Use this topic to understand the benefits of tuning for
optimal performance. Learn about the tunable parameters of the major WebSphere® Application Server components and
how these parameters affect performance.
Before you begin
WebSphere Application Server provides tunable settings for its major components so that you can
adjust the runtime environment to match the characteristics of your
application. Applications can run successfully without changing the
default values for these tuning parameters. Other applications might
need changes, for example, a larger heap size, to achieve optimal
performance.
Performance tuning can yield significant gains
in performance even if an application is not optimized for performance.
However, correcting shortcomings of an application typically results
in higher performance gains than are possible with just altering tuning
parameters. Many factors contribute to a high performing application.
About this task
For your convenience,
procedures for tuning parameters in other products, such as DB2®, web servers and operating systems are included. Because
these products might change, consider these descriptions as suggestions.Each WebSphere Application Server process
has parameters that influence application performance. You can use
the WebSphere Application Server administrative
console to configure and tune applications, web containers, Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB) containers, application
servers, and nodes in the administrative domain.
Procedure
- Run the applyPerfTuningTemplate.py script
as the starting point for improving the performance of a specific
application server. This python-based tuning script, along
with one of its template files, applies the recommended performance
tuning settings for a typical development, production, or environment
that is ready for immediate use. The applyPerfTuningTemplate.py script, and its associated templates and properties files, are located
in the WAS_HOME/bin directory.
- Use the performance advisors, the suggested procedures
or parameters in the tuning parameter hot list, and the information
on troubleshooting performance problems to optimize your WebSphere Application Server instances to their
fullest extent.
- Performance advisors
- The performance advisors use the Performance Monitoring Infrastructure
(PMI) data to suggest configuration changes to Object Request Broker
(ORB) service thread pools, web container thread pools, connection
pool size, persisted session size and time, prepared statement cache
size, and session cache size. The Runtime Performance Advisor runs
in the application server process, while the other advisor runs in
the Tivoli Performance Viewer. For more information, see the documentation
about using the Performance and Diagnostic Advisor and use the performance
advisor in Tivoli Performance Viewer.
- Tuning parameter hot list
- Review the documentation about the tuning parameter hot list.
These parameters have an important impact on performance. Because
these parameters are application-dependent, the parameter settings
for specific applications and environments can vary.
Tuning parameter index for z/OS®
- Performance tuning for WebSphere Application Server for z/OS operating
systems becomes complex because the nature of the runtime environment
involves many different components of the operating system and middleware.
To find information and parameters for tuning the z/OS operating
system, subsystems, the WebSphere Application Server for z/OS runtime environment, and some Java 2 Platform, Enterprise
Edition (Java EE) application tuning tips, see the documentation about
the tuning parameter hot list.
Best practice: You can
read the
WebSphere Application Server for z/OS tuning guidelines, which will explain how to tune the middleware.
However, it is important that you ensure that your application is
optimally designed to improve performance. Often, poorly written or
designed application code changes can have a significant effect on
overall performance.
bprac
If you are a WebSphere Application Server administrator
or system programmer on WebSphere Application Server for z/OS, see the documentation about the tuning
index for WebSphere Application Server for
z/OS. Each parameter description explains the parameter; provides
reasons to adjust the parameter; describes how to view or set the
parameter; and indicates default and recommended values.
- Troubleshooting performance
- To save you time detecting problems and help you troubleshoot
performance problems, see the documentation about troubleshooting
performance.