The correct answers are A. CPU usage and B. Memory usage. According to CompTIA DataSys+ objectives, monitoring server health is a foundational responsibility of a database administrator (DBA), and it primarily focuses on core system resources that directly impact database performance, stability, and availability. CPU and memory are the two most critical indicators of overall server health in database environments.
CPU usage reflects how much processing power is being consumed by database queries, background jobs, indexing operations, and concurrent user activity. High or sustained CPU utilization can indicate inefficient queries, missing indexes, blocking processes, or workload spikes. DataSys+ emphasizes CPU monitoring as essential for identifying performance bottlenecks and ensuring the database server can handle current and future workloads.
Memory usage is equally important because databases rely heavily on memory for caching data, query execution plans, and buffering disk I/O. Insufficient available memory can cause excessive disk reads, slower query performance, and system thrashing. DataSys+ materials highlight memory monitoring as a key metric for tuning database configurations and maintaining consistent performance.
Option C, transaction logs, are important for recovery, auditing, and troubleshooting but do not directly indicate overall server health; they reflect database activity rather than system resource status. Option D, network sniffers, are security and diagnostics tools used by network administrators, not standard DBA health metrics. Option E, domain controllers, relate to authentication infrastructure and fall outside the scope of database server health monitoring. Option F, firewall traffic, is relevant to network security monitoring, not internal server performance.
CompTIA DataSys+ clearly differentiates system health metrics (CPU, memory, disk I/O) from security and infrastructure components. For gauging server health effectively, CPU and memory usage provide the most direct, actionable insight. Therefore, A and B are the verified and correct answers.
