Introduction

Monitoring the right performance metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is critical to the success of performance testing. These metrics help you understand how well your application performs under various conditions and identify areas for improvement. This blog post will explore the key performance metrics and KPIs you should focus on during performance testing.

Critical Performance Metrics

1. Response Time:

• The time taken by the application to respond to a user request.

• Lower response times indicate better performance.

2. Throughput:

• The number of requests processed by the application in a given period.

• Higher throughput indicates the ability to handle more user activity.

3. Concurrency:

• The number of simultaneous users or transactions the application can handle.

• Important for understanding how the application scales under load.

Resource Utilisation Metrics

1. CPU Utilisation:

• Measures the percentage of CPU capacity used by the application.

• High CPU utilisation can indicate performance bottlenecks.

2. Memory Utilisation:

• Measures the amount of memory used by the application.

• Monitoring for memory leaks and ensuring efficient memory usage is crucial.

3. Disk I/O:

• Measures the read and write operations on the disk.

• High disk I/O can impact application performance and response times.

Error Metrics

1. Error Rate:

• The percentage of requests that result in errors.

• Monitoring error rates helps identify stability and reliability issues.

2. Latency:

• The delay before a transfer of data begins following an instruction for its transfer.

• High latency can affect user experience and application performance.

Scalability Metrics

1. Scalability:

• The ability of the application to handle increased load without performance degradation.

• Important for planning future growth and infrastructure needs.

2. Capacity:

• The maximum load the application can handle before performance deteriorates.

• Helps in understanding the limits of the application and planning for peak loads.

Defining Acceptable Performance Baselines

• Establishing performance baselines is essential for comparing current performance against expected outcomes.

• Baselines should be defined based on historical data, user expectations, and industry standards.

Conclusion

Understanding and monitoring key performance metrics and KPIs is crucial for effective performance testing. By focusing on response time, throughput, resource utilisation, error rates, and scalability, you can gain valuable insights into your application’s performance and identify areas for improvement. In the next post, we’ll explore performance testing methodologies, best practices, and techniques.