Dynamic instrumentation of WSGI applications

• US 9,959,195 B2
• Filed: 04/29/2015
• Issued: 05/01/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Nagaraj, Sanjay, Koepke, Dan
• Primary Examiner(s): WANG, LIANG CHE A
• Application Number:
  US14/699,784
• Publication Number:
  US 20160321163A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,098 Days
• Field of Search: 709202, 709217, 709219, 709224, 709229
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3644 by instrumenting at runtime
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• 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 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata

Abstract

An agent installed on application server having a WSGI web application dynamically instruments that web application. The agent may modify the application via instrumentation such that it can be monitored without specific details of the WSGI application framework. A configuration file may be modified upon detecting a call to the application configuration file through a gateway interface that receives the call. After modifying the configuration file, the modified configuration file is executed in response to the call. Additionally, for subsequent calls to that particular web application, the WSGI gateway will call the modified WSGI configuration file for execution instead of the original WSGI file.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring an application, comprising:

detecting, by an agent on a server, a first call to a web service gateway interface (WSGI) application file from a gateway interface that receives the first call;

accessing, by the agent, a configuration file associated with the WSGI application file;

modifying, by the agent, the configuration file to include WSGI script for intercepting calls for the WSGI application file, wherein modifying the configuration file includes;

generating a new application file, and the new application file includes an existing application file and additional code for monitoring execution of the WSGI application file;

detecting, by the agent, a second call to the WSGI application file; and

in response to detecting the second call, directing the second call to the modified configuration file and executing the modified configuration file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying the configuration file includes instrumenting the configuration file.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising configuring the gateway interface to call the modified configuration file in response to detecting the second call.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first call originates from a remote machine and is first received by the gateway interface.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the gateway interface is a web server gateway interface.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the WSGI script is created by the agent.

7. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program, the program being executable by a processor to perform a method for monitoring an application, the method comprising:

detecting a first call to a web service gateway interface (WSGI) application file from a gateway interface that receives the first call;

accessing a configuration file associated with the WSGI application file;

modifying the configuration file to include WSGI script for intercepting calls for the WSGI application file, wherein modifying the configuration file includes;

generating a new application file, and the new application file includes an existing application file and additional code for monitoring execution of the WSGI application file;

detecting a second call to the WSGI application file; and

in response to detecting the second call, directing the second call to the modified configuration file and executing the modified configuration file.

8. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein modifying the configuration file includes instrumenting the configuration file.

9. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7, further comprising configuring the gateway interface to call the modified configuration file in response to detecting the second call.

10. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the first call originates from a remote machine and is first received by the gateway interface.

11. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the gateway interface is a web server gateway interface.

12. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the WSGI script is created by the agent.

13. A system for monitoring applications, comprising:

an application server including one or more processors and memory; and

one or more modules stored in memory and executable by at least one of the one or more processors to detect a first call to a web service gateway interface (WSGI) application file from a gateway interface that receives the first call;

access a configuration file associated with the WSGI application file;

modify the configuration file to include WSGI script for intercepting calls for the WSGI application file, wherein modifying the configuration file includes;

generating a new application file, and the new application file includes an existing application file and additional code for monitoring execution of the WSGI application file;

detect a second call to the WSGI application file; and

in response to detecting the second call, direct the second call to the modified configuration file and execute the modified configuration file.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein modifying the configuration file includes instrumenting the configuration file.

15. The system of claim 13, the one or more modules further executable to configure the gateway interface to call the modified configuration file in response to detecting the second call.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the first call originates from a remote machine and is first received by the gateway interface.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the gateway interface is a web server gateway interface.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the WSGI script is created by the agent.