How to build perfect graphics in vROps

The arsenal of VMware tools is presented not only by means of virtualization, but also by applications for analyzing performance, performance and other indicators. Charts can be built in a variety of ways using VMware vRealize Operations (vROps), starting on the All Metrics page to the Metric diagrams on a dashboard. Simple enough to use, these graphics are an unusually effective tool for displaying information in the form in which you want to see it. Consider the basic settings that will allow you to build useful graphics. We only note that the panels of graphic settings, as well as the graphics themselves, are slightly different in vROps 6.0 and 6.1. All the examples discussed below are available on both versions. All screenshots are made in version 6.1.

Charts from multiple resources

The simplicity and power of graphs is that they allow you to display several resources, several metrics, or both. To see how this looks, use the navigation tree to search for a resource, then go to Troubleshooting> All Metrics.

On the All Metrics page, you will see three sections: a tree view of the parent and child VM state, a metric collector (left) and graphs (right). To fill the chart area, simply double-click on the required metrics in the picker.

Now a little magic. Go back to the navigation tree, click once on another resource. This may be a resource of the same type (in this example, another NetApp LUN) or completely irrelevant to the current schedule. As soon as you select another resource in the navigation tree, the page will load a new tree view and a new compiler, but the graph area will remain unchanged. Find the metric that you would like to see visually, click on it twice to add it to the graph.

These settings can be used for different purposes. For example, you can compare several NetApp LUNs, as in the example above (or VMware virtual machines, hosts, and so on), to see the performance of each for the selected period. You can also plot on virtual machines and hosts (parent and child metrics) to see if performance peaks are similar at the same time.

Building perfect graphics begins with choosing the right resources and metrics, but does not end there. The next step is to decide in which form you want to get the information you need.

Combine and overlay graphs

Now you know how to build a graph based on several resources and metrics, so let's go a little further - to the display settings. The first two settings determine the type of graphs: separately ( Split Charts - by default), combined ( Combined Chart - common along the X and Y axes with several lines) or together ( Stacked Chart - common line, showing the total result for several metrics).

Separate graphics are built by default, and perhaps the most familiar to us all. Each pair of resource metrics has its own schedule, as shown in the figure below. If you want to get a combined result, it will look like in the center of the picture: the graph has common axes, but the lines are represented independently of each other. Finally, if you select the Stacked Chart option, the lines will be merged, and the area below them will be filled.

The next step is to decide whether to include any more complex analytical information. There are several possibilities in vROps in case some more sophisticated analytics is needed.

Dynamic Thresholds, Anomalies and Trends

The following options apply only to individual graphs, as they relate to specific resources and metrics. From left to right, these options are: Dynamic Thresholds, Show Dynamic Thresholds for the entire period, Anomalies and Trend Line (Dynamic Thresholds, Show Period Dynamic Thresholds, Anomalies, Trend Line).

If you select the option Dynamic thresholds or Show dynamic thresholds for the entire period , the upper and lower limits of the calculated dynamic thresholds vROps will be shown. If your infrastructure is relatively new, then this information may not be available, since vROps first set the basic performance markers.

The next option, Anomalies , will show in red or orange a period of time when the figures were higher than acceptable. Use this option to quickly determine the time periods when performance was abnormal.

And finally, the Trend Line will show the trend for the future based on past and current performance. The line will be shown in yellow on the same graph.

Date selection

In vROps 6.1 there is a time slider located directly above the graph. This slider applies to each graphic separately and can only be applicable if you build them independently of each other (not used for the combined and joint graphics). This is cool for fast work, but if you need a specific period of time, use the Date Controls option .

This option will allow you to select any dates you would like to see. It is also possible to select several periods for comparison, which is useful if you want, for example, to compare the Monday performance. When selecting time periods, vROps will require them to be of the same length.

Saving and exporting graphs

That's all the steps to building perfect graphs in vROps! After plotting, it is possible to export a screenshot in PNG format, export only the graph itself in the same format, or export all the information in CSV format.

If you need to build graphs on the same resources and metrics afterwards, you can click on the Generate Dashboard icon. This will create a dashboard with your settings; here you can enable individual options or delete them in order to save time on plotting in the future.