Systems and methods for organizing and storing data

• US 20060265192A1
• Filed: 05/03/2005
• Published: 11/23/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP (Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Company)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Turicchi, Thomas E. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 7,895,012 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/187
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3409 for performance assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3466 Performance evaluation by tracing or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/81 Threshold
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/88 Monitoring involving counting

Abstract

In one embodiment there is disclosed a method for tracking usage of system components such that for each system component to be tracked the value of that component is measured on a successive time unit basis and the measured value is stored together with the number of successive time units that value repeats. In another embodiment a system for handling data representative of system conditions is disclosed in which rapidly changing data values are received from at least one of the monitored sources such that each data value is representative of system conditions with respect to a small period of time; and such that the data is compressed while preserving the data values for each of the small periods of time.

Claims

1. A method for tracking system measurement parameters, said method comprising:

for each parameter to be tracked, measuring the value of said parameter on a successive time unit basis; and

storing said measured value together with the number of successive time units said value repeats.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a measuring metric for each said such measurement parameter.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

quantizing the actual measured value for certain of said measurement parameters.

4. A system for handling data representative of system conditions, said system comprising:

means for receiving rapidly changing data values from at least one source being monitored;

each said data value representative of system conditions with respect to a small period of time; and

means for run-length encoding said data values so as to preserve said data values for each said small period of time.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein said small period of time is under one minute.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein said small period of time is under 20 seconds.

7. The system of claim 4 wherein said compressing means comprises:

means for quantizing certain of said data prior to said compression.

8. The system of claim 4 further comprising:

means for converting said data into a format wherein a value representative of the value of said data is presented together with a particular value representing the number of consecutive times that particular value appears in received ones of said data.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising:

means for storing said presented data.

10. The system of claim 8 further comprising:

means for analyzing said presented data.

11. A computer system having a number of components each having parameters to be monitored, said system comprising:

storage for receiving a string of values representative of measured parameters with respect to certain of said components;

a process for converting received ones of said string of values into a run length string; and

wherein certain of said component parameters are measurable directly as integer quantities and others of said component parameters must be quantized into integer parameters, said computer system further comprising;

a process for quantizing said others of said parameters prior to said converting.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the number of CPUs allocated to a workgroup for a period of time is represented as an integer number, or as a fractional or floating point number to be quantized.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the number of CPUs requested by or on behalf of a workgroup for a period of time is represented as an integer number, or as a fractional or floating point number to be quantized.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein the CPU utilization of a workgroup for a period of time is represented as an integer number, or as a fractional or floating point number to be quantized.

15. The system of claim 11 wherein the run queue length of the system or of a workgroup for a period of time is represented as an integer number, or as a fractional or floating point number to be quantized.

16. The system of claim 11 wherein said period of time is variable.

17. The system of claim 11 wherein said quantizing comprises:

assigning each measurement a value, said values corresponding to ranges, each said range having a lower limit and an upper limit.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein said period of time is 15 seconds.

19. The system of claim 17 wherein said ranges are selected from the list of:

10%, 15%, 20%.

20. A method for handling data values, said method comprising:

receiving rapidly changing data values from at least one computer resource, each said data value representative of a parameter of said resource with respect to a small period of time;

separating said data values into data values that can be compressed directly and data values that must first be quantized; and

quantizing said data values that must be quantized;

said quantized data values yielding data values that can be compressed directly.

21. The method of claim 20 further comprising:

compressing said data values that can be compressed while preserving said data values for each said small period of time.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein said small period of time is under one minute.

23. The method of claim 21 wherein said small period of time is under 20 seconds.

24. The method of claim 21 wherein said compressing comprises run length encoding said data values.

25. The method of claim 21 further comprising:

converting said data values into a format wherein a value representative of the value of said data is presented together with a particular value representing the number of consecutive times that particular value appears in received ones of said data.

26. The method of claim 21 further comprising:

storing said compressed data.

27. The method of claim 21 further comprising:

calculating how long a metric exceeded a threshold value.

28. A computer program product stored on a computer readable media, said computer program product comprising:

code for controlling the receipt of rapidly changing data values from at least one computer resource, each said data value representative of a parameter of said resource with respect to a small period of time;

code for controlling the separation of said data values into data values that can be compressed directly and data values that must first be quantized; and

code for controlling the quantizing of said data values that must be quantized;

said quantized data values yielding data values that can be compressed directly.

29. The computer program product of claim 28 further comprising:

code for controlling the compression of said data values that can be compressed while preserving said data values for each said small period of time.

30. The computer program product of claim 29 further comprising:

code for controlling the conversion of said data values into a format wherein a value representative of the value of said data is presented together with a particular value representing the number of consecutive times that particular value appears in received ones of said data.