Distribution Graph
The Distribution Graph shows how frequently selected conditions exist during the measurement interval.
The GRAPH TYPE=DISTRIB or WLMGRAPH TYPE=DISTRIB Analyzer control statement produces this graph. Up to 16 measures can be specified in each GRAPH or WLMGRAPH statement; each measure specified generates a new graph. No simultaneous graphing is permitted in distribution graphics.
The Extractor control statements required for the Distribution Graph are dependent upon the information to be graphed. (See Numeric list of SMF record types for information about the record types generated by each Extractor control statement, and a description of the specific type of data collected by each Extractor control statement.)
In data processing, frequency of occurrence of conditions generally cluster around a certain set of values. For this reason, distribution can be normalized; this is the default. The horizontal axis shows the percentage of CPU busy time. The vertical axis shows the percentage of time that the CPU had a specific percentage of activity. A range of 0 to 50%, in 5% increments, is displayed if the greatest percentage of occurrence is below 50%.
The first fill character is used for all measures, no matter how many measures are requested.
A sample Distribution Graph for CPU usage is shown in the following figure.
BMC SOFTWARE, INC. XYZ COMPANY REPORT DATE: DD MMM YY 9.33
ACTL 10 JUN YY 06.45.01 10 JUN YY 07.45.00 WORLDWIDE HEADQUARTERS SYSTEM ID: SYSB Z v.rr.n
P E R C E N T S O F A C T I V I T Y
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
50. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
CPU ENVIRONMENT P . . . . . . . . . . .
REQUESTED: ALL 45. . . . . . . . . . .
E . . . . . . . . . . .
STANDARD . . . . . . . . . . .
DEVIATION = 18.8 R . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
AVERAGE = 37 C 40. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
MEDIAN = 32 E . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
MODE = 25 N . . . . . . . . . . .
35. . . . . . . . . . .
T . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
O 30. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
F . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . .
25. . . . . . . . . . .
O . . . *****. . . . . . . .
. . . *****. . . . . . . .
C . . . *****. . . . . . . .
. . . *****. . . . . . . .
C 20. . . *****. . . . . . . .
. . . *****. . . . . . . .
U . . . ********** . . . . . . .
. . . ********** . . . . . . .
R . . . ********** . . . . . . .
15. . . ********** . . . . . . .
R . . . ********** . . . . . . .
. . . ********** . . . . . . .
E . ***** . ********** . . . . . . .
. ***** . ********** . . . . . . .
N 10. ***** . ********** . . . . . . .
. ***** . ********** . . . . . . .
C . ***** . ********** . . . . . . .
. ***** . ********** . . . . . . .
E . ************************* ********************. **********. . .
5. ************************* ********************. **********. . .
. ************************* ********************. **********. . .
. ************************* ********************. **********. . .
. ************************* ********************. **********. . .
. ************************* ********************. **********. . .
0+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+---------+
As shown, the CPU was never below 10% busy during the reporting period nor greater than 80% busy. A quarter of the time, the CPU was 25% to 30% busy.
A plateau in the graph represents an accumulated percentage of occurrence. The CPU ran at an accumulated busy rate of 40% to 60%, as shown in the example. The CPU ran at this rate 24% of the time, not 6% of the time.
Distribution Graph field descriptions
The table below describes each field in the Distribution Graph.
Field | Description |
|---|---|
CPU ENVIRONMENT REQUESTED: | CPU number or numbers selected in the GRAPH or WLMGRAPH control statement |
STANDARD DEVIATION = | standard deviation arrived at in calculating percentage of CPU busy time |
AVERAGE | average value arrived at in calculating percentage of CPU busy time |
MEDIAN = | median value arrived at in calculating percentage of CPU busy time |
MODE = | indicates the recording mode under which the records were extracted |
PERCENT OF OCCURRENCE | axis showing percentage of time that the measurement was at the indicated value |
PERCENTS OF ACTIVITY | axis representing percentage of measured activity during the interval Each column represents a normalized value, showing a grouping of measurement values (see breakdown in the description of the report). |
Related topics