Performance issues with multi-user model??

[stevedarcy]

I am currently working on a project where six of us are using the same model concurrently. Our model has now got quite big (we have been working on this project for 18 months) - it's normally about 30meg uncompacted.

We have had some intermittment performance issues recently (input taking a while to catch up with our typing, objects taking 10-20 seconds to appear on our diagrams after selecting them and stamping them on the screen). We have tried a number of things (including renaming our model to use an mdb extension and then compacting it in MSAccess and reducing the number of concurrent users) to improve things, but there seems to be very little correlation between our action and the performance problems.

Has anyone else experienced this? I have a feeling it might be something we're doing, rather than an issue with EA itself, but as I say, it sometimes seems to be running OK when three or four of us are using it at once, but then later in the day it might be problematic when only one person is working.

Any thoughts?

[thomaskilian]

Maybe you could switch to a *real* database (SQL Server, MySql, etc.) and see what performance you get there. Since MS Access has it's limitations, you my have reached them with your current model

[Bruno.Cossi]

Hi,

we have had a 20MB model with about 20 concurrent users with no noticeable performance issues. Exactly as Thomas says though, I would not risk having a model of this size, with a number of concurrent users, stored in MS Access database. I would much recommend going for the Corporate Edition and moving your model to a DBMS-based repository. We have a large model stored in MS SQL Server database, accessed by a number of concurrent users, and have never had any problems with it. Performance is great and, unlike in MS Access, corruption is not really an issue!

Hope this helps!
Bruno

[sargasso]

IIRC Jet 3.5 had some problems that caused this type of behaviour with large dbs (recollection from a previous life - not from EA).  

Are you using JET 3.5 or 4?
If 3.5 is the repository on a Lan server - particularly a Novell Lan?
If so, there are some settings on the LAN that are needed to handle the client side cursors used.  Cant remember what they are sorry.
Also check that the .ldb file is genuinely being deleted after everyone has closed the repository ( a typical network nazi user experience enhancement exercise is to to deny the delete on this lock file).
Finally, its possibly (IIRC and a personal opinion only) a good idea to do a full compact on the repository using MS-Access rather than the EA menu item.  Pack it inot a new file in a completely different area on the LAN and then manually copy it over the shared repository.
hth
bruce