Tuning Performance of the Portlet Service

27 Capacity Planning 27-1 27 Capacity Planning Capacity Planning is the process of determining what type of hardware and software configuration is required to meet application needs. Like performance planning, capacity planning is an iterative process. A good capacity management plan is based on monitoring and measuring load data over time and implementing flexible solutions to handle variances without impacting performance. The following sections provide an introduction to capacity planning: ■ Section 27.1, About Capacity Planning for Oracle Fusion Middleware ■ Section 27.2, Determining Performance Goals and Objectives ■ Section 27.3, Measuring Your Performance Metrics ■ Section 27.4, Identifying Bottlenecks in Your System ■ Section 27.5, Implementing a Capacity Management Plan

27.1 About Capacity Planning for Oracle Fusion Middleware

While performance tuning can be defined as optimizing your existing system for better performance, capacity planning determines what your system needs and when it needs it to maintain performance in both steady-state and peak usage periods. Capacity Planning involves designing your solution and testing the configuration, as well as identifying business expectations, periodic fluctuations in demand, and application constraints. You need to plan carefully, test methodically, and incorporate design principles that focus on performance. Before deploying any application into a production environment, the application should be put through a rigorous performance testing cycle. Creating an effective Capacity Management plan includes some of the same steps as performance planning: ■ Step 1: Determining Performance Goals and Objectives ■ Step 2: Measuring Your Performance Metrics ■ Step 3: Identifying Bottlenecks in Your System ■ Step 4: Implementing a Capacity Management Plan Note: The information contained in this chapter is meant to provide an overview of various techniques that can be used to develop an effective capacity management plan. The steps you take - and the plan you ultimately create - depends on your specific requirements and deployment structure. 27-2 Oracle Fusion Middleware Performance and Tuning Guide

27.1.1 Capacity Planning Factors to Consider

Before you can create a plan, you must have the data to support your deployment strategy. The following list of questions should be asked - and the information you receive should be analyzed carefully - to ensure a successful capacity management plan. For more information, see Appendix A, Related Reading and References .

27.2 Determining Performance Goals and Objectives

The first step in creating an effective capacity management plan is to determine your network load and performance objectives. You need to understand the applications deployed and the environmental constraints placed on the system. Ideally you have information about the levels of activity that components of the application are expected to meet, such as: ■ The anticipated number of users. ■ The number of concurrent sessions. ■ The number of SSL connections required. ■ The number and size of requests. ■ The amount of data and its consistency. ■ Determining your target CPU utilization. Performance objectives are limited by constraints, such as ■ The configuration of hardware and software such as CPU type, disk size versus disk speed, sufficient memory. ■ The ability to interoperate between domains, use legacy systems, support legacy data. ■ The security requirements and use of SSL. SSL involves intensive computing operations and supporting the cryptography operations in the SSL protocol can impact the performance of the WebLogic Server. Table 27–1 Capacity Planning Factors to Consider Capacity Planning Questions For more information see, What are your performance goals and objectives? Section 27.2, Determining Performance Goals and Objectives How many users need to run simultaneously concurrently? Section 27.2, Determining Performance Goals and Objectives Is the simulated workload adequate? Is the workload likely to increase? Section 27.2, Determining Performance Goals and Objectives Is the Oracle Fusion Middleware deployment configured to support clustering and other high availability factors? Section 27.4.1, Using Clustered Configurations Does the hardware meet the configuration requirements? Section 27.5.1, Hardware Configuration Requirements Do you have adequate JVMs to support your users? Section 27.5.2, JVM Requirements Is the database a limiting factor? Section 27.5.4, Database Configuration