Do not let multiple Adaptive Server devices or mirrors use the same partition. Make a list of all partitions used by all Adaptive Servers on the machine and look for duplicates. The $SYBASE/install/RUN_SERVERNAME ($SYBASE/$SYBASE_ASE/install/RUN_SERVERNAME in 12.0 and later) file contains the master device name. Use the stored procedure sp_helpdevice in each Adaptive Server to find all the database devices and mirrors in use by that Adaptive Server.
Having two or more Adaptive Servers on the same machine with two or more Sybase System Administrators increases the likelihood of this problem. Any process logged in as “sybase” can write to that partition since the user “sybase” owns it. To minimize the risk, keep a log of all the partitions in use by UNIX and by Adaptive Server. Establish procedures for updating the log when any configuration changes are made.
As an extra security check, make sure that the permissions for the device are read and write only by the “sybase” user. Then, if another user attempts to write anything to that partition, no damage will occur.
