Load Testing Blog
Configuring File Downloads
In most cases Load Tester handles a file download during a testcase automatically. Fundamentally, there is no difference between downloading a spreadsheet or an image on the page. But in some cases, Load Tester does not automatically handle the dynamic URLs used in certain situations. Most commonly, these are cases where the file is being generated on-demand and is assigned a unique identifier that is part of the URL path, rather than a query parameter. In these cases, because there is no unique identifier that can be used to locate the value (i.e. a form field name or query parameter … Continue reading »
Load Tester for 64-bit Windows on the horizon
We are well into the development schedule for the next release of Load Tester – version 4.2. There are a number of great new features on the way as well as some enhancements to our underlying architecture that will enable Load Tester to handle far more complicated testcases in future versions.
One of the features coming soon is a version of Load Tester for 64-bit Windows. Load Tester can run on 64-bit Windows, of course, but it currently runs as a 32-bit process and is subject to the same limitations as if it were running on 32-bit Windows. Testers working … Continue reading »
Configuring File Uploads
When a testcase has a file upload in it, Load Tester automatically handles the file upload during replays and load tests. However, in many tests each user should upload different file contents (and possibly use a different file name). Load Tester has streamlined this process to make it very easy to handle. Just follow these easy steps:
1) Gather the set of files to be uploaded
2) Import them into Load Tester (Window > Preferences > Web Performance > File Upload) and generate a dataset
3) Find the file field in the testcase using the Fields View
4) Configure the field to use the … Continue reading »
Load Testing Metrics: Comparing to the Median
Once you’ve been using Load Tester for a while, it’s easy to find the minimum, maximum, and average page durations. But how does that compare against the median page duration, or percentiles?
Starting with Load Tester 3.6, these measurements can now be made, but it’s been made easier to find in Load Tester 4.1. First, you will need to enable “Detailed Page Durations”. In Load Tester 4.1, simply make sure the “Detailed Page Durations” option is checked on the “Data Collection” section of the Load Test Configuration editor.
With that setting enabled, just run your Load Test as normal. When examining the … Continue reading »
Load Tester™ 4.1 Adds West-coast Cloud for Load Generation
The 4.1 release expands Load Tester’s cloud support by adding a third source for load generation – the Amazon EC2 USA West region. When added to the USA East and European Union regions, the combination supports generating massive amounts of load against websites in North American and Europe.
If you already have one or more cloud accounts configured in Load Tester, you simply add another account, provide the account credentials and select USA West from the region selection.
Chris Merrill, Chief Engineer
Discounted Advanced Server Analysis Licenses Now Available for Lease
Only need to run one or two load testing sessions a year? One cost-effective way to do occasional load testing is to rent licenses by the week or month. You can use the free demo to develop test cases, and then order the temporary license when you’re ready to start testing. Even customers who already own licenses find it convenient to rent Load Tester licenses with a larger number of virtual users to do testing of the installed software. The typical scenario is using a permanent license to test against the development or test system, and then rent a … Continue reading »
Load Tester 4.1 Brings Web Bandwidth Measurement to Load Testing
Durham, NC (PRWEB) June 14, 2010 — Web Performance announces major improvements with the new release of Load Tester 4.1. In addition to push-button cloud-based load testing, users can now quickly measure their bandwidth capacity using the Bandwidth Wizard, easily get immediate help from a Web Performance engineer with desktop-share help integration, and select from a wider range of Amazon cloud locations. The newly reorganized load testing reports include an executive summary and clearer graphs to make analysis even easier than before.
“I’m excited to get our new web bandwidth measurement feature into customer’s hands because it quickly solves … Continue reading »
Custom Report Logo in Load Tester™ 4.1
Load Tester 4.1 has a new feature that will be much-appreciated by our many customers who use Load Tester to provide load testing services to their clients. You can now customize the load test report with your own logo image!
Load Tester’s default report logo looks like this:
If you press the Settings button in the report viewer and then select the Report Settings tab, you will find you can choose any image to replace our logo (we recommend an image size of 200×60 pixels):
After accepting that change, the report will show the image you have chosen:
Note that when you change the … Continue reading »
Keeping your HOSTS files in sync with Load Tester 4.1
Load Tester 4.1 has a number of exciting new features, but in this post, let’s discuss one of the less obvious features: a hosts file which is automatically synchronized with all your Load Engines.
Consider how often this happens: the development environment is mirrored from your production environment, and then updated to an internal version of the application, ready for testing. Since the development environment is otherwise a mirror of the production system, it is configured with the same virtual hostnames as your production environment, and / or it may share the same SSL certificates which identify it with the hostname … Continue reading »
It’s Always Nice to Hear…
We know we’ve got great people working here…but we still love it when a customer takes time out of their busy days to compliment one of them. After some recent on-site training and performance tuning for a local customer, George Terrone, President of Integrated Technical Services, wrote to tell us this:
Matt did an absolutely fantastic job. And the timing of his engagement could not have been better. He not only helped our customer understand your product better – he helped to solve a serious Apache problem that had stymied us all.
His Apache expertise – and his attitude – were both … Continue reading »