Iterative bottleneck detector for executing applications

• US 9,323,652 B2
• Filed: 04/18/2013
• Issued: 04/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Garrett, Charles D., Fraser, Christopher W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Van
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huynh, Tina
• Application Number:
  US13/866,022
• Publication Number:
  US 20140013311A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,104 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/1471 involving logging of persistent data for recovery
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/323 Visualisation of programs or trace data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3409 for performance assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3414 Workload generation, e.g. scripts, playback
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3466 Performance evaluation by tracing or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3495 for systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3612 by runtime analysis performance monitoring G06F11/3466
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3624 by performing operations on the source code, e.g. via a compiler
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3636 by tracing the execution of the program
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3688 for test execution, e.g. scheduling of test suites
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/805 Real-time
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/84 Using snapshots, i.e. a logical point-in-time copy of the data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/865 Monitoring of software
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2201/88 Monitoring involving counting
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/443 Optimisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/70 Software maintenance or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/46 Multiprogramming arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/505 considering the load
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks

Abstract

A bottleneck detector may use an iterative method to identify a bottleneck with specificity. An automated checkpoint inserter may place checkpoints in an application. When a bottleneck is detected in an area of an application, the first set of checkpoints may be removed and a new set of checkpoints may be placed in the area of the bottleneck. The process may iterate until a bottleneck may be identified with enough specificity to aid a developer or administrator of an application. In some cases, the process may identify a specific function or line of code where a bottleneck occurs.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of analyzing workloads processed when executing an application in order to identify a bottleneck where time to execute a workload between two checkpoints increases at a greater rate than the load increases, and where the bottleneck is identified with a high degree of specificity even though a relatively small number of checkpoints is spread through the application, the computer-implemented method being performed by one or more processors executing computer executable instructions for the computer-implemented method, and the computer-implemented, method comprising:

identifying a first set of checkpoints in the application;

for each of said first set of checkpoints, establishing a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured;

executing said application in accordance with the workload;

capturing checkpoint identifiers, timestamps, and workload identifiers for the each of said first set of checkpoints;

identifying a bottleneck between said first set of checkpoints;

placing a second set of checkpoints between the checkpoints of said first set of checkpoints;

for said second set of checkpoints, establishing a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured for the checkpoints of said second set of checkpoints;

executing said application in accordance with the workload;

capturing checkpoint identifiers, timestamps, and workload identifiers for each of the checkpoints of said second set of checkpoints;

determining that the bottleneck is between the checkpoints of the second set of checkpoints;

removing or turning off the checkpoints of the first set of checkpoints;

continuing to place successive sets of checkpoints between an immediately previous set of checkpoints and establishing a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured for the checkpoints of each said successive set of checkpoints, with a spacing between newly placed checkpoints being smaller than a spacing between the previous set of checkpoints, then removing or turning off the checkpoints of the previous set of checkpoints; and

re-executing the application in accordance with the workload until the bottleneck is located with a desired degree of specificity.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, said first set of checkpoints and said second set of checkpoints being consecutive checkpoints.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

scanning said application to identify said first set of checkpoints.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, said first set of checkpoints being selected based on function calls with which the application is decorated.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, said function calls comprise changes made to at least one of source code, intermediate code, or binary code of the application.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, said first set of checkpoints being identified by analyzing source code for said application.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, said first set of checkpoints being identified using a label comprising at least a portion of a function name.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, said second set of checkpoints being identified using a label comprising at least a portion of a function name.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, said first set of checkpoints being identified by analyzing intermediate code for said application.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

executing a load generator while executing said application.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10 further comprising:

determining a load factor for a plurality of said timestamps.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11 further comprising:

correlating said load factor to said timestamps for each said checkpoint identifiers.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, said first set of checkpoints being manually inserted in said application.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, said second set of checkpoints being manually inserted in said application.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, said first set of checkpoints being selected from a plurality of checkpoints manually inserted in said application.

16. A computing system comprising:

memory containing executable code;

one or more processors, which, when executing the executable code, cause the computing system to be configured with a system architecture for analyzing workloads processed when executing an application in order to identify a bottleneck where time to execute a workload between two checkpoints increases at a greater rate than the workload increases, and where the bottleneck is identified with a high degree of specificity even though a relatively small number of checkpoints is spread through the application, and wherein the system architecture comprises;

a workload generator that causes the application to execute in accordance with the workload;

a checkpoint inserter that analyzes the application to identify a plurality of locations for checkpoints, and inserts a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured for each inserted checkpoint;

an analyzer that performs the following computer-implemented method;

identifies a first set of checkpoints in the application;

executes said application in accordance with the workload;

captures checkpoint identifiers, timestamps, and workload identifiers for each of said first set of checkpoints;

identifies a bottleneck between said first set of checkpoints;

identifies a second set of checkpoints between the checkpoints of said first set of checkpoints;

executes said application in accordance with the workload;

captures checkpoint identifiers, timestamps, and workload identifiers for the checkpoints of said second set of checkpoints;

determines that the bottleneck is between the checkpoints of the second set of checkpoints;

removes or turns off the checkpoints of the first set of checkpoints; and

continues to identify successive sets of checkpoints between an immediately previous set checkpoints and, with a spacing between newly placed checkpoints being smaller than a spacing between the previous set of checkpoints, then removing or turning off the checkpoints of the previous set of checkpoints; and

re-executes the application in accordance with the workload until the bottleneck is located with a desired degree of specificity.

17. The computing system of claim 16, wherein said checkpoint inserter that scans source code of said application to identify locations for insertion of checkpoints.

18. The computing system of claim 16, wherein said checkpoint inserter scans intermediate code of said application to identify locations for insertion of checkpoints.

19. The computing system of claim 16, wherein each checkpoint function call is a call to an application programming interface for said analyzer.

20. A computing system comprising:

one or more processors;

memory containing executable instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to execute a computer-implemented method of analyzing workloads processed when executing an application in order to identify a bottleneck where time to execute a workload between two checkpoints increases at a greater rate than the workload increases, and where the bottleneck is identified with a high degree of specificity even though a relatively small number of checkpoints is spread through the application, and wherein the computer-implemented method comprises;

identifying a first set of checkpoints in the application;

for each of said first set of checkpoints, establishing a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured;

executing said application in accordance with the workload;

capturing checkpoint identifiers, timestamps, and workload identifiers for the each of said first set of checkpoints;

identifying a bottleneck between said first set of checkpoints;

placing a second set of checkpoints between the checkpoints of said first set of checkpoints;

for said second set of checkpoints, establishing a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured for the checkpoints of said second set of checkpoints;

executing said application in accordance with the workload;

capturing the checkpoint identifiers, timestamps, and workload identifiers for each of the checkpoints of said second set of checkpoints;

determining that the bottleneck is between the checkpoints of the second set of checkpoints;

removing or turning off the checkpoints of the first set of checkpoints;

continuing to place successive sets of checkpoints between an immediately previous set checkpoints and establishing a checkpoint function call that causes a checkpoint identifier and a timestamp to be captured for the checkpoints of each said successive set of checkpoints, with a spacing between newly placed checkpoints being smaller than a spacing between the previous set of checkpoints, then removing or turning off the checkpoints of the previous set of checkpoints; and

re-executing the application in accordance with the workload until the bottleneck is located with a desired degree of specificity.