Asynchronous collection and correlation of trace and communications event data

• US 9,037,555 B2
• Filed: 11/12/2009
• Issued: 05/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BMC Software Incorporated (KKR & Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: BMC Software Incorporated (KKR & Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Genest, Gary B., Matharu, Tarlochan S., O'Dowd, John David
• Primary Examiner(s): Ly, Cheyne D
• Application Number:
  US12/617,504
• Publication Number:
  US 20110113117A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,014 Days
• Field of Search: 707/688, 707/703, 709/223, 709/230, 709/313, 709/319
• US Class Current: 707/703
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3476 Data logging G06F11/14, G06F11/2205 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/805 Real-time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/86 Event-based monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/87 Monitoring of transactions
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0631 using root cause analysis; using analysis of correlation between notifications, alarms or events based on decision criteria, e.g. hierarchy, tree or time analysis

Abstract

A transaction processing system that includes a communications bridge between clients and a transaction processing engine provides a way to correlate events associated with the communications bridge and events associated with the transaction processing engine. By passing a unique identification information with the transaction requests and response between the communications bridge and transaction processing engine and including the unique identification information in logging information created by each, a correlation utility may correlate logging information to create a more complete view of the events associated with a transaction, including end-to-end response times.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

modifying, at a bridge computer system operating based on a first address space, a transaction request to include identification data including invoking a utility component, the utility component configured to create and insert a unique identifier into the transaction request and collect first performance data related to processing the transaction request by the bridge computer system;

logging, by the bridge computer system, the first performance data with the unique identifier in a first logging database;

sending, by the bridge computer system, the modified transaction request with the unique identifier to a transaction processing computer to perform the transaction request, the transaction processing computer operating based on a second address space;

logging, by the transaction processing computer, second performance data with the unique identifier in a second logging database, the second performance data being produced during the performance of the transaction request by the transaction processing computer;

correlating, by a correlation computer system, the first performance data and the second performance data using the unique identifier including extracting the unique identifier of the first performance data from the first logging database and locating the second performance data in the second logging database using the extracted unique identifier; and

logging, by the correlation computer system, the correlated first and second performance data in a third logging database such that the correlated first and second performance data in the third logging database is available for performance reporting.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the transaction request from a client in a first format; and

converting the transaction request into a modified transaction request in a second format.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the unique identifier includes both a data name and a timestamp.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

extracting the unique identifier from the modified transaction request; and

storing the unique identifier in the second performance data in the second logging database.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first performance data includes a time of receipt of the transaction request by the bridge computer system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the logging, by the bridge computer system, the first performance data with the unique identifier includes:

transmitting the first performance data to a logging computer associated with the first logging database; and

storing the first performance data in the first logging database by the logging computer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the logging, by the transaction processing computer, the second performance data with the unique identifier includes:

extracting the second performance data from the transaction processing computer; and

storing the second performance data with the unique identifier in the second logging database.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the unique identifier includes a data name and a timestamp, wherein the correlating the first performance data and the second performance data includes:

reading the second performance data from the second logging database;

extracting the unique identifier from the second performance data;

defining a time window based on the time stamp of the unique identifier extracted from the second performance data;

locating the first performance data from the first logging database related to the data name and within the defined time window.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the transaction processing computer is an Information Management System (IMS) computer, the modifying includes converting the transaction request from an Internet-based format into a format compatible with the IMS computer.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the sending includes sending the transaction request from an Information Management System (IMS) connect computer system to an IMS Transaction Manager computer system.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the invoking the utility component includes calling the utility component from an exit point in a communications bridge program, and providing the modified transaction request to the utility component.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the invoking includes:

returning the modified transaction request with the unique identifier to the communications bridge program.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the bridge computer system, a response to the transaction request from the transaction processing computer, the response including the unique identifier;

invoking, by the bridge computer system, the utility component, the utility component configured to collect third performance data related to processing the response to the transaction request by the bridge computer system; and

logging, by the bridge computer system, the third performance data with the unique identifier in the first logging database,

wherein the correlating further includes correlating the first performance data, the second performance data, and the third performance data using the unique identifier.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the second performance data includes a time of initiation of execution of the transaction and a time of completion of the execution of the transaction.

15. A system for correlation of performance data, the system comprising:

an Information Management System (IMS) connect computer system configured to receive a transaction request from a client and modify the transaction request to include identification data, the IMS connect computer system including a utility component configured to create and insert a unique identifier into the transaction request and collect first performance data produced during processing of the transaction request by the IMS connect computer system;

the IMS connect computer system configured to log the first performance data with the unique identifier in a first logging database;

an Information Management System (IMS) computer configured to receive the modified transaction request having the unique identifier, perform the transaction, and transmit a response back to the IMS connect computer system, the response also including the unique identifier inserted by the utility component into the transaction request, the IMS computer including a monitoring component configured to collect second performance data being produced during execution of the transaction by the IMS computer;

the IMS computer configured to log the second performance data with the unique identifier in a second logging database; and

a correlation computer system configured to correlate the first performance data and the second performance data using the unique identifier, the correlation computer system configured to extract the unique identifier of the first performance data from the first logging database and locate the second performance data in the second logging database using the extracted unique identifier,

the correlation computer system configured to log the correlated first and second performance data in a third logging database such that the correlated first and second performance data in the third logging database is available for performance reporting.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the IMS connect computer system configured to log the first performance data includes:

transmitting the first performance data to a logging computer associated with the first logging database; and

storing the first performance data in the first logging database by the logging computer.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the IMS computer configured to log the second performance data with the unique identifier includes:

extracting the second performance data from the IMS system; and

storing the second performance data with the unique identifier in the second logging database.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions, when executed by at least one processor, are configured to cause the at least one processor to:

receive a transaction request from a client;

modify the transaction request to include identification data including creating and inserting a unique identifier into the transaction request and collecting first performance data produced during processing of the transaction request at a first computer system;

log the first performance data with the unique identifier in a first logging database;

send the modified transaction request having the unique identifier to a second computer system;

receive, at the second computer system, the modified transaction request and perform the transaction;

collect second performance data being produced during execution of the transaction at the second computer system;

log the second performance data with the unique identifier in a second logging database;

correlate the first performance data and the second performance data using the unique identifier including extracting the unique identifier of the first performance data from the first logging database and locating the second performance data in the second logging database using the extracted unique identifier; and

log the correlated first and second performance data in a third logging database such that the correlated first and second performance data in the third logging database is available for performance reporting.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions to log the first performance data include:

transmit the first performance data to a logging computer associated with the first logging database; and

store the first performance data in the first logging database by the logging computer.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions to log the second performance data with the unique identifier include:

extract the second performance data from the second computer system; and

store the second performance data with the unique identifier in the second logging database.