Diagnosing Windows I/O Bottlenecks Using Performance Monitor

The Windows Performance Monitor (perfmon) will help you identify I/O performance bottlenecks. To gather relevant data, monitor the following key variables: Processor: % processor time (total, by CPU) Physical disk: avg. disk queue length (total, read and write) Physical disk: disk bytes/sec (total, read and write for each monitored disk)

When to Gather Data Capture data during periods you think you are experiencing performance problems: during your peak OLTP processing time, end-of-period reporting, or peak operating conditions. If you are not certain when processing peaks are occurring, capture data for a 24-hour or longer period. Starting the Test To launch perfmon, select Run from the Windows Start Menu, and type perfmon in the Open: field. 1. In the Performance window, double-click Performance Logs and Alerts to expand the tree menu. 2. Double-click on Counter Logs 3. Right-click on Counter Logs and select New Log Settings to bring up the New Log Settings dialog box. 4. In the Name: field, enter a name for your log file and click OK, which will bring up the following window:

Figure 1: Log File Settings 5. The Current Log File Name field displays where the newly created file is stored.

6. Click on the Add Objects button to bring up the following window:

Figure 2: Adding Objects 7. Click the Radio button next to Select counter objects from computer, and use the drop-down box to select the computer you wish to monitor. 8. In the Performance objects: multi-select box, CTRL+left-click the first performance objects to monitor. To monitor for I/O bottlenecks, select: Memory, Physical Disk, and Processor. 9. Click the Add button and then click the Close button. 10. Next, click on the Add Counters button to bring up the following window:

Figure 2: Adding Counters

11. Verify that the Select counter objects from computer radio button is selected and that the proper computer is in the drop-down field. 12. In the Performance Object drop-down field, select Processor. a. Select the Select counters from list radio-button and click: o % Processor Time b. Select the All instances radio-button. c. Click the Add button. If you receive a dialog box that One or more of the selected counters are already present and wont be added again, click the OK button. 13. In the Performance Object drop-down field, select Physical Disk. a. Click on the Select counters from list radio-button and select: o Avg. Disk Queue Length o Avg. Disk Read Queue Length o Avg. Disk Write Queue Length o Disk Bytes/Sec o Disk Read Bytes/Sec o Disk Write Bytes/Sec b. Click on the All instances radio-button. This will ensure you capture disk data at the aggregate level (total) and for each individual disk. c. Click the Add button. If you receive a dialog box that One or more of the selected counters are already present and wont be added again, click the OK button. 14. In the Performance Object drop-down field, select Memory. a. Click on the Select counters from list radio-button and select: o Pages/sec b. Click the Add button. If a dialog box indicates, One or more of the selected counters are already present and wont be added again, click the OK button. 15. Click on the Close button. 16. Click on the Schedule tab, and set the start and end times for the log. 17. Click on the Apply button to complete the log set-up. 18. Verify log is created a. Double-click on Performance Logs and Alerts. b. Click on Counter Logs 19. Your new log should be in the list.