Performance Tuning Is A Process--Not A Tool

MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR loses occur every day duebased, resulting in testing artificial problems due to
to poor application testing plans, too much trust inincomplete testing designs--and missing the true
automated testing tools and a general lack of the big"gotchas." Network & Application testing crosses
picture. Plans are made without understanding how ITmany corporate departments and boundaries. This
all works together. Yet more automated tools hit thewears people down and makes them ready to
market every day. The Web is alive with ads foraccept any result that will at least get the testing
software that will do the following: Analyze yourcompleted. The results are not surprising from this
application response time from the perspective ofperspective. The incident of "successful" application
the User experience. End to End transparentperformance in testing is not equal to the incidence
application monitoring. Create "Load" that exactlyof successful application performance in real-life.
simulates user experience. Automate applicationNetwork & application performance problems
performance analysis & troubleshooting. Based oncontinue on--month after month, year after year.
these products and their claims, you would think thatUsers stop sending in tickets but still complain to their
the goal of IT Management is to automate allmanager. This results in a schism between perceived
aspects of Network & Application Performanceproblems and reported problems. The Solution: There
Troubleshooting. Nevertheless, here is an importantis really only one consistently successful approach to
question: Is that not a little like asking a chicken totroubleshooting under-performing networks &
guard the chicken coop? Who is monitoring theapplications, the Network & Application Performance
monitor tool? Is it not just another application? ThisAnalysis Team. This approach has a near 100%
goes around in circles. Humans use tools, highly skilledsuccess rate at providing resolution. It involves utilizing
and experienced humans. To rely so heavily ona highly skilled "SWAT" team of individuals that look
automation to monitor other automation is to hopeat all the component factors. These factors include
one potential failure catches another potential failure.the following: Servers Directory Services Operating
Furthermore, our experience has shown thatSystems TCP issues Other Protocol Issues
companies all too often utilize under-skilled staff forWorkstation builds LAN Issues WAN Issues User
these roles, hoping that the tool will know what toSkills & Training Database Optimization Interaction
do with itself or simple default configurations willwith other Applications Server Consolidation /
apply. Catch 22? Well, yes. You cannot take the needVirtualization Issues The team works with a client's
for skill, training and experience out of the equation;Subject Matter Experts for the application and
even if you believe automated tools can do the job.database involved. Frequently, a Network &
Yet experience has shown that not only do manyApplication Performance Analysis Team member is
automated tools not perform exactly as anticipated,the first to understand the application from the
the skill level of the human being configuring thesebottom up to the top. People working with other
tools and tests is critical to the success of the test.humans--interviewing users, network staff, application
Here are a few typical problems: It is the businessstaff and others--utilizing protocol analyzers such as
user, possibly backed up by the application SubjectSniffer, Ethereal, WireShark and others, will find the
Matter Expert (SME) that designs most automatedproblem consistently. Resolution is always the Primary
application tests. Between them there is littleGoal. Barry Koplowitz founded Interpath Technologies
expertise regarding the network components,Corporation in 1999. He has been consulting in the IT
Operating Systems and TCP aspects of the way thefield since 1984 and has specialized in the area of
application works on a network--or across a WAN.Network & Application Analysis/Troubleshooting--with
Frequently they create problems that are not realityvarious Protocol Analysis Tools--for the last 11 years.