Load Runner Faq's 495t2b

LOADRUNNER CONTROLLER: Q. 1: What is the purpose of using HP - LoadRunner? In real world scenario, it is not possible to create situation involving say one thousand s using a system simultaneously so as to test the behavior of the system under such stressful conditions. LoadRunner can create such a situation. LoadRunner artificially simulates several thousand s - which are called Virtual s. These artificial / digitally created s are simultaneously forced to operate on the same task, thereby loading the system in a way it is expected to be loaded by real human s in actual practice. With LoadRunner we can simulate situation with hundreds or thousands of artificial s & we can impose definite, consistent and repeatable loads on the system thereby stressing it from end-to-end. This way we can emulate several business processes & production conditions, which a deployed application is going to encounter. LoadRunner accurately measures, monitors, and analyzes a system’s performance and functionality. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 2: What are the essential capabilities we look in a typical application performance-testing Tool? Essential capabilities of an application performance testing tool are that: 1) It must be able to test a system which combines many software applications and hardware platforms. 2) It must be able to determine the suitability of a server for any given application. 3) It must be able to test the server before the necessary client software has been developed. 4) It must be able to emulate an environment where multiple clients interact with a single server application. 5) It must be able to test an application under the load of tens, hundreds, or even thousands of potential s. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 3: What are the drawbacks of manual load testing processes? Load testing of a complete system can be done manually by building an environment where many s work simultaneously on the system. Each is made to work on his

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standalone machine and every individual submits input to the system. However due to complexity of such a system, following drawbacks are there 1) Manual testing methods offer only a partial solution to the load testing. 2) Manual testing is expensive & requires large amounts of manpower & equipment. 3) Manual testing is complicated, especially while coordinating and synchronizing multiple testers. 4) Manual testing involves a high degree of organization, especially to record and analyze results meaningfully. 5)The repeatability of the manual tests is limited. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 4: How LoadRunner takes care of the shortcomings of manual performance testing? 1) LoadRunner reduces manpower requirements by replacing human s with virtual s or Vs. These Vs emulate the behavior of real s operating real applications. 2) Since several Vs can run on a single computer, LoadRunner reduces the amount of hardware required for testing. 3) LoadRunner Controller allows us to easily and effectively control all the Vs from a single point of control. 4) LoadRunner monitors the application performance online, enabling us to fine-tune the system during test execution. 5) LoadRunner automatically records the performance of the application during a test. We can choose from a wide variety of graphs and reports to view the performance data. 6) LoadRunner checks where performance delays occur: network or client delays, U performance, I/O delays, database locking, or other issues at the database server. LoadRunner monitors the network and server resources to help us improve performance. 7) Because LoadRunner tests are fully automated, we can easily repeat them as often as we need. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 5: What are the process elements of using LoadRunner? Process elements of LoadRunner are : 1) Scenario: Before using LoadRunner, we divide the application performance testing requirements into various scenarios. A scenario defines the events which occur during each testing session. Thus, for example, a scenario defines and controls the number of s to emulate, the actions that they perform, and the machines on which they run their emulations. 2) Vs: In the scenario, LoadRunner replaces human s with virtual s or Vs. When we run a scenario, Vs emulate the actions of human s working with our application. While a workstation accommodates only a single human , many Vs can run concurrently on a single workstation. In fact, a scenario can contain tens, hundreds, or even thousands of Vs. 3) V Scripts: The actions that a V performs during the scenario are described in a V script. When we run a scenario, each V executes a V script. The V scripts include functions that measure and record the performance of our application’s components. 4) Transactions: To measure the performance of the server, we define transactions. A transaction represents an action or a set of actions that we are interested in measuring. We define transactions within our V script by enclosing the appropriate sections of the script with start and end transaction statements. For example, we can define a transaction that measures the time it takes for the server to process a request to view the balance of an and for the information to be displayed at the ATM. 5) Rendezvous points: We insert rendezvous points into V scripts to emulate heavy load on the server. Rendezvous points instruct Vs to wait during test execution for multiple Vs to arrive at a certain point, so that they may simultaneously perform a task. For example, to emulate peak load on the bank server, we can insert a rendezvous point instructing 100 Vs to deposit cash into their s at the same time. 6) Controller: We use the LoadRunner Controller to manage and maintain our scenarios. Using the Controller, we control all the Vs in a scenario from a single workstation. 7) Load Generator: When we execute a scenario, the Controller distributes each V in the scenario to a load generator. The load generator is the machine that executes the V script, enabling the V to emulate the actions of a human . 8) Performance analysis: V scripts include functions that measure and record system performance during load-testing sessions. During a scenario run, we can monitor the network and server resources. Following a scenario run, we can view performance analysis data in reports and graphs. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 6: What are our expectations from a scenario load testing an application Server? The scenario would define the following actions which would be required to be performed on the server during the load test. 1) Emulating the conditions of controlled load on the server. 2) Emulating the conditions of maximum load on the server. 3) Measuring the server performance under load. 4) Check where performance delays occur: network or client delays, U performance, I/O delays, database locking, or other issues at the server. 5) Monitoring the network and server resources under load. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 7: What is the role of Remote Agent Dispatcher in LoadRunner? The role of Remote Agent Dispatcher is to enable the Controller to start applications on the load generator. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 8: What is the role of LoadRunner Agent? 1) LoadRunner Agent enables the Controller and the load generator to communicate with each other. 2) When we run a scenario, the Controller instructs the Remote Agent Dispatcher to launch the LoadRunner agent. 3) The agent receives instructions from the Controller to initialize, run, pause, and stop Vs. 4) The agent relays data on the status of the Vs back to the Controller. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 9: What type of actions a V can perform during database server testing? A V script can perform following actions while testing a database server: 1) Logging in to the Web application. 2) Connecting to the database server. 3) Submitting an SQL query.

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4) Retrieving and processing the server response. 5) Disconnecting from the server and the Web. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 10: What are the broad steps involved in testing process by LoadRunner? LoadRunner follows a Six–step process for testing the application under the load: Step - 1: Planning the Test: Involves development of a thorough test plan for the success of the load testing effort. Step - 2: Creating the V Scripts: Vs emulate human s interacting with our application. A V script contains the actions which each V performs during scenario execution. Step - 3: Creating the Scenario: A scenario describes the events that occur during a testing session. A scenario includes a list of machines on which Vs run, a list of scripts that the Vs run, and a specified number of Vs or V groups that run during the scenario. We can create scenarios using the Controller. Step - 4: Running the Scenario: load is emulated on the server by instructing multiple Vs to perform tasks simultaneously. We can set the level of load by increasing and decreasing the number of Vs that perform tasks at the same time. Step - 5: Monitoring a Scenario: This can be done by executing scenario monitoring with the help of LoadRunner's set of many resources. Step - 6: Analyzing Test Results: During scenario execution, LoadRunner records the performance of the application under different loads. We can use LoadRunner’s graphs and reports to analyze the application’s performance.

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Q. 11: What are the benefits of a test plan for a successful load testing? A well-defined test plan is the first essential step to successful testing. Planning of load testing helps us in: 1) Building test scenarios which accurately emulate our working environment. Load testing means testing our application under typical working conditions, and checking for system performance, reliability, capacity, and so forth. 2) Understanding as to which resources are required for testing. Application testing requires hardware, software, and human resources. Before we begin testing, we need to know which resources are available and decide how to use them effectively. 3) Defining success criteria in measurable . Focused testing goals and test criteria ensure successful testing. For example, it’s not enough to define vague objectives like "Check server response time under heavy load." A more focused success criterion would be "Check that 100 customers can check their balance simultaneously, and that the server response time will not exceed one minute." <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 12: What are the elements of Load Test Planning Process using LoadRunner? Load test planning is a three-step process: Step -1: Analyzing the Application: Involves becoming thoroughly familiar with the hardware and software components, the system configuration, and the typical usage model. This step ensures that the testing environment created by us will accurately reflect the environment and configuration of the application under test. Step -2: Defining Testing Objectives: Before starting the testing process, we need to define exactly what we want to achieve. Step -3: Planning LoadRunner Implementation: Involves decision making on how to use LoadRunner to achieve our testing goals. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 13: What factors do we consider while planning the system configuration before its load testing? We describe the configuration of every system component like client machines, network, middleware, and servers in ample detail giving answers to the following: 1) How many s are anticipated to connect to the system? 2) What is the configuration of application client machine. Configuration includes information on hardware, memory, operating system, software, development tool etc.?

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3) What types of database and Web servers are used with the information of hardware, database type, operating system, file server etc.? 4) How does the server communicate with the application client? 5) What is the middleware configuration and application server between the front-end client and back-end server? 6) What other network components are used like modems etc. which may affect response time? 7) What is the throughput of the communications devices & How many concurrent s can each device handle? <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 14: What factors do we consider regarding system usage while planning the load testing? 1) Consideration as to how the system is typically used, and decide which functions are important to test. 2) Consideration as to who uses the system, what are the number of each type of and what are the common tasks performed by each . 3) Consideration of any background load which might affect the system response time. For example, say 500 persons log on to the ing system every morning, and the same office network has a constant background load of 100 s performing various word processing and printing tasks. We would create a LoadRunner scenario with 600 virtual s g in to the ing database, and check the server response time. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 15: What are the broad objectives before planning load testing? Before starting testing, we need to define our objectives precisely as to what we want to achieve. Broad application testing objectives for load testing with LoadRunner can be: 1) Measuring end- response time: To know how long does it take to complete a business process? 2) Defining optimal hardware configuration: To know which hardware configuration provides the best performance? 3) Checking reliability: To know how hard or long can the system work without errors or failures?

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4) Checking hardware or software upgrades: To know how does the upgrade affect performance or reliability? 5) Evaluating new products: To know which server hardware or software should we choose? 6) Measuring system capacity: To know how much load can the system handle without significant performance degradation? 7) Identifying problem areas: To know which element is slowing down the response time? <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 16: Load Testing is applicable during which stages of product life cycle? Load testing is necessary throughout the product life cycle. Load Testing activities performed during various stages of product life cycle are: 1) During Planning and Design stage: Evaluation of new products & measurement of response time of every activity. 2) During Product Development stage: Measurement of response time of every activity, checking of optimum hardware configuration, checking of hardware and software upgrades and checking of reliability. 3) During Product Deployment stage: Checking of reliability, measurement of response time of every activity and measurement of system capacity. 4) During Production stage: Measurement of response time of every activity and Identification of various problem areas. 5) During Evolution stage: Checking of hardware and software upgrades and measurement of system capacity. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 17: At which points we use LoadRunner to measure the response time in our application? Following type of response times are measured to decide as to where to run the Vs and which Vs to run, according to our predefined test objectives: 1) Measurement of end-to-end response time: We can measure the response time which a experiences by running a GUI V at the front end. GUI Vs emulate real s by submitting input to and receiving output from the client application. We can run GUI Vs at the front end to measure the response time across the entire network, including a terminal emulator or GUI front end, network, and server.

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2) Measurement of network and server response times: We can measure network and server response time, excluding response time of the GUI front end, by running Vs on the client machine. Vs emulate client calls to the server without the interface. When we run many Vs from the client machine, we can measure how the load affects network and server response time. 3) Measurement of GUI response time: We can find out as to how the client application interface affects response time by calculating the difference among the previous two measurements i.e. GUI response time = (End-to-end response time) - (Network and server response time) 4) Measurement of server response time: We can measure the time it takes for the server to respond to a request without going across the network. When we run Vs on a machine directly connected to the server, we can measure the server performance. 5) Measurement of middleware-to-server response time: We can measure response time from the server to middleware if we have access to the middleware and its API. We can create Vs with the middleware API and measure the middleware-server performance. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 18: What are the broad basis for creating V scripts? Since Vs emulate the actions of a typical end, the V scripts are created with a consideration of end- tasks. V scripts are created based on the following: 1) Analysis of V types: For finding out the number and type of Vs expected to be created. 2) Activities expected to be performed by the Vs: For example, for load testing a banking application, we would create a V script which performs typical banking related activities. 3) Test objectives: Form the basis of taking decision on tasks to be measured and defining their transactions. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 19: What factors do we consider while selecting hardware for using LoadRunner? For running the desired number of Vs the hardware and Operating system must be adequately powerful and fast. Following factors are given due consideration while deciding the number of machines and their configuration:

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1) Make a provision of running LoadRunner Controller on a separate machine. 2) Make a provision of a separate Windows-based machine for every GUI V. However one UNIX machine can take care of running of several GUI Vs. 3) Keep the configuration of GUI Vs testing machine same like the actual ’s machine. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 20: How LoadRunner can be helpful in checking the reliability of a hardware system? LoadRunner can provide good pointers to decision making in following areas pertaining to hardware: 1) Finding out the level of system stability under heavy or continuous work loads, by creating stress on the system. 2) Testing the system by forcing it to handle the extended activity in a compressed time period to simulate the kind of activity a system would normally experience over a period of weeks or months. Q. 21: How do we measure the system capacity? We measure system capacity to find out how much excess capacity the system can handle without any degradation in its performance . For checking the capacity of a system, we compare the performance versus load on the existing system, and find out a point at which significant degradation of response-time starts taking place. Point is known as "knee" when plotted over a response time curve. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 22: What is the purpose of creating Scenarios in LoadRunner? For testing a system by using LoadRunner, we need to create a scenario. Scenario is a file containing complete information about the testing session. The scenario is a means of emulating a real-life . The scenario contains following information about the mechanism of emulating the real s: 1) Details of groups of virtual s or Vs. 2) Details of test scripts the Vs will run. 3) Details of load generators upon which the scripts shall be made to run. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 23: How many types of scenarios can be created while using Controller of LoadRunner? We can create any one type of scenario out of the following: 1) Manual Scenario: Scenario is created manually by defining the number of V groups we want to run, and building a schedule for LoadRunner to run these groups. Manual scenario can be created by defining the total number of Vs to be used in the scenario, or asg a percentage of the total number of Vs to each script. 2) Goal-Oriented Scenario: We define the goals that we want to achieve in our test and LoadRunner automatically builds a scenario for us, based upon our goals. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 24: How can we change the maximum number of scripts displayed in the Available Scripts list? We can change the maximum number of scripts displayed in the Available Scripts list by modifying the registry key: HKEY_CURRENT_\Software\Mercury Interactive\RecentScripts\max_num_of_scripts <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 25: What is the purpose of Scenario Files? A scenario provides detailed description of various events taking place during every load testing session. A scenario is created by using the Design view of Controller in LoadRunner. Once a scenario is created, LoadRunner saves the information in a scenario file having an extension (*.lrs). <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 26: What methods are available in LoadRunner for building scenarios? Two methods are available through which we can create scenarios. 1) Manual Scenario creation method: Involves creating groups and specifying the script, the load generator, and the number of Vs included in each group. We can chose to opt for using Percentage Mode to distribute our Vs among various scripts. 2) Goal Oriented Scenario creation method: Involves defining the goals we want our test to achieve, and LoadRunner automatically builds a scenario for us, based on these goals. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 27: How can we change the maximum number of scripts displayed in the Available Scripts list? We can change the maximum number of scripts displayed in the Available Scripts list by modifying the registry key: HKEY_CURRENT_\Software\Mercury Interactive\RecentScripts\max_num_of_scripts <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 28: What is the purpose of having V groups in scenarios? A scenario consists of groups of Vs which simulate the actions of human s on the application under test. When a particular scenario is run, the Vs generate load on the server, and LoadRunner monitors the server and transaction performance.. V groups are created to organize several Vs in a scenario into manageable groups. V groups are created by including Vs having similar characteristics. For example, when many Vs run the same V script, we can club them into one V group. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 29: What type of actions can be performed on a V group or scenario? Following actions can be performed on a V group: 1) Defining the group name, V quantity, load generators, and scripts for the V group. 2) Adding load generators to the V group and configuring the load generators. 3) Adding and configuring scripts to the V group. 4) Enabling or disabling a V group for the scenario. 5) Removing a V group from the scenario. 6) Scheduling the V group execution. 7) Defining service level agreements for the scenario. 8) Running, stopping & resetting the scenario. 9) Configuring the settings of scenario results. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

Q. 30: What is the meaning of pending status for a V?

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Pending status for a V indicates that the V is ready to be initialized and is waiting for an available load generator, or is transferring files to the load generator. The V will run when the conditions set in its scheduling attributes are met. Q. 31: What is the meaning of rendezvous status for a V? Rendezvous status for a V indicates that the V has arrived at the rendezvous and is waiting to be released by LoadRunner. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 32: What is the purpose of Gradual Stop option for the Vs? Gradual Stop option Instructs the Controller to complete the current iteration or action before stopping the V. This option is only available when the V is in the RUN state. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 33: How do we modify the run-time settings of multiple scripts? We need to chose the method of modifying the run-time settings: 1) Modification method for Shared run-time settings: This method opens one window containing all of the run-time settings in blank mode. In this mode, we set only the options that we want to modify for all selected scripts. All other run-time settings remain unchanged. Some of the run-time settings cannot be modified in shared mode. These settings do not appear. To modify them, we need to open the run-time settings for each individual script. 2) Modification method for Individual run-time settings: This method opens a separate window for each selected script. In this mode, we modify each script’s settings individually. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 34: What configuration settings we can define for Load Generators in a scenario? With the help of Load Generators dialog box, we can set following type of load generator’s attributes: 1) Defining which load generators will run Vs in the scenario. For example, if a load generator is unavailable for a particular scenario run, we can exclude it temporarily instead of removing it entirely from your list of load generators. 2) Selecting which load generators will take part in the scenario by using the Enable and Disable commands. Disabling a load generator temporarily removes it from the list. Enabling a load generator reinstates it.

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<<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 35: What is the role of controller in LoadRunner? The Controller monitors a Windows load generator’s U usage and automatically stops loading Vs on a load generator when it becomes overloaded. We can monitor the status of a machine’s U usage. When the U usage of a load generator becomes problematic, the icon to the left of the load generator name contains a yellow bar. When the machine becomes overloaded, the icon contains a red bar. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 36: What are the Terminal Services in LoadRunner? Terminal services allows centralized management of computing resources for each client connected to the server, and provides each with their own working environment. We use LoadRunner’s Terminal Services Manager to remotely manage multiple load generators running in our load testing scenario on a terminal server. With the help of Terminal Services Manager, we can select the number of terminals to be used in our scenario & the maximum number of Vs which can be run per terminal. The Terminal Services Manager then evenly distributes the number of virtual s among the client sessions. With the help of Terminal Server Client, we can operate in a server-based computing environment from a remote machine. The terminal server transmits applications over the network and displays them via terminal emulation software. Every logs on and sees only his individual session, which is managed transparently by the server operating system, independent of any other client session. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 37: What is the use of Creating a Manual Scenario Using the Percentage Mode? A manual scenario is created in the Percentage mode by defining the total number of Vs to be used in the scenario, and asg load generators and a percentage of the total number of Vs to each script. While creating a new scenario, we can access the Percentage Mode directly by selecting the "Use the Percentage Mode to distribute the Vs among the scripts" in the New Scenario dialog box. A scenario created in the V Group Mode can be easily converted to the Percentage Mode. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 38: What are the key considerations while converting a scenario from V Group Mode to Percentage Mode?

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1) In case we have defined multiple scripts for a V group, the number of V scripts created in the Percentage Mode will be same as the number of scripts defined for the group. 2) All Load Generators will be assigned to all V scripts created in the Percentage Mode. In case we have defined multiple load generators for a V group, the Vs we assign to the scripts in the Percentage Mode will be distributed evenly among the load generators previously assigned by us to the group. 3) All V group schedule settings will be lost. All profiles will contain scenario schedule settings only. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 39: What are the key considerations while converting a scenario from Percentage Mode to V Group Mode? 1) Each script will be converted to a V group. 2) In case we have defined multiple load generators for a V script, the V group which is created when converting the scenario will also contain multiple load generators. 3) All schedule settings will be retained as it is. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 40: What is the purpose of Scheduling Scenarios? After creating a scenario, we schedule it to start running at a specified time. We can make a schedule defining the time at which to initialize, start, and stop Vs during the scenario run, and how long an action should continue running. We can restrict the execution duration of the scenario or of a V group within the scenario. We can also stipulate how many Vs to start and stop running within a certain time frame. We can specify whether LoadRunner should start or stop running all Vs in a scenario simultaneously, or only a certain number of Vs within a specified amount of time. Q. 41: What is the effect of Rendezvous points on the running of scenarios as per schedule? Rendezvous points, if present in a script, interfere with the scheduled scenario run. The scenario will not run as scheduled due to the presence of rendezvous points in the script. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 42: What are the methods by which we can schedule the enabled V groups in a scenario? After creating a scenario, we can schedule the enabled V groups to run according to either of the following:

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1) As a part of a whole scenario: When we run a scenario, LoadRunner runs all the V groups enabled in the scenario. The schedule defined for running the scenario is applied to all the V groups concurrently, and LoadRunner applies each action proportionately to all the Vs groups. 2) As per its own schedule: For each enabled V group in a scenario, we can design a separate execution schedule. We can specify when to start running the V group, how many Vs to start and stop running within given time intervals, and how long the V group should continue running. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 43: How many modes are available to us for scheduling the running of scenario? We can schedule a scenario to run in one of the following modes: 1) Real-life schedule: The scenario runs according to a -defined group of actions that simulate a real-life schedule of events. V groups run according to the iterations defined in their run-time settings, but we can define how many Vs to run at a time, how long Vs should continue to run, and how many Vs to stop running at a time. 2) Classic Schedule: All enabled V groups run together on one schedule, each according to its own run-time settings. We can schedule how many Vs to start running at a time, how long to run the Vs, and how many Vs to stop running at a time. 3) Run until complete: All the V groups in the scenario run according to the iterations defined in their run-time settings. Each V group in the scenario runs its defined course, and when all the V groups have finished running, the scenario run is complete. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 44: What is the purpose of specifying Service Level Agreements in scenarios? While creating a load testing scenario, we can specify our goals or service level agreements - SLA's for the performance measurement. When this scenario is made to run the LoadRunner captures all the performance related data. During analysis phase, Analysis compares this data against the SLAs and determines SLA status for the defined measurements. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 45: What methods LoadRunner uses to find out the SLA status? Depending on the measurements being evaluated by us, LoadRunner finds out the SLA status in one of the following ways: 1) As per time interval within the run: Analysis displays SLA statuses at set time intervals in the timeline. For example, every 10 seconds - Analysis checks to see if the measurement’s performance has deviated from the threshold defined in the SLA.

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2) As per the whole run: Analysis displays a single SLA status for the whole scenario run. The measurements include - Total Hits, Average Hits, Total Throughput, and Average Throughput. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 46: How many types of Goal Oriented Scenarios can be created in LoadRunner? In a goal-oriented scenario, we define the goals required to be achieved through our tests, and LoadRunner automatically builds a scenario for us based on these goals. When we want to test how many Vs the application can run simultaneously, it is better to define a type of goal for the Virtual s. Following five types of goals can be defined in a goal-oriented scenario: 1) Defined number of virtual s 2) Defined number of hits per second by the Web Vs. 3) Defined number of transactions per second. 4) Defined number of pages per minute by the Web Vs. 5) Defined transaction response time we want our scenario to reach. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 47: Under what circumstances a Pages per Minute or Hits per Second goaloriented scenario fails? Pages per Minute or Hits per Second goal-oriented scenario is assigned a "Failed" status in situations like: 1) When the Controller has twice attempted to reach the goal using the maximum number of Vs specified, and the goal could not be reached. 2) When no pages per minute or hits or transactions per second were ed after the first batch of Vs was run. 3) When the number of pages per minute or hits or transactions per second did not increase after the Controller ran a certain number of V batches. 4) When all the Vs that were run failed. 5) When there were no available load generators for the type of Vs we attempted to run. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 48: What is Load Balancing process in LoadRunner? Load balancing is the process, which evenly distributes the load generated by Vs among the requested load generators, thereby ensuring an accurate load test. When a Windows load generator’s U usage becomes overloaded, the Controller stops loading Vs on the overloaded load generator, and automatically distributes them among load generators taking part in the scenario. Load balancing option is available only in goal-oriented scenarios and manually controlled scenarios in the Percentage Mode. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 49: What policy attributes can be defined for rendezvous points? Setting the rendezvous policy determines how the Vs handle a rendezvous point. We can set the following policy attributes for every rendezvous point: 1) Release policy: Defines how many Vs will be released from a rendezvous point at a time. 2) Timeout policy: Defines how long the Controller shall wait before releasing Vs from a rendezvous point. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 50: Can we disable a particular Vs at Rendezvous Points? We can disable a rendezvous point for all Vs in a scenario. In addition to this we can disable a rendezvous point for a particular Vs. By disabling Vs at a rendezvous point, we temporarily exclude them from participating in the rendezvous. Enabling disabled Vs returns them back to the rendezvous. Q. 51: What type of status related Rendezvous Information is available to us during creation of a scenario? Following Rendezvous Information is available to us for viewing & necessary modifications: 1) Current Status: The number of Vs that arrived at the rendezvous point out of the total number of Vs assigned to the rendezvous. 2) Time: The time at which the Vs at the rendezvous point were released. 3) Reason: The reason the Vs at the rendezvous point were released. The possible reasons are Timeout or Arrived.

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<<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 52: Out of Individual Load Generator settings & Global Settings, which ones come into effect? When the global scenario settings differ from those of an individual load generator, the load generator settings override them. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 53: What is the use of LoadRunner Expert mode? We can configure additional settings for the LoadRunner agent and other LoadRunner components with the help of LoadRunner Expert mode. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 54: How LoadRunner takes care of timeout value requirements in case of large number of Vs? LoadRunner automatically understands the fact that the number of active Vs has a significant effect on the timeout values. For example, 1000 Vs trying to initialize will take much longer than 10 Vs. Taking care of this, LoadRunner automatically adds an internal value, based on the number of active Vs, to the timeout value specified by us. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 55: While running a scenario, the run-time files are stored at which location by default? While we run a scenario, by default the run-time files get stored locally on each load generator machine running the V script. The default location of the files is under the temporary directory specified by the load generator’s environment variables like Windows - TEMP or TMP Directory. If no environment variable is defined, the files get saved to the /tmp directory. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 56: What are the various types of Primary Run-time files? Primary run-time files are of following types: 1) V Script files: When we run a V, the Controller sends a copy of the associated V script to the V load generator. These script files are stored in the load generator’s temporary run-time directory.

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2) Result files: While we run a scenario, the participating Vs write their results to the temporary run-time file directory. After scenario execution, these result files are consolidated and the results from all the load generators are transferred to the results directory. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 57: How transfer of script files takes place at run time in case Vs access the scripts at some shared location? If we specify that all Vs access their V scripts directly at some shared location, no transfer of script files take place at run time. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 58: What is Path translation in LoadRunner Path translation is a mechanism used by LoadRunner to convert remote path names. We need to do path translation, when we specify a shared network drive for run-time file storage. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 59: What preparatory steps are recommended for running a scenario? Before running a scenario following are suggested steps: 1) Specify the location of the results. 2) Assign a name to the results. 3) Scheduling of the scenario. 4) Providing scenario summary information. 5) Specification of applications to be invoked at the start of the scenario. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 60: What is the extension of scenario result file? The general information about the scenario are stored in a result file with an extension (.eve and .lrr) Q. 61: How Analysis module of LoadRunner interacts with the results files? When analysis graphs and reports are generated, the Analysis module of LoadRunner copies all the scenario result files to a database. Then the Analysis module directly interacts with the database and does not require the individual result files.

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<<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 62: What are the benefits of saving scenarios in a Quality Center Project? When Controller module of LoadRunner is connected to a Quality Center project, we can create a new scenario in the Controller and save it directly to the Quality Center project. This helps us in keeping a track of all scenarios created for each subject and allows monitoring the progress of test planning and creation. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 63: How can we test the functionality of an application under heavy load using LoadRunner? LoadRunner integrates functional testing scripts created by Functional testing Tools like QTP or WinRunner. These scripts in the form of GUI V scripts integrate into the scenarios of LoadRunner. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 64: What are the benefits of running functional test scripts in LoadRunner? 1) To see how the functionality of the application gets affected under the heavy load. 2) To measure the end-to-end response time experienced by a typical on the client side while the application is under load. 3) By including QTP test scripts at specific points in a LoadRunner scenario we can confirm that the functionality of our application does not get affected by the extra load at these sensitive points. 4) When a GUI V script runs on our screen during the LoadRunner scenario, we can watch the actual steps executed by the V in a real time. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 65: What is a GUI V? A GUI V emulates the complete environment of a human . GUI Vs enable us to measure and monitor end-to-end response times while our client/server system is under load. A GUI V can be programmed to read and act on information that appears on its machine’s display. All actions of every GUI V are described in a GUI V script generally created in QTP or WinRunner. GUI Vs are monitored and managed through the Controller module of LoadRunner. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 66: Can we use VuGen module of LoadRunner to run a GUI V script? We cannot use VuGen to run a GUI V script. We use the Controller module of LoadRunner to run a GUI V script as part of a scenario. Whereas we use QTP or WinRunner to run a GUI V script in the standalone mode. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 67: What is End-to-end response time in relation to GUI V Technology? End-to-end response time means the total time that a waits for a response after submitting a request. GUI Vs measure real end-to-end response times. End-to-end response times include GUI response times plus network and server response times. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 68: What are the special design constraints with QTP Tests while adopting in LoadRunner? 1) Only simple QTP tests should be adopted for use in LoadRunner & should be designed to pinpoint specific operations. 2) LoadRunner cannot run nested action iterations. 3) Do not include references to external actions or other external resources, like an external Data Table file, environment variable file, shared object repositories etc. 4) Include transactions in QTP test since LoadRunner only provides performance information for data that is included within a transaction. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 69: How do we define transactions within our V script? Transactions are defined as an action or a set of desired actions to measure the performance of a server. We define transactions within our V script by enclosing the appropriate sections of the script with start and end transaction statements. For example, we can define a transaction, which measures the time it takes for the server to process a request to view the balance of an and for the information to be displayed at the ATM. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 70: For use in LoadRunner, which statements are manually added to basic V script recorded in WinRunner? Since LoadRunner provides performance-related information only for the data included within a transaction. Hence WinRunner test scripts are manually edited to include

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transactions needed to be used by LoadRunner. Thus following statements are manually inserted into WinRunner test scripts : 1) Transaction statements to measure the performance of the server. 2) Rendezvous statements to emulate a specific load. Q. 71: What are the special considerations while running the LoadRunner scenario integrated with GUI V script created in QTP or WinRunner? 1) Run just the one GUI V concurrently per machine. 2) Ensure that QTP and WinRunner are closed before running the scenario. 3) In the Run-time Settings for script dialog box, only the General categories and sub-categories like General, Iterations, Miscellaneous, Think Time etc. are relevant for QTP and WinRunner tests. 4) The Replay options are not relevant for QTP and WinRunner tests. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 72: What actions are performed by the LoadRunner during scenario execution? While executing a scenario, the LoadRunner does the following: 1) Recording of the duration of the transactions you defined in the V scripts 2) Performing the rendezvous included in the V scripts 3) Collecting error, warning, and notification messages generated by the Vs During running of scenarios Controller module of LoadRunner performs following actions: a) Checking the scenario configuration information. b) Invokes the applications selected by us for running with the scenario. c) Distributing each V script to its specified load generator. When the V groups become re ready, they start executing their respective scripts. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 73: Can we activate an additional V while a scenario is running? With the help of Run / Stop Vs dialog box, we can activate an additional V while a scenario is running. The scenario will finally end when all the Vs have completed their scripts, or when the specified duration finishes out, or when we terminate it. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 74: What are the brief steps of running a scenario? Scenario execution by & large follows following basic steps: Step -1:Opening of an existing scenario or creating a fresh one. Step -2:Configuring and scheduling the scenario. Step -3:Setting the results directory. Step -4:Running and monitoring the scenario. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 75: How running of individual Vs differ from running an entire scenario? We can run all the Vs and V groups all together in a scenario, alternatively we can chose the specific V groups and Vs and can run them individually. The difference in operation lies as under: 1) When We run an entire scenario, LoadRunner does not begin running Vs until they all reach the Ready state. 2) When we run individual groups or Vs, LoadRunner runs each V immediately after it reaches the Ready state. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 76: What do we mean by initialization of Vs in a group? By initializing the Vs, we distribute the Vs in the group to their specified load generators so that they get ready to execute their script. The status of the V group changes from Down to Pending to Initializing to Ready. In case a particular V group does not get initialized due to any reason, the status of this V group changes to Error. By initializing all the Vs in a group before running them, we can ensure that they all begin executing the scenario at the same time. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 77: How the addition of new Vs differ among various modes of running a scenario? We run a scenario or V in two modes like: 1) V Group Mode 2) Percentage Mode. 1) V Group Mode: Here we control the number of new Vs that can be added to each V Group, and the load generators on which these additional Vs will run.

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2) Percentage Mode: Here we control the number of new Vs that can be distributed among the V scripts according to the percentage you define, and the load generators on which these additional Vs will run. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 78: What type of V activity can be seen while a scenario is running? LoadRunner allows us to see the following V activity during a scenario run: 1) On the Controller load generators, we can view the Output window, monitor V performance online, and check the status of Vs executing the scenario. 2) On remote machines, we can view the Agent summary with information about the active Vs. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 79: How connections are established among Controller & Load Generators under fire walled environment? In a conventional non-firewalled load test scenario, the Controller can directly connect to the LoadRunner agents running on remote machines. While running Vs over a firewall, the direct connection between the controller and the Load Generator gets blocked by the firewall. The reason being that the Controller does not have permissions to open the firewall. LoadRunner addresses this problem by using a communication configuration based on HTTPS or secured T/IP. In such a fire walled environment, a LoadRunner agent is installed on load generators running Vs, and on Monitor machines which monitor the servers. This agent communicates through port 443 in the firewall. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 80: What is a MI Listener machine? The MI Listener machine works as a router between the following: 1) The agent on the load generator machine and the Controller, enabling the Controller to run Vs over a firewall. 2) The agent on the Monitor over Firewall machine and the Controller, enabling the Controller to monitor the servers that are located over a firewall. MI Listener components are installed on a dedicated machine. Q. 81: How the communication takes place across MI Listener machine in a firewalled environment?

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The MI Listener serves the purpose of a router between the Controller and the LoadRunner agent. When the LoadRunner agent connects to the MI Listener machine, the MI Listener keeps a listing of the connection to the agent using a symbolic name that the agent ed to it. When the Controller connects to the MI Listener machine, it communicates to the MI Listener through port 50500. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 82: How many types of online monitors are available for controller machines? 1) Run-Time Monitors: For displaying the number and status of Vs participating in the scenario, as well as the number and types of errors that the Vs generate. 2) Transaction Monitors: For displaying the transaction rate and response time during scenario execution. 3) Web Resource Monitors: For providing information about the number of Web connections, throughput volume, HTTP responses, server retries, and pages ed to the Web servers during the scenario. 4) System Resource Monitors: For measuring the Windows, UNIX, Tuxedo, SNMP, Antara FlameThrower, and SiteScope resources used during a scenario. 5) Network Delay Monitor: For displaying the information about the network delays on our system. 6) Firewall Monitor: For measuring the statistics of the firewall servers during the scenario. 7) Web Server Resource Monitors: For measuring the statistics of the Apache, Microsoft IIS, iPlanet Web servers during the scenario. 8) Web Application Server Resource Monitors: For measuring the statistics of the Ariba, ATG Dynamo, BroadVision, ColdFusion, Fujitsu INTERSTAGE, iPlanet, Microsoft ASP, Oracle9iAS HTTP, SilverStream, WebLogic and WebSphere application servers during the scenario. 9) Database Server Resource Monitors: For measuring the statistics of the SQL server, Oracle, Sybase, and DB2 databases during the scenario. 10) Streaming Media Monitors: For measuring the statistics of the Windows Media Server and RealPlayer audio/video servers, as well as the RealPlayer and Media Player client during the scenario. 11) ERP/CRM Server Resource Monitors: For measuring the statistics of the SAP Portals, Siebel Servers, and PeopleSoft servers during the scenario.

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12) Java Performance Monitor: For measuring the statistics of Java Platforms and Javabased applications using J2EE machines. 13) J2EE & .NET Diagnostics Monitors: For providing information to trace, time, and troubleshoot individual transactions through J2EE & .NET Web, application, and database servers. 14) Application Component Monitor: For measuring the statistics of the Microsoft COM+ server during a scenario run. 15) Application Deployment Solutions Monitor: For measuring the statistics of the Citrix MetaFrame servers during a scenario run. 16) Middleware Performance Monitors: For measuring the statistics of the Tuxedo and IBM Web servers during a scenario run. 17) Infrastructure Resources Monitor: For measuring the statistics of the network client data points during a scenario run. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 83: What is Merging Graphs in LoadRunner? LoadRunner allows us to merge the results of two graphs from the same scenario into a single graph. The merging helps us to compare several different measurements at once. For example, we can make a merged graph to display the Web Throughput and Hits per Second, as a function of the elapsed time. To merge two graphs, the x-axis of both the graphs must be the same measurement. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 84: What situations are best suited for performing path translation? 1) When saving run-time result files to a shared drive which has been mapped differently by the Controller and remote load generator. 2) When the remote machine maps the path as another drive letter or path, path translation is necessary to enable the load generator to recognize the script location. 2) Across platforms - to translate Windows-based paths as seen by the Controller into paths recognized by the UNIX V load generator. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 85: What is the use of Expert mode of Controller module of LoadRunner?

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It is basically meant for the personnel & helps us in getting access to the system information. When we work in the Expert mode, the Controller dialog boxes contains additional options for fine tuning the Controller operation. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 86: How to check whether a particular problem lies with a scenario or lies with the V script? 1) that the script runs properly on all remote load generators in stand-alone mode. 2) Test the GUI V scripts on Windows platforms using WinRunner. 3) Test the V scripts on UNIX platforms by running them from the command line. 4) Test all other types of V scripts on Windows platforms by running them from VuGen, or by running a single from the Controller. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 87: What to do when a test es when run in VuGen, but fails when run in Controller? When a test runs in VuGen, the full browser is used. However when this test is run in Controller, it use the browser basics only. Hence before running a scenario in the Controller with multiple Vs, it is a best practice to run a single V in stand-alone mode to ensure that the test is free from bugs. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 88: What to do when Controller machine fails to connect to the remote load generator machine? Check the following items:1) Check T/IP connectivity: Ensure full T/IP connectivity among the Controller and V machines. Use the ping utility from the DOS command line to communication with a remote machine. 2) Check Load generator connections: Ensure full connectivity of the load generator with every remote load generators from the Controller’s Load Generators dialog box. 3) Check UNIX shell: For UNIX Vs, make sure that the Windows Controller can execute a remote shell command. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 89: What is the use of LoadRunner Agent?

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LoadRunner Agent runs on the load generators and enables communication between the Controller, load generators, and MI Listeners under fire-walled environment. The LoadRunner agent receives instructions from the Controller to initialize, run, pause, and stop Vs. At the same time, the agent also relays data on the status of the Vs back to the Controller. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 90: How can we increase the load during the Load test? We can increase the load on the application during a running load test by manually adding more Vs. Q. 91: What to do in case of a warning message that Controller cannot activate additional Vs? This is a hardware related problem. It happens when we use our local machine having limited memory resources, as a load generator. Hence it is better to use a dedicated machine as a load generator to avoid such problems. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 92: How to know as to whether my application performed well under the load? Look at the transaction response time and find out whether the transaction was within an acceptable limit for the customer. If the transaction response time degrades, we need to look for problems. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 93: When do we use of goal-oriented scenario in LoadRunner? Prior to deploying an application, we want to run an acceptance test to make sure that the system will withstand the real-life expected workload. We have an idea about a rate at which we expect the server should perform say in of number of hits or transactions per second. Using a goal-oriented scenario we define a goal for the number of hits per second, transactions per second, or the transaction response time which we want to generate. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 94: How many types of goals are provided by LoadRunner in a goal oriented scenario? LoadRunner provides following five types of goals in a goal oriented scenario:

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1) Number of concurrent Vs. 2) Number of hits per second. 3) Number of transactions per second. 4) Number of pages per minute. 5) Transaction response time which we want the scenario to reach. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>> Q. 95: What is the objective of an analysis session after the load test? The aim of an analysis session is to find out the failures in performance of our system and then to point out the root cause of such failures. Following questions are asked during the analysis session. 1) Were the test expectations met? 2) What was the transaction response time on the ’s end under load? 3) Did the SLA meet or deviate from its goals? 4) What was the average transaction response time of the transactions? 5) What parts of the system could have contributed to the decline in performance? 6) What was the response time of the network and servers? 7) Can we find a possible cause by correlating the transaction times and backend monitor matrix? <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

Q. 96: What to do when a script fails during simple playback, while during recording same actions were successful? Many applications use dynamic values which change every time we use the application. For example, some servers assign a unique session ID for every new session. When we try to replay a recorded session, the application creates a new session ID which happen to differ from the recorded session ID. LoadRunner addresses this issue through correlation. Correlation saves the changing values, in this case the session ID, to a parameter. When running the emulation, the V does not use the recorded value and instead of it, it uses the new session ID, assigned to it by the server. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

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Q. 97: How to confirm as to whether the desired content is the same as the returned web page? This can be done through the content check which verifies that the expected information appears on a Web page while the script is running. We can insert following two types of content checks: 1) Text check: For checking that a text string appears on a Web page. 2) Image check: For checking an image on a Web page. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

Q. 98: What is the use of a Throughput graph? The Throughput graph shows the amount of data in of bytes which the Vs receive from the server at any given second. We then compare this graph with the Transaction Response Time graph to see how throughput affects transaction performance. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

Q. 99: How to know that the test has finished running? When the test finishes its run, the Scenario Status pane shows the Down status. This indicates that the Vs have stopped running. We can look in the V dialog box to see the status of each individual V. <<<<<< =================== >>>>>>

Q. 100: How can we instruct LoadRunner to randomly run only one V in a group? This can be done by right-clicking the V group and selecting "Run One V Until Complete". A V script log will open, displaying the run-time information about the V.

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