Command line vs GUI

I always say that database admin is best performed from the command line with scripts. This means that admin is repeatable and the actions are recorded which in turn can improve DBA productivity.

• If you have a single database that you manage, and that’s it, this may seem like overkill, but what happens if you fail the bus test?

• If, on the other hand, you have a full development lifecycle configuration (several unit test, integration, system, user acceptance and performance/OAT environments), then this is critical, as it will be impossible to manage effectively doing all of this by hand.

It is worth considering using db2look to verify that your databases are structurally consistent as you move through each of the testing environments.

The Moral
Striving to get the best performance out of your applications is always high on the priority list but don’t forget that DBA productivity is increasingly important.