Mechanism for animated load graph analysis of system metrics

• US 20070262994A1
• Filed: 05/10/2006
• Published: 11/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Bolano, Gabriel, Meighan, Sean
• Application Number:
  US11/432,884
• Publication Number:
  US 20070262994A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/473
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/12 Discovery or management of network topologies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/147 for predicting network behaviour
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method and apparatus for animated load graph analysis of system metrics is disclosed. The method includes plotting system metric data of components for three dimensions in a two-dimensional graph for a plurality of distinct time periods, wherein a Z-axis of the three dimensions is represented in the two-dimensional graph by colors that each indicate a frequency of an occurrence at an intersection of a X- and a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph, and animating the two-dimensional graph by portraying the system metric data for the plurality of distinct periods of time in a sequential order beginning with the earliest time period of the distinct periods of time. Other embodiments are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

plotting system metric data of components for three dimensions in a two-dimensional graph for a plurality of distinct time periods, wherein a Z-axis of the three dimensions is represented in the two-dimensional graph by colors that each indicate a frequency of an occurrence at an intersection of a X- and a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph; and

animating the two-dimensional graph by portraying the system metric data for the plurality of distinct periods of time in a sequential order beginning with the earliest time period of the distinct periods of time.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising gathering the system metric data in specified time intervals by executing a shell script at the components being monitored.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising performing capacity planning for the components based on information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph includes the shape and slope of a data cloud in the animated two-dimensional graph.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the components include one or more servers providing processing capability to one or more clients communicatively connected to the one or more servers over a network.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein an X-axis of the two-dimensional graph represents the number of clients associated with a server of the one or more servers.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph represents a server load experienced by a server of the one or more servers.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining at least one of runaway processes, input/output bound of a workload, processor bound of a workload, and work patterns for the components based on information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph.

9. An article of manufacture, comprising a machine-accessible medium including data that, when accessed by a machine, cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

plotting system metric data of components for three dimensions in a two-dimensional graph for a plurality of distinct time periods, wherein a Z-axis of the three dimensions is represented in the two-dimensional graph by colors that each indicate a frequency of an occurrence at an intersection of a X- and a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph; and

animating the two-dimensional graph by portraying the system metric data for the plurality of distinct periods of time in a sequential order beginning with the earliest time period of the distinct periods of time.

10. The article of manufacture of claim 9, further comprising gathering the system metric data in specified time intervals by executing a shell script at the components being monitored.

11. The article of manufacture of claim 9, further comprising performing capacity planning for the components based on information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph.

12. The article of manufacture of claim 11, wherein the information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph includes the shape and slope of a data cloud in the animated two-dimensional graph.

13. The article of manufacture of claim 9, wherein the components include one or more servers providing processing capability to one or more clients communicatively connected to the one or more servers over a network.

14. The article of manufacture of claim 13, wherein an X-axis of the two-dimensional graph represents a number of clients associated with a server of the one or more servers and a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph represents a server load experienced by a server of the one or more servers.

15. The article of manufacture of claim 9, further comprising determining at least one of runaway processes, input/output bound of a workload, processor bound of a workload, and work patterns for the components based on information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph.

16. An apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of components in a network architecture; and

a central management server in the network architecture communicatively connected to the plurality of components, the central management server to;

plot system metric data of components for three dimensions in a two-dimensional graph for a plurality of distinct time periods, wherein a Z-axis of the three dimensions is represented in the two-dimensional graph by colors that each indicate a frequency of an occurrence at an intersection of a X- and a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph; and

animate the two-dimensional graph by portraying the system metric data for the plurality of distinct periods of time in a sequential order beginning with the earliest time period of the distinct periods of time.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the central management system further to:

gather the system metric data in specified time intervals by executing a shell script at the components being monitored; and

perform capacity planning for the components based on information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the components include one or more servers providing processing capability to one or more clients communicatively connected to the one or more servers over a network.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein an X-axis of the two-dimensional graph represents a number of clients associated with a server of the one or more servers and a Y-axis of the two-dimensional graph represents a server load experienced by a server of the one or more servers.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the central management server further to determine at least one of runaway processes, input/output bound versus processor bound of a workload, and work patterns for the components based on information obtained from the animated two-dimensional graph.