VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide AppSpeed 1.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at: http://www.vmware.com/support/ The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates. If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to: docfeedback@vmware.com © 2009 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright and intellectual property laws.
Contents About This Book 7 1 AppSpeed Overview 9 Access the AppSpeed User Interface 9 2 Viewing Performance Data 11 About Views 11 Select an Object 11 Select a View 11 Defining the Time Period and Resolution for Data Collection 11 Define the Time Frame 11 Set the Time Resolution 12 View Real‐Time Metrics 12 Performance Tables 12 Sort Tabular Data 13 Search for Objects in a Table 13 Performance Charts and Graphs 13 Chart and Graph Types 13 Filter the Graphic Display 14 Display or Hide Latency Standard De
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide 4 AppSpeed Administration 27 Managing Probes 27 Viewing Probe Information 27 Install an AppSpeed Probe 28 Power Probes On or Off 28 Delete Probes 29 Configuring AppSpeed with vNetwork Distributed Switching 29 Configuring AppSpeed to Monitor a vNetwork Distributed Switch 29 Create a vSwitch for vNetwork Distributed Switches 29 Create a Port Group 30 Configure Promiscuous Mode 30 Configure the AppSpeed Probe to Monitor vNetwork Distributed Switches 30 Configuring AppSpeed
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About This Book This book, the VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide, describes the user interface for the VMware® vCenter AppSpeed virtual machine and plug‐in. Intended Audience This book is intended for IT administrators who use AppSpeed to monitor the performance, usage, and dependencies of multitier applications running across both virtual and physical infrastructure. This document assumes a basic understanding of VMware management and the VMware VI Client.
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1 AppSpeed Overview 1 VMware vCenter AppSpeed provides performance management and service‐level reporting for applications running within virtual appliances. AppSpeed analyzes the traffic that flows between end users, Web applications, and back‐end servers. This analysis provides visibility into multitier applications and enables you to rapidly identify performance issues originating from inadequate resource allocation and application problems.
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2 Viewing Performance Data 2 This chapter describes how to display performance data for applications, servers, and transactions in the Analysis module, and outlines the types of data presented in each of the predefined views.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide To define a specific date 1 From the Select Time Frame drop‐down menu in the view settings bar, select Manual. 2 Click From to specify the start date and time. 3 Select the start date and click OK. 4 Click To to specify the end date and time. 5 Select the end date and click OK. The time frame of the data displayed is adjusted accordingly. To define a time period Under Select Time Frame in the view settings bar, select the time period from the drop‐down menu.
Chapter 2 Viewing Performance Data Sort the table. Search for specific applications or servers. Highlight the data for a specific object on the corresponding graph, by selecting its row in the table. Export the data into a CSV file. Sort Tabular Data You can sort tabular data according to a specific parameter. To sort data: 1 Click the corresponding column header. 2 Click again to reverse the sort order. Search for Objects in a Table You can search for objects in a table.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Table 2-1. Charts and Graph Types (Continued) Chart/Graph Type Description Throughput Breakdown of Servers Reports the breakdown of throughput for servers for the selected application or transaction. Usage Reports the utilization during the selected period of time for the objects selected in the display area. For details on the performance indicators shown in each of the charts and graphs, see “Performance Indicators” on page 17.
Chapter 2 Viewing Performance Data View Summary Data for Applications and Servers You can view summary performance data for all the applications and servers on the network in one several predefined views. To view summary data for the entire network 1 On the AppSpeed inventory tree, select Applications and Servers (the root node). The data shows the performance of all the applications and servers monitored by AppSpeed, according to the Applications: Baseline Comparison view.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide 3 View the status information for the unmapped traffic. Name: Name of the server or transaction. Endpoint: IP address and ports used by the server (Servers tab only). Latency: Average and standard deviation (STDEV) latency rates for the server or transaction. Hits: Average number of hits per second for the server or transaction, and the total number of hits in the specified timeframe.
Chapter 2 Viewing Performance Data View Server Data You can view performance analysis data for a server and its related objects (servers, applications, and dependent servers), including charts and tables. To display detailed data for a single server 1 Select the server in the navigation pane. The data display pane displays data based on the Usage vs. Latency view. NOTE To return to the previous data display, click the Back icon on the toolbar.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Table 2-3. AppSpeed Performance Indicators (Continued) Performance Indicator Description Latency Breakdown Application: The latency measured from the time the server receives the first packet of the request until it starts to transmit the reply. Infrastructure: The latency measured from the time the server starts transmitting the reply until fully replying to the clientʹs request.
Chapter 2 Viewing Performance Data Performance Indicators in Application Views Table 2‐5 lists the performance indicators included in the views available when an application is selected in the AppSpeed inventory tree. NOTE A plus (+) sign indicates that the performance indicator is shown in the view. Table 2-5. Performance Indicators in Application Views . View Name Usage vs. Latency Slowest Transact. Latency Over Time Latency Breakdown Most Used Transact.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Performance Indicators in Server Views Table 2‐6 lists the performance indicators included in the views available when a server is selected on the AppSpeed inventory tree. NOTE A plus (+) sign indicates that the performance indicator is shown in the view. Table 2-6. Performance Indicators in Server Views . View Name Performance Indicator Usage vs.
Chapter 2 Viewing Performance Data Table 2-7. Performance Indicators in Transaction Views (Continued) View Name Performance Indicator Usage vs. Latency Execution Time Average Reply Size Latency Over Time Latency Breakdown Availability Over Time + + + + + Application + Infrastructure + Network (RTT) + Network Overhead + VMware, Inc.
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3 Working with the Topology Map 3 This topology map shows the relationships between the applications and servers detected on the network, as well as the dependencies between applications. This chapter includes the following topics: “Display the Topology Map” on page 23 “Topology Map” on page 24 Display the Topology Map You can view the default map by selecting the Map module.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Topology Map The topology map is displayed in the Map module and includes application and server objects. The following object types are represented on the topology map: Application (the type of application appears below the icon) Server (the IP address of the server appears below the icon) The SLA state of each application is indicated by the appearance of additional icon: Warning Above SLA Not available The absence of an additional icon indicates that the state is OK.
Chapter 3 Working with the Topology Map Analyze an Object You can select an object on the topology map and view its details in the Analysis page. To display the analysis information for a map object 1 Select the object on the topology map. 2 Click Analyze. The Analysis page for the selected application or server is displayed. Locate an Object on the Map You can search for an object on the topology map.
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4 AppSpeed Administration 4 You can perform various administrative functions in AppSpeed, including adding and deleting the probes that AppSpeed uses to monitor vSwitches, configuring SSL keys and mail notification settings, and adding or editing AppSpeed license keys.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Install an AppSpeed Probe You can install a probe on one host at a time, or you can install a probe on multiple hosts at the same time. To install a probe 1 In the Probe Management window, select the check box for one or more hosts or clusters on which to install a probe and click Install Probe. A probe is installed on each selected host, regardless of whether another probe is already installed on the host.
Chapter 4 AppSpeed Administration Delete Probes If you do not want to monitor the traffic on a specific host, you can remove the probes from that host. To delete probes from hosts 1 In the Probes Management window, select the check boxes for one or more probes on the same or multiple hosts, and click Delete Probe. 2 Click OK to confirm. The probe is removed from the selected hosts only.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Create a Port Group If you deploy a vNetwork Distributed Switch, it is recommended that you add a new port group. To create a port group 1 In the vSphere Client or VI Client client, select Home > Networking. 2 Create a new port group for the vNetwork Distributed Switch: a Select the vNetwork Distributed Switch. b From the Basic Tasks list, create a new port group.
Chapter 4 AppSpeed Administration 8 Deploy the AppSpeed probe in the Probe Installation window, selecting the new vSwitch for management and monitoring. NOTE If your management network was set to the fake vSwitch, and the Failed to obtain an IP address error message is displayed after the probe deployment completes. 9 After the probe deployment completes, right‐click the probe, select Edit Settings, and set the management network and monitor network as required. 10 Restart the probe guest.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Add an SSL Key You can assign a key to a pending endpoint to enable AppSpeed to actively monitor its traffic. To add an SSL key 1 In the SSL Management window, select the check boxes for the endpoints in the SSL Pending Endpoints table and click Add/Update SSL key. 2 Browse to and open the key file. The key is assigned to the selected endpoints. The endpoint moves from the SSL Pending Endpoints table to the Monitored Endpoints table.
Chapter 4 AppSpeed Administration 7 Enter the password with which the key is to be encrypted. During the export process, a password is requested to protect the key. If a password is assigned, remember this password. This password is required when importing the key into AppSpeed. 8 Re‐enter the password in the Confirm Password text box. 9 Select Finish. The PFX file should be transferred to the vSphere Client machine and uploaded to the AppSpeed server (see “Add an SSL Key” on page 32).
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Add a License You can add additional licenses, for example, if you want to implement AppSpeed monitoring on additional servers not covered by existing licenses. To add a license 1 In the License page, click Add License. 2 Enter the license key provided by VMware in the text box and click OK. NOTE If the license key string is not valid, an error message is displayed immediately above the license key list. Check the license key and try again.
5 Event Management 5 You can monitor Service Level Agreement (SLA) compliance based on the performance of applications and transactions. AppSpeed monitors these latency and error thresholds for transactions. When a threshold is exceeded, AppSpeed generates an event. You can manually monitor events or you can configure AppSpeed to send email notifications whenever an event is generated.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide View Thresholds and Monitoring Settings You can view the thresholds and SLA monitoring settings. To view threshold and monitoring settings 1 In an application view, click Threshold Settings on the page selection bar.
Chapter 5 Event Management To enable or disable monitoring for a specific transaction In the Threshold Settings table, click the On or Off icon in the row for the performance threshold. To enable or disable monitoring for all transactions: On the Threshold Settings toolbar, click Monitor All or Unmonitor All. Setting Thresholds The threshold value determines the performance level that triggers a change in the state of a transaction or application.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide To suggest values for undefined thresholds 1 In the Threshold Settings page for the application, click Suggest for Undefined on the toolbar. A progress bar is displayed while the process is performed, which might take several minutes. When the process is complete, any previously set values in the Threshold Settings table are overwritten by the suggested values. A flag icon next to the transaction name indicates that it is overwritten.
Chapter 5 Event Management Enable or Disable Event Notifications Disabling event notifications allows you to temporarily suspend email notifications, without affecting the notification configuration settings. To enable or disable notifications 1 In the navigation pane of the Administration module, click Mail Notification Settings. 2 Select or clear the Send mail notifications for events check box and click Apply. Viewing Events The Events List includes the events generated in the specified time period.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Delete Events You can delete events from the Events List at any time. To delete events In the Events List page, select the events and click Delete. 40 VMware, Inc.
6 Upgrading AppSpeed 6 If a new version of AppSpeed is available, you can upgrade to that version. This chapter includes the following topics: “Overview of the Upgrade Process” on page 41 “Upgrade AppSpeed” on page 41 Overview of the Upgrade Process The AppSpeed upgrade process uses an ISO image and is fully automated. The ISO image is provided by VMware.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide 5 Press Enter to run the upgrade script. The upgrade process reboots the AppSpeed server and recreates all AppSpeed probes. This can take up to 20 minutes. NOTE If an error occurs during the script execution, an error message appears indicating the nature of the error. After the AppSpeed server boots from the ISO image, it continues the upgrade process. This process can take up to one hour.
7 Troubleshooting 7 If you encounter problems when using AppSpeed, use this troubleshooting information to try and resolve the problem. This chapter includes the following topics: “AppSpeed Setup Errors” on page 43 “AppSpeed User Interface Loading Problems” on page 44 “General Errors While Using AppSpeed” on page 46 AppSpeed Setup Errors If you have problems while setting up AppSpeed, try these troubleshooting suggestions.
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide Cause The vCenter HTTPS Web Service port is blocked to traffic between the AppSpeed server and vCenter Server. Solution 1 Verify with IT that the vCenter HTTPS Web Service port on the firewall is open from the AppSpeed server to vCenter Server. 2 Run setup again. 3 If the problem persists, try running Telnet to the vCenter IP with the vCenter HTTPS Web Service configured to port 443 to verify that the port is open.
Chapter 7 Troubleshooting 3 On the machine running the vCenter Client, go to C:\Program Files\VMware\Infrastructure\Virtual Infrastructure Client\Plugins\AppSpeed. 4 Open the Settings.config file in a text editor. 5 Replace the line with the line: http://:/AppSpeed/. 6 Replace the line AppSpeed with .
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide 5 If the problem persists, go to http:///AppSpeed/static/setup.exe and download setup.exe from the AppSpeed Brain. If you succeed, the server is accessible. 6 If the problem persists and the 503 Service Unavailable message appears, log in to the AppSpeed server virtual machine as the console user and run restart_AppSpeed from the console. Problem The user interface cannot connect to AppSpeed.
Chapter 7 Troubleshooting Solution 1 In the user interface, select SSL Management in the Administration module and verify that the server appears on the list. 2 If the server is on the list, load the corresponding private keys. See “Managing SSL Keys” on page 31. Problem I do not see my application in the AppSpeed user interface. Solution 1 In the Analysis module, select Applications and Servers in the inventory tree. 2 Select Unmapped Traffic on the page selection bar.
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Index A D access AppSpeed 9 Analysis module define time frame 11 inventory tree 11 view charts and graphs 13 Analysis Views select 11 analyze objects 25 Application Focused view 23 Application views components 16 performance indicators 19 applications enable or disable monitoring 36 real-time states 15 SLA state 35 view details 16 view properties 16 Applications and Servers views 15 performance indicators 18 AppSpeed access 9 upgrade 41 views 11 AppSpeed probes, See probes availability 13 dependencies,
VMware vCenter AppSpeed User’s Guide H O Home view 15 performance indicators 18 install probes 28 inventory tree 11 objects analyze 25 locate on map 25 outgoing mail definitions 38 Overview Map window adjust zoom to fit content 24 L P latency maximum 18 standard deviation 18 standard deviation indicators 14 latency breakdown 13 application 18 infrastructure 18 network 18 license add 34 remove 34 view 27, 33 view details 34 locate objects on map 25 performance indicators Application views 19 Applica
Index SLA states applications 35 transactions 35 transition between 35 SMTP 38 SSL keys edit 32 extract from Apache server 32 extract from Microsoft IIS 6.0 server 32 extract from Microsoft IIS 7.
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