Database audit services
Find out why you can’t trust your data.
Our database audit services are for companies with slow reports, records that don’t add up or integrations that fail for no obvious reason. We review structure, data quality, slow queries, backups and the apps that use the database, then give you a ranked list of fixes your developers can act on.
What our database audit services cover
Context
We find out which database you use, who looks after it and which processes suffer, and agree safe read-only access.
Structure and data quality
We check tables, IDs, duplicates and gaps, and trace key metrics back to the records they come from.
Speed and integrations
We look at the slowest queries and the integrations that fail, and find out why.
Fix list
We split fixes into data clean-up, database changes and app changes, and say who should do each and how to check it worked.
What the audit report contains
- A written review of what is wrong and why.
- A prioritised fix list, with who should do each fix.
- Checks to confirm that each fix worked.
Signs your database needs an audit
- Reports that used to take seconds now take minutes, especially at the end of the month.
- The same figure differs between the CRM, the accounting system and a report.
- Integrations fail at night and someone restarts them by hand.
- Nobody is sure the backups can actually be restored.
- The developer who built it has left, and changes feel risky.
Database performance audit or data quality audit?
A performance audit looks at why the database is slow: query plans, indexes, locks, server settings and how the application talks to the database. A data quality audit looks at whether you can trust what is stored: duplicates, gaps, broken links between tables and fields used differently by different teams.
The symptoms often overlap, so we usually cover both briefly and go deep where the problem is. If only one matters to you, the audit is narrower.
What this can look like
Reports disagree because customer IDs and order statuses are recorded differently in two places. We trace the tables and transformations, document the mismatch and list the changes that bring back one consistent definition.
Who a database audit is for
A good fit
- Companies whose reports are slow, numbers don’t match or integrations break for no visible reason.
- Teams that inherited a database from a previous developer and don’t fully know how it works.
- Businesses planning a new app, dashboards or AI on top of an existing database.
Not the right fit
- A brand-new project with no database yet: start with database design.
- An emergency outage right now. The audit is a planned review; in an emergency your hosting or developer has to act first.
What affects the cost of database audit services
We quote cost and timing in EUR after a first look at the database. These factors matter:
Size and structure
Dozens of tables are a quicker review than hundreds with years of added columns.
Applications around it
Every app, integration and report that uses the database adds queries to trace.
Access
Live read-only access lets us measure real workloads; exports allow only part of the review.
Depth
A short health check or a detailed review with test fixes on a copy.
We’ll quote cost and timing in EUR after a short brief.Discuss a database audit
Problems we find most often
- Missing indexes on the columns every report filters by.
- The application sends hundreds of small queries where one would do.
- No foreign keys, so orders point to customers that no longer exist.
- Heavy reports running on the production database at peak hours.
- Backups that run every night but have never been test-restored.
How the audit runs, from symptoms to a fix list
Each stage ends with something you can check before we continue.
Brief
We agree which problems to investigate, which database and environments are involved and how we get safe read-only access.
Data review
We review the structure, data quality and slow queries, and record every finding with an example.
Build and check
We group the findings into data clean-up, database changes and app changes, and rank them by impact.
Handover and review
We walk your team through the report, answer questions and, if you wish, help plan or carry out the fixes.
What we need from you
Read-only access to the database or a recent copy, a description of the problems you see, examples of slow reports or wrong numbers, and contact with the developer or admin who knows the system.
We also need someone who knows the history of the database: why tables were added and which apps depend on them. Without that context, some findings cannot be judged.
We don’t change live data or delete records without a written plan, a backup and your approval. Reports show what your sources contain; where data is missing, we say so instead of filling the gap with guesses.
Database audits: common questions
Will the audit itself make the database faster?
No, the audit only reads and measures. It gives you a ranked list of fixes with the expected effect of each. We can then make the changes with your team, starting with those that help most for the least risk.
Do you change the production database during the audit?
No. The audit only reads data. Any change comes later, as a separate step with a backup, a release plan and a check agreed with whoever looks after the system.
Can the audit use exported samples?
Partly. Structure and data quality can be reviewed from exports. Speed and live integration problems usually need access to the working system, and the report says clearly what could not be checked.
Which databases do you audit?
Common relational databases such as PostgreSQL, MySQL and Microsoft SQL Server, and the integrations around them. If you use something less common, we say at the start whether we can review it properly.
Read before you start
Short practical guides on the same subject.
- Since 2006
- Written scope before work starts
- One contact person
- Reply within 24 hours
Which reports are slow or unreliable?
Describe the database, the apps that use it and what goes wrong. We’ll reply with questions and a suggested first step.
The first conversation is free, with no obligation.