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Introduction to Oracle Performance Manager

Oracle Performance Manager is an Oracle Enterprise Manager application that allows you to monitor the performance of the database and its related applications and operating systems in real time. It allows system and database administrators to monitor performance statistics for Oracle database servers, web servers, Oracle concurrent managers, operating systems, and other managed targets. Performance Manager also allows you to record statistics and play them back at a later time.

You can display these statistics in a number of formats including horizontal and vertical tables, strip charts, horizontal and vertical bar charts, and pie charts. You can also drill down for more detail on some predefined charts.

Since Performance Manager is integrated with Oracle Capacity Planner, you can also drill down to an historical view of the displayed data. The drilldown to historical data allows you to quickly compare the current real time value with the historical average to provide you with a better understanding of the meaning of the current value. For more information about Capacity Planner, see Chapter 4, "Introduction to Oracle Capacity Planner".

For most targets, Performance Manager integrates Event system thresholds with charts so that events and charts share common performance thresholds you can set from either monitoring point. This provides consistent monitoring of thresholds across Enterprise Manager and allows access to graphical and historical diagnostics information from the Event system. You can investigate event notifications by launching charts, historical data and diagnostic advice directly from the Event Viewer. Performance Manager charts incorporate event notification through chart threshold state indicators. Performance Manager threshold and event features are available for node and database data.

You can use activity diagnostic charts such as TopSessions for finding and troubleshooting high impact sessions. These charts provide graphical performance data to help you diagnose a problem session or SQL statement.

Oracle Performance Manager uses the Intelligent Agent (Agent) to collect performance data. To monitor some types of data, you must install the Agent on the system (or systems) where you want to monitor data. See the Oracle Intelligent Agent User's Guide for information on managing the Agent on a system.

If you are using Oracle Performance Manager to monitor database performance, the Agent can be installed on another system. See "Accessing Performance Data Through an Intermediate Host" for more information on accessing data through an Agent on another system.

The types of performance data that Oracle Performance Manager can monitor on a system depends on the products that are installed. Table 3-1 shows the types of data (or targets) that Oracle Performance Manager can monitor when various Oracle products are installed.

Table 3-1 Data that Performance Manager Can Monitor when Various Oracle Products Are Installed  

Oracle Product	Oracle Concurrent Manager Data	Oracle Server Data	Operating System Data	SAP R/3 System Data	Microsoft SQL Server Data
Diagnostics Pack	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Management Pack for Oracle Applications	Yes	No	Yes	No	No
Management Pack for SAP R/3	No	No	Yes	Yes	No
Standard Management Pack (Oracle Standard Edition only)	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes

If additional products from Oracle or other vendors are installed, Oracle Performance Manager may be able to monitor additional types of data not shown in Table 3-1.

Accessing Performance Data Through an Intermediate Host

Oracle Performance Manager relies on the Agent to monitor a target (such as a node, a database, or a concurrent manager). Usually, the collection of the data is done on the system where the target is located. However, for some types of targets Oracle Performance Manager can also monitor data on a system by using the Agent on another system (an intermediate host).

This intermediate host could be the client system where the Oracle Performance Manager is running, or any other system on the network on which the Agent is available.

There are three ways to set the location of the Agent. The method you use depends on how you connect to the target. Consider the following three scenarios:

• You connect to a target that has been discovered using the Enterprise Manager console and you are running Oracle Performance Manager while connected to the Oracle Management Server.

  Performance Manager attempts to connect to the Agent on the host where the target is located. If this connection fails or cannot be attempted because no preferred credentials have been set for the target, you can use the Connection Details dialog box to specify logon credentials for the target. This dialog box also contains a field to specify the location of the Agent that will be used to collect performance data.

  
  
• You click the Add Service button in the toolbar panel and manually add the target to the navigator.

  Performance Manager displays a Logon dialog box. You can use the Connection Details dialog box to specify the location of the Agent that will be used to collect performance data.

• You select a target in the Performance Manager navigator tree and choose Set Connection Details from the File menu.

  Performance Manager displays the Logon dialog box for the selected target. Use the Connection Details dialog box to specify the location of the Agent that will be used to collect performance data.

Usage Scenarios for Oracle Performance Manager

Using Oracle Performance Manager, you can:

• Monitor one or more targets concurrently.
• View the monitored data in various chart formats, including strip (line), pie, bar, table, and hierarchical.
• Set the refresh rate for a chart's data.
• View multiple charts concurrently for each monitored target.
• View multiple charts in a single window.
• Drill down from one chart to another related chart. Drill down to diagnostic advice.
• Drill down from real-time chart data to historical chart data.
• Choose the collected data and data sources to display in a chart.
• View threshold state indicators that provide immediate visual notification of performance status for specific targets.
• Print a chart.
• Generate and publish an HTML report for a chart.
• Display context-sensitive help for a chart, if help is available for the chart.
• Play a recording of a chart, with fast-forward and pause features.
• Create and modify user-defined charts.

Starting Oracle Performance Manager

You can start Oracle Performance Manager from the Oracle Enterprise Manager console, from the UNIX command line, or from the Windows Start menu.

Starting Oracle Performance Manager from the Console

You can start Oracle Performance Manager from the Oracle Enterprise Manager console in any of the following ways:

• On the Oracle Enterprise Manager console, point to the Diagnostics Pack drawer, then click Performance Manager.
• On the Tools menu of the Oracle Enterprise Manager console, point to Diagnostics Pack, then click Performance Manager.
• Click the right mouse button on the target for which you want to start Performance Manager and then choose Performance Manager from the Related Tools menu item on the context menu.

  Note: When you start Oracle Performance Manager from the Oracle Enterprise Manager console, Oracle Performance Manager connects to the Oracle Management Server using the same credentials used to start the Oracle Enterprise Manager console.

Starting Oracle Performance Manager from the UNIX Command Line

To start Performance Manager from the UNIX command line, set default to the ORACLE_HOME/bin directory, then type the following command:

./oemapp pm

When you start Performance Manager from the UNIX command line, you are given a choice of logging in to the Oracle Management Server and running Performance Manager in Enterprise mode or Standalone mode.

See "Running Performance Manager in Enterprise Mode" and "Running Performance Manager in Standalone Mode" for more information about running Performance Manager in Enterprise mode and Standalone mode.

Starting Oracle Performance Manager from the Start Menu in Windows NT

On the Start menu of Windows NT, follow the path: Start=>Programs=>ORACLE_HOME=>Diagnostics Pack=>Performance Manager.

When you start Performance Manager from the Start menu, you are given a choice of logging in to the Oracle Management Server and running Performance Manager in Enterprise mode or Standalone mode.

Running Performance Manager in Enterprise Mode

To run Oracle Performance Manager in Enterprise mode:

1. Click Login to the Oracle Management Server.
2. Enter the appropriate connection information for your Oracle Management Server.

   
   

   To select an alternate Management Server, click the Management Server button next to the Management Server drop-down list. In the resulting dialog box, you can add another node that is running Oracle Management Server software. The Oracle Management Server and its associated repository must already exist.

   For information on the fields in the Management Servers dialog box, click Help.

3. Click OK.

   Note: If the repository was created using Enterprise Manager Release 2.1 or earlier, you must upgrade the repository or create a new repository. For more information, see the Oracle Enterprise Manager Configuration Guide.

When Performance Manager is running in Enterprise mode and the navigator is first displayed with a target type folder expanded, the targets of that type that were discovered in the Enterprise Manager console are displayed. When you expand a target, Performance Manager attempts to connect to the target. When the target is a database and preferred credentials for the database have been saved in the Oracle Enterprise repository, Performance Manager attempts to connect to the database using those credentials. Otherwise, the Oracle Database Logon dialog box prompts you for the logon information.

Running Performance Manager in Standalone Mode

To run Oracle Performance Manager in standalone mode (not connected to the Oracle Enterprise Manager repository), click Standalone, no repository connection, then click OK.

When Performance Manager is running in Standalone mode Performance Manager displays any targets that were added to the console in Standalone mode. You can add nodes or databases to the collection view for the current standalone mode session only. Click on the Add Service toolbar button after selecting the folder for the desired target type.

Using the Oracle Performance Manager Main Window

The primary component of the Oracle Performance Manager user interface is the main window (see Figure 3-1), which contains two panels. The navigator or tree panel appears on the left side of the main window and the property sheet panel appears on the right side. When you select an item in the navigator panel, the property sheet panel displays the properties of the selected item.

When you first start Oracle Performance Manager, the navigator panel displays the target type folders and the property sheet panel displays the Performance Manager welcome screen.

A vertical toolbar appears on the left side of the window and a menu bar appears across the top of the window. For more information about the buttons in the toolbar and the commands available from the Performance Manager menus, choose Window from the Performance Manager Help menu.

In the navigator panel, the Network folder contains a folder for each target type. For example, when you have the Diagnostics Pack installed, the target types are Nodes, Databases, Forms Servers, Concurrent Managers, SAP R/3 Systems, HTTP Servers, and SQL Servers. Not all target types may be available on all systems.

In addition to the Network folders, the Recordings folder contains any recordings of chart data that exist. For more information about the Recordings folder, see "Recording Chart Data" .

Figure 3-1 Oracle Performance Manager Main Window

Text description of the illustration pmnav.gif

Connecting to a Discovered Target in Enterprise Mode

Expand a target type folder to view the corresponding targets previously discovered through the Oracle Enterprise Manager console.

To connect to a discovered target, select the target in the navigator tree and click Connect to service in the Performance Manager toolbar, or click the plus sign (+) next to the target in the navigator. You can also connect to the target by double clicking on it in the navigator tree . You may be prompted with a Logon dialog box if credentials are required to connect to the target. For information on the fields in the Logon dialog box, click Help.

Manually Connecting to a Target

You can manually add additional targets that have not been discovered using the Enterprise Manager console.

To add and connect to a target manually:

1. Select the folder for the target type you are adding.

   
   

2. Click Add Service in the Performance Manager toolbar panel.

   Performance Manager displays a Logon dialog box.

3. Fill in the fields in the Logon dialog box and click OK.

   For information on the fields in the Logon dialog box, click Help.

After you connect to a target, Performance Manager displays the classes of performance information you can monitor for the selected target. Expand a class to see the individual performance data charts available for the selected class.

Viewing Performance Manager Charts

You can display a chart using one of the following methods:

• Select the chart in the navigator, and click the Show Chart button on the toolbar.
• Select the chart in the navigator, and choose Show Chart from the Chart menu.

  
  

• Select the chart in the navigator, which displays the chart's property sheet. To start the chart with the selected property sheet options, click Show Chart on the property sheet.
• Select a chart class, then select the chart in the Predefined Displays list and click Show Chart.
• Select the chart in the navigator and click the right mouse button. From the context menu, click Show Chart.

Performance Manager displays each chart or chart group in its own window, which is separate from the main window. This window is called the Chart Display window. For more information, see "Using the Chart Display Window" .

Monitoring Multiple Targets Concurrently

You can view charts from multiple targets concurrently by connecting to the targets from the navigator tree and displaying charts.

Viewing Chart Groups

Some types of data include a chart group, which is two or more charts that are displayed within a single Chart Display window. You display a chart group the same way as you view any other chart (see "Viewing Performance Manager Charts").

You can display a special chart group that contains the Overview Charts for a selected target:

1. Select a target in the Performance Manager navigator.

   
   

2. Click the Show Overview Charts button in the toolbar panel.

   Performance Manager displays a chart group containing some key statistics most likely of interest to database administrators monitoring the selected target.

Charts in a chart group are displayed within a single window. You perform actions, such as setting options and displaying drilldown charts, on one chart at a time within a chart group. The currently selected chart within a chart group window is identified by a highlighted title or a black box. For example, the Memory Faults chart is the currently selected chart in Figure 3-2.

Figure 3-2 Identifying the Selected Chart In a Chart Group

Text description of the illustration pm_group_chart.gif

Besides viewing the Overview Charts for a selected target, you can also view a chart group provided with a data class. For example, you can select the Memory data class for a Windows NT node and display the Memory at a Glance chart group. Not all data classes provide chart groups, however.

Selecting Collected Data and Data Sources

For some charts, the chart's property sheet allows you to select the collected data to display and the data sources for which the collected data should be displayed.

The collected data are the statistics that can be monitored and displayed in the chart. The data sources are the items from which Oracle Performance Manager is able to collect the data. For example, the data source of disk statistics may be disk1 or disk2, and the data source of file statistics may be file1 or file2.

By clicking in the column next to the name of the collected data or the name of the data source in the chart property sheet, you can specify whether or not to monitor that collected data or data source and display it in the chart.

When a green check mark appears in the column, Oracle Performance Manager will display that collected data or data source in the chart. If you click in the column again, the check mark goes away, which indicates that Oracle Performance Manager will not display that collected data or data source. You can toggle back and forth between monitoring and not monitoring all the collected data or data sources by clicking in the column head. If the check mark is gray, it means Oracle Performance Manager will display the collected data or data source, and you are unable to change the selection of this data.

If the chart definition contains default data source or collected data attributes, then those items are preselected in the chart's property sheet.

Using the Chart Display Window

When you display a chart, Oracle Performance Manager opens the Chart Display window. The window contains its own toolbar and menu bar. For information about the Chart Display window, choose Window from the Chart Display window Help menu.

Selecting a Chart Format

To change the format of the chart, click on the Chart Format button in the Chart Display window toolbar and select the format in which you want to display the chart from the list that displays.

For example, suppose a chart initially displays as a bar chart. To see the data as a pie chart, choose Pie Chart from the list that displays when you click on the Chart Format button in the toolbar. You can also display a chart in one of the additional formats:

• Bar (vertical or horizontal orientation)
• Strip (or line chart)
• Table (vertical or horizontal orientation)
• Hierarchical

You can also choose a chart format from the View menu in the Chart display window or right mouse click on a chart and select a chart type from the context menu. For more information about the buttons on the Chart Display window toolbar, see the Oracle Performance Manager online help.

Setting the Chart Refresh Rate

By default, most charts are set to refresh every fifteen seconds but vary based on the chart. That means that Performance Manager collects the data every fifteen seconds and then immediately refreshes (or redisplays) the chart using the new data.

To change the refresh rate for the current chart:

1. Click the Refresh Rate button in the Chart Display window toolbar.

   Performance Manager displays the Refresh Rate dialog box.

2. Use the fields on the dialog box to set a new refresh rate for the current chart.
3. Click OK to close the dialog box and display the chart using the new refresh rate.

You can also choose Refresh Rate from the Collection menu to change the refresh rate.

Pausing and Restarting a Chart

By default, Performance Manager continues to collect performance data and update the current chart using the current refresh rate.

To pause a chart so it stops redisplaying based on the refresh rate, click the Pause Chart button in the Chart Display toolbar.

To restart the chart, click the Resume Chart button in the Chart Display toolbar.

Selecting Chart Options

After you display a chart in the Chart Display window, you can still modify the collected data and data sources for the chart. For more information about selecting the collected data and data sources before you display a chart, see "Selecting Collected Data and Data Sources".

To set the chart options:

1. Click the Options button in the Chart Display toolbar.

   Performance Manager displays the Options dialog box.

2. Use the Options dialog box to add or remove data items from the chart.

   For more information on selecting data sources and selecting collected data, click Help.

You can also access the Options dialog box by choosing Options from the Collection menu.

Oracle Performance Manager also allows you to select filters to limit the data collected for a chart. However, not all charts provide filters. For charts that allow you to filter the chart data, you can select a limit to the number of data sources that are displayed. For example, if the data sources are the processes on an operating system, you can modify the chart to display only 10 processes, rather than all the processes.

For example, to select a limit to the number of data sources that are displayed for the Pagefaults Per Session chart, do the following:

1. Highlight the Pagefaults Per Session chart in the navigator tree of the Performance Manager main window.

   You can locate the chart by traversing the tree as follows: Network=>Nodes=><Name of Node>=>Process=>Pagefaults Per Process.

2. Click the Options tab in the Property Sheet panel.
3. Enter 10 in the Maximum Number of Data Sources to Display field.

   The 10 data sources will be sorted by Page Faults per second, as shown in the Sort the data by drop-down list.

   Note: The number of options available on the Options tab will vary, depending upon the chart you are modifying. Some charts offer more or fewer options than the Pagefaults Per Process chart discussed here.

   
   
4. Click Show Chart.

   Performance Manager displays the chart, but includes a maximum of 10 data sources.

You can later change this setting after the chart is displayed:

1. In the Chart Display window for the Pagefaults Per Process chart, click the Options button in the toolbar.
2. In the Options tab, set the Maximum Number of Data Sources to Display back to 7.
3. Click OK.

These options can be useful for finding the top resource users. In the case where processes are the data sources and the data collected is memory usage and CPU usage, you can ask the Agent to limit the number of data sources to 10, and to sort by memory usage. Your chart would then show the 10 processes using the most memory. If you were to sort by CPU usage, you would get the 10 processes using the most CPU instead.

Some charts can also give different views of the data. If that feature is available, you will also be able to select a view of the data. An example of a data view may be the current rate per second or current rate per transaction for each piece of data collected in the chart.

Chart-Specific Commands

Some types of charts have their own unique commands. For example, you can select the Kill Session command when you are viewing the Lock Manager charts for Oracle database targets, or Turn SQL Trace On if you are viewing a Top Sessions chart.

To see if a chart-specific command is available for a chart:

• Click the right mouse button on an item name in the chart legend or a data item in the chart and click Drilldown on the context menu.
• Click the Drilldown menu on the Chart Display window menu bar.

Drilling Down from One Chart to Another

Some charts have drill-down charts associated with them. To see if any drill-down charts are available for the current chart, do one of the following:

• Click the right mouse button on an item name in the chart legend or a data item in the chart and click Drilldown on the context menu.
• Click the Drilldown menu on the Chart Display window menu bar.
• Click on the Chart Status button.

In all cases, Performance Manager displays any drill-down charts associated with that chart item as menu options on the Drilldown menu. If a list of drill-down chart names is not displayed, no drill-down charts are associated with that item.

Using the Chart Status Button

You can use the Chart Status button located in the upper right corner of a chart to perform one of several tasks. When you click on the button, menu items appear based on the context of the chart as seen in Figure 3-3.

Figure 3-3 Chart Status Button

Text description of the illustration cht_stat_but.gif

• View the threshold status of chart metric(s)

  The Chart Status button displays the current status of thresholds for metrics in the chart. If an indicator flag is present, at least one of the metrics on the chart has thresholds defined. The most severe threshold displays on the button. A green flag indicates that no metrics have crossed a threshold, a yellow flag indicates that at least one metric has crossed a warning threshold, and a red flag indicates that at least one metric has crossed a critical threshold. When you press the Chart Status button, you can view the status of individual metrics within the chart. If several metrics have crossed warning or critical thresholds, the menu items are sorted according to the severity, with the indicators for the most severe items on top and the less severe on the bottom.

• Display advice on a data item

  When you choose Advice from the Chart Status button, Performance Manager displays an information window that provides information about the currently selected data item along with guidelines for solving existing problems, or suggestions about other charts to view for further diagnosis, as seen in Figure 3-4.

Figure 3-4 Viewing Advice from the Chart Status Button

Text description of the illustration advice.gif

• Drill down to a chart

  After you select a data item, you can choose to drill down to one of the charts displayed in the list or invoke tools like SQL Analyze.

• Set or reset thresholds for a chart or an event

  You can set chart-only thresholds for a data item or you can reset the chart-only threshold to its default value. You can choose to set or edit the threshold for the value in the chart only, or you can edit or register an event threshold for the data item. For more information, see "Registering Events in Performance Manager".

• Edit a threshold association

  You can edit a threshold association for a metric by selecting Edit Threshold Association from the Chart Status button and choosing an event from the dialog box that appears. For more information, see "Editing Threshold Associations".

• Refresh thresholds

  To view Event System changes made while a Performance Manager chart is visible, choose Refresh Thresholds from the Chart Status button menu on the Performance Manager chart. For more information, see "Refreshing Thresholds".

Drilling Down to an Historical Chart

From a Performance Manager real-time chart, you can drill down to see an historical view of the same data collected over a longer period of time, for example, days, months, and years. This view of historical data, provided by the Oracle Capacity Planner software, allows you to analyze long-term trends in the data.

Historical data collection must be enabled to view the historical data for a chart. If you drill down to a historical chart for which historical data collection has not been enabled, Performance Manager allows you to start historical data collection. You can also start historical data collection by starting Oracle Capacity Planner. From the Capacity Planner window, you can also control other aspects of your historical data collection, such as how often data is collected and loaded into the historical database.

To drill down to historical data:

1. Display a chart in the Chart Display window.
2. Click the right mouse button on a data item in the chart.
3. From the context menu, click Drilldown.
4. From the Drilldown submenu, click Historical Data.

What happens next depends on whether or not you have begun collecting historical data. Consider three possible scenarios:

• If Performance Manager finds historical data related to the chart, Performance Manager displays the Analysis Chart window.

  Note that if you previously set up your historical database using an alternate database location, Performance Manager displays a database logon box before it displays the Analysis Chart window.

  The Analysis Chart window shows you the historical information about the collected data. From here, you can modify the format of the chart or perform a trend analysis on the historical data. For more information, select an option from the Help menu in the Analysis Chart window or see the chapter about Capacity Planner in this manual.

• If Performance Manager cannot find historical data related to the chart, the following message appears:

  The historical chart cannot be displayed because there is no history 
  available for the data sources or data items.
  
  Would you like to begin collecting the history of these data sources and 
  data items now so that you can view the chart in the future?
  
  

  Click Yes to begin collecting historical data automatically or click Help to learn how to collect historical data using the Oracle Capacity Planner software.

  When you click Yes, Performance Manager displays another message explaining that historical data is now being gathered, but is not yet available. Click Continue to return to the Display Chart window.

• If no historical data has ever been saved to the historical database, Performance Manager displays a message box that includes the following errors:

  Error connecting to the historical database.
  
  The specified schema is not a Capacity Planner database.
  
  

  Click Continue. Performance Manager displays the message described in the previous bullet item.

  Click Yes to begin collecting historical data or click Help for more information about how historical data is collected. When you click Yes, Performance Manager displays another message explaining that historical data is now being gathered, but is not yet available.

  Click Continue to return to the Display Chart window.

Displaying Alternate Chart Orientations

You can display bar charts and tables with either a horizontal or vertical orientation.

To change the orientation of the bar chart or table, click the button associated with the orientation that you want.

Sorting Data in a Table Chart

When a chart is displaying data in table format, the sort order of the column data can be changed by clicking the column headers in the table. The first click on a column header sorts the data in ascending order, and a second click sorts the data in descending order.

Changing the sort order in the chart table does not affect the data's sort order on the server. To change the sort order of the data on the server, use the Options page. For more information, see "Selecting Chart Options".

Saving Your Changes to a Chart

If you are working in repository mode and you make modifications to a chart (for example, if you change the format, orientation, or sorting order of a chart), you can save your changes in one of two ways:

• Click Save on the Chart Display File menu.

  Performance Manager saves your changes using the same name as the original chart. When you display the chart again, your changes will appear in the Chart Display window.

  To later remove your changes and display the predefined chart using its original settings, click Remove Chart on the Chart menu.

  Note: You can remove the changes you saved to a predefined chart, but you cannot delete the original predefined chart.

• Click Save As on the Chart Display File menu.

  Performance Manager displays the Save Custom Chart dialog box. Use this dialog box to enter a name for the custom chart and to indicate whether you want to create a similar chart for other targets of the same type. For information about the fields on the Save Custom Chart dialog box, click Help.

  Click OK in the Save Custom Chart dialog box to save the custom chart using the name you provided. Performance Manager saves the chart in the Custom Charts folder for the selected target.

  To delete a custom chart from the Custom Charts folder, select the chart and click Remove Chart on the Chart menu.

  Note: You can delete custom charts, but you cannot delete predefined charts.

Obtaining Help for a Class, Chart, or Data Item

To get help on a class or chart:

1. Select the class or chart in the main window navigator.
2. From the Help menu, choose Selected Item.

   If help is available for the selected chart, Performance Manager displays a message box or a help topic window describing the chart data.

To get help on a data item:

1. Select a chart.
2. In the Property Sheet panel, select a data item and choose Selected Item from the Help menu.

   Note: Help is not available for all objects.

Printing a Chart

To print a chart, click the Print Screen button on the Display Chart window toolbar.

The size of the chart on the screen determines the size of the chart in the chart printout. For example, when you print a chart that is 5 inches high and 7 inches wide on your screen, the chart will be 5 inches high and 7 inches wide in the printout.

Generating a Report for a Chart

To generate an HTML report for a chart:

1. Click the Report Chart button while the chart is displayed.

   Performance Manager displays a dialog box that tells you the name of the HTML file used to display the report and where the file will be saved.

2. Make a note of the file name and location.
3. Click Yes to preview the chart in your Web browser, or click No if you do not want to preview the report.

You can view the report later using a Web browser, or--if you have experience with Web publishing tools and techniques--you can share the report with your co-workers by publishing the HTML file and its associated graphic files on a Web server.

Recording Chart Data

Oracle Performance Manager allows you to record the data being monitored in a chart. After a recording is complete, you can play it back. During playback, you can pause and fast forward the recording, if you wish.

Chart recordings are saved under the Recordings folder and on the Recordings tab of the right pane of the Performance Manager main window when a recorded chart is selected. The Recordings tab is added to a chart's property sheet after you record the chart.

You can manage chart recordings in the Recordings folder without connecting to the target from which a chart was recorded. If you are already connected to a target, you can see a chart's recordings by selecting the Recordings tab in that chart's Detail property sheet.

Starting a Recording

You start a recording by performing one of the following steps:

• With a chart highlighted in the navigator tree of the Performance Manager main window, click Record Chart on the chart's property sheet.

  
  

• With a chart displayed in the Chart Display window, click Start Recording in the Chart Display window toolbar.
• With a chart displayed in the Chart Display window, click File=>Recording=>Start Recording.

Oracle Performance Manager displays the Recording Parameters dialog box. For more information on the fields in the Recording Parameters dialog box, click Help.

Stopping a Recording

To stop recording a chart, do one of the following:

• To stop recording the current chart, click the Stop Recording button in the Chart Display window toolbar.
• To stop all recordings at one time, choose Stop All Recordings from the Performance Manager main window Recordings menu.
• To stop a recording from the Recordings folder, expand the Recordings folder in the Performance Manager main window and navigate to the chart. Select the chart and click Stop Recording on the chart's property sheet.
• With a chart displayed in the Chart Display window, click File=>Recording=>Stop Recording.

Playing a Recording

To play a recording, do the following in the Performance Manager main window:

1. Navigate to the Recordings folder.
2. Select the chart you want to play in the navigator tree.
3. In the corresponding property sheet, select the recording from the list of recordings for the selected chart, and click Play Recording (or on the Recordings menu click Play Recording).

   
   

4. In the Chart Display window toolbar, click Start Playback.

   The Stop Playback, Pause Playback, and Fast Forward buttons become available in the playback window (Figure 3-5). When the playback is complete, the Reset Playback button becomes available.

Figure 3-5 Chart Playback Buttons in the Chart Display Window

Text description of the illustration pm_chart_play_btns.gif

Removing a Recording

To remove a recording:

1. Navigate to the Recordings folder or the Recordings tab on the chart's Detail page.
2. Select the recording you want to remove.
3. From the Recordings menu, click Remove Recording.

Creating a User-Defined Chart

In addition to predefined charts, you can define your own charts for database targets based on user-defined scripts. By defining your own charts, you can take a snapshot of data at any given interval. After successful evaluation of the script, you can define the operations to be performed on the data.

To define a new chart:

1. Expand the Databases folder in the navigator tree.
2. Expand the database for which you want to define a user-defined chart.
3. Select the User-Defined Charts folder.

   
   

4. Click Create User-Defined Chart in the toolbar.

   The resulting New Chart property sheet includes the SQL Script Command page and the Data Items page.

5. On the SQL Script Command page, enter a SQL script that will be used to gather statistics for the chart you are defining.
6. Click Evaluate.

   Performance Manager evaluates the SQL script. If the script is valid, Performance Manager displays the Data Items page.

7. Use the Data Items page to customize how the resulting data from the script entered on the SQL Script Command page will be displayed in chart form.

   You can remove columns and change the names of the columns. You can also define new columns with data calculated from existing columns. For more information, see "Modifying the Data Items for a User-Defined Chart".

Modifying an Existing User-Defined Chart

To modify an existing chart you perform the same steps as outlined in "Creating a User-Defined Chart". The only exception is that the chart label is already defined.

To modify an existing chart:

1. Expand the Databases folder in the navigator tree.
2. Expand the database for which you want to modify a user-defined chart.
3. Select the User-Defined Charts folder.
4. Click the name of the chart you want to modify.

   On the SQL Script Command page, you can modify the script used to gather statistics for the chart. On the Data Items page, you can remove, add, or modify the data items associated with the chart. For more information, see "Modifying the Data Items for a User-Defined Chart".

Modifying the Data Items for a User-Defined Chart

When you select a user-defined chart and then display the Data Items page, you can modify the data items for the chart as follows:

• Select a data item and click Set Data Source.

  A key icon appears next to the data item you designate as the data source. The data source is the object about which Performance Manager is able to collect the data. You must designate one of the data items as the source for the user-defined chart. To designate a data item as the data source, highlight the data item you want as the data source and click this button. By default, the first data item is set as the data source.

• Select a data item and click Remove.

  Performance Manager removes the data item from the Data Items page.

• Select a data item and click Modify or click Add to add a new data item to the user-defined chart.

  Note: To add or modify data items to user-defined charts, you must use the Agent release 8.1.6 or later.

Performance Manager displays the Add/Modify Chart Columns dialog box. For more information about this dialog, click Help. The Oracle Performance Manager Help provides details on the functions and operations available. The Help also provides an example of creating a user-defined chart.

Copying a User-Defined Chart

You can copy user-defined charts from one target to another or within the same serve by using the Create Like option. To copy a user-defined chart:

1. In the navigator tree, select the user-defined chart you want to copy.
2. From the Charts menu, click User-Defined Charts=>Create Like.

   Performance Manager displays the Create Like User-Defined Chart dialog box.

3. Type a label for the new chart in the Chart Label field.

   Note that chart labels must be unique within a target.

4. In the Service drop-down list, select the target service for the new chart.
5. Click OK.

In the Create Like User-Defined Chart dialog box, you can choose the SQL Script Command or Data Items page to view the attributes of the chart you are copying. However, you cannot change the values of the attributes. Once the chart has been copied, you can select the new chart in the navigator tree and make any desired adjustments.

Converting Old Performance Manager User-Defined Charts

If you created user-defined charts using Oracle Performance release 1.5.0 or earlier (the Windows versions of Oracle Performance Manager), you can convert these user-defined charts so that they can be used with Oracle Performance Manager release 2.1. See "Converting User-Defined Charts From Previous Releases of Performance Manager" for information on how to perform the conversion.

Chart Display Window Menu Shortcut Keys

Table 3-2 lists the Chart Display Window menu and submenu items along with their corresponding shortcut keys.

Table 3-2 Chart Display Window Shortcut Keys

Task	Shortcut Key
Print Screen . . .	Control+P
Report Chart. . .	Control+R
Start Recording	Control+K
Stop Recording	Control+J
Start Playback	Control+Q
Stop Playback	Control+Y
Pause Playback	Control+W
Fast Forward	Control+F
Reset Playback	Control+B
Save	Control+S
Save As	Control+A
Close	Alt+F4
Pause/Resume Chart	Control+Q
Refresh Rate . . .	Control+E
Options	Control+O
Historical Data	Control+D
Using Help	Control+Shift+U
Help on Item	Control+Shift+H
Contents	Control+H
Search . . .	Control+Shift+S
Window	F1

Working With Events and Thresholds in Performance Manager

You can create and edit threshold values from both the Oracle Enterprise Manager console and Performance Manager.

From Performance Manager, you can create and edit a Chart-only threshold, create and register an event, reset a Chart-only threshold, or edit a registered event. From the Enterprise Manager console, you can create, edit or deregister an Enterprise Manager event but you cannot edit or view Chart-only thresholds.

You can set thresholds on data items by using event tests or by setting a threshold for a data item in a chart (Chart-only threshold) using the Set Chart-only Threshold dialog box seen in Figure 3-6. When you monitor a chart that contains a data item that supports a threshold established for an event, you can edit the parameters for that event by choosing Set Threshold from the Chart Status button.

When you create events from Performance Manager, the event is initialized with the context defined by the Performance Manager chart. You can only modify the event tests in an event if the event was registered using the Oracle 9i Agent.

If a data item supports the concept of an event, the chart displays a visible indicator (a flag) based on thresholds stored in the repository for that data item. If the data item does not support the concept of an event, you cannot establish a chart-only threshold for the data item. Every metric-based event test can have a warning and a critical threshold value. The flag indicators on a chart specify whether a threshold value has crossed a warning or critical threshold. The flag that appears on the Chart Status button in a chart displays the most serious state of any contained metric thresholds, and the metrics that appear when you click on the Chart Status button are sorted with the most serious indicators displayed first in the list.

Figure 3-6 Set Chart-only Threshold dialog box

Text description of the illustration set_chartonly_thrshld.gif

Threshold values may be derived from one of three sources:

• A default value for some metrics that is added to the repository at the time of product installation.
• Chart-only thresholds, which are warning and critical threshold values for a specific metric, target, target type and instance.
• An event test derived threshold, which can be shared among administrators depending on the access rights of the user and the event containing the event test. When you set a threshold on a data item associated with an existing event, the thresholds displayed in that chart correspond to the thresholds set for the event test.

The threshold types listed above apply to metrics in a specific order of precedence:

• If you have Event System access and access to an event containing a metric, the threshold values for the metric are defined by the Event Test and override any Chart-only or default threshold values.
• If you have established a Chart-only threshold for a metric, the threshold values you establish are valid and supersede any default values that may exist.
• If neither of the previous two scenarios exist and a default threshold is defined in the repository for the metric, the default value defines the warning and critical thresholds for this metric, regardless of target or data source.

Threshold values are stored in the Oracle Management Server respository and are updated whenever the user sets or edits a Chart-only threshold or when Event registration changes occur. Chart-only thresholds are removed from the repository when you invoke Reset Threshold or when the Administrator is removed from the system. If you create a Chart-only threshold that is later overridden by the registration of an event, the Chart-only threshold remains in the repository. If the association between the metric and the event is later broken, the Chart-only threshold is restored.

To set or edit thresholds in Performance Manger:

1. Click the Chart Status button in the upper right corner of the chart below the menu bar.
2. Select the data item for which you want to set a threshold and then choose Set Thresholds from the context menu.

   If there is more than one data source displayed in a chart when you select Set Thresholds, Performance Manager displays the Select Data Source dialog box where you must choose a single data source for which to set a threshold. When you create or edit a chart-only threshold or create a new event, you must choose a single data source before setting thresholds.

3. To set or modify a Chart-Only threshold, select Set Chart-Only Threshold at the bottom of the window. To register an event, select Register Event.

   Note: If you do not have permission to access the Enterprise Manager Event System, the option of registering an event from the dialog box is not present.

4. To set or modify a Chart-Only threshold, add or modify the values in the Warning Threshold and Critical Threshold fields. If default warning or critical threshold values are defined for the metric, the input fields will contain these values.

   To register or modify an event, select Register Event and then complete the fields in the General, Test, Parameters, Schedule, Access and Fixit Jobs pages of the event property sheet. If you are using a pre-9i Agent and you modify an event that has been registered, those changes are not used by the registered event.

Triggered Events and Thresholds

Events and thresholds often poll at different intervals. For example, events may be polled at intervals of minutes or even hours, while thresholds may be sampled in seconds. The result is that you could see a metric cross a threshold in a chart but not be notified of an event simultaneously. If the problem were caused by a spike, the threshold may be crossed in the chart with a sampling occurrence measured in seconds, but not trigger an event because the metric is sampled in minutes or hours, meaning the event is never triggered at all.

Additionally, events can include the concept of occurrences. Occurrences prevent notification for erratic or one-time instances of a threshold being crossed. If an event has a number of occurrences associated with a test, you may see the threshold crossed in a chart but never see the corresponding event triggered.

Events Registered for Multiple Targets

If you attempt to modify a threshold that has an associated event test registered for multiple targets, a warning displays indicating that the change you make will affect the event test for multiple targets and that if you want to use different thresholds for each target, you must create separate events. If you continue with the change, the existing event is deregistered for all targets and re-registered for all targets with the new threshold.

Metrics with Multiple Events and Different Thresholds

When you display a chart for a data item for which there are multiple event tests, a message is displayed indicating that there are multiple tests for the same metric. To show a threshold for the chart, you must select which event test to associate with the metric. If you then modify the associated event test or the metric in the chart, the thresholds are synchronized. Other tests of the metric are not affected by changes to the threshold in a chart.

If another user de-registers the associated event test and then you display a chart with that metric, a warning displays indicating that the previously associated event test no longer exists. If only a single event test remains for the metric, the message indicates that the remaining event is now associated with the metric. If more than one event remains, the message indicates that you must select a new event to associate with the metric.

If you add a new event test for a metric where a single chart-only threshold already exists, the thresholds associated with the previous test will not be used during monitoring.

Event Permissions

If you display a chart for which you have read-only permission for the corresponding event, you cannot modify the thresholds for that chart. You receive a read-only view of the event indicating that if you wish to change the thresholds associated with the data item, you must be granted appropriate access to the event system.

Registering Events in Performance Manager

You can register events from within Performance Manager through the Chart Status button on a chart containing the data item for which you want to register an event.

Registering events through Performance Manager is procedurally identical to registering events through the Enterprise Manager console.

To create or edit events in Performance Manager:

1. Click on the Chart Status button in the upper right corner of the chart.
2. Select the data item and then choose Set Threshold from the context menu.

   If there is more than one data source displayed in a chart when you select Set Threshold, Performance Manager displays the Select Data Source dialog box where you must choose a single data source for which to set a threshold. When you create or edit a Chart-only threshold or create a new event, you must choose a single data source before setting thresholds.

3. Select Register Event at the bottom of the dialog box.
4. Complete or modify the fields in the General, Test, Parameters, and Permissions pages of the property sheet to create a new event. If you are using a pre-9i Agent and you modify an event that has been registered, those changes are not used by the registered event.

When you use a pre-9i Agent, the property sheet for creating a new event is similar to the property sheet for modifying an event. Some fields are editable while others are not. If you are using a 9i Agent, you can modify many more fields.

You can use several predefined event tests that have been installed with Oracle Enterprise Manager. See the Oracle Enterprise Manager Event Test Reference Manual for more information on these event tests.

About Oracle 9i and Pre-9i Agents

If you attempt to register a 9i event with a pre-9i Agent, you will receive an error message indicating that you cannot register the event. You can use only a 9i Agent to register 9i events.

If there exists both a 9i and pre-9i version of the same event, then the Oracle Management Server will determine which to use depending on the Agent version. For example, if there is a 9i Agent, the Agent will request registration using the 9i version of the event. If the Agent is pre-9i, then it will use the pre-9i version.

If you have migrated from a pre-9i Agent, then an existing event will not automatically use the 9i counterpart. To use the 9i test and access thresholds in the repository, you must deregister the pre-9i event and register the 9i event using the 9i Agent.

Viewing Thresholds

If a Performance Manager chart is displaying metrics that have multiple data sources, you can display the View Thresholds dialog box to view all threshold indicators. The View Thresholds dialog box is accessible from the Chart Status button.

The View Thresholds dialog box displays the current threshold status of each data item and its corresponding data source. You can view the status for each metric/data source pair using flags to indicate whether the value of the data item has passed its warning or critical threshold. If a data item has no threshold set, the column containing that data item is left blank.

When you display the View Thresholds dialog box, the current data item and threshold values are captured in a dataset and the status of each threshold is displayed in the table. A timestamp of the dataset appears in the bottom left corner of the View Thresholds dialog box.

If you change a threshold value for a data item while the View Thresholds dialog box remains open, the new threshold value is compared against the dataset created at the time you displayed the dialog box, not against the current value of the data item in real time. To refresh the statuses in the View Threshold dialog box, close and redisplay it.

You can add or change threshold values by clicking the Chart Status button on the View Thresholds dialog box and choosing Set Threshold from the context menu.

To view thresholds:

1. Click the Chart Status button for the chart containing the data item for which you want information and select View thresholds from the context menu.

   The View Thresholds dialog box appears, displaying the status of any thresholds set for each of the data items and data sources in the chart. The status for a threshold is indicated by the flag that appears in the column for the data item and data source.

   • A green flag indicates the value for the data item has not crossed a threshold.
   • A yellow flag indicates the value for the data item is at or has passed the warning threshold.
   • A red flag indicates the value for the data item is at or has passed the critical threshold.

   If no threshold is set for a data item, the status for that metric is left blank.

   The threshold statuses that appear in the View Thresholds dialog box are derived from dataset values gathered at the time you display the View Thresholds dialog box. The date and time of the dataset appears at the bottom of the dialog box. The View Thresholds dialog box is not updated when the Performance Manager chart is refreshed.

   From the View Thresholds dialog box, you can set thresholds or reset and edit associations for a specific cell if thresholds are set.

You can set or edit a threshold for a metric from the View Thresholds dialog box by clicking the Chart Status button and selecting Set Thresholds from the context menu. For more information about setting thresholds, see "Working With Events and Thresholds in Performance Manager".

Resetting Thresholds

You can reset Chart-only thresholds through the Chart Status button on a chart. If you reset a Chart-only threshold for a data item, the current threshold is deleted and is reset to its default value. If the data item has no default value, the threshold is simply deleted and no value is assigned as a threshold.

If you select Reset Threshold for a data item with an assigned event, a message box displays stating that you must deregister or edit the event from within the Enterprise Manager console.

To reset a threshold:

1. From the chart, click on the Chart Status button and select the metric and data source for which you want to reset a threshold.
2. From the context menu, choose Reset Threshold. When you select Reset Threshold, the current data item is reset to its default value. If the data item has no default threshold value, the threshold is eliminated.

   A confirmation dialog box appears, verifying that you are about to reset the threshold for the current metric. Click the OK button to confirm.

   If no threshold exists for the metric, an error dialog box displays informing you that the threshold cannot be reset because no threshold exists for the metric.

If you attempt to reset a threshold associated with a registered event, an error message dialog box displays. You cannot deregister an event from within Performance Manager because the event associated with a metric may have several other targets and tests. You can instead edit the event from within Performance Manager by choosing Set Threshold (for 9i targets) to remove or modify the event.

Refreshing Thresholds

A chart may not reflect an event that is registered while the related chart is open because the information for the metric in the chart related to the event has not been read from the repository. A chart does not automatically reflect the effect of event system changes. When you select Refresh Thresholds from the Chart Status button, Performance Manager updates the chart with the new data from the threshold repository and updates the chart threshold indicators.

When Event Registration or Permission changes effect the threshold respository, Performance Manager users are notified of these changes in a dialog box when the threshold data for the metric is next read from the repository. The following actions are conveyed to the Performance Manager user when a chart is opened, thresholds are refreshed for a chart, or thresholds are edited:

• An event test associated with a metric has been deregistered.
• A Chart-only threshold is overridden by the registration of an event test by another user.
• An event test associated with a metric has failed registration.
• Access to an event containing an event test associated with a metric has been removed.
• An event test associated with an event has been removed from the event or the instance has been modified.
• An event test associated with a metric has failed event modification.

To refresh thresholds, choose Refresh Thresholds from the Chart Status button on the Performance Manager chart.

Editing Threshold Associations

There may be circumstances when a user has permission to view several events that contain the same event test. When viewing a chart, you must decide which event will be associated with the metric in the chart. You can invoke Edit Threshold Association to change this association.

The Edit Threshold Association menu item has no application for data items with less than two events assigned to it. If you select Edit Threshold Association in such a case, a message box appears informing you that the threshold association cannot be changed because a threshold association for the metric does not exist or there is only one registered event test.

You cannot change the association for Chart-only thresholds because each user has his own pool of Chart-only thresholds and duplicates are not supported.

To edit threshold associations:

1. Click the Chart Status button in the current chart and select the metric for which you want to edit the threshold association, and then choose Edit Threshold Association from the context menu.
2. When applicable, select the data source from the Select Data Source dialog box and click OK.
3. Select the event threshold you want to assign to the data item in the list that appears in the Associate Metric with Event Test dialog box.
4. Click the OK button at the bottom of the Associate Metric with Event Test dialog box.

   Note: If you attempt to set a threshold association when the metric is not associated with an event test or you only have permission to view one registered event test for the specified target and data source, an error dialog box appears informing you that the association cannot be changed.

To edit threshold associations:

1. Click the Chart Status button in the current chart and select the metric for which you want to edit the threshold association and then choose Edit Threshold Association from the context menu.
2. When applicable, select the data source from the Select Data Source dialog box and click OK.
3. Select the event threshold you want to assign to the data item in the list that appears in the Associate Metric with Event Test dialog box.
4. Click on the OK button at the bottom of the Associate Metric with Event Test dialog box.

Running Performance Manager in a Browser

You can run Oracle Performance Manager in a browser and use a significant subset of the features of the full product, including basic monitoring features and event integration. Browser support includes basic monitoring features and event integration if you are using a version 9i Agent (or later).

The following features are available when running Performance Manager in a browser:

• Show database chart
• Show node chart
• Drilldowns
• Help
• Quick Tour
• Print Screen from charts
• Report Chart from charts
• Pause/Resume charts
• Set Refresh Rate
• Set Options
• Setting Chart-only thresholds
• Event Registration

The following features are not available while running Performance Manager in a browser:

• Recordings
• Historical collection drilldowns
• Custom Charts
• Saved chart attributes
• User-defined charts
• Direct Connect
• Standalone mode
• SQL Analyze
• Threshold status

Viewing Metric and Event Documentation Through a Browser

You can view specific information about metrics, events, charts and classes in Performance Manager through the Advice function on the Chart Status button and through other contextual functions within the Oracle Enterprise Manager application. However, you can view the full set of documentation for all the following types of metrics and events independently through your web browser without having to access the Oracle Enterprise Manager application. The documentation available through your browser provides a comprehensive Table of Contents, an index keyword search, and a full text search function.

• Oracle Database
• Windows NT
• IBM AIX
• Sun Solaris
• HP-UX
• Compaq Tru64
• SAP R/3 System
• Oracle Applications system

For each of these types of metrics and events, the following information is provided.

For Metrics:

• Classes
• Charts
• Data Items
  • Description
  • Source
  • User Action
• Event Tests
  • Description
  • Source
  • Parameters
  • Output
  • Frequency
  • User Action

To access each documentation set, open the appropriate file below in a web browser:

• Oracle Database -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/dba/dba.htm
• Windows NT -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/nt_os/NT_OS.htm
• IBM AIX -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/aix/AIX.htm
• Sun Solaris -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/sol/SOL.htm
• HP-UX -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/hpux/HPUX.htm
• Compaq Tru64 -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/dec/DEC.htm
• SAP R/3 -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/sap/sap.htm
• Oracle Applications System -- ORACLE_HOME/doc/EM/Webhelp/oafnd/OAFND.htm