Agents Administration - Tests
 

Configuration of VmgPageFileTest

When the load imposed by applications and services running on a server nears the amount of installed RAM, additional storage is necessary. The page file serves as the temporary store on disk for memory that cannot be accommodated in the physical RAM. Since it is frequently accessed for storing and retrieving data that is needed for virtual memory access by application, the location and sizing of the page files can have a critical impact on server's performance. Ideally, the server operating system and the page file should be available on different drives for optimal performance. Splitting the page file across different drives can improve performance further.

A rule of thumb in sizing the page file is to set the maximum size of the page file to 1.5 times the available RAM. While this works well for systems with smaller physical memory, for other systems, the optimal page file size has to be determined based on experience using the system and studying the typical workload.

This test tracks the usage of each of the page files on a Windows virtual desktop.

The default parameters associated with this test are:

  • The TEST PERIOD list box helps the user to decide how often this test needs to be executed.

  • In the HOST text box, specify the nick name of the Cloud Desktops component for which this test is to be configured.

  • Specify the port at which the specified host listens to in the PORT text box. By default, this is NULL.

  • To obtain the ‘inside view’ of performance of the cloud -hosted Windows desktops - i.e., to measure the internal performance of the Windows virtual desktops - this test uses a light -weight eGVMAgent software deployed on each of the desktops. Accordingly, Inside View Using parameter is by default set to eGVMAgent (Windows).

  • Report Powered OS flag is relevant only for those tests that are mapped to the Inside View of Desktops layer. If this flag is set to Yes (which is the default setting), then the ‘inside view’ tests will report measures for even those Windows virtual desktops that do not have any users logged in currently. Such desktops will be identified by their name and not by the username_on_virtualdesktopname. On the other hand, if this flag is set to No, then this test will not report measures for those Windows virtual desktops to which no users are logged in currently.

  • Report By User flag is set to Yes by default. The value of this flag cannot be changed. This implies that the virtual machines in VDI environments will always be identified using the login name of the user. In other words, in VDI environments, this test will, by default, report measures for every username_on_virtualmachinename.

  • Since this test runs for a ‘Cloud Desktops’ component, Is Cloud VMs flag is set to Yes by default.

  • Set Report Total flag to Yes if you want the test to report total page file usage - i.e., the aggregate usage across multiple page files. In this case therefore, a Total descriptor will newly appear for this test in the eG monitoring console.

  • If both the Report Total and Report Total Only flags are set to Yes, then the test will report only the aggregate usage across multiple page files - in other words, the test will report values for the Total descriptor only. Likewise, if the Report Total flag is set to No, and the Report Total Only flag is set to Yes, then again, the test will report current usage for the Total descriptor only. However, if both the Report Total and Report Total Only flags are set to No, then the test will report individual usages only. Also, if the Report Total flag is set to Yes and the Report Total Only flag is set to No, then both the individual and Total usages will be reported.

  • If multiple components of the same component type are awaiting configuration, then an APPLY TO OTHER COMPONENTS button will appear in this page. Clicking on this button will allow you to apply the configuration to all/selected components of that type.

  • Once the necessary values have been provided, clicking on the UPDATE button will register the changes made.

When changing the configuration for specific servers, a “*” beside the text box corresponding to the parameter signifies that these values have to be manually configured by the user. The parameter values that require to be configured will typically be prefixed with a “$” or contain a series of “*”. A value of “none” in the parameter value indicates that the corresponding parameter value can be changed if required.