Chapter 5 Monitoring

Monitoring nodes means looking at performance data in real time. This section introduces metrics and thresholds, explains sessions and the types of displays you can choose, and includes information on additional monitoring methods.

Sessions

Everything you do in Performance Manager occurs within a session. A session is to Performance Manager as a file is to an editor. You can change sessions, save sessions, and recall previous sessions.

When creating a session, you can use the default session settings or select which nodes to monitor and which metrics to watch, and set up any thresholds or archives. One session window can contain both display and threshold metrics, and is identified by file name. The following image of the main window calls out the controls you use in setting up a session.
Session View
Creating a Session
To create a session, follow these steps:
  1. From the main window's File menu or toolbar, choose New Session.
  2. Select a node, cluster, or group in the main window's nodes area. The work area will appear to the right.
  3. Click on the Display or Threshold button, if not already selected.
  4. Select a metric category from the horizontally scrolling list at the top of the work area.
  5. Under Metrics, set a metric check box.
  6. If you are working in the Display work area, use the metric's related option menu to choose:
    • Display type
    • Sampling interval

    If you are working in the Threshold work area, use the metric's related option menu to choose:

    • Value
    • Re-arm point
    • Notification methods
    • Tolerance
    • Interval
  7. Repeat the steps (except step 1) for every node, cluster, or group you want to monitor in this session.
  8. To start the session you have just created, click on the Start Session button
  9. After the session window opens, choose actions from the buttons on the session window toolbar:
    • Expand
      Click this button to display a selected title. Display metrics are expanded by default.
    • Collapse
      Click this button to close the display, showing only the title. Threshold metrics are collapsed by default.
    • Float
      Click this button to detach (float) this window.

    A visual alert icon by the title displays the State (crossed or not crossed, waiting for data, data request timed out) of the threshold.

Starting the session puts everything in motion; the displays you specified will open. Starting the session puts everything in motion: the displays you specified will open and the thresholds you specified will be set. When you are through, stop the session.

Managing Sessions

Sessions can be saved and recalled later, which eliminates the need to respecify your choices, but you can change anything about a session.

After creating a new session or opening a previously saved session, you need to start it in order to open the session window and monitor data.

To start a session

Click on the main window's Start Session button.

To save a session
  1. From the File menu, choose Save Session or Save Session As.
  2. From the main window's File menu, choose Save Session. The File Selection dialog box opens.
  3. Provide a name for the session; the default extension is .spm.
To recall a previous session
  1. From the File menu, choose Open Session.
  2. From the main window's File menu, choose Open Session. The File Selection dialog box opens.
  3. Choose a session from the dialog box.
To stop a session

In the main window, click on the Stop Session button. You can also stop a session by choosing Stop Session from the session window's File menu.

Displays

Each performance metric can be displayed in several display types. Display types are chosen from the option menus to the right of each metric in the main window. The following images are examples of each display type:

The default background color is black, and the default charting colors used in these examples are blue for 5 second intervals, yellow for 30 second intervals, and magenta for 60 second intervals.

Area Display
Bar Display

Pie Display
Plot Display

Stack Bar Display
Table Display

Floating Displays

When a new session is opened, all displays are shown in the session window; however, individual displays can be expanded, collapsed, or floated out in their own separate windows.

To expand or collapse a display
  • Expand: Click the expand button to display a selected title. Display metrics are expanded by default.
  • Collapse: Click the collapse button to close the display, showing only the title. Threshold metrics are collapsed by default.
To float a display
  • Select the metric title, which changes color to show it is selected, as shown in the figure below:

MetricDisplay Selection
  • From the toolbar, choose the first display icon, Float Selected Display, or from the session window's File menu, choose Current Display, then choose Float.

The display now appears in its own window.

You must save a session after floating displays if you want the displays to appear in their own windows when the session is reopened.

Consolidating Displays

Floating displays can be closed so that they reappear in the session window.

To consolidate a floating display into the session window
  • From the display window's File menu, choose No Float .
  • The display now appears in the session window.
  • A visual alert icon by the title displays the State (crossed or not crossed, waiting for data, data request timed out) of the threshold.
Manipulating Displays

You can interact with the graph displays in Performance Manager in the following ways:

Setting Display Styles

You can change the data styles chosen for the Performance Manager displays by modifying the PM resource file. The resource file is in this location:

/usr/lib/X11/app-defaults/PM

A copy of the resource file is included in the reference section of the Performance Manager Help Volume.

The following information may help you work with the resource file:

Default data styles

The XrtDataStyle data structure contains all the information about how a set of data will be represented graphically. The fields are broken down as follows:

  • lpat -- The line pattern used for plots.
  • fpat -- The fill pattern used in area graphs and bar and pie charts.
  • color -- The color used when drawing lines in plots and for fills in area graphs and bar charts. It is either a named color or a # character followed by two hexadecimal characters for each of the Red, Green, and Blue components.
  • width -- The line width used for plots. Must be greater than or equal to one.
  • point -- The point style used for plots.
  • pcolor -- The point color used for points in plots. It is either a named color or a # character followed by two hexadecimal characters for each of the Red, Green, and Blue components.
  • psize -- The size of points that appear in plots. Must be equal to or greater than 0. A size of 0 will result in no point being drawn. A point size is a relative measure. It should not be assumed that a point size of 12 means that the point's glyph will be exactly 12 pixels from top to bottom.

For further information, please see your Xt Intrinsics documentation.
Plot line pattern, fill pattern, and point style
List of Data Styles
Resources of type (XtRXrtDataStyles) specified as a parenthesized list, with each member specifying a complete data style (XtRXrtDataStyle). For example:

! change the graph data styles

pmgr*xrtDataStyles: (( LpatSolid FpatSolid "blue" 1 PointDot "blue" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid FpatSolid "yellow" 1 PointTri "yellow" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid FpatHorizStripe "magenta" 1 PointBox "magenta" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid Fpat25Percent "cyan" 1 PointDiamond "cyan" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid FpatVertStripe "#6699ff" 1 PointStar "#6699ff" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid FpatDiagHatched "#ff9900" 1 PointCircle "#ff9900" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid Fpat45Stripe "#33cc99" 1 PointSquare "#33cc99" 4 ) \

( LpatSolid FpatCrossHatched "#cc3333" 1 PointCross "#cc3333" 4 ))

For further information on resource files and their usage, please see your Xt Intrinsics documentation.

Other Monitoring Methods

Performance Manager supports two additional monitoring methods:

Monitoring from the Command Line

The following UNIX commands are provided for command-line access to the metrics servers:

  • getone
  • getbulk
  • getnext
  • gettab
  • getmany
Note: The getbulk command uses the SNMPv1 extensions and requires that you access the metrics servers via their private SNMP request ports rather than the well-known SNMP request port. The port to be used is specified by the environment variable PMGR_SNMP_PORT. The appropriate port numbers should be listed in the /etc/services file on the management station.

The following example shows how to query pmgrd using the getmany command: 

% getmany alfred public pm
pmCmSysProcessorType.0 = alpha(2)
pmCmSysOperatingSystem.0 = digital-unix(2)
pmCmSysOSMajorVersion.0 = 3
pmCmSysOSMinorVersion.0 = 2
pmCmSysPageSize.0 = 8192
pmCmSysNumCpusOnline.0 = 2
pmCmSysPhysMem.0 = 262136
pmCmSysPhysMemUsed.0 = 56328
pmCmSysUpTime.0 = 88677120
pmCmSysDate.0 = 7.204.1.17.17.58.57.0.-.8.0
pmCmSysNumUsers.0 = 14
pmCmSysProcesses.0 = 81
.
.
.
pmAoVmSwapInUse.0 = 57160
pmAoVmSwapDefault.0 = /dev/re3c
pmAoVmSiIndex.1 = 1
pmAoVmSiPartition.1 = /dev/re3c
pmAoVmSiPagesAllocated.1 = 256896
pmAoVmSiPagesInUse.1 = 7145
pmAoVmSiPagesFree.1 = 249751
pmAoBcReadHits.0 = 21761200
pmAoBcReadMisses.0 = 78356
pmAoIfEthIndex.1 = 1
pmAoIfEthName.1 = tu0
pmAoIfEthCollisions.1 = 13064347
End of MIB.
Monitoring with SNMP Network Management Systems

You can also use SNMP Network Management Systems (NMS) to access Performance Manager's metrics servers. Examples of available systems include:

Commercially Available   Freely Available
DIGITAL NetView scotty/tkined
IBM NetView/6000
HP OpenView
SunNet Manager

The following information is taken from the file /usr/opt/pm/nms/README.nms

Using NetView

Use the following procedure to install and use NetView

To install and uninstall NetView support:

  • To use PM’s NetView support, you should first install NetView and Performance Manager on your management node. Then, as superuser, use the following command:
    # /usr/opt/pm/nms/PMGR_Netview_Setup INSTALL
  • To uninstall NetView support, use the following as super user:

    • # /usr/opt/pm/nms/PMGR_Netview_Setup DELETE
Loading PM MIBs

To make NetView aware of the MIB variables provided by PM's metrics servers, it is necessary to load their associated MIB files into NetView. This is done using the Options Load/Unload MIBs: SNMP... menu item. The MIB files for PM's metrics servers are listed below, with the metric server name followed by the NetView-loadable MIB file:

  • pmgrd

    • /usr/OV/bin/snmp_mibs/pm-mib.pnv
  • clstrmond

    • /usr/OV/bin/snmp_mibs/cluster-mib.pnv
Using the NetView MIB Browser Application

Once you have loaded Performance Manager's MIB files you should be able to browse them using the NetView MIB browser. Note that MIB browsers that were opened prior to loading new MIB will not reflect the additional MIB information so you will have to open new ones to get the changes.

Performance Manager's MIB are found under .iso.org.dec.

The string dec appears in at least two places in the OSI naming tree; iso.org.dod.internet.private.enterprises.dec is another well known place). In the NetView browser, click Up Tree until you reach org and then go down dec to find the PM MIB variables.

Specifying Private Ports in NetView

If you are running the DIGITAL UNIX extensible agent ( snmpd) shipped with DIGITAL UNIX 3.2D (and later), you do not require this section as you are able to access Performance Manager's agents via the SNMP port (UDP/161). The snmpd forwards relevant requests to Performance Manager's agents using the eSNMP subagent supported by Performance Manager's agents.

Use Options SNMP Configuration... menu item. Earlier versions of NetView had a bug in the facility to specify alternate UDP port numbers. The bug was apparently caused by a byte-ordering problem on the UDP port number variable. The following table provides the work around if you are using a version of NetView with this bug. NetView versions 4.0 and earlier are known to have this problem.

Intended UDP Port

Actual Value Entered

1161 35076

1165

36100
161 41216
Sending SNMP Traps Using trapsend(1)

The script trapsend-example found in this directory is an example of a script that periodically monitors the value of a variable against a threshold value. Upon crossing the threshold value, it sends a trap to NetView. As described in the KNOWN BUGS section of trapsend(1), the script takes care of temporarily setting and then unsetting SR_MGR_CONF_DIR. The Performance Manager kit installation sets up the mgr.cnf and snmpinfo.dat in the /etc/srconf/agt directory.

The script assumes that you are running the extensible SNMP agent ( snmpd) that is shipped with DIGITAL UNIX version 3.2D (and later versions).

Sample MIB Applications

The following sample PNV applications are shipped with this kit. They are installed by PMGR_NetView_Setup and may be accessed from the Monitor-Performance Manager NetView menu.

Filename Files Installed As
ovmib.pmgr_RunQueue /usr/OV/registration/C/ovmib/PMGR_RunQueue
ovmib.pmgr_RunQueue.help /usr/OV/help/ovmib/OVW/Functions/PMGR_RunQueue
ovmib.pmgr_SysInfo /usr/OV/registration/C/ovmib/PMGR_SysInfo
ovmib.pmgr_SysInfo.help /usr/OV/help/ovmib/OVW/Functions/PMGR_SysInfo
ovmib.pmgr_SwapConfig /usr/OV/registration/C/ovmib/PMGR_SwapConfig
ovmib.pmgr_SwapConfig.help /usr/OV/help/ovmib/OVW/Functions/PMGR_SwapConfig

Go to Main   Go to Previous   Go to Next