Top 5 Java Performance Metrics, Tips & Tricks

Mobile and web applications play a huge part in our lives today. We use them for work, entertainment and a range of other things. There are millions of mobile apps available and countless more being created every single day. While we appreciate what these apps do for us, many of us don’t realize just how much goes into making and operating them.

Not only when it comes to creating the app, but also monitoring its performance. An app is no good if it performs poorly, so app developers are constantly monitoring performance to ensure it is up to par.

Performance monitoring can be done through a range of different programs or platforms (such as AppOptics), but just what sorts of metrics and analytics should you track? In order to answer that, this article is going to take a closer look at 5 different Java performance metrics you should be tracking and keeping an eye on.

Average Response Time

The average response time of your app refers to how long it takes for the app to process a certain request and return a result. While you want your app to start up quickly, you also want it to load pages and respond to other actions quickly, as well. Unfortunately, a slow load or response time can hurt your business or app in a variety of ways.

This includes lower page views, less conversion and a decrease in customer satisfaction. As a result, it is important to track and monitor load and response times. This will help you make sure they are suitable and if not, will allow you to make the necessary adjustments.

Error Rate

No matter how high quality or well-built your application is, errors can (and likely will) occur. There are a wide range of different issues and errors that arise, and without monitoring them, you may not even know they’re occurring. And once you do find out, they may have already begun to affect the end user. While it is good to know that errors are occurring and what they are, that’s only half the battle.

In addition to simply looking at and monitoring the errors, you should also look to find out how to solve said errors. You need to get information on when they occur, how they occur and what the root causes of the errors were. This is another area where monitoring can help. Because each error will be logged and recorded, you should be able to sense some patterns. This could help you identify causes and make the changes to prevent them in the future.

The Business Metrics

Of course, to most people, creating and operating an app is a business. Because of this, there are many different metrics that are valuable to track. These include things like revenue, how people find you you have and even where customers are interacting within your apps are incredibly important to know. While it is not as technical as some of the other metrics, it is just as important.

The ultimate goal is to make sure users can do what they want on your app. If you notice drops in visitors or revenue, it is clear something about your app isn’t performing like it should. It can also be valuable to compare these metrics to your other (more technical) metrics and see if you notice any patterns or issues that are worth addressing.

Garbage Collection

One of the best features that Java has had since it was first released is garbage collection. Garbage collection is a feature that allows Java applications to perform automatic management of memory. Instead of having to manually delete an object once your finished with it, you simply need to delete the reference and garbage collection will take care of the rest.

Unfortunately, this helpful feature can sometimes be accompanied by a lengthy and annoying process. These processes can use up a lot of your CPU and this can be a hidden cause of any performance issues you are experiencing. As a result, it is a good idea to track these garbage collection processes to ensure they don’t have anything to do with your issues. Also, this process and feature will be different for everyone, so you need to be able to understand how the feature works for you, and be able to design it correctly.

Request Rate

Of course, it is also a good idea to track how many people are visiting your app and how much traffic you have. Your app may perform differently if you have a lot or few visitors. Understanding how many visitors you have or will have can have a big impact on the success or failure of your app. You want an app that can scale with size and a major part of being able to scale is knowing how many users you need to be able to accommodate.

This is also good for knowing when your app spikes in traffic and if there are any periods where there is less people. Knowing how many people are using your app or trying to use it can also help you plan for the future. Depending on how many people you have (or expect to have based on past metrics) you may need to tune things like memory or even the code itself.

In conclusion, hopefully this article has been able to help you learn a little more about Java performance metrics you should be tracking.