Description language for identifying performance issues in event traces

• US 8,499,197 B2
• Filed: 11/15/2010
• Issued: 07/30/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Hsiao, Shuo-Hsien, Ratanchandani, Prashant, Hendrickson, Jason Carl, Russell, Richard G., Teeuwen, Nathan
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, KAMINI B
• Application Number:
  US12/946,228
• Publication Number:
  US 20120124422A1
• Time in Patent Office: 988 Days
• Field of Search: 714/38
• US Class Current: 714/38.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3409 for performance assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3419 by assessing time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3466 Performance evaluation by tracing or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/86 Event-based monitoring

Abstract

A description language and a tool for identifying, analyzing and addressing performance issues in event traces. With this language, a behavior descriptor may be defined to describe a simple behavior within a performance trace, by specifying values for a relatively small number of attributes. Even a relatively unsophisticated user can define behavior descriptors, but complex behaviors may be defined based on interactions between multiple behavior descriptors. A trace analysis tool may use a library of behavior descriptors to identify performance issues in performance traces by matching behavior descriptors to the performance trace. This analysis may be used in any number of ways, including reporting to a user detected performance issues reflected in a set of performance traces, filtering a set of performance traces to remove those performance traces corresponding to known performance issues or prioritizing efforts to resolve performance issues.

Claims

1. A computer-readable memory encoded with computer-executable instructions for performing operations to analyze a performance trace, the operations comprising:

comparing a plurality of behavior descriptors to the performance trace, respective behavior descriptors of the plurality of behavior descriptors comprising a plurality of attributes, the plurality of attributes comprising recognition information characterizing another performance trace that matches that respective behavior descriptor, the recognition information further comprising at least one of a process name, a thread starting function, at least one function on a stack, a pair comprising a start indicator and an end indicator defining an operation of an application, and at least one file name;

determining, based on the comparing, that at least one behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors matches at least one portion of the performance trace; and

in response to determining that the at least one behavior descriptor matches the at least one portion of the performance trace, accessing information on behavior associated with the at least one matching behavior descriptor.

2. The computer-readable memory of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying a hierarchical relationship between at least two behavior descriptors of the plurality of behavior descriptors.

3. The computer-readable memory of claim 1, wherein comparing the plurality of behavior descriptors to the performance trace comprises:

determining that a first behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors matches a first thread that is waiting on a second thread that matches a second behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors; and

in response to determining that the first behavior descriptor matches the first thread that is waiting on the second thread that matches the second behavior descriptor, determining that the first behavior descriptor is waiting on the second behavior descriptor.

4. The computer-readable memory of claim 1, wherein comparing the plurality of behavior descriptors to the trace comprises:

determining that a first behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors calls a second behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors if the performance trace is associated with a component in a call stack and the first behavior descriptor matches a first portion of the performance trace; and

calling, by the component in the call stack, another component in the call stack, wherein the other component is associated with a second portion of the performance trace that matches a second behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors.

5. The computer-readable memory of claim 1, wherein comparing the plurality of behavior descriptors to the trace comprises:

determining that a first behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors matches the performance trace;

determining that a second behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors matches the performance trace, wherein the second behavior descriptor describes a second behavior pattern that is more specific than a first behavior pattern described by the first behavior descriptor; and

in response to determining that the first behavior descriptor matches the performance trace and the second behavior descriptor matches the performance trace, determining that the first behavior descriptor is a superset of the second behavior descriptor.

6. The computer-readable memory of claim 1, wherein the plurality of attributes further comprise identification information for accessing the information on the behavior associated with the at least one matching behavior descriptor and for analyzing the behavior.

7. The computer-readable memory of claim 6, wherein the identification information comprises at least an identifier of a behavior descriptor of the plurality of behavior descriptors, a title of the behavior descriptor, a date associated with a detection of behavior represented by the behavior descriptor, a component associated with the behavior descriptor, or an identifier of an author of the behavior descriptor.

8. The computer-readable memory of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

displaying the information on the behavior associated with the at least one matching behavior descriptor on a display.

9. A method, executed by a processor, of analyzing at least one performance trace using a plurality of behavior descriptors, the method comprising:

comparing a first behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors to the at least one performance trace;

comparing a second behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors to the at least one performance trace;

determining that the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor match the at least one performance trace;

determining a relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor; and

in response to determining that the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor match the at least one performance trace, determining that the at least one performance trace exhibits a behavior associated with the relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor comprises at least one of:

determining a hierarchical relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor; and

determining that a first behavior described by the first behavior descriptor depends on a second behavior described by the second behavior descriptor.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor comprises determining that the first behavior descriptor calls the second behavior descriptor.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor comprises determining that the first behavior descriptor is waiting on the second behavior descriptor.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein determining the relationship between the first behavior descriptor and the second behavior descriptor comprises determining that:

the first behavior descriptor is a superset of the second behavior descriptor; and

/or that

the first behavior descriptor overlaps with the second behavior descriptor.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

identifying at least one performance issue associated with behavior represented by the at least one performance trace; and

determining a solution to address the at least one performance issue based on first information associated with the first behavior descriptor and second information associated with the second behavior descriptor.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

comparing a third behavior descriptor from the plurality of behavior descriptors to the at least one performance trace;

determining a relationship between the second behavior descriptor and the third behavior descriptor including;

determining a hierarchical relationship between the second behavior descriptor and the third behavior descriptor; and

determining that the second behavior described by the second behavior descriptor depends on a third behavior described by the third behavior descriptor.

16. At least one computer-readable memory encoded with computer-executable instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, implement a method for defining at least one behavior descriptor, the method comprising:

receiving first user input specifying recognition information on the at least one behavior descriptor, the recognition information defining characteristics of a trace;

receiving second user input specifying identification information on the at least one behavior descriptor, the identification information identifying information on an event indicative of a match between the at least one behavior descriptor and the trace; and

generating a behavior descriptor based on the first and second user inputs.

17. The at least one computer-readable memory of claim 16, wherein the identification information comprises at least one of an identifier of the at least one behavior descriptor, a title of the at least one behavior descriptor, a date representing when the behavior described in the at least one behavior descriptor was detected, a component associated with the at least one behavior descriptor, and an identifier of an author of the at least one behavior descriptor.

18. The at least one computer-readable memory of claim 16, wherein the recognition information comprising at least one of a process name, a thread starting function, at least one function on a stack, a start and end indicators that define an operation of an application, and at least one file name.

19. The at least one computer-readable memory of claim 16, wherein the first user input and the second user input is received using an XML schema.

20. The at least one computer-readable memory of claim 16, wherein the method further comprises storing the generated behavior descriptor as part of a library of behavior descriptors.