The Profiler utility in online mode is designed for getting a quick view to the last actions of a Natural online application. The utility is menu-based and provides functions to control profiler tracing, to select required event types, to maintain and display trace records, to download the event data to the PC and to save the event data as Profiler resource file.
The Profiler utility helps you analyze the logical flow of Natural applications and trace the utilization of resources.
This document covers the following topics:
To use the Profiler utility in online mode, the keyword subparameter
SIZE of the profile parameter RDC
must be set to a value greater than 2, see RDC - Configure the Natural Data
Collector in the Parameter Reference
documentation.
In addition, the RDC parameter controls the
following default behavior of the Profiler utility:
By setting RDC=ON, profiler tracing is already
active when the Profiler utility is started. By default,
RDC is set to OFF and profiler tracing must
be activated separately, see Start/Stop Profiler
Tracing.
The keyword subparameter EVENT determines which
event types are selected for profiler tracing. By default, EVENT
is set to ALL, which covers all available event types (see
Data-Collecting
Events in the SYSRDC Utility
documentation).
For event types covered by the Profiler utility, see Events.
This section covers instructions for invoking and terminating the Profiler utility in online mode.
To invoke the Profiler utility
Enter the following system command:
PROFILER
A menu similar to the example below appears. In the header of the menu, the current state with respect to profiler tracing is displayed (Trace started/Trace stopped). If profiler tracing is stopped, the number of trace records collected in the Natural Data Collector buffer is also displayed.
12:30:57 ***** NATURAL PROFILER UTILITY ***** 2016-03-07
User SAG - Main Menu - 1035 records
Trace stopped
Code Function
S Select Profiler events
L List trace records
D Display trace record
T Start/Stop Profiler tracing
P Print trace records
W Download trace records
B Save data as resource
? Help
. Exit
Code .. _ Record from .. 1_____ to .. 1035__
Profiler tracing successfully stopped.
Command ===>
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
Help Exit Canc |
To terminate the Profiler utility
Press PF3 or PF12.
Or:
Enter a period (.) in the Code
field.
Or:
Enter EXIT in the command line.
During a Natural session, different kinds of events can occur, for example, a program start. Data specific to an event can be collected in a trace record. Each event is associated with an event type, that is, a one- or two-letter code. The following events and event types are available:
| Event | Event Type | When the Event Occurs |
|---|---|---|
| Program Load | PL | When a program (Natural object) is loaded or when it is already located in the buffer pool. |
| Program Start | PS | When a program (Natural object) is started. |
| Program Termination | PT | When a program (Natural object) is terminated. |
| Before Database Call | DB | Before a database call is executed. |
| After Database Call | DA | After a database call has been executed. |
| Before Terminal I/O | IB | Before a terminal input/output is executed. |
| After Terminal I/O | IA | After a terminal input/output has been executed. |
| Before External Program Call | CB | Before an external program call (CALL statement) is executed. |
| After External Program Call | CA | After an external program call (CALL statement) has been executed. |
| Runtime Error | E | When a Natural runtime error has occurred. |
| Natural Statement | NS | When a Natural statement is executed. For
technical reasons, there is no one-to-one relationship between a Natural source
code statement and an object code in the cataloged object. Therefore, multiple
Natural statements can be merged into one NS event and conversely,
one Natural statement can cover multiple NS events.
|
| User-Defined Event | U | When a user-defined event is generated using the
Natural statement CALL 'CMRDC' 'U' (see
User-defined
Events in the SYSRDC Utility
documentation). The first byte of the user data is interpreted as subtype.
Therefore, a two-letter code is displayed for a user-defined event when the
trace records are listed.
|
The functions covered by the Profiler utility in online mode can be divided into three categories:
Function Select Profiler Events to select events.
The display functions List Trace Records, Display Trace Record, Print Trace Records, Download Trace Records and Save Data as Resource to list, display, print, download or save trace records.
Function Start/Stop Profiler Tracing to start or stop profiler tracing.
All functions provided by the Profiler utility can be invoked from the main menu.
To invoke a function
Enter a function code in the Code field.
Note:
The input fields Record from and
Record to can be modified to define a range of records
that is listed or displayed at first by the functions List Trace
Records and Display Trace Record, or to filter
records for the functions Print Trace Records and
Download Trace Records.
This section covers the following functions:
This function is used to select event types for profiler tracing (in column Collect) and as filter for the display functions (in column Display).
To select an event type for profiler tracing
Enter any key in the corresponding input field in the Collect column. You need to select at least one event type.
As a result, the Natural Data Collector is updated dynamically according to your selection. If profiler tracing is active, it is continued with the selections that you have made.
Notes:
TRACE
must be set to NATPROX and ITRACE to
ON, see the Parameter Reference documentation.
If you do not supply these values before starting your Natural session, you are
prompted to do so when you select this event type.
RDC subparameter
EVENT; see EVENT - Natural Data Collector
Events to be Recorded in the Parameter
Reference documentation. Any modification of this default selection
is valid for the whole Natural session.
To select an event type as filter for display functions
Enter any key in the corresponding input field in the Display column. You need to select at least one event type.
Note:
At session start, the event types selected for display functions are
specified by the RDC subparameter EVENT
(see above). Any modification of this default selection is valid until the next
LOGON. After this, the set of event types selected is equal to the
set of event types selected for profiler tracing (see
above).
The following PF keys are available:
In the example below, the following event types are selected for
profiler tracing: PL, PS, PT,
DB, DA, CB, CA,
NS and U. The event types PL,
PS, PT, DA, CB,
CA and U are selected as filter for display
functions.
10:13:24 ***** NATURAL PROFILER UTILITY ***** 2011-03-29
User SAG - Select Profiler Events - 79 records
Trace stopped
Collect Display Type Profiler Event
------- ------- ---- ----------------------------
X X PL Program load
X X PS Program start
X X PT Program termination
X _ DB Before database call
X X DA After database call
_ _ IB Before terminal I/O
_ _ IA After terminal I/O
X X CB Before external program call
X X CA After external program call
_ _ E Runtime error
X _ NS Natural statement
X X U User-defined event
Command ===>
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
Help Exit Reset All Canc |
This function is used to list all trace records collected in the Natural Data Collector buffer. For this purpose, profiler tracing is stopped. A trace record can only be shown if the corresponding event type has been selected for the display functions by the Select Profiler Events function.
When the function is invoked, the trace record displayed at first is
specified by the Record from field, see
main menu. In addition,
this trace record is also marked by an X, and the trace record
specified by the Record to field by a Y.
This section covers the following topics:
Each trace record is displayed on a separate line which is headed by
an input field for line commands (C). The record itself
contains general and event-specific data. General data comprises features
common to all records such as record number (Record),
event type (Ev) or event time (Time).
Event-specific data comprises features specific to a view, that is, a group of
related events. For example, the event types PL, PS
and PT constitute the view Program Load/Start/Termination.
The view General Information
includes all event types and covers the general data. The table below gives an
overview on the available views and the event types associated:
| View | Code | Event Types |
|---|---|---|
| General Information | G | all |
| Program Load/Start/Termination | P | PL, PS, PT |
| Before/After Database Call | D | DB, DA |
| Before/After Terminal I/O | I | IB, IA |
| Before/After External Program Call | C | CB, CA |
| Runtime Error | E | E |
| Natural Statement | N | NS |
| User-Defined Event | U | U |
Notes:
The list of trace records displayed by the List Trace Records function can be quite large with respect to the size of the records displayed and the number of records listed. This section covers the following options:
To navigate within a record, you need to change the current view.
To change the current view
Select a letter code in View using the cursor and press ENTER. See the table above for available letter codes.
Or:
Press PF10 (<) to choose the
neighboring view on the left. Press PF11 (>)
to choose the neighboring view on the right.
To navigate within a list of records
Enter a record number in the input field Record to position to the corresponding trace record. Note that the trace record selected must have an event type that has been selected for the display functions by the Select Profiler Events function.
Or:
Enter an event type in the input field Ev to
step forward to the next trace record marked with such an event type. From this
position, continue to press ENTER to step to the next matching
occurrence. Use asterisk notation (*) to match a group of event types, for
example D* for all database calls.
Or:
Press PF6 (--), PF7
(-), PF8 (+) or
PF9 (++) to scroll through the list.
A selection of event types for display functions can be updated by pressing PF4 (DiEv). This opens a menu similar to the menu which is opened when choosing the Select Profiler Events function, with the exception that event types can only be selected for display functions. See PF Keys in Select Profiler Events for available PF keys.
You can enter a line command in the C column next to the trace record you have selected. The following line commands are available:
| Local Command | Function |
|---|---|
D
|
Display all information available for the selected record. See also Display Trace Records. |
X
|
Mark the line with an X. The Record from field in the main menu is updated accordingly. |
Y
|
Mark the line with a Y. The Record to field in the main menu is updated accordingly. |
You can enter a local command in the Command line. The following local commands are available:
| Local Command | Function |
|---|---|
X
|
Scroll to the line marked by an X (and indicated by Record from). |
Y
|
Scroll to the line marked by a Y (and indicated by Record to). |
The following PF keys are available:
| PF Key | Name | Function |
|---|---|---|
| PF1 | Help | Display context-sensitive help. See above. |
| PF2 | Disp | Display all information available for the selected trace record. See also Display Trace Records. |
| PF3 | Exit | Exit the current menu. |
| PF4 | DiEv | Modify the selection of event types to be displayed. See section Updating Event Types to be Displayed. |
| PF5 | Hex | Display user data in hexadecimal mode (only for event type U). |
| Struc | Display program structure (only for event types PL, PS and PT). | |
| PF6 | -- | Scroll to the beginning of the list. |
| PF7 | - | Scroll one page up. |
| PF8 | + | Scroll one page down. |
| PF9 | ++ | Scroll to the end of the list. |
| PF10 | < | Select the view on the left side of the current view. |
| PF11 | > | Select the view on the right side of the current view. |
| PF12 | Canc | Exit the current menu. |
The following menu lists trace records for event types
PL, PS, PT and DA, which
have been selected in the example
above, and displays
trace information for view P which covers the event-specific data
of the event types PL, PS and PT.
10:13:39 ***** NATURAL PROFILER UTILITY ***** 2011-03-29
User SAG - List Trace Records - 79 records
View: G P D - C - - U
PL/PS/PT - Program Load/Start/Termination
C Record Ev Library Program Type DBID FNR
- ______ __ -------- -------- ---- ----- -----
X _ 000001 PL SYSEXPG DYNAMX06
_ 000002 PS SYSEXPG DYNAMX06 P 10 2430
_ 000010 PL SYSEXPG DYNAMX05
_ 000011 PS SYSEXPG DYNAMX05 N 10 2430
_ 000018 PT SYSEXPG DYNAMX05 N 10 2430
_ 000025 PT SYSEXPG DYNAMX06 P 10 2430
_ 000026 PL SYSEXPG EDITMX02
_ 000027 PS SYSEXPG EDITMX02 P 10 2430
_ 000031 DA
_ 000040 DA
_ 000047 DA
_ 000054 DA
_ 000057 PT SYSEXPG EDITMX02 P 10 2430
Use PF10/PF11 to show event-specific data of the trace records.
Command ===>
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
Help Disp Exit DiEv Struc -- - + ++ < > Canc |
This function is used to display all tracing information for each trace record separately. For this purpose, profiler tracing is stopped. When the function is invoked, the trace record displayed at first is specified by the Record from field, see main menu.
This section covers the following topics:
To navigate to another trace record
Enter a record number in the input field Record to position to the corresponding trace record. Note that the trace record selected must have an event type that has been selected for the display functions by the Select Profiler Events function.
Or:
Press PF6 (--), PF7
(-), PF8 (+) or
PF9 (++) to scroll through the sequence of
trace records displayed.
The following PF keys are available:
| PF Key | Name | Function |
|---|---|---|
| PF1 | Help | Display context-sensitive help. See above. |
| PF3 | Exit | Exit the current menu. |
| PF5 | Hex | Display user data in hexadecimal mode (only for event type U). |
| PF6 | -- | Display the first trace record. |
| PF7 | - | Display the preceding trace record. |
| PF8 | + | Display the succeeding trace record. |
| PF9 | ++ | Display the last trace record. |
| PF10 | LongE | Show long error message (only defined for event type E). |
| PF12 | Canc | Exit the current menu. |
In the example below, trace record 10 which has already
been listed in the example
above is displayed with all trace information.
10:14:01 ***** NATURAL PROFILER UTILITY ***** 2011-03-29
User SAG - Display Trace Record - 79 records
Record / Event .... 10____ / PL - Program load
Event time ........ 10:12:14.130696 Elapsed time ....... 0.000157
CPU time .......... 0
Current user ID ... SAG Current group ID ...
Current program ... DYNAMX06 Library ............ SYSEXPG
Program level ..... Program line ....... 0160
Loaded program .... DYNAMX05 Invocation type .... CALLNAT
Library ........... SYSEXPG
Enter required record number, or use PF6 - PF9 for paging.
Command ===>
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
Help Exit -- - + ++ Canc |
This function is used to switch profiling on or off. If profiler tracing has been active, it is stopped. Conversely, if it has been inactive, it is started. As a result, the new state is displayed in the header of the main menu.
To start or stop profiler tracing
Enter T in the Code field and
press ENTER.
Note:
As an alternative, you can also use the commands described in the
Trace
Recording section of the SYSRDC Utility
documentation.
This function is used to print the trace records within the range defined by the input fields Record from and Record to. For this purpose, profiler tracing is stopped. Note that a trace record can only be printed if the corresponding event type has been selected for the display functions by the Select Profiler Events function.
To print trace records
Enter P in the Code field.
As a result, a separate window is opened in which you can modify the
(default) printer name or the range of trace records to be printed. You can
also specify if the trace records are printed with header information. The
printer used is identified by print file 1.
Press ENTER.
This function is used to download the trace records within the range defined by the input fields Record from and Record to. For this purpose, profiler tracing is stopped. Note that a trace record can only be downloaded if the corresponding event type has been selected for the display functions by the Select Profiler Events function.
To download trace records
Enter W in the Code field.
As a result, a separate window is opened in which you can modify the
range of trace records to be downloaded. The download file used is identified
by work file 7. For downloading to the PC, we recommend that you
use Natural Connection.
Press ENTER.
Notes:
.htm for the extension of the downloaded
file.
This function is used to save all trace records in a Profiler resource
file (extension .nprf). For this purpose, profiler tracing is
stopped.
The Profiler resource file can be read by NaturalONE and by the Profiler utility in batch mode which provide a performance analysis (hot spots) and other evaluations. For more information, see the NaturalONE documentation and Using the Profiler Utility in Batch Mode.
Notes:
To save the data as resource
Enter B in the Code field.
As a result, a separate window is opened in which you can modify the (default) resource name and library. You can also specify whether the resource should be replaced, if it already exists.
The default resource name is
*INIT-USER_yyyymmdd_hhiiss where
*INIT-USER is the user ID under which the Natural session is
running and yyyymmdd_hhiiss is the
current date and time. If the extension .nprf (Natural Profiler
resource file) has not been specified with the resource name, it is added
automatically.
The default library is the current library.
Press ENTER.