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Reliability monitor and Windows performance in the operating system Windows Vista is an MMC snap-in that combines the functionality of legacy Windows tools such as Performance Logs and Alerts (PLA), Server Performance Advisor (SPA), and Performance Monitor. This snap-in provides a graphical interface for configuring data collector groups and event trace sessions. V this manual considered her new interface, improved functionality and enhanced capabilities.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Tuning and Monitoring System Performance in Windows Vista
The Microsoft® Windows Vista ™ operating system includes Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor, a Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in that combines the functionality of previous Windows OS tools such as Performance Logs and Alerts, Server Performance Advisor, and Performance Monitor. This snap-in provides a graphical interface for configuring data collector groups and event trace sessions.
Vista also includes the System Stability Monitor MMC snap-in, which tracks changes in the system and correlates them with changes in stability, displaying this ratio in graphically.
What is system performance and reliability tracking?
While the overall concern of the operating system in an organization rests with IT professionals, individual users are primarily concerned with the performance and reliability of the systems installed on their computers. In most cases, an IT professional will identify and fix problems on users' computers using the performance and reliability tools contained in the operating system.
Performance
In general terms, performance is the speed at which a computer runs applications and system tasks. The overall system performance can be limited by the speed of accessing data on hard drives, the number of random access memory available for running processes, processor speed, or bandwidth of network interfaces.
After determining the capabilities of your computer's hardware, you can test the use of the available resources by each of the applications and processes. A comprehensive performance analysis that takes into account application needs and available resources allows IT to plan for further development computer systems in line with growing demands.
The Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor contains a set of tools that can help you monitor the performance impact of applications and services, and set alerts or actions to be taken when specified load limits are exceeded.
Reliability
A measure of the reliability of a system is determined by how rarely deviations from a given, expected functioning occur in it. Degraded reliability can occur as a result of application failure, service stoppages and restarts, driver failures, or, in the worst case, operating system failures.
The System Stability Monitor MMC snap-in visually displays the level of system stability, and also allows you to track events, which helps to determine the reasons for the decrease in reliability. Logging not only errors (such as failures of memory, hard drives, drivers, applications and operating system), but also key events related to system configuration changes (such as installing new applications, drivers or operating system updates) allows you to see history together changes to the configuration and reliability of the system and, if necessary, find ways to return to the optimal level of reliability.
What's new in performance and reliability trackers
Key innovations in performance and reliability tracking in Windows Vista include:
- A Resource View screen that allows IT professionals to monitor CPU, hard disk, network, and memory usage in real time and determine the resource consumption of each process.
- System Stability Monitor report, which takes into account configuration changes (including installation of applications, operating system and driver updates) and calculates the System Stability Index (decreasing as a result of failures in the operating system, applications, drivers, and computer hardware).
- Collector groups of data collectors that form data collectors into modules suitable for later use by various performance trackers.
- A unified property configuration with the ability to perform scheduled tasks.
- Performance logs and alerts that include scheduled data collection with improved security and configuration reuse.
- Server Performance Advisor with the ability to generate diagnostic reports.
- The ability to create magazines using wizards and templates.
This manual is intended for the following categories of users:
- IT Pros and Product Analysts
- Enterprise IT Infrastructure Planners and Developers
- Power users.
Most important advantage Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor over tools from previous versions of Windows, such as Performance Logs and Alerts, Server Performance Advisor, and Performance Monitor, combine their capabilities in a single interface while using the same methods of determining what data to collect. Data collector groups allow you to save sets of counters for reuse.
In this guide
Examples of common use cases for performance and reliability trackers
This guide covers six options for using the Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor and System Stability Monitor MMC snap-ins. Completing the examples provided will help improve your understanding of how the new tools interact and how the system works as a whole.
Example 1: Observing the Overall System Health Using the Resource View Overview: Observing the Overall System Health Using the Resource View
The home page for Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor is the Resource View screen. Running the console as an administrator allows you to monitor the usage and performance of your processor, hard drive, network, and RAM in real time. Additional Information, including information about the use of resources by specific processes, is available when expanding the panels corresponding to the four types of resources.
Prerequisites for Observing the General State of a System Using a Resource View
Considerations for observing the general state of the system using the resource view
The Resource View window displays information from the trace provider session Windows kernel... To use this provider, you must be logged on as an administrator or run Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor with elevated privileges.
If the console is started without sufficient rights, the resource view screen will not display up-to-date system information. By pressing the button Start Resource Monitor(green arrow in the toolbar) the following message will be displayed:
This Windows Kernel Trace Provider is already in use by another trace session. Gaining control over it could lead to a breach normal work the current owner.
When choosing an option Take control of the session access will be denied. To run the console with elevated privileges, you must be logged in as an administrator or follow the instructions below.
Steps for Observing General System Health Using the Resource View
To start using Resource View, start Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor.
Running Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor
Four moving charts in the panel Resource overview display real-time usage of CPU, hard disk, network and RAM. Below the graphs are drop-down panels with detailed information about each resource. You can view this information by clicking the down arrow on right side each panel.
In the panel Cpu displays the current processor load as a percentage. The following information is available in the expanded panel:
Image: Application using processor resources.
Process ID:
Thread counter: The number of threads started by this application.
Average for CPU: The average processor load for this application, expressed as a percentage of the total processor power.
In the panel Disk the total current read-write activity is displayed. The following information is available in the expanded panel:
Image: An application using hard disk resources.
Process ID: The identifier of the process started by the application.
File: File in this moment written or readable by the application.
Reading: The current rate (bytes / min) at which data is being read from the file.
Record: The current rate (bytes / min) at which data is written to the file.
Total: The current amount of data (bytes / min) read and written by this application.
In the panel Network the current load of network interfaces (Kbps) is displayed. The following information is available in the expanded panel:
Image: Application using network resources.
Process ID: The identifier of the process started by the application.
Address: The network address through which the local computer communicates on the network. May look like a computer name - when interacting with other computers in the same local network, either as an IP address or as a fully qualified domain name.
Sent by: The rate (Kbps) at which the application is currently transmitting data.
Received: The rate (kbps) at which the application is currently receiving data.
Total: The total amount of data (Kbps) currently transmitted and received by the application.
In the panel Memory displays the current number of page faults per second and the number of busy physical memory in percents.
Note
A page error occurs when the page at the requested address is no longer in physical memory and has been replaced or accessed from an auxiliary file. This is not a problem.
The following information is available in the expanded panel:
Image: An application using RAM resources.
Process ID: The identifier of the process started by the application.
Page errors: The number of page errors that have occurred so far as a result of the application.
Working set: The number of pages currently in memory for this application.
Example 2: Observing selected aspects of the system state using the Performance Monitor Overview: Observing selected aspects of the system state using the Performance Monitor
Performance Monitor displays built-in Windows performance counters that run in real time or provide a historical report. Performance counters can be added to Performance Monitor by simple drag-and-drop, or by creating Data Collector Groups. Various types of graphs provide a visual display of reports, and generated meter sets can be exported as collector groups for use with various functions logging and performance measurement.
In this example, you will need to add performance counters in the system monitor, observe their work in real time and learn how to stop displaying readings to study the current state of the system.
Prerequisites for Observing Selected Aspects of System Health Using Performance Monitor
Before performing this task, make sure that:
- The computer is running Windows Vista.
- You have administrator rights.
The need to have administrator rights is related to the Windows Vista feature described in the next section.
Features of monitoring selected aspects of the system state using the system monitor
Several data collectors used in Performance Monitor display information from the Windows Kernel Trace Provider session. To use this provider, you must be logged on as an administrator or run Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor with elevated privileges.
Workflow for Observing Selected Aspects of System Health Using Performance Monitor
To start using Performance Monitor, start Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor.
Starting Performance Monitor from Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor
You can add Data Collectors or Data Collector Groups to the current Performance Monitor view.
Adding Counters to the Current Performance Monitor View
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To display a description of the group of counters selected in the list, select the checkbox Display Description in the lower left corner of the window. The description will change according to the selected group.
To see the counters available in a given group, click the arrow button to the right of the group name.
To add an entire group of counters, highlight the group name and press the button Add.
- Note
Press the down arrow button to view the available counters in the highlighted group. If one counter from the group is selected, only it will be added after pressing the button Add.
To add individual counters, expand the corresponding group by clicking the down arrow button, highlight the required counter and click the Add.
- Note
You can select multiple counters from a group by holding down the CTRL key. After completing the selection of all the required counters, press the button Add.
To add counters only for selected processes, highlight the group name, then select the required process from the list in the section and press the button Add... More than one process can affect the same counter, so you can only take into account the changes made by the selected process.
- Note
If no counter instances are selected, all processes for this counter.
To find instances for a given counter, select a group, or expand the group and select the counter you want, then enter the process name in the combo box below the section Instances of the selected object and press the button Search... The entered process name will be added to the dropdown list for simplification re-search... If no search results are found, you must select a different group to clear the search field. If no different instances are available for a given counter or group of counters, the search function will not be available.
- Displaying data on counters in the system monitor
If the movement of the chart was stopped in the mode Line, when the movement is resumed, the length of the time interval along the X axis will change. |
- Note
After completing this example, do not close the console. The data collectors displayed in the system monitor will be used in the following example.
Example 3: Creating Data Collector Groups in Performance Monitor Overview: Creating Data Collector Groups in Performance Monitor
Monitoring data collectors in real time is just one way of working with the system monitor. After creating a set of counters displaying necessary information in real time, you can save it as a Data Collector Group — one of the core components of monitoring and performance reporting in Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor. By creating data collector groups, the various data collector modules are organized into single components that are used for performance monitoring and reporting.
In this example, you will need to create a data collector group from the counters selected to display real-time information in the system monitor.
Prerequisites for Creating a Data Collector Group in Performance Monitor
- The computer is running Windows Vista.
- You have administrator rights.
The need to have administrator rights is related to the Windows Vista feature described in the next section.
- At least one counter is selected in the system monitor to display.
Several data collectors used in Performance Monitor display information from the Windows Kernel Trace Provider session. To use this provider, you must be logged on as an administrator or run Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor with elevated privileges.
Steps to Create a Data Collector Group in Performance Monitor
- Create a Data Collector Group in Performance Monitor
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System performance information from selected acquisition modules can be saved as logs for later review.
- Note
Log files generated by Data Collector Groups in Windows Vista are not compatible with previous versions Windows. However, logs created in earlier versions of Windows can be viewed in Windows Vista.
Prerequisites for Generating Data Collector Group Log Files
Before performing this task, make sure that:
- You have administrator rights.
The need to have administrator rights is related to the Windows Vista specifics described in the respective sections.
- Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor is running.
- At least one data collector group was created and saved (you can use the data collector group created in Example 3).
The Data Collector Group creates a default log file. For each data collector group, you can specify retention options such as including log information in the file name, overwriting or appending data, and limiting the file size.
Configuring Data Collector Group Logging Properties
If the deadline for data collection on the tab Schedule exceeds the term specified on the tab Stop condition, this last parameter will take precedence. |
Overview: Viewing and Interpreting Log Files in System Monitor
Performance Monitor allows you to view logs previously generated by the Data Collector Teams. All options for displaying information in real time are available for viewing logs.
In this example, you will learn how to open log files in the system monitor and work with their display.
Prerequisites for Viewing and Interpreting Log Files in System Monitor
Before performing this task, make sure that:
- The computer is running Windows Vista.
- You have administrator rights
The requirement to have administrator rights is specific to Windows Vista.
- Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor is running.
- There is at least one log file for a previously created data collector group.
Opening a Log File in System Monitor
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Viewing the log file in system monitor
Example 6: Observing System Stability Using the System Stability Monitor Overview: Observing System Stability Using the System Stability MonitorSystem Stability Monitor is a Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in that allows you to monitor the overall level and trends of system stability and obtain detailed information about individual events that can affect stability. The System Stability Monitor starts collecting data from the moment the system is installed.
In this example, you will become familiar with the System Stability Chart, as well as the detailed event information that the System Stability Monitor uses to calculate the Stability Index.
Prerequisites for Monitoring System Stability Using the System Stability Monitor
Before performing this task, make sure that:
- The computer is running Windows Vista.
- Since the installation, the system has worked for at least 24 hours.
When performing this task on just installed system only minimal information about events affecting reliability will be available. For complete details, you will need to repeat this task after installing applications and hardware components.
- You have administrator rights.
The need to have administrator rights is related to the Windows Vista feature described in the next section.
Features of Monitoring System Stability Using System Stability Monitor
The following features can affect the completion of the task:
- The data used by the System Stability Monitor is available only for accounts with administrator rights. To view the system stability diagram, you must have administrator rights or run the MMC with elevated privileges.
- Windows must be running for at least 24 hours before information can be displayed on the System Stability Chart.
- Until 28 days have passed since the start of information collection by the system stability monitor, the stability index will be displayed on the graph as dotted line, indicating that the necessary basis for measurements is not yet available.
Starting System Stability Monitor from Windows Reliability and Performance Monitor
The upper half of the system stability monitor contains a system stability chart and a calendar for selecting the date or time span to display. To see a graph that displays information for the entire available time period, select Select all... To view data for a specific day, select it in the calendar.
The System Stability Monitor stores information about events affecting the stability and reliability of the system for a year. The system stability chart displays the changing stability index over the last month.
At the bottom of the system stability diagram, there are five panels containing different categories of events that affect the system stability measure. Each panel can be expanded by clicking on the plus (+) sign to view data for a specified date or time period. The data is classified as follows:
Add or remove programs
Program: operating system, application name, drivers, Windows updates.
Version: Operating system, application, or driver version (for Windows updates, this option is not displayed).
Activity: event designation - installation or removal.
Activity state: designation of the outcome of the event - success or error.
Application errors
Application: the name of the executable file of the failing application.
Version: version number of the application.
Type of problem: Indicates the reason for the application error - freeze or crash.
Hardware problems
Component type: identifier of the component that failed ( HDD or RAM).
Device: the device that crashed.
Type of problem: identifying the causes of failures. For a hard disk, whether the cause was a damaged disk or a bad sector; for random access memory - damage to the memory module.
Windows problems
Type of problem: event designation - error while loading ( Boot Failure), an operating system crash (OS Crash), a problem using sleep mode (Sleep Failure).
Version: Operating system and service pack versions.
Details of the problem:
- Error code.
- Problem encountered.
- Prohibition of execution / operation of a component or its failure when entering hibernation mode.
Miscellaneous problems
Type of problem: Indicates an event that resulted in an unexpected system shutdown.
Version: Contains the version number of the operating system and service pack.
Details of the problem: Indicates an abnormal system shutdown
Performance counters. Part 1
The performance of a computer is determined by the speed at which the computer performs the assigned tasks. Many factors affect the overall performance of the system - the processing power of the processor, the amount of available RAM, the speed disk subsystem, throughput network interfaces, etc.
Sometimes, with insufficient performance, it may be necessary to analyze the situation and track the use of resources by applications or systemic processes in order to then increase the capacity of the system in accordance with the increasing demands.
One of the most powerful tools for detecting performance problems in Windows are the built-in Performance Counters. They will be discussed in this article.
The main tool for managing performance counters in Windows is the Performance Monitor snap-in, known as Performance Monitor in earlier versions of Windows. Performance Monitor has several display modes and allows you to display performance counters in real time, as well as save data to log files for later study.
You can find Performance Monitor in the Start menu ( start screen in Server 2012) under Administrative tools, or by clicking Win + R and in the "Run" window execute the command perfmon.msc... It should be borne in mind that not all users are authorized to use this snap-in. In addition to members of the Administrators group, who have full rights and can use all its capabilities, there are two more groups:
Performance Monitor Users - Can view (locally or remotely) performance monitor data and modify display properties in real time. Do not have permission to create or modify Data Collector Set;
Performance Log Users - Have all the rights of the previous group and can create and modify data collector groups.
Well, ordinary users belonging to the Users group can only open log files for viewing in the performance monitor.
Important. To meet a Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) requirement, the Performance Log Users group must be granted logon right as a batch job. To do this, you need to open the snap local policy Security (secpol.msc), under "Local policies \ User Rights Assignment" find the setting Log on as batch job and add the Performance Log Users group to the list .
Adding counters
So, the first thing we do, opening Performance Monitor, is adding the counters we need to the monitoring window. By default, the window already displays one counter showing total load processor. You can delete an unnecessary counter by selecting it and clicking on the red cross on the toolbar, or by pressing Delete... To add counters, press the green button or Ctrl + N.
The window for adding counters opens. In the "Select counters from computer" field, set the name or IP address of the computer to be monitored. By the way, Performance Monitor can display counters from different computers in one window.
Then we select performance counters from the list. All counters are combined into groups, usually containing the name of the performance object in their name. For example, to monitor network activity, open the group Network interface and select counters that show the amount of received and transmitted network traffic, the total amount of traffic and the current bandwidth.
If you are in doubt about the purpose of a meter, then there is an opportunity to look at its description. To do this, check the "Show description" checkbox in the lower left corner. The description is not very detailed, but informative enough.
Note. The number of performance counters is quite large and depends on the version of the operating system and the installed server roles and components. So, for example, in Windows Server 2012 added a large number of counters designed to monitor virtual machines. Additionally, some server products such as Exchange or SQL Server add their own counters to the system.
After selecting the monitoring object and highlighting the required counters, in the "Instances of selected object" field, select the instance (Instance) of the object. So, having selected network interfaces as an object, here we indicate which one should be monitored. You can select one or more instances by selecting All Instance we will display the data for each instance separately, and the value _Total will print the average value over all instances of the object.
This is what the performance monitor window looks like after adding counters. By default, the performance counter values are displayed as line graph... Having selected a specific counter, you can see in the panel the current (last), minimum (minimum), maximum (maximum) and average (average) values for the specified time period.
If used at the same time big number counters, it can be difficult to keep track of each of them. Therefore, if necessary, it is better to hide unnecessary counters, for which it is enough to uncheck the box in the Show column.
By clicking the corresponding button on the toolbar, you can select the display mode in the form of a histogram (Histogram bar) or in the form of a report (Report). You can also switch between modes with a keyboard shortcut Ctrl + G.
For example, if you need to constantly monitor the current values of the counters, then the report mode is more visual.
Alternatively, you can highlight a specific counter so that it is reflected in a thicker line. To do this, select the desired counter and click on the Highlight button located in the toolbar. You can also use the keyboard shortcut to select Ctrl + H.
Performance Monitor setup
Performance Monitor has many settings designed to best display your data. You can open the performance monitor settings dialog box by right-clicking on it and selecting Properties, or by clicking on an inconspicuous button in the toolbar, or by clicking Ctrl + Q.
On the General tab, you can:
Display Elements - remove \ add elements displayed in the Performance Monitor window;
Report and Histogramm Data - change the values displayed in the report and histogram mode. By default, they display the current values of the counters. You can specify the minimum, maximum or average value, and the displayed data will be recalculated each time;
Sample Automaticaly - automatic data collection. By default, data sampling is performed automatically at a specified interval. By removing the checkbox, we will thus enable the manual mode, in which the data is removed by the Update Data button on the toolbar, or by a keyboard shortcut Ctrl + U... Also switch from manual mode to automatic and back, you can use the keys Ctrl + F;
Graph elements - chart elements. The Sample Every field sets the data refresh interval in automatic mode, and the Duration field sets the time interval displayed in the Performance Monitor window. By default, data is refreshed every second and the displayed interval is 100 seconds. For more or less long-term observation, it is advisable to increase these values.
On the Source tab, we indicate where to get the data from:
Current activity - the current activity, displayed in the Performance Monitor window by default;
Log files - here you can specify the path to the previously saved log file;
Database - use a SQL database as a source. Performance Monitor allows you to write and retrieve performance data into the database, of course, if you have a SQL server.
On the Data tab, you can edit the list of counters, as well as change the visual parameters of the display of each counter - color (Color), scale (Scale), line width (Width) and its style (Style).
On the Graph tab, change the display of the graph:
View - set the display mode: graph, histogram or report;
Scroll style is a scroll type that indicates the direction of scrolling for a line chart. Selecting Wrap will scroll the chart from left to right, Scroll in the opposite direction;
Title - the name of the chart displayed under the toolbar;
Vertical axis - using this parameter you can name the vertical coordinate axis;
Show - turns on the display of vertical and horizontal grids and labels with values for the coordinate axes;
Vertical scale - the range of values of the vertical scale. Here we set the minimum and maximum values that will be displayed on the chart.
Well, on the Appearance tab, you can customize the color scheme and the font used.
Saving performance data
Sometimes it may be necessary to save the acquired data, for example, to provide a report or for further analysis. Performance Monitor allows you to export the resulting data to a file. To export, right-click in the window and select "Save Settings As" in the menu that opens. By default, the report is saved in HTML format and it can be opened in any browser.
You can also choose to save the file format with the extension .tsv - tab-delimited file. This format can be used to export data to spreadsheets. And by selecting the "Save Image As" item in the context menu, you can save the screen contents as an image in GIF format.
This is how an HTML report looks in a browser. It contains all the parameters of the performance monitor, including the display type, titles, etc.
PowerShell
Performance counter values can also be viewed from the PowerShell console, where there is a special Get-Counter cmdlet for this. Although PowerShell has much fewer options for displaying performance counters than Performance Monitor, it can be used in Server installations Core, with no graphical interface at all.
Suppose we want to use it to see the processor load. First, let's display all the available counters for the processor:
(Get-Counter -ListSet Processor) .counter
Then we select the desired one and display its value:
Get-Counter -Counter ″ \ Processor (_total) \% Processor Time ″ -SampleInterval 10 -MaxSamples 2
The counter instance (Instance) is indicated in brackets, in this example it is the processor cores. You can specify the number a specific instance, or put an asterisk (*), then information on each instance will be displayed, and by specifying the (_total) parameter, we will get the summary information for all instances.
- The -SampleInterval parameter specifies the frequency of data collection, and -MaxSamples - the number of attempts. So in the example, the data is taken 2 times with an interval of 10 seconds. If you specify -Continuous instead of these parameters, then the data will be taken continuously until you press Ctrl + C;
-
If necessary, you can display values from several counters, specifying them separated by commas.
Conclusion
So today we looked at some of the ways to use performance counters to monitor servers in real time. V it will be about setting up data collector groups, saving data to log files and then analyzing it, and setting up notifications.
@ECHO OFF ECHO Adding counter "New_counter" ... rem Create new group data collectors logman create counter New_counter -f bincirc -c ^ "\ Processor (_Total) \ %% Processor Time" ^ "\ Memory (_Total) \ Page / sec" ^ "\ Memory (_Total) \ %% Uncommited Bytes In Use" ^ "\ Memory (_Total) \ Available Bytes" ^ "\ System (_Total) \ Processor Queue Length" ^ "\ PhysicalDisk (_Total) \ Avg. Disk Queue Lenghth" ^ "\ PhysicalDisk (*) \ Avg. Disk Queue Lenghth" ^ "\ Network Interface (*) \ Bytes Total / sec" ^ -si 15 -v mmddhhmm rem Start performance monitor C: \ Windows \ System32 \ Perfmon.exe ECHO done
Counter names are enclosed in quotation marks and separated by a space. The names of the counters can be written both in English and in Russian (but then the bat-file will work only in Russian versions of Windows). If the name of the meter contains the sign % , it must be replaced with signs %% (double percent).
After completing this file, we will immediately go to the performance monitor, where we will see the newly created group of data collectors named New_counter.
The described counters are usually sufficient for overall assessment system load. Other counters are used for detailed investigation of problems when it is determined that there is insufficient performance of the equipment.
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Monitor and computer performance
It seems, well, how can a monitor affect the performance of a computer? If by performance we mean speed, then, perhaps, in fact, nothing. But these concepts are not exactly the same thing. Although they often put an equal sign between them. When talking about performance new system, a new processor or something else, try to deprive the consumer of peace of mind with the help of numbers measured by tricky tests. The buyer is really getting nervous. But not at all because of how the agitators would like from marketing.
A person, tired of being bullied, asks the question: why do I need these numbers? You say, Word or Excel will work faster, or what? Yes, - they answer him. We, they say, automatically missed a number of operations typical for office programs and timed it. Seems to have answered to the point. It is still not clear why this huge performance gain is not being detected.
And therefore, be judges, that it was not the performance that was measured, but the speed. In "unmanned" mode, the computer works faster, but what good is it if, with the increase in performance, it waits more and more time in percentage terms for the response and commands of the user? That is why, I think, it is more important not to install the latest ultra-fast processor, but to try to speed up the work of the user himself. And not for the sake of saving - the money will have to be redistributed, practically the same amount will have to be spent with a greater return.
And the first thing in this matter is to choose the right monitor.
17 inches - new standard?
Judging by consumer preferences, 15-inch monitors remain the standard for office computers. Why is this decision not justified from a performance point of view?
Imagine the usual situations where the presence of a computer would have a tangible effect. For example, you are on the phone and you need to make a quick decision. The required data is in the computer. Call them on the screen and ... I propose options: a) instantly find the answer, b) hum into the phone for five minutes, poking your nose into the glass in search of the required numbers.
Let's dream some more? Please. On Friday, the accounting department must report to the tax office, from early morning until late at night there is a "tails-up". Are the accountants working like the damned? Exactly. A good half of their time is spent scrolling the screen to find the data they need. In an atmosphere of nervousness and assault, it is easy to forget why this number was actually needed. Where is the performance here?
Okay, enough examples. If you want, you yourself will find a dozen more. We now turn to counterarguments. First, few people are willing to pay as much as possible for a computer. Especially when buying office and accounting machines. If we proceed from the fact that the monitor is designed to provide better accessibility of the information in the computer, thereby increasing the efficiency of the user, saving on it is not a good idea.
And then what happens? When buying a 15-inch monitor, we choose the best one in order to work calmly with a picture of 1,024 x 768 pixels, so that clear letters are easy to read. And then it turns out that it costs the same as the cheap 17-inch. And the fact that the best 15-inch monitor comes at the cost of great effort makes the simplest 17-inch. Even with the same characteristics, there is a difference in the size of the picture. Large letters, easy to read text - with the same parameters and for the same money.
Secondly, it is believed that a 17-inch monitor is too bulky, and because of it, there is no room on the user's desk for papers, reference books and other necessary things. Digging through the piles of randomly dumped papers, by the way, takes much more time than looking for a number on the screen. The argument is reasonable, but the reason for the mess often lies not in a lack of space, but in the habits of the owner of the table. In addition, cheap 17-inch monitors with a shortened tube have appeared, they take up almost as much space as 15-inch ones.
PanaSync SL70 Monitor
I already talked about monitors with a 17-inch shortened tube last fall. The first of them to appear on our market were models from ViewSonic. Today the choice has expanded. Moreover, what is especially pleasant from the point of view of buying an office computer, there are models of cheaper series, and not just a professional one. For example, such as PanaSync SL70.
This monitor belongs to the "standard", that is, a simple and cheap series. Its characteristics do not cause dizziness, but on the other hand, the price does not make you grab your wallet once again. The PanaSync SL70 takes up about the same size as the out-of-fashion 14-inch monitors, but in front of you is big screen with a picture of 16 inches diagonally.
The specs of the PanaSync SL70 are about the same as the cool 15-inch monitors. The fundamental difference - cathode-ray tube new generation. It was possible to shorten it due to the introduction of new technologies for focusing the rays, which also increase the image quality. New DQ-DAF Dynamic Deflection System consists of two sets of quadrupole lenses and provides 20% more accurate alignment electron beams... Hence the increased clarity and brightness of the picture, smoother and more accurate color reproduction.
The quality of the picture is also affected by the anti-reflective-antistatic coating AGRAS, developed by Matsushita. It reduces the reflection of light from the screen by 60%, increasing the contrast of the picture. The AGRAS coating is thinner than other low-cost monitors and uses less silicon, which allows you to work with high resolutions without losing clarity.
Specifications
The PanaSync SL70 uses a kinescope with a shadow mask and a pixel pitch of 0.27 mm. When it comes to professional graphics, the shadow mask, in my opinion, has a number of advantages over the aperture mask. It is less susceptible to the influence of external magnetic fields, the picture on such a screen may not be so bright, but the colors are calmer and you get less tired of them.
At maximum size For images 325 x 244 mm, the optimal resolution is 1.024 x 768 pixels. Of course, the 17-inch screen forces you to try a resolution that is simply not available for 15-inch monitors, but I do not advise you to do this. Even with the same number of pixels, the information will be more readily available. As for the 1.280 x 1.024 mode, the PanaSync SL70 supports it, but the sharpness is lost due to the lack of physical pixels, and the frame rate is not sufficient for security reasons for vision.
The PanaSync SL70 monitor accepts vertical scan rates from 50 to 180 Hz, and horizontal scan rates from 30 to 70 kHz. Simply put, at a resolution of 1,024 x 768 pixels, the frame rate can be set to 85Hz, which guarantees the stability of the picture, without flickering, tiring and causing headaches. At a higher resolution, the frame rate will be 66 Hz, which is not enough by modern standards.
The control of the PanaSync SL70 monitor is, of course, digital. Using four buttons on the front panel, a menu is called up, the necessary settings are selected in it, and adjustment is made. The menu system in Panasonic monitors is similar to that familiar to many users from ViewSonic. It allows you to adjust the size and position of the picture, eliminate geometric distortion, rotate the picture, select color temperature... The rest of the menu functions are secondary, and most users simply won't have to deal with them. The adjustments that are used much more often than others - the brightness and contrast of the image - are directly placed on the buttons and do not require a menu call.
I must note that the PanaSync SL70 does not belong to the cohort of professional displays, so the customization options it has will not please a designer or constructor. However, like the rest of the characteristics. When it comes to office use, the PanaSync SL70 offers tangible advantages over the 15-inch models. Although, of course, if it supported higher resolutions and scan rates ...
Roman Sobolenko
In the previous article, I compiled a list of 80 tools for monitoring a Linux system. It also made sense to make a selection of tools for the Windows system. Below is a list that serves only as a starting point, there is no rating here.
1. Task Manager
Well-known dispatcher Windows tasks- utility for displaying the list running processes and the resources they consume. But do you know how to use its full potential? As a rule, it is used to monitor the state of the processor and memory, but you can go much further. This app is pre-loaded on all operating systems Microsoft.
2. Resource Monitor
A great tool to estimate CPU, RAM, network and disk usage in Windows. It allows you to quickly get all the information you need about the health of critical servers.
3. Performance Monitor
The main tool for managing Windows performance counters. Performance Monitor, in earlier versions of Windows, is known to us as Performance Monitor. The utility has several display modes, displays performance counters in real time, saves data to log files for later study.
4.Reliability Monitor
Reliability Monitor - System stability monitor, allows you to track any changes in computer performance, you can find the stability monitor in Windows 7, in Windows 8: Control Panel> System and Security> Action Center. With the help of Reliability Monitor, you can keep a record of changes and failures on the computer, the data will be displayed in a convenient graphical form, which will allow you to track which application and when caused an error or hang, track the appearance blue screen Windows death, the reason for its appearance (another Windows update or program installation).
5. Microsoft SysInternals
SysInternals is a complete suite of programs for administering and monitoring Windows computers. You can download them yourself for free on the Microsoft website. Sysinternals tools help you manage, troubleshoot, and diagnose Windows applications and operating systems.
6. SCOM (part of Microsoft System Center)
System Center is a complete set of tools for IT infrastructure management, with which you can manage, deploy, monitor, configure Microsoft software (Windows, IIS, SQLServer, Exchange, and so on). Alas, MSC is not free. SCOM is used for proactive monitoring of key IT infrastructure assets.
Monitoring Windows Servers with the Nagios Family
7. Nagios
Nagios has been the most popular infrastructure monitoring tool for several years (for Linux and Windows). If you are considering Nagios for Windows, then install and configure the agent on the Windows server. NSClient ++ monitors the system in real time and provides outputs from a remote monitoring server and more.
8. Cacti
Usually used in conjunction with Nagios, it provides the user with a convenient web interface to the RRDTool utility designed to work with Round Robin Databases, which are used to store information about changes in one or more values over a certain period of time. Statistics in network devices is presented in the form of a tree, the structure of which is set by the user himself, you can build a graph of channel use, use of HDD partitions, display resource latency, etc.
9. Shinken
Flexible, scalable open source monitoring system based on the Nagios core written in Python. It is 5 times faster than Nagios. Shinken is compatible with Nagios, it is possible to use its plugins and configurations without making adjustments or additional configuration.
10. Icinga
Another popular open monitoring system that checks hosts and services and reports their status to the administrator. As a fork of Nagios, Icinga is compatible with it and they have a lot in common.
11. OpsView
OpsView was originally free. Now, alas, users of this monitoring system have to fork out.
Op5 is another open source monitoring system. Graphing, storing and collecting data.
Nagios alternatives
13. ZabbixOpen software for monitoring and tracking the statuses of various services of a computer network, servers and network equipment, is used to get data on processor load, network usage, disk space, and the like.
14. Munin
Not a bad monitoring system that collects data from several servers at the same time and displays everything in the form of graphs, with which you can track all past events on the server.
15. Zenoss
Written in Python using Zope Application Server, data is stored in MySQL. With Zenoss you can
monitor network services, system resources, device performance, the Zenoss core analyzes the environment. This makes it possible to quickly deal with big amount specific devices.
16. Observium
Monitoring and surveillance system network devices and servers, although the list of supported devices is huge and is not limited only to network devices, the device must support SNMP.
17. Centreon
An integrated monitoring system, allows you to control the entire infrastructure and applications containing system information. Free alternative to Nagios.
18. Ganglia
Ganglia is a scalable distributed monitoring system used in high performance computing systems such as clusters and grids. Tracks statistics and computation history in real time for each of the monitored nodes.
19. Pandora FMS
Monitoring system, good productivity and scalability, one monitoring server can control the work of several thousand hosts.
20. NetXMS
Open source software for monitoring computer systems and networks.
21. OpenNMS
OpenNMS monitoring platform. Unlike Nagios, it supports SNMP, WMI and JMX.
22. HypericHQ
A component of the VMware vRealize Operations suite, it is used to monitor OS, middleware and applications in physical, virtual and cloud environments. Displays availability, performance, usage, events, logs, and changes at each level of the virtualization stack (from the vSphere hypervisor to the guest OS).
23. Bosun
An open source alert system from StackExchange. Bosun has a well-thought-out data schema as well as a powerful processing language.
24. Sensu
Sensu is an open source paging system similar to Nagios. There is a simple dashboard, you can see a list of clients, checks and triggered alerts. The framework provides the mechanisms that are needed to collect and accumulate server statistics. Each server runs the Sensu agent (client), which uses a set of scripts to check the health of services, their state and collect any other information.
25. CollectM
CollectM collects statistics on system resource usage every 10 seconds. It can collect statistics for several hosts and send it to the server, the information is displayed using graphs.
28. Performance Analysis of Logs (PAL) Tool
34. Total Network Monitor
This is a program for constant monitoring of the operation of the local network. individual computers, network and system services... Total Network Monitor generates a report and notifies you about the errors that have occurred. You can check any aspect of a service, server or file system: FTP, POP / SMTP, HTTP, IMAP, Registry, Event Log, Service State and others.
35. PRTG
38. Idera
Supports multiple operating systems and virtualization technologies. There are many free tools that you can use to monitor the system.
39. PowerAdmin
PowerAdmin is a commercial monitoring solution.
40. ELM Enterprise Manager
ELM Enterprise Manager - full monitoring from "what happened" to "what is happening" in real time. Monitoring tools in ELM include - Event Collector, Performance Monitor, Service Monitor, Process Monitor, File Monitor, PING Monitor.
41. EventsEntry
42. Veeam ONE
An efficient solution for monitoring, reporting and scheduling resources in the environment of VMware, Hyper-V and Veeam Backup & Replication infrastructure, monitors the state of the IT infrastructure and diagnoses problems before they interfere with the user experience.
43. CA Unified Infrastructure Management (formerly CA Nimsoft Monitor, Unicenter)
Monitors performance and availability Windows resources server.
44. HP Operations Manager
This infrastructure monitoring software performs proactive root cause analysis to reduce recovery time and operational management costs. The solution is ideal for automated monitoring.
45. Dell OpenManage
OpenManage (now Dell Enterprise Systems Management) is an all-in-one monitoring product.
46. Halcyon Windows Server Manager
Management and monitoring of networks, applications and infrastructure.
Below is a list of the (most popular) network monitoring tools
54. Ntop
55. NeDi
Nedi is an open source network monitoring tool.
54. The Dude
System monitoring Dude, although free, but according to experts, is in no way inferior commercial products, monitors individual servers, networks, and network services.
55. BandwidthD
Open source software.
56. NagVis
Extension for Nagios, allows you to create infrastructure maps and display their status. NagVis supports a wide variety of widgets, icon sets.
57. Proc Net Monitor
Free monitoring application, allows you to track everything active processes and, if necessary, quickly stop them to reduce the load on the processor.
58. PingPlotter
Used to diagnose IP networks, to determine where losses and delays are occurring network packets.
Small but useful tools
The list would not be complete without mentioning several hardware monitoring options.60. Glint Computer Activity Monitor
61. RealTemp
Temperature monitoring utility Intel processors, it does not require installation, monitors the current, minimum and maximum temperatures for each core and the start of throttling.
62. SpeedFan
A utility that allows you to control the temperature and rotational speed of the fans in the system, monitors the indicators of the sensors of the motherboard, video card and hard drives.
63. OpenHardwareMonitor
