System and method for transaction recording and playback

• US 20030131008A1
• Filed: 12/24/2001
• Published: 07/10/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: K.Mizra LLC
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Paulin, Jean Marc
• Granted Patent: US 7,363,368 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

The system and method of the present invention comprises functionality to record the steps of a user'"'"'s navigation transaction and to subsequently play back those steps to determine service availability and levels. The present invention comprises a method for recording a user'"'"'s steps in a navigation transaction by retrieving an information resource and calculating service level thresholds and the time required to retrieve the information resource. The service level thresholds and parameters regarding the information resource is recorded in a transaction data file as a step comprising the navigation transaction.

The present invention also comprises a method for playing back one or more steps executed by a user as part of a navigation transaction, the navigation transaction stored in a transaction data file. The method for playing back one or more steps executed by a user as part of a navigation transaction comprises identifying a first step within the transaction, executing the first step by attempting to retrieve an information resource identified by the step, and returning a level of service for a server hosting the information resource identified by the step.

Claims

1. A method for recording a user'"'"'s steps in a transaction, the method comprising:

retrieving an information resource as a step in the transaction;

capturing service level thresholds and the time required to retrieve the information resource; and

recording the service level thresholds and parameters regarding the information resource in a transaction data file in a form configured to support playback of the transaction.

2. The method of claim 1 comprising aborting the step of retrieving when a timeout threshold is exceeded.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein recording parameters comprises recording an address and port of the information resource.

4. The method of claim 1 comprising generating conditional logic used to instruct service software as to a correct service level code to return based on the service software'"'"'s time to retrieve the information resource.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein generating conditional logic comprises generating conditional logic defining service levels of GOOD, MARGINAL, and FAILED.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein recording comprises recording the step information in a hierarchy, each step comprising an entry in the hierarchy with the transaction being a top level of the hierarchy.

7. A method for testing a level of service of a navigation transaction, the method comprising:

identifying a first step within the transaction from a stored transaction data file;

executing the first step by attempting to retrieve an information resource identified by the step; and

returning a level of service for a server hosting the information resource identified by the step.

8. The method of claim 7 comprising:

identifying one or more subsequent steps within the transaction;

executing the one or more subsequent steps by attempting to retrieve information resources identified by the subsequent one or more steps;

returning levels of service for servers hosting the information resources identified in the subsequent one or more steps.

9. The method of claim 8 comprising calculating an amount of time to execute the first step.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of returning the level of service comprises calculating the level of service based on the amount of time required to execute the first step.

11. A system for testing a level of service for a transaction, the system comprising:

transaction recorder software operative to capture service level thresholds and time required to retrieve a requested information resource, the transaction recorder software further operative to generate conditional logic used to instruct service software as to a correct service level code to return based on the service software'"'"'s captured time to retrieve the information resource; and

service software operative to attempt to retrieve the requested information resource and return a level of service defined by the conditional logic based on the amount of time required to retrieve the information resource.