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documentation.suse.com / Guide / Tuning systems with saptune
Applies to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 12 SP5

8 Tuning systems with saptune

This chapter provides information about tuning SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications to work optimally with SAP applications.

Using saptune, you can tune a system for SAP NetWeaver, SAP HANA/SAP BusinessObjects, and SAP S/4HANA applications.

8.1 Installing and updating saptune

To install saptune, run the zypper install saptune command.

When installation is completed, enable and start the saptune service (see Section 8.2, “Enabling and disabling saptune) and configure the tuning (see Section 8.3, “Configuring the tuning”).

To update saptune, use the zypper update saptune command.

Important
Important

When installing and updating saptune, pay attention to zypper output to ensure that installation and updates are performed correctly. The output is also saved in /var/log/zypp/history.

8.2 Enabling and disabling saptune

To tune the system after a reboot, enable and start the saptune service after installation. In most cases, starting the saptune service fails, because sapconf already tunes the system. To solve the problem, run the following command:

# saptune service takeover

This command stops and disables the sapconf and tuned services, and then starts and enables the saptune service.

To disable and stop the saptune service, use the command below:

# saptune service disablestop

8.3 Configuring the tuning

The easiest way to tune a system is to apply an SAP Solution that matches your installed SAP software. SAP Solutions are a group of SAP Notes that perform the actual tuning. To display all available Solutions and their Notes, run the following command:

# saptune solution list

saptune recognizes the following tuning SAP Solutions:

  • BOBJ Solution for running SAP BusinessObjects

  • HANA Solution for running an SAP HANA database

  • MAXDB Solution for running an SAP MaxDB database

  • NETWEAVER Solution for running SAP NetWeaver application servers

  • S4HANA-APPSERVER Solution for running SAP S/4HANA Application Servers

  • S4HANA-APP+DB Solution for running both SAP S/4HANA Application Servers and SAP HANA on the same host

  • S4HANA-DBSERVER Solution for running the SAP HANA database of an SAP S/4HANA installation

  • SAP-ASE Solution for running an SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise database

  • NETWEAVER+HANA Solution for running both SAP application servers and SAP HANA on the same host

  • NETWEAVER+MAXDB Solution for running both SAP application servers and MAXDB on the same host

To apply a Solution, run the following command:

# saptune solution apply SOLUTION

Keep in mind that only one Solution can be applied at the time.

To disable a Solution, use the command below:

# saptune solution revert SOLUTION

To switch to a different Solution, use the following command:

# saptune solution change SOLUTION

Alternatively, you can tune the computer according to recommendations from specific SAP Notes. Use the saptune note list to view a list of notes that you can tune for.

To apply a Note, run the following command:

# saptune note apply NOTE

Reverting a Note can be done as follows:

# saptune note revert NOTE
Note
Note: Combining optimizations

It is possible to combine Solutions and Notes by reverting Notes from an applied Solution or applying additional ones. However, only one solution can be active at a time. The saptune service restores the combination of Solution and Notes after a service restart or reboot.

In rare cases, Notes can have conflicting options or parameters. Arrange your Notes carefully to avoid conflicts. The last Note always takes priority over conflicting options or parameters of previous notes. In this situation, create your own Solution (see Section 8.4.2, “Creating a new SAP Note”) or customize the applied Solution (see Section 8.4.1, “Customizing an SAP Note”).

8.4 Managing SAP Notes

The following sections provide information on working with SAP Notes.

An SAP Note configuration contains the OS-specific part of the original SAP Note as complete as possible. A parameter is disabled (it is present in the configuration, but without value) if it does not have a value recommendation, or if saptune cannot safely detect the conditions to set the correct value. To set a suitable value, read the corresponding SAP Note and customize the Note (see Section 8.4.1, “Customizing an SAP Note”).

8.4.1 Customizing an SAP Note

Any SAP Note can be configured using the following command:

# saptune note customise NOTE

The command opens the default editor (defined in the environment variable EDITOR) with a copy of the Note configuration. Remove everything, except the parameters you want to change or disable, as well as the header of the section the parameter belongs to.

To change or set the parameter value, change or add the value of the parameter. To disable a parameter, remove the value, but leave the parameter and the = character. saptune lists the parameter, but it does not change it or check it for the compliance status. For more information, refer to the saptune-note(5) manpage.

This creates a /etc/saptune/override/NOTE file. It is possible to create the file elsewhere and place it in /etc/saptune/override/.

Configuration sections can be conditional. This is called tagging. Refer to the saptune-note(5) for further information.

When you are done customizing a Note, restart the saptune service to apply the changes.

8.4.2 Creating a new SAP Note

A new SAP Note can be created using the following command:

# saptune note create NOTE

The command opens the default editor (defined in the environment variable EDITOR) with a Note configuration template. All features of saptune are available here. For more information, refer to the saptune-note(5) manpage.

This creates a /etc/saptune/extra/NOTE.conf Note configuration file. It is possible to create the file elsewhere and place it in /etc/saptune/extra/.

Configuration sections can be conditional. This is called tagging. Refer to the saptune-note(5) for further information.

8.4.3 Editing a custom SAP Note

To edit a custom Note, use the command below:

# saptune note edit NOTE

The command opens the default editor (EDITOR) with the Note configuration. When you are done editing a Note, restart the saptune service to apply the changes. Custom Notes can be customized like shipped Notes.

8.4.4 Deleting an SAP Note or a customization

The following command deletes a note, including the corresponding override file, if available:

# saptune note delete test
Note to delete is a customer/vendor specific Note.
Do you really want to delete this Note (test2)? [y/n]: y

The note may not be applied at the time. Keep in mind the following:

  • A confirmation is needed to finish the action.

  • Internal SAP Notes shipped by saptune cannot be deleted. Instead, the override file is removed when available.

  • If the Note is already applied, the command is terminated with the message that the note first needs to be reverted before it can be deleted.

8.4.5 Renaming an SAP Note

This command allows renaming a created Note to a new name. If a corresponding override file is available, this file is renamed as well:

# saptune note rename test test2
Note to rename is a customer/vendor specific Note.
Do you really want to rename this Note (test) to the new name 'test2'? [y/n]: y

The Note may not be applied at the time. Keep in mind the following points:

  • A confirmation is needed to finish the action.

  • Internal SAP Notes shipped by saptune cannot be renamed.

  • If the Note is already applied, the command is terminated with the information that the Note first needs to be reverted before it can be deleted.

8.4.6 Showing the configuration of an SAP Note

The configuration of a Note can be listed using the following command:

# saptune note show NOTE

8.4.7 Verifying an SAP Note

To verify the tuning of a Note, use the following command:

# saptune note verify NOTE

For information about the output of the command and verifying the entire tuning instead of a single Note, refer to Section 8.6, “Verification and troubleshooting”.

8.4.8 Performing a dry run of an SAP Note

To show each parameter of a Note, use the following command:

# saptune note simulate

The command lists the current system value and the expected values (default and override).

Note
Note: Deprecation notice

The simulate command is deprecated since version 3.1 and is removed in all saptune versions in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 16.

8.4.9 Reverting an SAP Note

To revert an SAP Note, run the following command:

# saptune note revert NOTE

This restores all parameters of the SAP Note to their values at the time of application.

To revert everything, use the following command:

# saptune note revert all

8.4.10 Listing all enabled or applied SAP Notes

To list all enabled SAP Notes, run the following command:

# saptune note enabled

To list all applied SAP Notes, run the command below:

# saptune note applied

Both commands are primarily meant for use in scripts.

8.5 Managing SAP Solutions

This chapter explains how to work with SAP Solutions.

An SAP Solution is a combination of SAP Note configurations grouped logically. It generally represents an SAP product or combination. Applying an SAP Solution effectively applies all SAP Note configurations listed in it. Instructions for listing and setting a solution are provided in Section 8.3, “Configuring the tuning”.

8.5.1 Customizing an SAP Solution

An SAP Solution can be customized using the following command:

# saptune solution customise SOLUTION

The command opens the default editor (defined in the environment variable EDITOR) with a copy of the Solution configuration. Change the Note list for the architecture to your liking. For more information, refer to the saptune-note(5) manpage.

This creates an override file /etc/saptune/override/SOLUTION.sol. It is possible to create the file elsewhere and place it in /etc/saptune/override/.

When you are done customizing an SAP Solution, restart the saptune service to apply the changes.

8.5.2 Creating a new SAP Solution

To create a new SAP Solution, run the following command:

# saptune solution create SOLUTION

The command opens the default editor (defined in the environment variable EDITOR) with a Solution configuration template. Fill in the template.

This creates a Solution configuration file /etc/saptune/extra/SOLUTION.sol. It is possible to create the file elsewhere and place it in /etc/saptune/extra/.

8.5.3 Editing a custom SAP Solution

To edit a custom SAP Solution, use the following command:

# saptune solution edit NOTE

The command opens the default editor (defined in the environment variable EDITOR) with the Solution configuration.

When you are done editing an SAP Solution, restart the saptune service to apply the changes.

Custom Solutions can be customized like shipped Solutions.

8.5.4 Deleting SAP Solution

The following command deletes a created Solution (in this example, myHANA), including the corresponding override file or the override file of a shipped Solution, if available:

# saptune solution delete myHANA

Solution to delete is a customer/vendor specific Solution.
Do you really want to delete this Solution 'myHANA'? [y/n]: y

The SAP Solution may not be applied at the time. Keep in mind the following:

  • A confirmation is required to finish the action.

  • SAP Solutions shipped by saptune cannot be deleted. Only the override file is removed, if available.

  • If the SAP Solution is already applied, the command is terminated with the information that the SAP Solution first needs to be reverted before it can be deleted.

8.5.5 Renaming an SAP Solution

To rename an SAP Solution, run the following command:

# saptune solution rename myHANA myHANA2

Solution to rename is a customer/vendor specific Solution.
Do you really want to rename this Solution 'myHANA' to the new name 'myHANA2'? [y/n]:

The SAP Solution may not be applied at the time. Keep in mind the following points:

  • A confirmation is needed to finish the action.

  • SAP Solutions shipped by saptune cannot be renamed.

  • If the SAP Solution is already applied, the command will be terminated with the information that the SAP Solution first needs to be reverted before it can be renamed.

8.5.6 Showing the configuration of an SAP Solution

To list the configuration of an SAP Solution, run the following command:

# saptune solution show SOLUTION

8.5.7 Switching to another SAP Solution

Starting with saptune version 3.1, it is easier to switch to a different solution using the saptune solution change SOLUTION command.

Keep in mind that internally the current solution is reverted first, and then the new solution is applied. If you have additional notes configured, the order is not preserved.

If the same solution is already applied, no action is taken. Otherwise the current solution gets reverted and the new one applied. The command prompts for confirmation before making the change. This can be disabled by adding the --force option.

8.5.8 Verifying an SAP Solution

To verify the tuning of a Solution, use the following command:

# saptune solution verify SOLUTION

For information about the output of the verify command and how to verify the entire tuning instead of a single Solution, refer to Section 8.6, “Verification and troubleshooting”.

8.5.9 Performing a dry run of an SAP Solution

To show all parameters of all Notes belonging to a Solution, use the following command:

# saptune solution simulate SOLUTION

The command lists the current system value and the expected values (default and override).

Note
Note: Deprecation notice

The simulate command is deprecated since 3.1, and it is removed in all saptune versions in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 16.

8.5.10 Reverting an SAP Solution

To revert an SAP Solution, run the following command:

# saptune solution revert SOLUTION

The SAP Solution must be applied. This reverts all SAP Notes parts of the SAP Solution that are still applied.

8.5.11 Editing a custom SAP Solution

To edit a custom SAP Solution, run:

# saptune solution edit SOLUTION

8.5.12 Listing enabled/applied SAP Solution

To list an enabled SAP Solution, run:

# saptune solution enabled

To list an applied SAP Solution, run:

# saptune solution applied

If SAP Notes from an applied SAP Solution have been reverted, the string (partial) has been added to the solution name.

Both commands are primarily meant for use in scripts.

8.6 Verification and troubleshooting

To see the current status of saptune, run the following command:

# saptune status

The output contains the following:

  • status of the saptune, sapconf, and tuned service

  • version of package and running saptune

  • details about configured SAP Solution and SAP Notes

  • details about staging

  • status of systemd system state

  • virtualization environment (new in saptune version 3.1)

  • tuning compliance (new in saptune version 3.1)

To analyze your saptune installation, run:

# saptune check

This command performs the following checks:

  • check for mandatory or obsolete configuration files

  • check for RPM leftovers

  • check if the systemd system state is degraded and list failed units

  • check the status of the sapconf, saptune and tuned services

Note
Note

If saptune check warns about a degraded systemd system status, in most cases it has no impact on saptune. However, failed services require troubleshooting.

The command does not check the tuning itself. To check the tuning, use the command below:

# saptune note verify
Note
Note

If saptune note verify is called without specifying a Note, it verifies all currently applied Notes. This allows you to verify your entire current tuning. As an alternative, use the saptune solution verify command that can also verify all currently applied Notes.

The saptune note verify command prints a table with all applied Notes, including the following:

  • SAP Note and version

  • the parameter

  • the expected value of the parameter

  • the value from an Override if one exists

  • the current system value

  • the compliance status of the parameter

The last line contains the overall compliance status of the entire tuning.

Note
Note

Some parameters of shipped Notes are disabled, meaning they have empty values in the "Expected" column. In such cases, the SAP Note does not contain a concrete recommendation or saptune cannot detect the conditions for a recommendation. Read the SAP Note and set the value manually by customizing the Note (see Section 8.4.1, “Customizing an SAP Note”).

If parameters are not compliant, read the footnote if it exists. For some tunings, equivalent parameters exist, for example:

  • grub:intel_idle.max_cstate covered by force_latency

  • grub:processor.max_cstate covered by force_latency

  • grub:numa_balancing covered by kernel.numa_balancing

  • grub:transparent_hugepage covered by THP

A restart of the saptune service fixes the problems, except for non-compliant packages (parameter starts with rpm:) or GRUB entries (parameter starts with grub:). saptune does not install, uninstall or upgrade packages, and it never changes the boot loader.

A typical problem is the sysctl parameters that are handled by saptune and sysctl. A footnote in the parameter's compliance column indicates if it is also present in one of the sysctl configuration files. Remove the parameter from the sysctl configuration or disable the parameter in saptune (see Section 8.4.1, “Customizing an SAP Note”) to fix the problem.

Always investigate the cause for the changed tuning and fix it. If saptune shall not tune certain parameters, you can revert the Note or just disable parameters via an Override (see Section 8.4.1, “Customizing an SAP Note”).

8.7 Machine-readable output

Starting with version 3.1, saptune supports machine-readable output (JSON) for the following commands:

  • saptune [daemon|service] status

  • saptune note list|verify|enabled|applied

  • saptune solution list|verify|enabled|applied

  • saptune status

  • saptune version

The machine-readable output makes it possible to integrate saptune into scripts and configuration management solutions.

To generate JSON output, add --format json as the first option, for example:

> saptune --format json note applied | jq
{
"$schema": "file:///usr/share/saptune/schemas/1.0/saptune_note_applied.schema.json",
"publish time": "2023-08-29 17:05:45.627",
"argv": "saptune --format json note applied",
"pid": 1538,
"command": "note applied",
"exit code": 0,
"result": {
    "Notes applied": [
    "941735",
    "1771258",
    "1980196",
    "2578899",
    "2684254",
    "2382421",
    "2534844",
    "2993054",
    "1656250"
    ]
},
"messages": []
}

If a command does not yet support JSON output, the command fails with the result block set to "implemented": false:

[+]
> saptune --format json staging status | jq
{
"$schema": "file:///usr/share/saptune/schemas/1.0/saptune_staging_status.schema.json",
"publish time": "2023-08-29 17:08:16.708",
"argv": "saptune --format json staging status",
"pid": 1653,
"command": "staging status",
"exit code": 1,
"result": {
    "implemented": false
},
"messages": []
}

8.8 Staging

It is possible that a new saptune package can contain both binary changes (for example, bug fixes) and new or altered SAP Notes and SAP Solutions. In certain situations, it is preferable to deploy bug fixes and new features while leaving modifications to the system configuration out.

With staging enabled, SAP Note and SAP Solution changes in a package update are not activated immediately. They are placed in a staging area, which can be reviewed and released later.

Important
Important

With the current implementation, a package update overwrites the staging if staging is enabled.

Staging is disabled by default, and it can be enabled with the following command:

# saptune staging enable

From that point, SAP Note and SAP Solution changes shipped by a saptune package are put in the staging area. To view the staging area, run:

# saptune staging list

You can print a tabular overview of the differences of the SAP Note and SAP Solution in the staging and working area with the following command:

# saptune staging diff [NOTE...|SOLUTION...|all]

After reviewing the differences, you can perform an analysis to see if a release has potential issues or requires additional steps. To do this, run the following command:

# saptune staging analysis [NOTE...|SOLUTION...|all]

To release an SAP Note or an SAP Solution from the staging area, use the command as follows:

# saptune staging [--force|--dry-run] [NOTE..|SOLUTION...|all]

The command presents an analysis (see saptune staging analysis) and carries out the release after asking for confirmation.

8.9 For more information

See the following man pages:

  • man 8 saptune

  • man 8 saptune-migrate

  • man 8 saptune-note

Also see the project home page https://github.com/SUSE/saptune/.