Systems and methods for response monitoring

• US 20070083647A1
• Filed: 10/25/2005
• Published: 04/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Original Assignee: Citrix Systems, Inc. (Cloud Software Group)
• Inventors: Frost, Simon, Charnel, William
• Granted Patent: US 8,171,127 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3419 by assessing time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/875 Monitoring of systems including the internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/106 using time related information in packets, e.g. by adding timestamps

Abstract

Systems and methods for response monitoring are described. A method of generating a measurement for use in calculating an end-user experience metric in a server-based computing environment includes, transmitting a message from a client of the server-based computing environment to an application executing in a user space provided by an operating system of the server, receiving a graphic response for execution by the client from the application, and determining an amount of time elapsed between the transmission of the message and the conclusion of the execution of the graphic response.

Claims

1. A method of generating a measurement for use in calculating an end-user experience metric in a server-based computing environment, the method comprising:

(a) transmitting a message from a client of the server-based computing environment to an application executing in a user space, the user space being provided by an operating system of the server;

(b) receiving, at the client, a graphic response for execution by the client from the application; and

(c) determining, by the client, an amount of time elapsed between the transmission of the message and the conclusion of the execution of the graphic response.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining an amount of time elapsed between when the client generates and transmits the message.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining an amount of time elapsed between when the client receives the graphic response and detects display of the graphic response.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining an amount of time elapsed between when the server receives the message and transmits the graphic response.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining at least one amount of time elapsed between two modules executing on the server.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising starting a timer executing on the client when the message is transmitted and stopping the timer at the conclusion of the execution of the graphic response.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the application executing on the server comprises a windowless application.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the application executes automatically upon initiation of another application for use by the end-user of the client.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the transmission of the message occurs when the end-user of the client performs a specified task.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising generating an input event by the server, when the server receives the message from the client and forwarding the input event to the application.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the graphic response is generated in response to the application processing the input event.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein the graphic response is generated in response to the application processing the input event and at least one execution task.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphic response is undetectable by the end-user of the client machine.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to change a small number of pixels on a display of the client.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to change a single pixel on a display of the client.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to cycle a pixel on a display of the client through a range of values.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to cycle a pixel change on a display of the client through a range of locations.

18. The method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting the elapsed time from the client to another computing element for use by the another computing element.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising comparing, by the another computing element, the elapsed time to an expected elapsed time.

20. The method of claim 1 further comprising repeating (a)-(c) at a periodic interval.

23. The method of claim 1 wherein the application executes in the same environment and at the same time as other applications executing at the server.

24. The method of claim 1 wherein the server includes an application executing for each client of the server based computer system, each application executing in a user space, the user space being provided by an operating system of the server

21. The method of claim 21 further comprising transmitting each elapsed time measurement to another computing element that calculates an expected value for the elapsed time measurement.

22. The method of claim 22 further comprising comparing a current elapsed time measurement to the expected elapsed time measurement.

25. A system for generating a measurement for use in calculating an end-user experience metric in a server-based computing environment, the system comprising:

(a) a server executing an application in a user space, the user space being provided by an operating system of the server, the application capable of receiving an input and generating a graphic response for execution by the client; and

(b) a client in communication with the server, the client transmitting a message to the server, receiving the graphic response from the server, and calculating an elapsed time between the transmission of the message and the conclusion of the execution of the graphic response.

26. The system of claim 25 wherein the client determines an amount of time elapsed between when the client generates and transmits the message.

27. The system of claim 25 wherein the client determines an amount of time elapsed between when the client receives the graphic response and detects display of the graphic response.

28. The system of claim 25 wherein the client determines an amount of time elapsed between when the server receives the message and transmits the graphic response.

29. The system of claim 25 wherein the client determines at least one amount of time elapsed between two modules executing on the server.

30. The system of claim 25 further comprising a timer in communication with the client, the timer starting when the client transmits the message and stopping at the conclusion of the execution of the graphic response.

31. The system of claim 25 further comprising a confirmation module executing on the server to monitor the status of the application.

32. The system of claim 25 wherein the application is a windowless application.

33. The system of claim 25 further comprising an initiation module that automatically initiates the application upon initiation of another application by the end-user of the client.

34. The system of claim 25 further comprising a generator module in communication with the server, the generator module receiving the message from the client and generating an input event that is transmitted to the application.

35. The system of claim 34 wherein the graphic response is generated in response to the application processing the input event.

36. The system of claim 34 wherein the graphic response is generated in response to the application processing the input event and at least one execution task.

37. The system of claim 25 further comprising another computing element in communication with the client, the another computing element receiving the calculated elapsed time from the client.

38. The system of claim 37 wherein the another computing element comprises a comparator module for comparing the received elapsed time value to an expected value.

39. The system of claim 25 further comprising a triggering module executing on the client, the triggering module initiating transmission of the message to the client when the end-user of the client performs a specified activity.

40. The system of claim 25 further comprising a triggering module executing on the client, the triggering module initiating transmission of the message to the client periodically.

41. The system of claim 40 comprising another computing element in communication with the client, the another computing element receiving the calculated elapsed times from the client and generating an expected value from the received elapsed times.

42. The system of claim 41 wherein the graphic response is undetectable by the end-user of the client machine.

43. The system of claim 25 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to change a small number of pixels on a display of the client.

44. The system of claim 25 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to change a single pixel on a display of the client.

45. The system of claim 25 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to cycle a pixel on the display of the client through a range of values.

46. The system of claim 25 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to cycle a pixel change on the display of the client through a range of locations.

47. The system of claim 25 wherein the application executes in the same environment and at the same time as other applications executing at the server.

48. The system of claim 25 wherein the server includes an application executing for each client of the server based computer system, each application executing in a user space, the user space being provided by an operating system of the server.

49. A computer readable medium having executable instructions thereon to generate a measurement for use in calculating an end-user experience metric in a server-based computing environment, the computer readable medium comprising:

(a) instructions to transmit a message from a client of the server-based computing environment to an application executing in a user space, the user space being provided by an operating system of the server;

(b) instructions to receive, at the client, a graphic response for execution by the client from the application; and

(c) instruction to determine, by the client, an amount of time elapsed between the transmission of the message and the conclusion of the execution of the graphic response.

50. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to determine an amount of time elapsed between when the client generates and transmits the message.

51. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to determine an amount of time elapsed between when the client receives the graphic response and detects display of the graphic response.

52. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to determine an amount of time elapsed between when the server receives the message and transmits the graphic response.

53. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to determine at least one amount of time elapsed between two modules executing on the server.

54. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instruction to start a timer executing on the client when the message is transmitted and stop the timer when the display element is changed.

55. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the application executing on the server comprises a windowless application.

56. The computer readable medium of claim 55 further comprising instructions to automatically initiate the application when the end-user of the client initiates another application.

57. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the instructions to transmit the message includes instruction to transmit the message when the end-user of the client performs a specified task.

58. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to generate an input event by the server when the server receives the message from the client and forward the input event to the application.

59. The computer readable medium of claim 58 further comprising instructions to generate the graphic response when the application processes the input event.

60. The computer readable medium of claim 58 further comprising instructions to generate the graphic response when the application processes the input event and at least one execution task.

61. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the graphic response is undetectable by the end-user of the client machine.

62. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to change a small number of pixels on a display of the client.

63. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to change a single pixel on a display of the client.

64. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to cycle a pixel on a display of the client through a range of values.

65. The computer readable medium of claim 49 wherein the graphic response comprises instructions to cycle a pixel change location on a display of the client through a range of locations.

66. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to transmit the elapsed time from the client to another computing element for use by the another computing element.

67. The computer readable medium of claim 66 further comprising instructions to compare, by the another computing element, the elapsed time to an expected elapsed time.

68. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to repeat instructions (a)-(c) at a periodic interval.

69. The computer readable medium of claim 68 further comprising instructions to transmit each elapsed time measurement to another computing element that calculates an expected value for the elapsed time measurement.

70. The computer readable medium of claim 69 further comprising instructions to compare a current elapsed time measurement to the expected elapsed time measurement.

71. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to execute the application in the same environment and at the same time as other applications on the server.

72. The computer readable medium of claim 49 further comprising instructions to execute and application at the server for each client of the server based computer system, each application executing in a user space, the user space being provided by an operating system of the server