Configuring Tivoli Performance Viewer settings

You can configure user and logging settings of the Tivoli® Performance Viewer. Configuring the Tivoli Performance Viewer settings affects the performance of your application server.

• Configure the Tivoli Performance Viewer user settings.
  1. Click Monitoring and Tuning > Performance Viewer > Current Activity > server_name > Settings > User in the console navigation tree.
     To see the User link on the Tivoli Performance Viewer page, expand the Settings node of the Tivoli Performance Viewer navigation tree.
     After clicking User, the Tivoli Performance Viewer user settings are displayed.
  2. Change the values as needed for the user settings.
     The settings are described briefly in the following table and in more detail in the Tivoli Performance Viewer settings.

     Setting	Description
     Refresh Rate	Specifies how frequently Tivoli Performance Viewer collects performance data for a server from the Performance Monitoring Infrastructure (PMI) service provided by that server. The default is 30 seconds. To collect performance data for the server more frequently, set the refresh rate to a smaller number. To collect performance data less frequently, set the refresh rate to a larger number. The allowed range is 5 to 500 seconds.
     Buffer Size	Specifies the number of entries to be stored for a server. Data displayed in Tivoli Performance Viewer is stored in a short in-memory buffer. After the buffer is full, each time a new entry is retrieved the oldest entry is discarded. The default buffer size is 40 entries. Supported values are 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 and 100. The larger the buffer size, the more memory is consumed. Thus, specify a buffer size that allows you capture enough monitoring data for analysis without wasting memory storing unneeded data.
     View Data As	Specifies how counter values are displayed. Viewing options include the following: Raw Value Displays the absolute value. If the counter represents load data, such as the average number of connections in a database pool, then Tivoli Performance Viewer displays the current value followed by the average. For example, 18 (avg:5). Change in Value Displays the change in the current value from the previous value. Rate of Change Displays the ratio change/(T1 - T2), where change is the change in the current value from the previous value, T1 is the time when the current value was retrieved, and T2 is the time when the previous value was retrieved.

     The refresh rate and buffer size settings combine to control how much temporal history you have for the application server. The default values for Refresh Rate (30 seconds) and Buffer Size (40 entries) provide you with a 20-minute history of the application server's performance. Changing one of these parameters affects the length of the temporal history.

     The values you set for Refresh Rate and Buffer Size depend on your use of Tivoli Performance Viewer. To diagnose a known problem on a test machine, you might poll data more frequently while having a decreased buffer size. To monitor a production server, you might poll data less frequently and specify a buffer size depending on how much history you want. However, Tivoli Performance Viewer is not intended to be a full-time monitoring solution.

  3. Click Apply.
• Configure the Tivoli Performance Viewer log settings.
  The log settings control what happens when Start Logging is clicked in, for example, a summary report on the performance of a servlet, enterprise bean (EJB), EJB method, connection pool or thread pool.
  1. Click Monitoring and Tuning > Performance Viewer > Current Activity > server_name > Settings > Log in the console navigation tree.
     To see the Log link on the Tivoli Performance Viewer page, expand the Settings node of the Tivoli Performance Viewer navigation tree.
     After clicking Log, the Tivoli Performance Viewer log settings are displayed.
  2. Change the values as needed for the log settings.
     The following table describes the settings in the Tivoli Performance Viewer settings.

     Setting	Description
     Duration	Specifies the length of time, in minutes, that logging continues, unless Stop Logging is clicked first. Tivoli Performance Viewer is not intended as a full-time logging solution.
     Maximum File Size	Specifies the maximum size, in megabytes, of a single file. Note that Tivoli Performance Viewer automatically zips log files to save space and this parameter controls the pre-zipped file size and not the post-zipped, which is smaller.
     Maximum Number of Historical Files	Specifies the number of files Tivoli Performance Viewer writes before stopping. If Tivoli Performance Viewer reaches the maximum file size before the logging duration ends, it continues logging in another file, up to the maximum. If Tivoli Performance Viewer reaches the maximum number of historical files before the logging duration ends, Tivoli Performance Viewer deletes the oldest historical file and continues logging in a new file. The total amount of data that is stored is constrained by the Maximum File Size and Maximum Number of Historical Files parameters.
     File Name	Specifies the name of the log file. The server name and the time at which the log is started is appended to the log name to help users identify a log file.
     Log Output Format	Specifies whether Tivoli Performance Viewer writes log files as XML or in a binary format. Binary format provides a smaller log file when uncompressed and is recommended if space is a consideration.

  3. Click Apply.