Intel PowerStat and Microsoft SQL Server Integration

Input and output integration overview

Monitor power statistics on Intel-based platforms and is compatible with Linux-based operating systems. It helps in understanding and managing power efficiency and CPU performance.

Telegraf’s SQL plugin facilitates the storage of metrics in SQL databases. When configured for Microsoft SQL Server, it supports the specific DSN format and schema requirements, allowing for seamless integration with SQL Server.

Integration details

Intel PowerStat

The Intel PowerStat plugin is designed to monitor power statistics specifically on Intel-based platforms running a Linux operating system. It offers visibility into critical metrics such as CPU temperature, utilization, and power consumption, making it essential for power saving initiatives and workload migration strategies. By leveraging telemetry frameworks, this plugin enables users to gain insights into platform-level metrics that help with monitoring and analytics systems in the context of Management and Orchestration (MANO). It facilitates the ability to make informed decisions and perform corrective actions based on the state of the platform, ultimately contributing to better system efficiency and reliability.

Microsoft SQL Server

Telegraf’s SQL output plugin for Microsoft SQL Server is designed to capture and store metric data by dynamically creating tables and columns that match the structure of incoming data. This integration leverages the go-mssqldb driver, which follows the SQL Server connection protocol through a DSN that includes server, port, and database details. Although the driver is considered experimental due to limited unit tests, it provides robust support for dynamic schema generation and data insertion, enabling detailed time-stamped records of system performance. This flexibility makes it a valuable tool for environments that demand reliable and granular metric logging, despite its experimental status.

Configuration

Intel PowerStat

[[inputs.intel_powerstat]]
  # package_metrics = ["current_power_consumption", "current_dram_power_consumption", "thermal_design_power"]
  # cpu_metrics = []
  # included_cpus = []
  # excluded_cpus = []
  # event_definitions = ""
  # msr_read_timeout = "0ms"

Microsoft SQL Server

[[outputs.sql]]
  ## Database driver
  ## Valid options: mssql (Microsoft SQL Server), mysql (MySQL), pgx (Postgres),
  ## sqlite (SQLite3), snowflake (snowflake.com), clickhouse (ClickHouse)
  driver = "mssql"

  ## Data source name
  ## For Microsoft SQL Server, the DSN typically includes the server, port, username, password, and database name.
  ## Example DSN: "sqlserver://username:password@localhost:1433?database=telegraf"
  data_source_name = "sqlserver://username:password@localhost:1433?database=telegraf"

  ## Timestamp column name
  timestamp_column = "timestamp"

  ## Table creation template
  ## Available template variables:
  ##  {TABLE}        - table name as a quoted identifier
  ##  {TABLELITERAL} - table name as a quoted string literal
  ##  {COLUMNS}      - column definitions (list of quoted identifiers and types)
  table_template = "CREATE TABLE {TABLE} ({COLUMNS})"

  ## Table existence check template
  ## Available template variables:
  ##  {TABLE} - table name as a quoted identifier
  table_exists_template = "SELECT 1 FROM {TABLE} LIMIT 1"

  ## Initialization SQL (optional)
  init_sql = ""

  ## Maximum amount of time a connection may be idle. "0s" means connections are never closed due to idle time.
  connection_max_idle_time = "0s"

  ## Maximum amount of time a connection may be reused. "0s" means connections are never closed due to age.
  connection_max_lifetime = "0s"

  ## Maximum number of connections in the idle connection pool. 0 means unlimited.
  connection_max_idle = 2

  ## Maximum number of open connections to the database. 0 means unlimited.
  connection_max_open = 0

  ## Metric type to SQL type conversion
  ## You can customize the mapping if needed.
  #[outputs.sql.convert]
  #  integer       = "INT"
  #  real          = "DOUBLE"
  #  text          = "TEXT"
  #  timestamp     = "TIMESTAMP"
  #  defaultvalue  = "TEXT"
  #  unsigned      = "UNSIGNED"
  #  bool          = "BOOL"

Input and output integration examples

Intel PowerStat

1. Optimizing Data Center Energy Usage: Monitor power consumption metrics across all CPUs in a data center. By capturing real-time data, administrators can identify which servers consume the most power and implement shutdowns or load balancing strategies during low demand periods, effectively reducing operational costs.

2. Dynamic Workload Migration Based on Power Efficiency: Integrate this plugin with a cloud orchestration tool to enable dynamic migration of workloads based on power usage metrics. If a particular server is recorded as consuming excessive power without corresponding output, the orchestrator can seamlessly migrate workloads to more efficient nodes, ensuring optimal resource utilization and lower energy expenses.

3. Monitoring and Alerting Mechanism for Overheating CPUs: Implement an alerting system using the CPU temperature metrics captured by Intel PowerStat. Setting thresholds for temperature can alert system administrators when a CPU is prone to overheating, allowing proactive measures to be taken before hardware damage occurs, ultimately extending the life of the components.

4. Performance Benchmarking for CPU-intensive Applications: Use the metrics provided to benchmark the performance of CPU-intensive applications. By analyzing the cpu_frequency, cpu_temperature, and power metrics under load, developers can optimize application performance and make informed decisions regarding scaling and resource allocation.

Microsoft SQL Server

1. Enterprise Application Monitoring: Leverage the plugin to capture detailed performance metrics from enterprise applications running on SQL Server. This setup allows IT teams to analyze system performance, track transaction times, and identify bottlenecks across complex, multi-tier environments.

2. Dynamic Infrastructure Auditing: Deploy the plugin to create a dynamic audit log of infrastructure changes and performance metrics in SQL Server. This use case is ideal for organizations that require real-time monitoring and historical analysis of system performance for compliance and optimization.

3. Automated Performance Benchmarking: Use the plugin to continuously record and analyze performance metrics of SQL Server databases. This enables automated benchmarking, where historical data is compared against current performance, helping to quickly identify anomalies or degradation in service.

4. Integrated DevOps Dashboards: Integrate the plugin with DevOps monitoring tools to feed real-time metrics from SQL Server into centralized dashboards. This provides a holistic view of application health, allowing teams to correlate SQL Server performance with application-level events for faster troubleshooting and proactive maintenance.

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