Using the Main Window Functions

The console, which is the main control area, contains a data pane, a tool bar, and menus. The console is where monitoring is initiated and controlled and where data files of all types can be opened for display in visualizers (standalone or within a tabbed viewer). See Using Visualizer Functions for the descriptions of how visualizers behave and the options they provide for manipulating the data view.

Figure 7-1 The Main Console Window

Data Representation

The console main window pane displays session information in a tree format.

Figure 7-2 Main Pane with Several File Types Loaded and an Open Session

When monitoring a running application, double-click on a JVM entry to open a session. You can display multiple node agents and sessions in the data tree.

When analyzing collected data, Open a saved file, or click on the representation that appears in the console pane. You can load multiple data sets into the console for easy access.

Icons and Their Meaning

Icons and descriptions that appear in the console main window represent:

Node Agent

A node agent is a top-level entry in the data tree. It represents a connection to a node agent on a managed node.

Table 7-1 Node Agent Connection Status Icons

The node agent is connected and running.

The connection is waiting for a response from the node agent. If this state exists for a long time, verify that you specified the correct node name and port number.

The connection with the node agent is broken or cannot be established. Make sure that the node agent is running on the specified host and double-click on the node agent to re-establish the connection.

JVM Agent

Java Virtual Machine (JVM) entries represent JVM agent-monitored JVMs on the host represented by the corresponding node agent. The entry displays the corresponding process ID, the application name, and its running time. The application is not monitored by HPjmeter. To open a monitoring session with the application, double-click on the JVM entry.

Table 7-2 JVM Agent Connection Icons

The JVM agent is running and working correctly.

The JVM agent is not ready to open a session. Another console has already opened a session with it, the JVM agent is running in batch mode, or the JVM agent is incompatible.

The JVM agent is unresponsive, that is, the node agent lost contact with it. The JVM might be down, or it might be overloaded. Verify that the JVM is running and wait until it becomes responsive again before opening a monitoring session with it.

Open and Cached Sessions

Session entries represent applications monitored by HPjmeter on the system. Many sessions can exist for each node agent. Session entries display the system name and the port number of the node agent connection if the connection is nonstandard.

An entry displays a process ID for the connection, the name of the application being run and state information for the connection.

An entry marked Cached Application Data is a cached session. The data in a cached session is available for analysis, but it is no longer connected to a running JVM and is no longer collecting additional data. A cached session is created when a JVM in session terminates on its own, or when you close an active session.

Table 7-3 Session State Icons

The session is running and working correctly, or the session is closed but the data for the session is available for analysis.

The session is malfunctioning. Close the session and try to reopen it.

The session is unresponsive, that is, the node agent lost contact with it. The JVM might be down, or it might be overloaded.

Time Slice Entries

Time slice entries represent the life span of the current monitoring session for an application. You can view data throughout the life span of a time slice.

Table 7-4 Time Slice Icons

This entry displays the life span of the time slice. Click to activate the Monitor metric visualizers.

Alert entries represent current alerts. Double-click to open the visualizer that displays the data that triggered the alert. (To see the alert history, check the alert log file accessible from the Alert Controller.)

The JMX server is connected and running. Double-click to open the JMX viewer.

You cannot store more than one time slice in the hierarchy below a JVM session. Closed sessions accumulate at the bottom of the data tree.

Saving Data

Table 7-5 Saved Data Icon

The data represented has been saved from a previous run of the application or from a monitoring session. Metric and alert information are available, but interactions that require connection to the live node agent are not.

A saved data file will appear as the top-level entry in the data tree.

Data from monitoring a session is saved by clicking an open session, which activates the Save as option on the File menu and the Save to Snapshot File button.

Data from a session is saved by using the appropriate options on the command line when you start your application.

Console Tool Bar Buttons

Open File

Select a previously saved monitor batch file, a snapshot file, or a profile data file to view.

After opening a saved file, you can review data using the menu metrics appropriate for the data file type.

Connect to Server

Launches the Connect To Server dialog so you can specify the name of the host and optional port of the target you want to monitor. You must specify a port number if the node agent was started on a nonstandard port. See Connect to the Node Agent from the Console for an example of the Connect to Server dialog box.

Save to Snapshot File

Allows you to save monitoring data from a live or cached session to a snapshot file. You can then analyze the session data later or send the data file to others for further analysis.

Open Alert Controller

Launches the Alert Controller so that you can change thresholds and time sustained for available alert settings. To activate the button, first click the alert in the data pane for which you want to see the settings.

Close

Closes a selected monitoring session, deletes a connection with a selected node agent, or removes a selected saved data file entry from the data pane.

Console Menu Choices

The menu bar contains these choices:

File -- Contains selections corresponding to most of the buttons in the tool bar, plus Exit.
Edit -- Contains these commands:
- Look and Feel Preferences
  Graphical user interface look-and-feel selections
- Window Preferences
  Remember Main Window Location
  Click the menu item to toggle where HPjmeter places the console window in the same location when you restart.
  Cascade Metric Windows
  Click the menu item to have HPjmeter open new metric windows position so you can see the windows beneath the newly opened window.
  Show Console Guide
  The Console Guide is enabled by default and appears in a pane below the main console data pane. Use this menu selection to hide or reveal the guide pane.
- Standard Preferences
  Allows you to import, export, delete, or reset preference settings.
  Import Preferences from File
  You can import HPjmeter_preferences.xml to populate the preference data of a new installation by placing this file in your home directory and selecting this choice.
  Export Preferences to File
  You can save the contents of the backing store by exporting it to a file named HPjmeter_preferences.xml in your home directory.
  Delete Preference Backing Store
  Use this selection to delete the contents of the backing store. The backing store automatically collects the settings that you choose each time you run HPjmeter.
  Reset Default Color Preferences
  Resets all color changes made to visualizer displays back to the default settings.
Monitor — Contains these categorical submenus and their associated monitoring metrics:
Help — Provides links to the HPjmeter User's Guide, getting started material, and demonstration instructions.

The Monitor Menu

The Monitor menu provides four submenus that give access to the lists of specific available metrics. When you select a time slice (live or from a saved file), the appropriate metrics for the Monitor menu become active so you can display the session data in standalone visualizers. For details about specific monitoring metrics, see Using Monitoring Displays.

Menus for selecting general profile data metrics are accessible within the profiling data viewer. See Using Profile Displays.




	NOTE: Some metrics may appear grayed out when you select a menu category. These metrics may have been disabled in the session preferences or by specifying a JVM agent option. To re-enable these metrics, you may need to close the current session and start a new session, enabling the desired metrics in the Session Preferences window; or restart the application with different JVM options; or both. See Setting Monitoring Session Preferences .

Console Guide

To aid in starting your use of HPjmeter, the console can display a beginning guide containing hints for getting started. The guide provides hints appropriate to the type of data file highlighted in the main console pan.

Figure 7-3 Console Guide Location and First Screen

To enable or disable the console guide, click Edit Window Preferences and toggle to the desired option.

Status Bar

The Status Bar in the lower bottom and right corner of the console provides standard notifications including:

status and error messages
warning icon when an alert is present
memory use by the console (mousing over the horizontal bar reveals memory use in KB)