Testing and Enhancing BPC Performance

Performance tuning can be defined as the enhancement of BusinessObjects Planning & Consulting (BPC) overall system performance that may affect client, server and network environments—taking into account current and anticipated system performance. The purpose behind system performance testing is to find the theoretical limits/capacity of the BPC server infrastructure. All systems will eventually react to an increase in load with a decrease in system performance, so it's vital to achieve scalability in the system if needed, while still providing acceptable current and future system performance. Proper testing encompasses the client server performance (Citrix), backend web/app server performance, and the database (SQL/OLAP/Analysis Services) performance. Monitoring the user experience starts from the point when the BPC application is fully loaded. Testing will include:

1. Dimension download
2. Metadata integrity check
3. Actual download time
4. Data integrity check
5. Optimization process

Performance vs. Functionality It's important to differentiate between performance issues and product-functionality issues. A performance issue is best described as a load on the system that affects all users. An issue with slow reaction time or reporting errors for a specific process for one user with no backend server load, for example, is not a performance issue. Since the production environment is a load-balanced web/app server environment, testing needs to be done against a specific server. This can be accomplished by shutting down all but one server and using the load balance name for connection, or connecting directly to a specific server bypassing the load balancer. High-Level Testing StrategyThe overall performance testing strategy includes the following steps:

1. Discuss with the BPC business unit and IT where performance issues may reside
2. Document the system performance for acceptable standards
3. Measure entire system performance before making any system changes
4. Identify any bottlenecks that may exist

High-Level Performance Tuning StrategyAfter performing the appropriate testing processes, it's time to:

1. Modify the system through memory, hardware, configuration changes, etc., to remove the bottleneck.
2. Measure system performance after changes to verify improvement

Key Configuration Areas

• Hardware resources utilization
• Resource load distribution
• Operating system runtime/configuration
• 3rd party application runtime/configuration
• Application runtime/configuration

Webcast: BPC Performance Issues - Customer Roundtable

Sometimes finding an answer to your BPC performance question can be like hunting for a needle in a haystack – time consuming and often frustrating. Column5’s Technical Services team will be hosting an open forum to get all of your BPC performance questions answered. This session will be an open dialog among customers exchanging ideas about their BPC Performance issues.  Though mediated by Column5 experts, this session will be driven by customer questions, answers and contributions.

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