Logging performance data with Tivoli Performance Viewer
The Tivoli® Performance Viewer provides an easy way to store real-time data for system resources, WebSphere® Application Server pools and queues, and applications in log files for later retrieval. You can start and stop logging while viewing current activity for a server, and later replay this data. Logging of performance data captures performance data in windows of time so you can later analyze the data.
Before you begin
Ensure that one or more servers are running on the node and that you have configured the Tivoli Performance Viewer log settings. The log settings might affect performance and are described in detail in Viewing data with Tivoli Performance Viewer. The Tivoli Performance Viewer logging feature is not intended to be a full-time monitoring solution, but instead for selective data recording for subsequent replay and analysis.
About this task
You can study the sequence of events that led to a peculiar condition in the application server.
First, enable Tivoli Performance Viewer logging so performance data generated in the application server persists in a log file stored at a specific location. Later, using the replay feature in Tivoli Performance Viewer, view the performance data that was generated in exactly the same chronological order as it was generated in real time, enabling you to analyze a prior sequence of events.
You do not need to know the syntax and format in which log files are generated and stored. Do not edit log files generated by Tivoli Performance Viewer; doing so will irrecoverably corrupt or destroy the performance data stored in the log files.
You can create and view logs in the administrative console.
Starting with Version 8.0, the Tivoli Performance Viewer
graph uses Dojo Technology for plotting the performance activity rather than the Scalable Vector
Graphics (SVG) format. The Dojo format provides a better user experience and is more processor and
memory efficient for the application server. The SVG format is still supported but is deprecated in
Version 8 of this product. To use the SVG format and image format, set the JVM property to
false
; for example: com.ibm.websphere.tpv.DojoGraph=false
. If the
property is set to false
, Dojo is disabled and Tivoli Performance Viewer displays interactive graphics using the SVG format or
non-interactive graphics using the JPG format. By default, this property is set to a value of
true
to use the Dojo format.
com.ibm.websphere.tpv.DojoGraph
is set to false
, specifying to use
the SVG format, performance degradation can occur when you use the Mozilla Firefox browser and Tivoli Performance Viewer to monitor the application server.
Additionally, a memory leak problem occurs when you use Tivoli Performance Viewer for an extended period of time with the Mozilla Firefox browser. Use
a different browser that has Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) viewing capability with Tivoli Performance Viewer to monitor the application server, especially in
long-term monitoring situations.