Tuning the application serving environment

Use this topic to understand the benefits of tuning for optimal performance. Learn about the tunable parameters of the major WebSphere® Application Server components and how these parameters affect performance.

Before you begin

WebSphere Application Server provides tunable settings for its major components so that you can adjust the runtime environment to match the characteristics of your application. Applications can run successfully without changing the default values for these tuning parameters. Other applications might need changes, for example, a larger heap size, to achieve optimal performance.

Performance tuning can yield significant gains in performance even if an application is not optimized for performance. However, correcting shortcomings of an application typically results in higher performance gains than are possible with just altering tuning parameters. Many factors contribute to a high performing application.

About this task

  • [z/OS]For your convenience, procedures for tuning parameters in other products, such as DB2®, web servers and operating systems are included. Because these products might change, consider these descriptions as suggestions.

    Each WebSphere Application Server process has parameters that influence application performance. You can use the WebSphere Application Server administrative console to configure and tune applications, web containers, Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) containers, application servers, and nodes in the administrative domain.

Procedure

  1. Run the applyPerfTuningTemplate.py script as the starting point for improving the performance of a specific application server.
    This python-based tuning script, along with one of its template files, applies the recommended performance tuning settings for a typical development, production, or environment that is ready for immediate use. The applyPerfTuningTemplate.py script, and its associated templates and properties files, are located in the WAS_HOME/bin directory.
  2. Use the performance advisors, the suggested procedures or parameters in the tuning parameter hot list, and the information on troubleshooting performance problems to optimize your WebSphere Application Server instances to their fullest extent.
    Performance advisors
    The performance advisors use the Performance Monitoring Infrastructure (PMI) data to suggest configuration changes to Object Request Broker (ORB) service thread pools, web container thread pools, connection pool size, persisted session size and time, prepared statement cache size, and session cache size. The Runtime Performance Advisor runs in the application server process, while the other advisor runs in the Tivoli Performance Viewer. For more information, see the documentation about using the Performance and Diagnostic Advisor and use the performance advisor in Tivoli Performance Viewer.
    Tuning parameter hot list
    Review the documentation about the tuning parameter hot list. These parameters have an important impact on performance. Because these parameters are application-dependent, the parameter settings for specific applications and environments can vary.
    [z/OS]Tuning parameter index for z/OS®
    [z/OS]Performance tuning for WebSphere Application Server for z/OS operating systems becomes complex because the nature of the runtime environment involves many different components of the operating system and middleware.

    To find information and parameters for tuning the z/OS operating system, subsystems, the WebSphere Application Server for z/OS runtime environment, and some Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (Java EE) application tuning tips, see the documentation about the tuning parameter hot list.

    Best practice: You can read the WebSphere Application Server for z/OS tuning guidelines, which will explain how to tune the middleware. However, it is important that you ensure that your application is optimally designed to improve performance. Often, poorly written or designed application code changes can have a significant effect on overall performance.

    If you are a WebSphere Application Server administrator or system programmer on WebSphere Application Server for z/OS, see the documentation about the tuning index for WebSphere Application Server for z/OS. Each parameter description explains the parameter; provides reasons to adjust the parameter; describes how to view or set the parameter; and indicates default and recommended values.

    Troubleshooting performance
    To save you time detecting problems and help you troubleshoot performance problems, see the documentation about troubleshooting performance.