Release Notes

Benchmark Factory® 7.6

Release Notes

Thursday, March 16, 2017

About Benchmark Factory

Quest Software is pleased to make available Benchmark Factory® 7.6 to meet your database workload testing needs. Benchmark Factory is a database performance and code scalability testing tool that simulates users and transactions on the database and replays production workload in non-production environments. With Benchmark Factory developers, DBAs, and QA teams can validate that their databases will scale as user loads increase, application changes are made, and platform changes are implemented.

Benchmark Factory is available for Oracle®, SQL Server®, IBM® DB2®, SAP®, MySQL, and other databases via ODBC connectivity. Benchmark Factory:

• Simulates thousands of concurrent users with a minimal amount of hardware.
• Simulates database production workloads.
• Reports tests results with built-in reporting features.

Upon completion of a test execution, all test results are collected and stored in the repository for data analysis and reporting. Benchmark Factory collects a variety of informative and detailed statistics that include:

• Overall server throughput (measured in transactions per second/minute or bytes transferred).
• Detailed transaction executed statistics by individual agent workstations producing a load.

New Features

This release of Benchmark Factory includes the following new features and enhancements.

Connections

Microsoft SQL Server Native Provider - New

You can now use a SQL Server native connection in Benchmark Factory to connect to a SQL Server database. The SQL Server native provider is included in the Benchmark Factory installation.

• This new native provider delivers improved connection performance for SQL Server database connections.
• To use the SQL Server native provider, install the version of Benchmark Factory (either 32-bit or 64-bit) that matches your operating system. This ensures that the version (bitness) of the SQL Server provider also matches your operating system.

Note: For a list of operating systems that support the SQL Server native provider distributed with Benchmark Factory (native client 11.0), see https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc280356(v=sql.120).aspx. If your client operating system is not supported, use ODBC connectivity.

REST API

This release of Benchmark Factory includes a REST API which will allow users to automate certain tasks and functionality in Benchmark Factory. Use a script, command-line tool, or custom application to interface with Benchmark Factory and to automate your load testing tasks. The API uses HTTP protocol and returns information in XML format.

In this release, the REST API supports the following functionality:

• Create, run, and edit Benchmark Factory jobs
• Create and edit connections
• Import and replay Oracle and SQL Server captures

Using the Benchmark Factory REST API

HTTP Request Methods—Benchmark Factory REST API uses the four main HTTP methods: GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE.

Response Format—Information is returned in XML format.

Continuous Integration

• Use the REST API to implement performance testing by Benchmark Factory and incorporate it into your Continuous Integration (CI) process.

General

Adding Bind Parameter Values for Prepared Statements

It is now much easier to add bind variable or parameter values for prepared statements.

• In the Transaction tab, when adding a new statement or editing an existing statement, the Add bind parameter button is now enabled for prepared statements. Click this button to add bind parameter values for the selected SQL.

  

Specify Benchmark Factory Console Port Number

You can now specify a TCP/IP port for the Benchmark Factory console.

1. Select Edit | Settings | General to open the Settings dialog.
2. Then enter a port number in the TCP/IP Settings. The default value is port 4568.

Standard Benchmark Testing

Teradata Database Benchmark Testing

• This release includes enhancements to the support for standard benchmark testing on Teradata databases.

PostgreSQL Database Benchmark Testing

• This release includes enhancements to the support for standard benchmark testing on PostgreSQL databases.

Replication Benchmark Test

• You can now edit the precision of the FLOAT data type when customizing table options in a Replication Benchmark test.

Capture and Replay

Easily Open Capture Scenario Wizard from Tools Menu

You can now open the Capture Scenario Wizard directly from the Tools menu.

• Select Tools | Capture Workload. Then select either Oracle or SQL Server as the capture type.

  

Discontinued - Import from Foglight PA

The option to import a workload from a Foglight Performance Analysis Repository when creating a new Capture and Replay test is no longer available beginning with this release of Benchmark Factory.

Settings

Specify a Threshold for Memory Usage

You can now specify a memory usage threshold. If memory usage exceeds the percentage you specify, Benchmark Factory stops the job.

• To specify a threshold, go to Edit | Settings | Error Handling and enter a percentage.
• You can disable/enable this memory usage check.

Error Handling Page in Settings Dialog

The error handling options have been moved to Edit | Settings | Error Handling in the Settings dialog.

Run Reports

Improved Performance When Importing Large Test Results

• This release includes markedly improved performance when importing a very large Test Result file.

Resolved Issues

Resolved Issues and Enhancements

The following is a list of issues addressed and enhancements implemented in this release of Benchmark Factory.

Known Issues

The following is a list of issues known to exist at the time of this release.