Introduction

This article describes some best practices for configuring the End-User Performance Watcher Node. Please read the installation manual for details about the Watcher Node.

General

The goal of the End-User Performance management pack is to get facts on the end-user experience. To be representative, the general best practice is to select a Watcher Node with specifications equal to the system the simulated end-user is working on. Start with the company’s standard hardware and model. Provision the system with the default image and make sure that the system is configured the same as the system from a normal end-user system. Only make adjustments if necessary to get the End*User Performance management pack working.

Best practices

The summary below contains several points of attention:

• Choose a system configuration equal to the system used by the simulated end-user
• Don’t use a server operating system unless the simulated end-user is working in a Server Based Computing environment
• Use a dedicated computer for running simulations (not applicable if Server Based Computing is used)
• Configure automatic logon for the user executing the simulations
• After scheduling a simulation task, raise the priority to be sure it will run with the same priority as an interactive task. Normally a priority of 5 should is fine. Follow the steps below to change the task priority:
• Open Task Scheduler
• Select the appropriate task and choose Export in the Action Performance
• Remove the scheduled task previously exported
• Open the exported XML file in a text editor, for example Notepad
• Search for <Priority>7</Priority> and change the value to 5
• Save the XML file
• In Task Scheduler on the Action Pane choose Import task and select the XML file
• Install updates according to the company update policy
• Be aware of anti-virus applications placing the simulation scripts in quarantine