Automated Performance Data Management and Collection

• US 20130185021A1
• Filed: 01/13/2012
• Published: 07/18/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Addison, Edward A., DeVal, Peggy A., Lee, Philip R., Wright, Andrew
• Granted Patent: US 9,015,006 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/186
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0709 in a distributed system consisting of a plurality of standalone computer nodes, e.g. clusters, client-server systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/079 Root cause analysis, i.e. error or fault diagnosis in a hardware test environment G06F11/22; in a software test environment G06F11/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3428 Benchmarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3476 Data logging G06F11/14, G06F11/2205 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/87 Monitoring of transactions

Abstract

Performance data for a healthy system is captured and used to create benchmarks that represent behavior of the computing environment in a healthy state. Current behavior (e.g, run-time characteristics) of the computing environment are monitored in an on-going manner, and are compared to the benchmarks. When a benchmark is violated, performance data capture is dynamically and automatically enabled. Or, if performance data is already being captured, then performance data capture may be enabled for a larger subset of possible data. Optionally, performance data capture may be automatically disabled upon detecting that the current behavior of the computing environment has returned to a healthy state where benchmarks are no longer violated.

Claims

1-8. -8. (canceled)

9. A system for dynamically and automatically enabling performance data capture in a computing environment, comprising:

a computer comprising a processor; and

instructions which are executable, using the processor, to implement functions comprising;

iteratively monitoring current run-time characteristics of the computing environment and comparing the current run-time characteristics to previously-recorded information describing characteristics of the computing environment when operating in a healthy state; and

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment is not operating in the healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to begin capturing performance data pertaining to ongoing current run-time characteristics of the computing environment or, if the processor is already capturing the performance data and a further level of detail is available for the capturing, then causing the processor to begin capturing the performance data at the further level of detail.

10. The system according to claim 9, wherein the functions further comprise:

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment has returned to operating in the healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to stop capturing the performance data.

13. The system according to claim 9, wherein programmatically causing the processor to begin capturing performance data, or to begin capturing the performance data at the further level of detail, further comprises programmatically consulting previously-stored settings to determine which performance data to include in the capturing.

14. The system according to claim 9, wherein the current run-time characteristics comprise at least one of CPU usage and workload throughput.

15. The system according to claim 9, wherein the current run-time characteristics comprise at least one of CPU usage, workload throughput, and adherence to metrics defined in a service level agreement.

16. The system according to claim 9, wherein the functions further comprise:

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment has returned to operating in the healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to stop capturing the performance data.

17. The system according to claim 9, wherein:

the comparing further comprises comparing the current run-time characteristics to previously-recorded information describing characteristics of the computing environment when operating in a non-healthy state; and

wherein the functions further comprise;

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment is operating in the non-healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to begin capturing the performance data pertaining to ongoing current run-time characteristics of the computing environment or, if the processor is already capturing the performance data and the further level of detail is available for the capturing, then causing the processor to begin capturing the performance data at the further level of detail.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the previously-recorded information describing characteristics of the computing environment when operating in a non-healthy state comprises a collection of information describing past situations in which performance of the computing environment degraded or failed.

11. A computer program product for dynamically and automatically enabling performance data capture in a computing environment, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therein, the computer readable program code configured for;

iteratively monitoring current run-time characteristics of the computing environment and comparing the current run-time characteristics to previously-recorded information describing characteristics of the computing environment when operating in a healthy state; and

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment is not operating in the healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to begin capturing performance data pertaining to ongoing current run-time characteristics of the computing environment or, if the processor is already capturing the performance data and a further level of detail is available for the capturing, then causing the processor to begin capturing the performance data at the further level of detail.

12. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer readable program code is further configured for:

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment has returned to operating in the healthy state, programmatically consulting the previously-stored settings to determine which performance data to stop capturing and programmatically causing the processor to stop capturing the determined performance data.

19. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein programmatically causing the processor to begin capturing performance data, or to begin capturing the performance data at the further level of detail, further comprises programmatically consulting previously-stored settings to determine which performance data to include in the capturing.

20. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the current run-time characteristics comprise at least one of CPU usage and workload throughput.

21. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the current run-time characteristics comprise at least one of CPU usage, workload throughput, and adherence to metrics defined in a service level agreement.

22. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer readable program code is further configured for:

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment has returned to operating in the healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to stop capturing the performance data.

23. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein:

the comparing further comprises comparing the current run-time characteristics to previously-recorded information describing characteristics of the computing environment when operating in a non-healthy state; and

wherein the computer readable program code is further configured for;

responsive to detecting, from the comparing, that the computing environment is operating in the non-healthy state, programmatically causing the processor to begin capturing the performance data pertaining to ongoing current run-time characteristics of the computing environment or, if the processor is already capturing the performance data and the further level of detail is available for the capturing, then causing the processor to begin capturing the performance data at the further level of detail.

24. The computer program product according to claim 23, wherein the previously-recorded information describing characteristics of the computing environment when operating in a non-healthy state comprises a collection of information describing past situations in which performance of the computing environment degraded or failed.