Real-time monitoring

Real-time monitoring is a technique that allows you to determine the current state of queues and channels within a queue manager. The information returned is accurate at the moment the command was issued.

A number of commands are available that when issued return real-time information about queues and channels. Information can be returned for one or more queues or channels and can vary in quantity. Real-time monitoring can be used in the following tasks:

• Helping system administrators understand the steady state of their IBM MQ system. This helps with problem diagnosis if a problem occurs in the system.
• Determining the condition of our queue manager at any moment, even if no specific event or problem has been detected.
• Assisting with determining the cause of a problem in the system.

With real-time monitoring, information can be returned for either queues or channels. The amount of real-time information returned is controlled by queue manager, queue, and channel attributes.

• You monitor a queue by issuing commands to ensure that the queue is being serviced properly. Before we can use some of the queue attributes, we must enable them for real-time monitoring.
• You monitor a channel by issuing commands to ensure that the channel is running properly. Before we can use some of the channel attributes, we must enable them for real-time monitoring.

Real-time monitoring for queues and channels is in addition to, and separate from, performance and channel event monitoring.

• Attributes that control real-time monitoring
  Some queue and channel status attributes hold monitoring information, if real-time monitoring is enabled. If real-time monitoring is not enabled, no monitoring information is held in these monitoring attributes. Examples demonstrate how we can use these queue and channel status attributes.
• Display queue and channel monitoring data
  To display real-time monitoring information for a queue or channel, use either the IBM MQ Explorer or the appropriate MQSC command. Some monitoring fields display a comma-separated pair of indicator values, which help you to monitor the operation of our queue manager. Examples demonstrate how we can display monitoring data.
• Monitor queues
  Use this page to view tasks that help you to resolve a problem with a queue and the application that services that queue. Various monitoring options are available to determine the problem
• Monitor channels
  Use this page to view tasks that help you to resolve a problem with a transmission queue and the channel that services that queue. Various channel monitoring options are available to determine the problem.
• The Windows performance monitor
  In IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.0 and earlier versions, it was possible to monitor the performance of local queues on Windows systems by using the Windows performance monitor. As of IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.1, this method of performance monitoring is no longer available.

Parent topic: Monitor the IBM MQ network