Robot Autotune

Automatic IBM i Performance Tuning and Monitoring
 

Tuning Excellence No Human Can Duplicate

You now can get the best possible performance from your IBM i—automatically with Robot Autotune. Robot Autotune tirelessly adjusts memory pool sizes and activity levels to give you maximum use of your IBM i resources. Simply tell Robot Autotune which type of work gets priority when memory contention occurs. Is it interactive, printing, or batch? Robot Autotune's ability to use tuning priorities is a critical feature that gives your users the service that they demand and deserve. Robot Autotune follows your instructions as it expertly tunes your system every 10 seconds using artificial intelligence techniques. It tunes your system quickly and efficiently—using only 15 seconds of CPU time per hour.

Reduce System Sluggishness With Dynamic Pools

Robot Autotune introduced the breakthrough concept of dynamic pools, which automatically isolate each batch job in its own memory pool as it is submitted. When the job finishes, the pool is removed. These dynamic pools reduce the impact that batch jobs have on your interactive users, while maximizing use of IBM i memory.

Eliminate Waiting On Job Queues

Robot Autotune even manages the operation of your job queues to ensure that jobs don’t wait in queues forever. As job slots open up, Robot Autotune takes a job from each queue while rotating through the group. Then, as each job completes, a job in the next job queue in the group becomes eligible for processing. It continues through the entire group until all the jobs on all the queues have run.

Improve Batch Job Efficiency

If batch jobs are allowed to run only in the *BASE pool or in pools with interactive or printing jobs, they will gobble up available CPU time and not let other jobs run properly. Similarly, two batch jobs running in the same pool will waste CPU time fighting each other for system resources. Batch jobs run faster and more efficiently if they run in their own pool with an activity level of one. However, no one has the time to watch batch jobs being submitted and make constant tuning adjustments. No one, that is, except Robot Autotune. Dynamic pools are especially effective at curbing those big batch job appetites. Tell Robot Autotune to manage your batch job queues, and it encloses each batch job in its own dynamic pool when the job starts. When the job finishes and there are no others to run, Robot Autotune will remove the dynamic pool. You can put priorities on each job queue so that jobs from one queue will run before jobs from another queue. Robot Autotune's dynamic pools will minimize the impact of batch jobs while improving throughput.

Get The Easy Solution to Domino Server Tuning

One of the advantages of using IBM i as a Domino server is the ability to have up to 99 servers running on the same machine. Each server runs in its own subsystem. This requirement is g reat for reliability and scalability, but it creates a performance tuning nightmare. However, tuning dozens of subsystems for maximum performance is a piece of cake for Robot Autotune. You can specify tuning priorities for each server subsystem to give some users performance priority over others. And, Robot Autotune automatically adjusts memory activity levels when large Domino server or web server jobs, which can spawn thousands of threads, threaten to cause system performance issues. Robot Autotune even reports the number of active threads so you can track the actual size and growth rate of your biggest jobs.

Tune Your Partitioned Systems, Too

If you are using logical partitions (LPARs) on a large IBM i system, you know that performance tuning assumes an even more important role when memory is moved back and forth between the partitions. Sometimes memory is moved by an operator; other times it’s moved dynamically. Either way, you’ll be glad to know that Robot Autotune adjusts to the change in resources and continues to expertly tune and monitor your systems for any partition.

You can enter percentage values of total system memory in the Robot Autotune pool size fields. As workloads change and memory is shifted, Robot Autotune accounts for the increased or decreased memory and tunes IBM i for optimal performance. And, Robot Autotune interfaces seamlessly with Robot LPAR software for IBM i partition tuning and monitoring.

Stop Interactive and Server Jobs From Devouring System Resources

When your users run batch jobs interactively from their workstations, they can overwhelm your system resources. Other kinds of interactive jobs that monopolize many CPU cycles include: programs in a loop, compiles, complex queries, and poorly-written applications that perform too many database accesses. Robot Autotune's solution to interactive batch job appetites is called interactive job tuning. At your option, Robot Autotune will monitor the CPU utilization percentage of each interactive job. If a job exceeds the threshold you set, Robot Autotune changes the priority of the job to that of a batch job. When the offending batch work finishes, Robot Autotune resets the job priority to the interactive level so that other work is handled normally. Tuning server and communication jobs is another strength of Robot Autotune. These types of jobs must be treated differently to achieve maximum throughput. Robot Autotune gives client/server applications the concentrated attention they require.

 

PRODUCT SUMMARY

KEY FEATURES

  • Partition tuning
  • Performance problem prevention
  • Dynamic pools
  • Job queue prioritization
  • Report on number of active job threads
  • Set monitoring interval
  • View data in graphs
  • Memory Demand Report

INTEGRATIONS

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

IBM i 7.2 and higher

Set Your Own Thresholds and Find Out Fast When They’re Exceeded

Text

If there is a tool for every job, Robot Autotune is the tool you need for your most important job—monitoring and tuning your IBM i systems for peak performance. Use Robot Autotune with Robot Network network management software to monitor the performance of all IBM i systems in your network. Tell Robot Autotune your performance standards for each IBM i system. If any performance reading exceeds a threshold you set, Robot Autotune puts a performance event on the Network Status Center display. Next, Robot Autotune interrupts the performance expert with a pop-up window indicating that an IBM i system or partition has a performance problem.

And, Robot Network uses Robot Alert notification software to send Robot Autotune event messages to your preferred device. If your operator isn’t at the workstation or isn’t in the building, you can be sure the operator is still the first one to know when a pre-set threshold is exceeded. In addition, you can use Robot Alert's powerful broadcast list feature to send a message to all the people in a list or only to the person on duty. Robot Alert checks the work schedules of the people listed and sends the message to the correct person; the right person knows right away.

Monitor Your Entire IBM i Network at a Glance

Text

Robot Autotune continually feeds you five vital trends of network performance: allocation of memory, percent of CPU utilization, disk space consumption, transactions per minute, and response time. Using a PC display, Robot Autotune graphs these five vital performance measurements for an unlimited number of IBM i systems. As the statistics are updated at regular intervals you’ve specified, the PC pages from panel to panel.

You can customize each graph depending on what you want to see. Select whether you want to display detailed statistics or summary information. When you choose to display detailed information, you can specify to display data for the last few hours, days, or weeks. Or, you can specify a time range for the statistics you want to display.

When you want to see summary information, you can specify a time range for the data to graph and you can specify the interval at which the data is collected. Whether it’s detailed or summary information you choose, you can spot trends and potential problems at a glance. When you’re customizing the graphs, you can select whether or not you want to see the title and legend for each graph and you can choose to display the graphs in color or black and white. Whatever is most important to you is what displays.

Detailed Reports Help Spot Performance Patterns

Text

Make sure the Good Morning Report is on your desk when you arrive every morning. This report gives concise performance summaries for each IBM i system or partition in your network.

Use Robot Schedule job scheduling software to print other Robot Autotune reports automatically to help spot performance patterns on your network. For example, print the Memory Demand Report to show you when an IBM i is consistently short of memory. The report also shows you how much memory is needed to correct the shortage. Many Robot Autotune users tell us that the Memory Demand Report alone is worth the price of Robot Autotune.

Other detailed or summary reports show average performance values for any period that you select. Robot Autotune's reports are a great tool to spot or justify needed equipment upgrades.

You Cannot Survive with Poor IBM i System Performance

Text

It’s true. Everyone and everything—especially your business—suffers when your IBM i isn’t properly and continuously tuned. You don’t have the time to do it. But, the good news is, you can get the right tool to do it for you: Robot Autotune. Imagine the tireless adjustments to your IBM i systems.

Imagine optimal performance and happy users. And, think about how expensive hardware is these days. Robot Autotune allows you to get the most out of the equipment you already own. You’ll notice improved performance minutes after setup. You can bet your users will notice too! It will seem as though 25 percent more memory—think about what that would cost—has been installed on your IBM i.

Robot Autotune truly is the ultimate IBM i tuning tool. For excellent system performance today and in the future— whatever the future may bring—Robot Autotune simply is the one tool to get and the one tool you can’t do without.

Get Started

Automation doesn’t happen overnight, and there’s often more than one squeaky wheel. When you’re searching for the right solution, we recommend attending a live demonstration with an expert who understands what you’re going through and speaks your language.

There’s no prep work required on your part. We’ll find a time that fits your schedule and take about 60 minutes to familiarize you with the Robot solution. With the knowledge you gain, you’ll be better equipped to ask questions that are specific to your needs and environment.