The Hidden Costs of Neglecting Your SQL Server Infrastructure
When it comes to running your business, a well-maintained SQL Server infrastructure is often the unsung hero. SQL Server is often behind the scenes, powering critical systems, supporting decision-making, and safeguarding vital data. However, when it’s neglected, the costs—both visible and hidden—can quickly spiral out of control.
The cost of neglecting SQL Server
Let’s look at three costs that are often associated with a neglected SQL environment.
1. Declining performance
Let’s start with one of the more obvious costs: a poorly maintained SQL Server often results in sluggish performance. This can be costly.
For example, at one healthcare facility we work with, nurses had to wait more than five minutes to log in to their healthcare system at the beginning of their shift. This greatly reduced productivity, annoyed the nurses, and delayed patient care.
2. A financial hit
Neglecting regular maintenance frequently leads to increased costs in other ways. If an SQL Server-backed application is performing poorly, often the first answer is to add additional resources. Maybe it’s CPU-bound? Perhaps some more memory will make it better? Or maybe disk I/O is the culprit?
Throwing hardware at a problem can become expensive. It’s like putting a Band-Aid on a deeper wound. Maybe things get a little better for a while, but the underlying cause is still a problem.
3. Increased security risks
A big risk that’s often overlooked is security.
An unpatched or unsupported version of SQL Server is a server with data at risk. It can leave your data vulnerable to cyberattacks. And you know how costly that can be. Damage to reputation. Incident response costs. Legal fees. Rebuilding or recovering the systems. All of these add up to a large price tag.
How to mitigate these costs
So, what can be done to reduce the potential costs?
1. Invest in SQL Server Health Checks
A great place to start is, well, at the beginning. Get a list of all of your SQL Servers and then run a SQL Server Health Check on them. Look at:
- What version are they?
- Are the most recent updates applied?
- Have the default configuration settings been updated?
- Is each SQL Server tuned for its workload?
- Who has elevated permissions to the SQL Server or to the important databases?
Identify any potential issues and develop a plan to remediate them. Regular system audits can identify inefficiencies and vulnerabilities before they turn into expensive problems.
2. Perform regular maintenance
Once your SQL Server environment has been remediated, schedule regular maintenance.
- Develop a regular patching cadence.
- Schedule preventative maintenance such as updating statistics.
- Test your backups regularly and run integrity checks on the restored databases.
- Implement alerting and monitoring.
Implementing routine updates, backups, and performance monitoring will ensure your SQL Server infrastructure stays optimized and help reduce costs.
3. Partner with experts
If you don’t have the budget or workload for a full-time DBA team, keeping your SQL Servers healthy, reliable, and secure can be a challenge. Often, another IT professional is tasked with doing these activities in addition to their primary job. This is sometimes called the Accidental DBA.
Experienced SQL Server DBAs can help reduce hard and soft costs. They can help improve performance, identify potential issues before they become disruptive events, and increase your security posture.
Companies like The SERO Group can provide experienced DBAs at a fraction of the cost of hiring them yourself. SQL Server consulting companies can:
- Provide a team of DBAs rather than just one, eliminating a single point of failure.
- Reduce your HR and benefits costs.
- Eliminate the need to recruit, onboard, retain, and eventually replace your own DBA.
- Provide vast expertise because they’ve worked in a wide range of environments.
- Share insights and experiences.
Final thoughts
Neglecting your SQL Server infrastructure is not a cost-saving measure; it’s a risk multiplier.
The hidden costs—from performance inefficiencies and hardware over-allocation to downtime and security vulnerabilities—can far outweigh the investment in regular maintenance. By taking an intentional and proactive approach, you can ensure your SQL Server supports your business goals instead of holding them back.
Want to work with us?
Want to learn more about how proactive SQL Server maintenance could benefit your business? Schedule a no-obligation discovery call with us.