Actor Instance Graphs

This view can be used to identify long-running threads using the execution and response time graphs, or potential scheduling problems using the fragmentation and interference graphs.

You can plot these properties:

• Execution Time – the amount of CPU time used by an Actor Instance, excluding pre-emptions.
• Response Time – the time from the start of an actor instance until it finishes. The response time for threads is counted from the start of execution of the actor instance. For Interrupt Service Routines, the Response Time is counted from start of execution.
• Wait Time – this is Response Time minus Execution Time, i.e., the time within an instance when the actor is not executing.
• Response Interference – the relation between execution time and response time. A value of 30% means that the response time is 30% longer than the execution time, i.e., due to preempting threads, interrupts or blocking. A value of 0% means that the response time is equal to the execution time, i.e., that the actor instance executed to completion without context switches.
• Fragmentation – the number of fragments within an Actor Instance, i.e., due to context switching. If an Actor Instance executes in full without pre-emptions, the fragmentation of the instance is 1.
• Separation – the time between the instance start time and the previous instance finish.
• Periodicity – the time between the instance start time and the previous instance start time.

Clicking a plotted instance will show and highlight it in the trace view. You can filter actors using the Filter menu or by clicking on an actor in the legend to the right.

Menu Options

Views Menu	Option	Description
	Add	Add a view to the current view.
	Remove	Remove an existing view from the current view.
	Resize Views To Fit	Resizes all views to fit the current view window.
Resolution Menu	Option	Description
	Very High - 200 High - 100 Medium - 50 Low - 25 Very Low - 10 Single - 1	Determines the number of intervals (data points in a line graph or bars in a bar graph) to display. For a more detailed graph, increase the number of intervals by selecting a higher resolution.
Zoom Menu	Option	Description
	Show Full Trace	Displays the full trace in the current view.
	Zoom In	Zooms in on the current view. To focus on a specific area, click and drag to select an interval.
	Zoom Out	Zooms out of the current view. To focus on a specific area, click and drag to select an interval.
Customize Menu	Option	Description
	Show Filters/Legends	Toggles view of the actor view filters and legend.
	Show Tool Panel	Toggles display of the Tool Panel.
Display Options	Description
	Various options for customizing the display of the current view. Each view contains its own Display Options icon (shown at left are the display options for the CPU Load Graph view) . Note that the options available from this menu will vary depending on the graph/view.

Time Region

A gray rectangular outline indicates the time region that is currently displayed by the Trace View. As the Trace View zooms in and out, this rectangle updates dynamically to mark the current region.

 

NOTE: You can combine this view with other horizontal views by choosing Views > Add > (graph type).