System and method for dynamically analyzing and improving the performance of a network

• US 5,742,819 A
• Filed: 11/27/1996
• Issued: 04/21/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Digital Equipment Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Caccavale, Frank Samuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Heckler, Thomas M.
• Application Number:
  US08/757,393
• Time in Patent Office: 510 Days
• Field of Search: 395/616, 395/621, 395/445, 395/460, 395/486
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/32 with visual or acoustical indication of the functioning of the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/323 Visualisation of programs or trace data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/328 Computer systems status display G06F11/327 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3419 by assessing time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3433 for load management allocation of a server based on load conditions G06F9/505; load rebalancing G06F9/5083; redistributing the load in a network by a load balancer H04L67/1029
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3452 Performance evaluation by statistical analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/0866 for peripheral storage systems, e.g. disk cache
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/805 Real-time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/885 Monitoring specific for caches
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2212/601 Reconfiguration of cache memory
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/12 Network monitoring probes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing

Abstract

In a method and system for dynamically improving the performance of a server in a network, a tuning system monitors a workload of the server in real time, monitors a set of internal performance characteristics of the server in real time, and monitors a set of adjustable server parameters of the server in real time. The workload of the server may include the frequency and type of service requests received by the server from clients in the network. The internal server performance characteristics may include, for example, a data cache hit ratio of a data cache in the server. The set of server parameters may include, for example, the overall data cache size or the data cache geometry of the server. The tuning system periodically alters one or more of the set of adjustable server parameters as a function of the workload and internal performance characteristics of the server. Since the tuning system is continuously monitoring workload and performance characteristics of the server and altering the server parameters accordingly, the effectiveness of a given change in the server parameters is reflected in the next set of monitored workload and performance values.

Claims

1. A method of operating an open file cache that maintains files open after their closing has been requested, each file being so maintained for an open file close delay W_d after its closing has been requested, the method comprising the steps of:

periodically determining (1) a number F_o of open files, (2) a number F_i of idle files, (3) a number F_a of active files, and (4) a number F_ia of files that have changed from idle to active during the most recent period; and

for the following cases of the set of numbers {F_o, F_i, F_a, F_ia }, performing the corresponding steps as follows;

{0, 0, 0, 0};

setting the value of W_d to be a default value W_d0 ;

{>

0, 0, >

0, 0};

setting the value of W_d to be W_d 0 ;

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the first number of preceding periods is three and the second number of preceding periods is five.

2. {>

0. >

0, >

0, 0};

if the set of numbers {F_o, F_i, F_a, F_ia } has equaled {>

0, >

0, >

0, 0} for at least a first number of preceding periods, then increasing the value of W_d to be a random number greater than the current value of W_d and less than (5*W_d0), and if the value of W_d has been so increased for at least a second number of preceding periods, then setting the value of W_d to W_d0 ;

{>

0, >

0, >

0, >

0};

if the value of W_d was not increased in the most recent interval, then increasing the value of W_d to be a random number greater than the current value of W_d and less than (5*W_d0); and

{else};

leaving W_d at its current value.