PerfMon Logs

PerfMon Logs store NCache performance counter data for later analysis. These logs help you review cache performance, throughput, memory usage, client activity, and other counter-based statistics after the activity has occurred. PerfMon Logs do not record diagnostic messages or lifecycle events. They store sampled performance counter values. Use PerfMon Logs when you need to analyze historical performance data for NCache counters. For live counter monitoring, NCache also exposes server, client, and bridge counter categories in Windows Performance Monitor.

Note

PerfMon Logs are based on Windows Performance Monitor counters. They store sampled counter values, not text-based diagnostic messages.

PerfMon Log Generation and Location

PerfMon Logs are generated when performance counter logging is started, scheduled, or saved for a cache. For a clustered cache, NCache generates separate performance log data for each server node. If performance counter logging is not started, scheduled, or saved, no new PerfMon log file is generated.

NCache lets you specify the path where PerfMon Logs are saved. If the path is not changed, NCache saves PerfMon Logs to the default log path. In a default Windows installation, PerfMon Logs are stored under:

%NCHOME%\log-files\PerfmonLogs

The PerfmonLogs folder can contain separate folders for server, client, client-cache, and archived performance log data. The folders and files available in this location depend on the monitored components and the logs generated for them.

Configure PerfMon Logs

PerfMon Logs are generated from NCache performance counters. Before saving PerfMon Logs, make sure that performance counters are enabled for the cache. Performance counters are enabled by default, but if they have been disabled, NCache will not update the published PerfMon counters. In the NCache Management Center, open the cache details, go to Advanced Settings > Options, and use Enable performance counters.

To configure where PerfMon Logs are saved, open the cache details page, select Settings, and go to Monitor Settings > Perfmon Logs. Specify the path where the logs should be saved. If no path is specified, the default path is used.

After the path is configured, use Save PerfMon Logs for the cache to save performance counter data. Performance counter logging can also be started instantly or scheduled for a specific time.

Note

For a clustered cache, saving PerfMon Logs generates separate log data for each server node.

30-Minute PerfMon Log Files

When NCache saves PerfMon counter data, the generated log file name can include the logging duration. In some generated PerfMon log files, the value 1800 appears in the file name. This value represents 1800 seconds, or 30 minutes, and indicates the duration associated with that PerfMon logging file.

Example:

democache-host-machine-name-1800-2026-6-11-12-1-42.csv

In this example, democache is the cache name, host-machine-name is the machine name, 1800 represents the 30-minute logging duration, and the remaining values identify the timestamp associated with the generated file.

A 30-minute PerfMon log file contains sampled performance counter values for the recorded time window. If logging stops before the full duration is completed, the file may contain data for a shorter time range. If additional PerfMon log data is saved, additional timestamped files may be generated.

Understanding PerfMon Log Data

PerfMon log files contain sampled NCache performance counter values. These counters represent cache, server, client, client-cache, or bridge performance data, depending on the counters selected and the component being monitored.

A saved PerfMon log can be opened in Windows Performance Monitor to view the recorded counter data graphically. Open the file in Performance Monitor and review the counter values for the time range in which the performance activity was recorded. If the file is viewed in CSV form, the header row contains counter paths, the first column represents the sample time, and the remaining columns contain the recorded counter values. A value of 0 does not always indicate an error. It may mean that the selected counter had no recorded activity for that sample.

When analyzing a performance issue, compare the timestamp range in the PerfMon log with the same time window in Cache Server Logs, Service Logs, Client API Logs, Windows Event Logs, or application logs.

See Also

Performance Counters Logging
Monitor Cache Server Counters Using PerfMon
Monitor Cache Client Counters Using PerfMon
Cache Server Logs
Service Logs
Windows Event Logging