Java Performance Tuning

Chapter 14. Underlying Operating System and Network Improvements

If you control the operating system and hardware where the application will be deployed, there are a number of changes you can make to improve performance. Some changes are generic and affect most applications, while some are application-specific. This chapter applies to most server systems running Java applications, including servlets, where you usually specify (or have specified to you) the underlying system, and where you have some control over tuning the system. Client and standalone Java programs are likely to benefit from this chapter only if you have some degree of control over the target system, but some tips in the chapter apply to all Java programs.

I don’t cover operating-system and hardware tuning in any great detail, though I give basic tips on monitoring the system. More detailed information on Unix systems can be obtained from the excellent book System Performance Tuning by Mike Loukides (O’Reilly). Another more specific book on Sun’s Solaris operating system is Sun Performance and Tuning, by Adrian Cockcroft and Richard Pettit (Prentice Hall). A couple of relevant Windows systems books are Windows NT Performance Monitoring, Benchmarking, and Tuning, by Mark T. Edmead and Paul Hinsberg (New Riders) and Windows NT Applications: Measuring and Optimizing Performance, by Paul Hinsberg (MacMillan Technical Publishing).

It is usually best to target the operating system and hardware as a last tuning choice. ...