About This Book

This book describes the Performance Toolbox for AIX licensed product. This product provides a set of programs that enable you to monitor the use of resources in IBM RS/6000 computer systems and other systems that are capable of running a data supplier daemon. Other programs in the product support detailed analysis of resource usage.

This book describes Version 2 of the Performance Toolbox for AIX. Version 2 can coexist with previous versions in a network. While older versions can monitor Version 2 agents, they will exploit only a subset of the functionality and metrics available in Version 2. Similarly, when Version 2 is used to monitor older agents, it will not offer the same facilities as when monitoring Version 2 agents.

Subreleases

The Performance Toolbox for AIX consists of two components called the Manager and the Agent.

This publication describes the Manager Version 2.2.6 or later. This version of the manager should be installed on either AIX Version 4.1.5 or later or on AIX Version 4.2.1 or later. The Manager component is available in two forms:

The Agent component is available separately from the Performance Toolbox for AIX product as outlined here:

How to Use This Book

This book contains the following chapters and appendices:

Performance Toolbox for AIXManager

Chapter 1, Performance Toolbox for AIX Overview

Introduces you to the monitoring and analysis features of the Performance Toolbox for AIX product and gives you an overview of the components of the product.

Chapter 2, Monitoring Statistics with xmperf

Explains the concepts used to visualize the resource utilization in a computer system with the program xmperf. It explains the hierarchical structure of the xmperf monitoring "devices" and how the statistics are organized. It also explains how the xmperf program monitors remote hosts. It should be read by all users of xmperf before any attempts to change the configuration of the monitoring devices.

Chapter 3, The xmperf User Interface

Describes the xmperf command line, the menu structure of xmpref, and some of the more subtle screens you may encounter as you customize the monitoring devices. Users of xmperf who do not need to customize the monitoring devices need only read the first to sections of this chapter: "The xmperf Command Line" and "The xmperf Main Window." Users who wish to modify the configuration should read the entire chapter.

Chapter 4, Recording and Playback with xmperf

Explains how you can capture the input to an xmperf console or one or more instruments in a console and record the data to a disk file, and how you can later play the recorded data back. The chapter also describes how recordings created by other programs can be played back with xmperf.

Chapter 5, The xmperf Command Menu Interface

Describes how to define commands and command menus in the xmperf configuration file. You must read this chapter if you need to add command definitions. You do not need to read this chapter to use command menus defined by others.

Chapter 6, 3D Monitor

The program 3dmon is described in this chapter. This program can monitor large numbers of statistics and displays them in a 3-dimensional graph. The 3dmon program also allows you to record the monitored statistics to a disk file and can be invoked from other programs with a command line that specifies which statistics to monitor on selected hosts.

Chapter 7, 3D Play

The program 3dplay is described in this chapter. This program plays back 3dmon recordings in the same style in which the data was originally displayed.

Chapter 8, Monitoring Exceptions with exmon

The program exmon, described in this chapter, is an OSF/Motif based program that allows you to monitor alarms generated by the filtd program running on remote hosts. If you intend to use the alarm facilities of filtd, you should read this chapter to understand how alarms can be monitored.

Chapter 9, Recording Files, Annotation Files, and Recording Support Programs

Describes recording files and a series of programs known as the recording support programs that are used to create recording files and to merge, convert, split, and tabulate them.

Chapter 10, Analyzing Performance Recordings with azizo

Describes the program azizo. This program allows you to analyze recordings in graphical windows by zooming in on any time period and any subset of statistics in the recording file. In addition, it allows for printing of graphical or tabular views of the zoomed-in areas. While the azizo program is easy to use and supported by an extensive help facility, users who want to make full use of the program should read this chapter.

Performance Toolbox for AIX Agent

Chapter 11, Monitoring Remote Systems

Explains the main program xmservd of the server option of the Performance Aide for AIX and how this program allows monitoring of remote systems. It describes how to customize a host to allow other hosts to monitor it. It also explains what is required for a system to respond to requests for remote monitoring from other systems.

Chapter 12, Recording Performance Data on Remote Systems

Describes how the xmservd program can be used to record statistics to a local disk file while at the same time supplying the same or other statistics to remote hosts.

Chapter 13, SNMP Multiplex Interface

Explains the optional interaction between the xmservd daemon and the SNMP Multiplex (SMUX) interface. You will need to read and understand this chapter if you want the statistics gathered by xmservd to be made available through SNMP so that programs like NetView can access the statistics.
Note: The SNMP multiplex interface is only available on RS/6000 Agents.

Chapter 14, Data Reduction and Alarms with filtd

Explains the facilities for data reduction and definition of alarms with the program filtd. You will need to read and understand this chapter if you want to define new statistics from existing ones or if you want to invoke commands or trigger alarms when conditions defined by you are met.

Chapter 15, Response Time Measurement,

Describes the two different forms of response time measurement available with Performance Aide for AIX, IP response time measurement and application response time measurement. It explains how to use the associated daemons and how to instrument application programs for monitoring.

Application Programming Interfaces

Chapter 16, System Performance Management Interface (Spmi) Programming Guide

Provides an overview of the local performance monitoring API, walks you through sample programs and includes a complete list of subroutine calls and error codes. The chapter is required reading for anybody planning to program to the Spmi API.

Chapter 17, Remote Statistics Interface (RSi) Programming Guide

Introduces the Remote Statistics Interface (RSi) application programming interface and gives guidelines for programming applications that access statistics on remote systems. It includes a description of all RSi subroutine calls and error codes. The chapter provides a walk-through of sample programs and is useful for programmers planning to use the RSi.

Appendices

Appendix A, Installing Performance Toolbox for AIX or Performance Aide for AIX

Explains how to install the Manager and Agent components.

Appendix B, Performance Toolbox for AIX Files

Describes the files used by the Performance Toolbox for AIX.

Appendix C, Performance Toolbox for AIX Commands Reference

Provides a man-page style explanation of all PTX commands and daemons.

Glossary.

Highlighting

The following highlighting conventions are used in this publication:

Bold

Identifies commands, subroutines, keywords, files, structures, directories, and other items whose names are predefined by the system. Also identifies graphical objects such as buttons, labels, and icons that the user selects.

Italics

Identifies parameters whose actual names or values are to be supplied by the user.

Monospace

Identifies examples of specific data values, examples of text similar to what you might see displayed, examples of portions of program code similar to what you might write as a programmer, messages from the system, or information you should actually type.

Related Publications

The following publication contains information about some performance monitoring and analysis tools for AIX:

• AIX Versions 3.2 and 4 Performance Tuning Guide, order number SC23-2365.

ISO 9000

ISO 9000 registered quality systems were used in the development and manufacturing of this product.