Managing Configurations

In this section:

About Configuration Files

Performance Manger configuration files (APMP files) contain the policies for managing performance and resources on an endpoint. The Performance Manager Agent checks the rules contained within the configuration to determine the actions to take for managing performance.

Configurations are stored locally in %PROGRAMDATA%\AppSense\Performance Manager.

If using just the Performance Manager product, configuration changes are written directly to the local APMP file from the Performance Manager console. If you are using Performance Manager as part of the User Workspace Manager suite of products with (Undefined variable: Primary.MC), configurations are created and stored centrally in the (Undefined variable: Primary.MC) database and distributed to endpoints in MSI format.

Configurations can also be exported and imported to and from MSI format, which is useful for creating templates or distributing configurations using third party deployment systems.

Open, Save and Export Configurations

The File menu, in the top left-hand corner of the console, allows configurations to be opened, saved, imported and exported. Performance Manager saves configurations in APMP (AppSense Performance Manager Package) file format.

The following options are available:

Option Description
New Creates a new default configuration which is locked for editing.
Open Opens an existing APMP configuration file for editing from one of the following locations:
  • Live configuration on this computer.
  • Configuration from the (Undefined variable: Primary.MC).
  • Configuration from System Center Configuration Manager.
  • Configuration file from disk.
Save The Save options are specific to the use of the configuration with the (Undefined variable: Primary.MC):
  • Save and continue editing - Saves the configuration and keeps it locked whilst open for editing. Configurations cannot be deployed whilst locked.
  • Save and unlock - Saves the configuration and unlocks it to allow deployment. The current configuration closes and a new default configuration opens.
  • Unlock without saving - Unlocks the configuration without saving any changes made. The current configuration closes and a new default configuration opens.
Save As Saves the configuration with a new name to one of the following locations:
  • Live configuration on this computer - Save the current configuration on the current computer and apply it as the working configuration.
  • Configuration in the (Undefined variable: Primary.MC) - Creates the current configuration in the package store on the selected (Undefined variable: Primary.MC).
  • Configuration in System Center Configuration Manager - Saves your configuration to the specified System Center Configuration Manager server.
  • Configuration file on disk - Saves the current configuration as a file on a local or network drive in APMP format.
Import and Export
  • Import configurations from MSI - Imports a configuration from an existing MSI package, for example, legacy configurations which have been exported and saved from legacy Consoles.
  • Export configuration as MSI - Exports the current configuration as an MSI package.

Preset Configurations

When the Performance Manager Console is opened or a new configuration is created, preset configurations are available to cater for most types of environments. If the presets do not meet the requirements of your environment, configurations can be created manually.

The following preset configurations are available:

  • General Purpose - This configuration is optimized for general purpose use. Thread Throttling is configured for all non-system processes and CPU priority is given to system processes.
  • Physical Desktop - This configuration is optimized for physical desktops. Thread Throttling is configured for all processes and CPU priority is given to system processes. CPU Reservations and Application Memory Limits features are enabled.
  • Terminal Services / Remote Desktop Services (RDS) - This configuration is optimized for Terminal Services/Citrix XenDesktop environments. Thread Throttling is configured for all processes. CPU Reservations, Application Memory Limits and Physical Memory Control are all enabled.
  • Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) - This configuration is optimized for VDI environments. Thread Throttling is configured for all processes. CPU Reservations, Application Memory Limits andPhysical Memory Control are all enabled.

Using System Center Configuration Manager for Configurations

System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) is a systems management software product by Microsoft for managing large groups of Windows-based computer systems. Configuration Manager provides the following:

  • Remote control
  • Patch management
  • Software distribution
  • Operating system deployment
  • Network access protection
  • Hardware and software inventory

For more information on System Center Configuration Manager, see Configuration Manager. Performance Manager allows configurations to be opened and saved using System Center Configuration Manager version 2012 onwards.

Connect to System Center Configuration Manager Server

When opening or saving a configuration to SCCM, a dialog displays and allows you to connect to a System Center Configuration Manager Server and maintain a list of servers.

The following settings are available:

  • New Server – Click to add a new server to the list by providing details in the Add System Center Configuration Manager Server dialog, including friendly name, server name (computer name or IP address). Use the Location field to specify the network location to be used to store your configuration files. The configuration location should be readable for the users who are to view the configuration or writable for those users who will be saving configurations.
  • Edit Server – Click to edit a listed server by providing details in the Edit Server dialog, including, friendly name, server name and edit the location that your configuration are to be stored on your network.
  • Delete Server – Remove the highlighted server from the list.

Highlight the server you want to connect to, click Connect and provide credentials for connecting to the selected server, either using the currently connected user account or a custom user. You can browse for a user on the active directory or local network, provide a password and, where appropriate, the domain.

To use SCCM remotely, some additional configuration is required. For further information, see Configure DCOM Permissions for Remote Configuration Manager Console Connections.

Configuration Profiler

The Configuration Profiler, available from the Home ribbon, allows administrators to produce detailed reports on configurations. This can be done whether they are stored locally or centrally. The reports can be a general study of the overall configuration or can be aimed at how it interacts with a specific user, group of users or specific file.

This section provides details about the reports generated by the Configuration Profiler, and includes the following:

Report Type

The configuration profiler allows you to report on the configuration currently open in the console. General reports are produced to assist auditing and compliance such as Sarbanes Oxley or HIPAA. You can produce custom reports to assist in troubleshooting large configurations.

The configuration profiler is a reporting tool that can be used to generate quick reports based on the details of a product configuration which is currently open. The report can be generated in the following ways:

  • Complete Report – produces a report which Includes all aspects of the configuration.
  • Report based on specific criteria – produces a report based on the specified criteria as selected in the Report Criteria section.

Enter an asterisk (*) to see all actions controlled by a particular type of condition.

Report Criteria

Use the criteria to specify what is to be included in the report.

Enter the value or select an option to match for any of the following:

  • User/Group – enter the name of a user or user group you wish to include in the report.
  • Application – enter the name of an application you wish to include in the report.
  • Application Group – select an application group to include in the report or select the asterisk (*) to produce output for all groups.
  • CPU – select Include or Exclude to show or hide CPU settings in the report.
  • Memory – select Include or Exclude to show or hide Memory settings in the report.

The User/Group and Application fields support wildcard character matching using the asterisk (*) and question mark (?) characters. The asterisk represents zero or more characters, while the question mark (?) wildcard represents zero or one characters.

Report Output

Generate a report by selecting Configuration Profiler from the Home ribbon of the console.

The report output is produced in sections and sub-sections covering the following details of the configuration:

  • Feature Options — Provides details about features which are enabled, in passive mode, or include system processes.
  • Application Groups — Provides details of the application groups which you have configured including the description and path of each application in the group and any command lines which are applicable.
  • Resource Planning — Provides details of the resource planning settings for user groups and Application Groups including CPU, Memory and Disk settings.
  • Thread Throttling — Provides details of the Thread Throttling settings including CPU monitor, clamping action and exceptions.
  • The report displays in the Preview window where you can manage the following:
  • File settings: Page Setup, Print, Export (PDF or image file), Send via email (PDF or image file)
  • Background: Color and Watermarks.

Resolve Configuration Violations

Violations can occur when conflicting values are present in a Performance Manager configuration. If you attempt to save a configuration with conflicts, the Configuration Violations dialog displays. This identifies the area of the configuration where the conflict arises and provides a description of the issue. All issues must be resolved before the configuration can be saved.

The following table provides details of configuration violations that can occur.

Violation Type Description
Application Group allocated more than once in the resource plan In Resource Configuration > Resource Planning, only one occurrence of an Application group can be allocated in the resource plan.
User Group allocated more than once in the resource plan In Resource Configuration> Resource Planning, only one occurrence of a user group can be allocated in the resource plan.
CPU Reservation value exceeds CPU Limit In CPU, the Reservation must be less than or equal to the Limit.
The Physical Memory Minimum limit exceeds the Maximum In Memory > Physical Memory the Minimum limit must be less than or equal to the Maximum limit.
[Clamp CPU by] exceeds [Apply clamping when CPU reaches]. In Thread Throttling, Clamp CPUby must be less than or equal to Apply clamping when CPU reaches.
[Do not clamp threads below] exceeds [Do not clamp processes below]. In Thread Throttling, Do not clamp threads below must be less than or equal to Do not clamp processes below.
Application Soft Memory Limits has been enabled but no action has been selected. When applying Application Memory Limits to an Application Group and choosing a soft limit, an action of either close or terminate must be selected.
CPU Reservations & Limits have been enabled but a value of zero has been entered. When applying CPU Reservations and Limits a value greater than zero must be entered.