HPROF: Heap Profiler

HPROF is a simple profiler agent that is shipped with JDK Version 5.0. It is a dynamically-linked library that interfaces to the JVM by using the Java™ Virtual Machine Tools Interface (JVM TI). It writes out profiling information either to a file or to a socket in ASCII or binary format. This information can be further processed by a profiler front-end tool.

HPROF can present processor usage, heap allocation statistics, and monitor contention profiles. In addition, it can output complete heap dumps and report the states of all the monitors and threads in the Java virtual machine. HPROF is useful when you analyze performance, lock contention, memory leaks, and other issues.