Method to display information representing network traffic on a computer display monitor

• US 6,584,501 B1
• Filed: 02/03/1999
• Issued: 06/24/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Dynatrace LLC (Dynatrace, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Compuware Corporation (KKR & Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Graham-Cumming, John, Weil, Jacob, Schaffer, Steven J., Koulman, Willem A., Cartsonis, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Najjar, Saleh
• Application Number:
  US09/244,274
• Time in Patent Office: 1,602 Days
• Field of Search: 709/223, 709/224, 370/233, 370/234, 370/241-245, 370/250-254
• US Class Current: 709/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/045 for graphical visualisation of monitoring data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/06 Generation of reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/18 Protocol analysers

Abstract

A user interface and computer-implemented method for analyzing and displaying network traffic performance assessment data in a computer network. Packet trace data is organized into application-level threads for display in a visual thread diagram. The user can manipulate the visual thread diagram to configure it in a number of ways in a dynamic manner.

Claims

1. A user interface of a computer system for analyzing network traffic in a computer network having a plurality of nodes, the user interface comprising:

a time axis listing a plurality of times; and

a plurality of thread graphics, each thread graphic associated with a thread comprising a group of packets transmitted between two nodes, each packet having a time, each thread graphic extending from a position representing a first time of a first packet in the associated thread to a position representing a second time of a last packet in the associated thread, wherein a first thread graphic of a plurality of thread graphics represents a first group of packets that form a first discrete transaction between the two nodes and wherein the first discrete transaction is a first application-level communication between the two nodes.

2. The user interface of claim 1, wherein each thread graphic extends in a direction parallel to the time axis.

3. The user interface of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of thread names listed along a second axis perpendicular to the time axis, each thread name associated with one of the threads;

and wherein;

the plurality of thread names is listed according to a sequence; and

the plurality of thread graphics is displayed according to the sequence of thread names.

4. The user interface of claim 3, wherein the sequence of thread names is user-selectable.

5. The user interface of claim 1, wherein each thread graphic has a color indicative of an amount of data in the associated thread.

6. The user interface of claim 1, wherein each thread graphic has a color indicative of a total number of packets in the associated thread.

7. The user interface of claim 1, wherein each thread graphic has a color indicative of a characteristic of the associated thread.

8. The user interface of claim 1, wherein responsive to user selection of one of the plurality of thread graphics, the user interface displays additional information describing the associated thread.

9. The user interface of claim 1, further comprising at least one thread group graphic associated with a thread group comprising a plurality of threads, the at least one thread group graphic extending from a position representing a time of a first packet of a first thread in the associated thread group to a position representing a time of a last packet in a last thread in the associated thread group.

10. The user interface of claim 9, wherein contents of each thread group graphic are user-selectable.

11. The user interface of claim 1, wherein the first group of packets is collected from a stream of packets.

12. The user interface of claim 11, wherein the stream of packets includes a second group of packets.

13. The user interface of claim 12, including identifying the first group of packets that form the first discrete transaction by making a protocol-specific determination.

14. The user interface of claim 13, wherein the protocol-specific determination includes an event type.

15. The user interface of claim 1, wherein the first group of packets is determined by user-definable criteria.

16. A user interface of a computer system for analyzing network traffic in a computer network having a plurality of nodes, the user interface comprising:

a time axis listing a plurality of times, each in a position;

a plurality of thread names listed according to a sequence, in an arrangement perpendicular to the time axis, each thread name associated with a thread comprising at least one group of packets transmitted between two nodes and forming a discrete transaction between the two nodes, each packet having a time, wherein each discrete transaction is an application-level communication between the two nodes; and

each thread name associated with a thread graphic displayed in alignment with the thread name, and beginning in a first position corresponding to a position on the time axis representing a first time of a first packet in the associated thread and extending parallel to the time axis to a second position corresponding to a position on the time axis representing a second time of a last packet in the associated thread.

17. A computer-implemented method of displaying on a computer display monitor information representing network traffic on a network including a plurality of nodes, the method comprising:

receiving packet trace data for a plurality of packets transmitted among nodes of the network;

extracting from the packet trace data a plurality of threads, each thread comprising at least one group of packets transmitted between two nodes;

displaying a time axis listing a plurality of times; and

displaying, for each thread, a thread graphic extending from a position representing a first time of a first packet in the thread to a position representing a second time of a last packet in the thread, wherein the at least one group of packets forms a discrete transaction between the two nodes, and wherein the discrete transaction is an application-level communication between the two nodes.

18. The method of claim 17 including identifying the first group of packets that form the first discrete transaction by making a protocol-specific determination.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein each thread graphic extends in a direction parallel to the time axis, the method further comprising:

displaying according to a sequence, a plurality of thread names listed along a second axis perpendicular to the time axis, each thread name associated with one of the plurality of threads; and

displaying the plurality of thread graphics according to the sequence of thread names.

20. The method of claim 19, including accepting user selection of a sequence for thread name display.

21. The method of claim 17, including displaying each thread graphic with a color indicative of a total amount of data in the associated thread.

22. The method of claim 17, including displaying each thread graphic with a color indicative of a total number of packets in the associated thread.

23. The method of claim 17, including displaying each thread graphic with a color indicative of a characteristic of the associated thread.

24. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

responsive to user selection of one of the thread graphics, displaying additional information describing the associated thread.

25. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

displaying at least one thread group graphic associated with a thread group comprising a plurality of threads, the at least one thread group graphic extending from a position representing a time of a first packet of a first thread in the associated thread group to a position representing a time of a last packet in a last thread in the associated thread group.

26. The user interface of claim 25, further comprising accepting user definition of the thread group as including a user-selected group of threads.

27. A computer-implemented method of displaying on a computer display monitor information representing network traffic on a network including a plurality of nodes, the method comprising:

receiving packet trace data for a plurality of packets transmitted among nodes of the network;

organizing the packet trace data into a plurality of packets transmitted among nodes of the network;

displaying a time axis listing a plurality of times spaced apart, each in a position; and

displaying a plurality of thread names listed according to a sequence, in an arrangement perpendicular to the time axis, each thread name associated with a thread comprising at least one group of packets transmitted between two nodes and forming a discrete transaction between the two nodes, each packet having a time, wherein the discrete transaction is an application-level communication between two nodes,

wherein each thread name is associated with a thread graphic displayed in alignment with the thread name, and beginning in a first position corresponding to a position on the time axis representing a first time of a first packet in the associated thread and extending parallel to the time axis to a second position corresponding to a position on the time axis representing a second time of a last packet in the associated thread.