Review of Solarwinds
Synthetic End User Monitor (SEUM)
SolarWinds Synthetic End User Gadget
This monitor is designed to analyze the performance of
transactions from a customer's point of view. In particular,
SEUM is great for testing visitor interactions with your website.
For example, if you take internet orders then end user monitoring will highlight delays
that would irritate potential purchasers.
At the front-end, is a browser where you make a recording of the transactions just as a
customer would. At the back-end, SQL analyzes the components of
these web-based
actions. The SEUM monitor then presents you with a chain of events,
any red dots highlight steps that take too long to complete. See
screenshot right.
While I use SEUM (pronounced 'C M') for testing internet websites, I
know of other who use it for internal web-based apps, for example,
testing customer relationship management software, SharePoint, or SaaS
(Software as a Service analysis).
SEUM and SaaS (Software as a Service)
Through SEUM SolarWinds offers a Software as a Service solution.
The concept is for companies to check their web sites and services from
different cities around the world. Deploying players to the
geographical regions your users or consumers are likely to be located
provides you insight into how those web based offerings are performing
for those users. Thanks to cloud computing you can monitor performance
and availability from locations where your customers are based.
Within SEUM 1.5 SolarWinds have incorporated an easy-to-use Amazon
EC2 cloud player which streamlines the process of monitoring websites
and web based applications from the cloud. The cost of an Amazon
EC2 reserved instance has come down below $100 per annum.
Many utilities that monitor servers' CPU and RAM can be installed on
workstations, but for SEUM you must install it on a Windows server, this
is because recording transactions requires SQL and IIS. However,
you could run SEUM easily in VMware or in a Microsoft virtual machine.
You could start by downloading a fully
functional, but time-limited, version of
SEUM from SolarWinds' site; also remember to install the two
hotfixes. While this end-user monitor is a stand-alone
product, it integrates seamlessly with other SolarWinds Orion products
such as Application Performance Monitor (APM).
In addition to a Windows Server with IIS, and .NET framework 3.5 or
later, there are four more pre-requisites that any competent techie
should be able to configure readily.
1) Switch the IIS from 64-bit to 32-bit mode. Launch CMD (Run as
administrator), and navigate to this folder:
%systemdrive%\Inetpub\AdminScripts directory.
Issue this command: cscript. exe adsutil. vbs set
W3SVC/AppPools/Enable32BitAppOnWin64 "true"
Naturally, you finish by pressing ENTER (carriage return).
2) Install MSMQ (Microsoft Message Queue Server). As this is a
built-in Windows transport module, all you need to do is go to the
Control Panel, Programs, then click on Add\Remove Windows Components,
and select
Microsoft Message Queue Server.
3) In addition to IIS's port 80, SEUM requires
17777 (TCP)
4) Install SQL Server 2005 or later; as a fallback the SEUM download
package contains SQL Server Express. This triggers a couple of
subliminal messages, 'SQL' is going to supply a powerful engine to drive
the SEUM software, and that SQL will open the door for extra
configuration for those familiar with its transact language.
When it comes to actually performing installation these tasks,
SolarWinds provide a comprehensive
PDF guide
in the SEUM download; I found the sections on
licensing and connecting SEUM to the SQL server particularly useful.
Recorder and Player
Once the back-end components are working on the Windows 200x server,
you could install the SEUM transaction recorder
(TransactionRecorder.exe) on a client workstation such
as Windows 7. You also need a separate executable
called PlaybackPlayer.exe, as with the recorder, the player can also be
installed on any Windows client from XP to Windows 8.
End User Management: Start Recording The purpose of recording a typical end-user's experience is
to create a consistent set of instructions. The plan is to replay
the transactions and thus test a web application on different days, or
from different locations.
To find the SolarWinds Recorder click on the Windows 'Start',
then type: 'SolarWinds Orion'
Drill-down thus: Synthetic End User Monitor > Recorder.
Once the recorder launches, seek out the address bar and paste (or
type) the url of the website you wish to test. When you are ready to
perform actions such as registering an email address, or downloading a
program, press SEUM's red
circular button. You can observe how the list of user actions grows in the right-hand
pane. See screenshot above right.
The recorder allows you to undo, or correct
errors as you go, however, I often find it easier to stop the recording, by
pressing the blue square button, and start again. Once you are
happy with the recording you can replay the actions.
For each of my projects I build-up lots of saved recordings; most
turn out to be surplus to requirements, but one or two are handy
reference points for later when things get too complicated or go wrong.
Building Transactions
Fortunately, you don't need any knowledge of scripting prior to
operating this end-user monitor, simply click on the Transactions tab,
then find 'SEUM Settings', all the instructions are coded and passed to
SQL automatically.
Thresholds Setting the thresholds is both fun and
vital. You could take the default timings displayed
in the recorder, alternatively, you could increase the time based
on your local knowledge. Either way, the saved transaction produces a
reference point for testing later when the network is busier, or from
different locations with slower connections. The beauty of SEUM is
you can replay your transactions easily, and as frequently as 5 minutes
if needed.
If a transaction takes x2 longer than the value you created
during recording, then SEUM generates a warning; at x4 'Typical' it goes critical
and you see a red dot in the interface, furthermore, you can set up
alerts on the back of such warning or critical events.
Incidentally, this is where SQL experts can do even cleverer 'stuff'
with these triggers and alerts.
Here are examples of synthetic end user monitoring, the wide-range of
uses continues to amaze me.
Test your website's shopping cart. Examine stock control,
ordering procedures and making checkout payments.
Make a dry run of registering an email address, and then downloading
your company's software.
Record each step needed for logging on to a forum and making a
contribution.
Check the time taken to update a SharePoint document.
Create a quotation from information that customers typed into a
webform.
Investigate responses from online games or gadgets.
Examine online school tests.
Confirm that quiz questions produce the correct answers, and in a
timely fashion.
Sending and receiving email.
All you have to do is put on your end-user hat, navigate to the
website you want to test, then create recordings for a series of typical
events, whether they be form filling or mouse driven.
Integration with SolarWinds APM
For those who already have the SolarWinds Orion suite, (or are
thinking of getting it), then SEUM is a great fit with APM.
For instance: with APM alone, you can see the health and performance
of the server itself, but have no idea if the user is having a problem
with a web interface.
With SEUM alone, the user-experience may look slick but the nagging
question remains, 'is the server under great stress?'
Here is a lite version of SEUM, use it to test the performance of websites' shopping carts
or free download buttons. Let us focus on the word
'transaction', because
with this gismo you can check each step of a process in fine-detail.
If you have a website then SEUM will enable you to analyze its
performance from a customer's point of view. The idea is that once
configured, the monitor will inform you if a web-based application is
not performing within specified thresholds.
More Free and 30-day Trial Virtual Machine Software
My recommendations for additional handy VM
utilities. Many of these downloads are free, while others
are fully-functional, but time limited.
SolarWinds are happy to provide you with a free specialist tool, which is ideal for testing, and then
supply a more comprehensive suite for larger organizations. To let you
into a secret, for small networks, the free tool is all you'll ever need.
Guy Recommends:
SolarWinds' NPM - Network Performance Monitor
SolarWinds' performance monitor is designed for detecting network outages,
making it easy to see what's working, and what needs your attention.
This utility guides you through creating network maps; it also helps
identifying whether the
root cause is faulty equipment, or resource overload. Give NPM a try.
