System and method for data payload collection monitoring and analysis in a transaction processing environment
A self-describing data format capable of carrying payload information, such as Tuxedo payload information, as well as filter information. The data format can allow for expression of some or all of Tuxedo Typed Buffers, including STRING, CARRAY, MBSTRING, VIEW, VIEW32, FML, and FML32. The data format is also capable of supporting nesting and error-checking. The proposal of user payload collection can allow customers to siphon off user/payload data to be used in applications, such as Business Intelligence applications, without the need for additional information to be passed with the payload data.
1. A method for supporting data payload collection in a transactional middleware machine environment, wherein a middleware machine of the middleware machine environment is a node of a distributed transaction processing environment, comprising:
providing, at the middleware machine of the distributed transaction processing environment, a monitoring framework, including a data collection engine, which monitors a transactional process executing on the middleware machine;
capturing, by a plug-in of the monitoring framework, transactional procedure data processed by the transactional process;
writing, by the plug-in, the transactional procedure data in a self-describing format to a buffer of the middleware machine,
wherein the self-describing format carries filter information,
wherein the self-describing format comprises a header, a datapool, and a namepool,
wherein the namepool comprises a namelen block that holds an integer value and one or more name blocks that each hold string values and wherein the integer held in the namelen block represents the size of the string values in the one or more name blocks; and
wherein the datapool comprises user payload data in item blocks; and
filtering, by the middleware machine of the distributed transaction processing environment and based on the filter information carried in the self-describing format, the user payload data for use with an application requiring only the filtered user payload data.
2. The method of claim 1 ,
wherein the middleware machine is a Tuxedo node;
wherein the transactional process is a Tuxedo process;
wherein the plug-in is a Tuxedo system and applications monitor (TSAM) Plus Plug-in; and
wherein the buffer is a ring buffer.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein each item block contains an item identifier block comprising an integer identifier, a itemsize block comprising an integer that depends on the item type, and the item value.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the header comprises a block holding a fixed value used to determine if the payload data is corrupt, a block identifying a Tuxedo data type and a block identifying a Tuxedo sub-data type.
5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the fixed value used to determine if the payload is corrupt is the hexadecimal value 0x2BEA.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein each of the one or more item blocks comprise:
an identification block, the identification block comprising an item type block and an item index block;
an item size block, the item size block being represented as an integer; and
an item value block.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the filter information is provided by a user.
8. A system for supporting data payload collection in a transaction processing environment, the system comprising:
one or more microprocessors; and
a middleware machine of a middleware machine environment, wherein the middleware machine runs on the one or more processors, wherein the middleware machine is a node of a distributed transaction processing environment, and wherein the middleware machine operates to perform steps comprising:
executing, at the middleware machine of the distributed transaction processing environment, a monitoring framework, including a data collection engine, which monitors a transactional process executing on the middleware machine;
capturing, by a plug-in of the monitoring framework, transactional procedure data processed by the transactional process;
writing, by the plug-in, the transactional procedure data in a self-describing format to a buffer of the middleware machine,
wherein the self-describing format carries filter information,
wherein the self-describing format comprises a header, a datapool, and a namepool,
wherein the namepool comprises a namelen block that holds an integer value and one or more name blocks that each hold string values and wherein the integer held in the namelen block represents the size of the string values in the one or more name blocks; and
wherein the datapool comprises user payload data in item blocks; and
filtering, by the middleware machine of the distributed transaction processing environment and based on the filter information carried in the self-describing format, the user payload data for use with an application requiring only the filtered user payload data.
9. The system of claim 8 ,
wherein the middleware machine is a Tuxedo node;
wherein the transactional process is a Tuxedo process;
wherein the plug-in is a Tuxedo system and applications monitor (TSAM) Plus Plug-in; and
wherein the buffer is a ring buffer.
10. The system of claim 8 , wherein each item block contains an item identifier block comprising an integer identifier, a itemsize block comprising an integer that depends on the item type, and the item value.
11. The system of claim 8 , wherein the header comprises a block holding a fixed value used to determine if the payload data is corrupt, a block identifying a Tuxedo data type and a block identifying a Tuxedo sub-data type.
12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the fixed value used to determine if the payload is corrupt is the hexadecimal value 0x2BEA.
13. The system of claim 8 , wherein each of the one or more item blocks comprise:
an identification block, the identification block comprising an item type block and an item index block;
an item size block, the item size block being represented as an integer; and
an item value block.
14. The system of claim 8 wherein the filter information is provided by a user.
15. A non-transitory machine readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon for supporting data payload collection in a transactional middleware machine environment, wherein a middleware machine of the middleware machine environment is a node of a distributed transaction processing environment, which instructions, when executed, cause a the middleware machine to perform steps comprising:
executing, at a the middleware machine of the distributed transaction processing environment, a monitoring framework, including a data collection engine, which monitors a transactional process executing on the middleware machine node;
capturing, by a plug-in of the monitoring framework, transactional procedure data processed by the transactional process;
writing, by the plug-in, the transactional procedure data in a self-describing format to a buffer of the middleware machine,
wherein the self-describing format carries filter information,
wherein the self-describing format comprises a header, a datapool, and a namepool,
wherein the namepool comprises a namelen block that holds an integer value and one or more name blocks that each hold string values and wherein the integer held in the namelen block represents the size of the string values in the one or more name blocks; and
wherein the datapool comprises user payload data in item blocks; and
filtering, by the middleware machine of the distributed transaction processing environment and based on the filter information carried in the self-describing format, the user payload data for use with an application requiring only the filtered user payload data.
16. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15 ,
wherein the middleware machine is a Tuxedo node;
wherein the transactional process is a Tuxedo process;
wherein the plug-in is a Tuxedo system and applications monitor (TSAM) Plus Plug-in; and
wherein the buffer is a ring buffer.
17. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein each item block contains an item identifier block comprising an integer identifier, a itemsize block comprising an integer that depends on the item type, and the item value.
18. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15 , wherein the header comprises a block holding a fixed value used to determine if the payload data is corrupt, a block identifying a Tuxedo data type and a block identifying a Tuxedo sub-data type.
19. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 18 , wherein the fixed value used to determine if the payload is corrupt is the hexadecimal value 0x2BEA.
20. The non-transitory machine readable storage medium of 15 , wherein the filter information is provided by a user.