the server and client console: Tools > Configure Additional Protocols
- For additional information, contact support.
The NitroAccelerator Console shows compression statistics for Nitro-enabled connections.
The two graphs show the outbound and inbound traffic where the blue lines are the actual compressed traffic and the red lines are what the traffic would be if it were uncompressed.
While you may experience immediate improvements in throughput and reductions in connection latency, we recommend tuning the software to fit your specific environment and requirements.
Once your preferred client configuration is identified, it can be deployed easily to your other clients. Contact support for more information.
Compression levels allow for modifying compression algorithms and can be configured to tune performance for your environment, existing latency, and data types.
While testing compression levels, click Reset Stats from the NitroAccelerator console between tests to properly log results.
- If you are seeing compression above 80% and you are still not seeing an improvement in throughput, see the following section on enabling ZLDC.
The ZLDC BETA feature is recommended only for medium to high speed network connections with high latency. The server must be able to communicate to the client to use the ZLDC. (For example, the server can ping the client.) Before enabling, we recommend reviewing our ZLDC Whitepaper and setting up a quick call with our Head of Product.
This new technology removes all latency from the TCP protocol while doubling throughput.
- Activate ZLDC Acceleration: Tools > Zero Latency Data Channel
- Set an open UDP port. (Default: 6161)
- All firewalls between the client and SQL Server need to be open for UDP traffic on the configured ZLDC port for both inbound and outbound traffic.
- Enable ZLDC on all nodes.
- Depending on the number of connections and the compressibility of the data, you may need to make tuning adjustments within Tools > ZLDC.
- If you are hitting the cache size on the High Water Mark, contact support to discuss configuring the Packet Cache Size.
- The VPN server must be configured to allow both sides of the VPN to initiate communication.
- If the VPN client is a router (i.e., the clients don't connect to the VPN because the router has the connection to the VPN server), there needs to be a route between the 2 subnets.
The HyperCache is a client-side caching technology that can further improve performance in certain environments. It works by monitoring each query to determine how stable the results are. When a given query is determined to have stable results, the client will be given results from the cache instead of waiting for the server’s response. The query is still sent on to the server so the cache can be refreshed, and if the results of a query ever change, the query entry is invalidated until the result set is again shown to be stable. Only result sets of 64k or less will be cached, so HyperCache will have the biggest impact in environments with smaller repetitive queries. The Cache Size setting in the console determines the total number of queries that can be cached, so this can be adjusted as needed for your environment.
- For small repetitive queries and chatty Applications, we recommend activating this feature on your clients: Tools > HyperCache Settings
- Some applications require that certain queries be executed regardless of the result set and should not be cached. Contact support if you do not experience improvements in application load times and user experience.
- NitroAccelerator’s optional one-click Encryption secures network traffic between endpoints: Tools > Encryption Settings
- You have the option to select from our default encryption key or to set your own.
Encryption is required when moving over the internet.
Named Pipe acceleration might be required to accelerate all SQL Server traffic and is required to accelerate SMB traffic.
The Named Pipe Acceleration feature is enabled by default and can be disabled within the compression settings: Tools > Compression Settings
Multiple Active Result Sets (MARS) is a protocol used by SQL Server to reduce the number of connections required, but it often causes performance bottlenecks.
- MARS Acceleration is disabled by default. However, connections that use MARS are indicated within the connection dialogue of the console: Tools > Connections
- If you see MARS connections indicated within the connection dialogue, we recommend enabling this feature: Tools > Compression Settings
It is recommended that developers disable MARS, especially if clients will be accessing their applications beyond the LAN. For more information, see Tip #4.
While the statistics on the NitroAccelerator console are helpful in determining that it is installed and running properly, you will want to track other Network Performance measurements and Key Performance Indicators to gauge and prove the full benefits of running NitroAccelerator within and across your environment.
While network performance monitoring solutions give more insight into impact, it is important to note that these solutions degrade performance if leveraged too heavily. It is a common use case for customers to use NitroAccelerator specifically to improve the performance of monitoring applications themselves.
During your trial, we recommend activating NitroAccelerator on as many relevant endpoints as possible over a trial period long enough to measure real-world quantitative results over time. If you are using a stopwatch to prove improvements in your client-server application performance, it is important to also keep an eye on improvements in the PoC variables below throughout your network.
For quick testing and advanced tuning, we run a simple
SELECT statement from within SQL Server Management Studio both with and without NitroAccelerator enabled. By running queries that are similar to what is found in your application, you can get an idea of possible impact.
To maintain data integrity, connections must be fully closed and re-established to enable or disable NitroAccelerator's SMB acceleration.
- The fastest way to A/B test SMB acceleration is to run a baseline file transfer via Microsoft File Sharing before installing and activating NitroAccelerator.
- While running the baseline test transfer, note the total transfer time and highest or average speed reached.
- Next, Install and activate NitroAccelerator and reboot your file server or the client you are testing from to fully re-establish the connection and avoid connection pooling.
- Open NitroAccelerator and check: Tools > Connections to ensure that your connections are blue text, meaning accelerated.
- Remove the copied file from the destination and then run the same file transfer again with Acceleration enabled to log and compare results.
- Query Execution Time
- Transactions Per Second (TPS)
- Throughput (MB/sec)
- Replication latency
- Page load time
- Application start time & performance
- File Transfer time
- High-priority IT Support Ticket counts
- Bandwidth usage and cloud fees
We have an expanding collection of PoC processes provided by customers spanning all industries. Reach out to discuss.
We strive to ensure that our customers receive exponential value from our acceleration software.
We provide perpetual licenses with the first year of support and maintenance included. After the first year, we offer continued support and updates for 20% of the original payment amount.
If you would like to discuss your goals, budget, and receive access to our specials and discount packages, schedule a quick call.
Nitrosphere offers special pricing to Municipalities, Public Utility Companies, and Organizations working on the front-line of COVID research and response.
Invoices are sent via email. We accept Card, ACH, and Check. Online payments are processed by a certified PCI Service Provider Level 1 (the most stringent level of certification) payment gateway.
Reach out to us
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 1-512-501-5254
Schedule a meeting: https://calendly.com/josh-nitrosphere/30min
Last modified 1mo ago