Method and system for monitoring performance of distributed applications

• US 7,934,003 B2
• Filed: 06/03/2008
• Issued: 04/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/07/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Sciacca, Vincenzo, Carusi, Francesco
• Primary Examiner(s): Phillips; Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Liu; Lin
• Application Number:
  US12/132,099
• Publication Number:
  US 20080262797A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,057 Days
• Field of Search: 709223-225
• US Class Current: 709/228
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3006 where the computing system is distributed, e.g. networked systems, clusters, multiprocessor systems multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46; allocation of resources G06F9/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3419 by assessing time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/87 Monitoring of transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/875 Monitoring of systems including the internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/046 comprising network management agents or mobile agents therefor
• 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 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

Method and system for performance monitoring of distributed applications. A sensor intercepts every request of service for a server that is generated on a client. If the request meets a filtering condition (for example, defined by the address of the server, the web page from which the request is originated and/or the selected link) the measuring of a corresponding transaction on the client is enabled; at the same time, the request is updated by inserting a correlator. The request is then transmitted to the server. If the request includes the correlator, the measuring of a sub-transaction originating from the request is also enabled on the server. The parameters measured on the client and on the server are then associated with the correlator.

Claims

1. A method of monitoring performance of distributed applications, comprising:

originating, from a client computer, a service request to a server computer, wherein the originating comprises downloading a document from the server computer, displaying the document, and selecting a link in the document,

in response to verifying that the request includes a predetermined keyword for enabling monitoring of transactions originating from the selected link in the downloaded document, enabling measuring, by an agent module on the client computer, of at least one performance parameter for a transaction corresponding to the request,

generating a correlation identifier for the transaction at the client computer and associating the correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the client computer,

updating the request by inserting the correlation identifier into the request to form a modified request,

transmitting the modified request to the server computer,

in response to receiving a result of the executing of the modified request on the server computer, logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the transaction at the client computer,

in response to receiving, at the server computer, the modified request including the correlation identifier, enabling measuring, by an agent module on the server computer, of at least one performance parameter for a sub-transaction originating from the modified request,

associating the correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the server computer,

executing the sub-transaction,

generating a result of the executing of the sub-transaction,

logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the sub-transaction in a log at the server computer,

transmitting the result of executing the sub-transaction including the correlation identifier to the client computer,

originating, from the server computer at least one further service request to at least one further server computer,

generating a further correlation identifier for the sub-transaction at the server computer and associating the further correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the server computer,

updating the at least one further request by inserting the further correlation identifier into the at least one further request to form a modified further request,

transmitting each at least one modified further request to a corresponding further server computer,

in response to receiving a result of the executing of the modified further request on the further server computer, logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the sub-transaction at the server computer,

in response to receiving, at the further server computer, the further request including the further correlation identifier, enabling measuring, by an agent module on the further server computer of at least one performance parameter for a further sub-transaction originating from the modified further request,

associating the further correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the further server computer,

executing the further sub-transaction,

generating a result of executing the further sub-transaction,

logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the further sub-transaction in a log at the further server computer, and

transmitting the result of executing the further sub-transaction including the further correlation identifier to the server computer.

2. A computer program product comprising a computer program directly loadable into a working memory of a client computer in a data processing system with a distributed architecture for performing a method of monitoring performance of distributed applications, the computer program product comprising:

instructions for originating a service request to a server computer, wherein the originating comprises downloading a document from the server computer, displaying the document, and selecting a link in the document,

in response to verifying that the request includes a predetermined keyword for enabling monitoring of transactions originating from the selected link in the downloaded document, instructions for enabling measuring on the client computer of at least one performance parameter for a transaction corresponding to the request,

instructions for generating a correlation identifier for the transaction at the client computer and associating the correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the client computer,

instructions for updating the request by inserting the correlation identifier into the request to form a modified request,

instructions for transmitting the modified request to the server computer,

instructions for logging, in response to receiving a result of the executing of the modified request on the server computer, the measured at least one performance parameter for the transaction at the client computer,

in response to receiving, at the server computer, the modified request including the correlation identifier, instructions for enabling measuring, by an agent module on the server computer, of at least one performance parameter for a sub-transaction originating from the modified request,

instructions for associating the correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the server computer,

instructions for executing the sub-transaction,

instructions for generating a result of the executing of the sub-transaction,

instructions for logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the sub-transaction in a log at the server computer,

instructions for transmitting the result of executing the sub-transaction including the correlation identifier to the client computer,

instructions for originating, from the server computer at least one further service request to at least one further server computer,

instructions for generating a further correlation identifier for the sub-transaction at the server computer and associating the further correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the server computer,

instructions for updating the at least one further request by inserting the further correlation identifier into the at least one further request to form a modified further request,

instructions for transmitting each at least one modified further request to a corresponding further server computer,

in response to receiving a result of the executing of the modified further request on the further server computer, instructions for logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the sub-transaction at the server computer,

in response to receiving, at the further server computer, the further request including the further correlation identifier, instructions for enabling measuring, by an agent module on the further server computer of at least one performance parameter for a further sub-transaction originating from the modified further request,

instructions for associating the further correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the further server computer,

instructions for executing the further sub-transaction,

instructions for generating a result of executing the further sub-transaction,

instructions for logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the further sub-transaction in a log at the further server computer, and

instructions for transmitting the result of executing the further sub-transaction including the further correlation identifier to the server computer.

3. A data processing system with a distributed architecture for monitoring performance of distributed applications comprising at least one client computer comprising a hardware data processor and at least one server computer comprising another hardware data processor, wherein each at least one client computer comprises a browser module running on the client computer for originating a service request to a server computer, wherein the originating comprises downloading a document from the server computer, displaying the document, and selecting a link in the document, a sensor module running on the client computer for enabling measuring on the client computer of at least one performance parameter for a transaction corresponding to the request, for generating a correlation identifier for the transaction at the client computer, for associating the correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the client computer, and for updating the request by inserting the correlation identifier into the request to form a modified request in response to verifying that the request includes a predetermined keyword for enabling monitoring of transactions originating from the selected link in the downloaded document, a network module running on the client computer for transmitting the modified request to the server computer, and in response to receiving a result of the executing of the modified request on the server computer, the measured at least one performance parameter for the transaction is logged at the client computer;

an agent module on the server computer for enabling measuring of at least one performance parameter for a sub-transaction originating from the modified request in response to receiving, at the server computer, the modified request including the correlation identifier, a server module running on the server computer for associating the correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the server computer, for executing the sub-transaction, for generating a result of the executing of the sub-transaction, and for logging the measured at least one performance parameter for the sub-transaction in a log at the server computer, and a network module for transmitting the result of executing the sub-transaction including the correlation identifier to the client computer;

wherein the server module on the server computer originates at least one further service request to at least one further server computer, generates a further correlation identifier for the sub-transaction at the server computer and associating the further correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the server computer, and updates the at least one further request by inserting the further correlation identifier into the at least one further request to form a modified further request, wherein the network module on the server computer transmits each at least one modified further request to a corresponding further server computer, wherein the server module logs the measured at least one performance parameter for the sub-transaction at the server computer in response to receiving a result of the executing of the modified further request on the further server computer, wherein the further server computer receives the further request including the further correlation identifier, enables measuring of at least one performance parameter for a further sub-transaction originating from the modified further request, associates the further correlation identifier with the at least one performance parameter being measured on the further server computer, executes the further sub-transaction, generates a result of executing the further sub-transaction, logs the measured at least one performance parameter for the further sub-transaction in a log at the further server computer, and transmits the result of executing the further sub-transaction including the further correlation identifier to the server computer.