Identifying active threads
Active threads within a program can be easily identified using the Execution Flow view of the Profiling Tool.
Using the Execution Flow view will allow you to examine the threads within a program and quickly
identify when and where most of a program's resources are spent.
Prerequisites:
To open the Execution Flow view follow these steps:
- In the Profiling Monitor view, select a resource under a profile project, for example a monitor or an agent.
- Right click, then select Open With > Execution Flow. The
Execution Flow view opens.
- In the Execution Flow view, each thread consists of a large number of method calls. The methods are
represented by vertical stripes, progressing from left to right, and the
active parts of the thread are identified by this left-to-right progression.
- You can examine specific parts of the graph by zooming in to
to a particular area.
- For sections of the graph that may cluttered from repetitive calls due to iterative constructs, as the example below:

You can use the pop-up menu option
Detect all repetitions to consolidate the repetitions in the graph. The repetitive calls are marked
with an X.n where n is the number of calls. In the example below, the compare method
is called 7 times.
Tips
- When you select a method all its called methods are highlighted in
yellow.
- You can drag and drop the views on the workbench, arranging the layout of the perspective if needed.
- Wherever you point the cursor the corresponding base time is indicated in
the status bar.
- To reset the display of the view, click
the Home button.
Related concepts
Overview of the Profiling Tool
Execution flow view and table
Related tasks
Profiling an application
Launching or attaching a Java process
(C) Copyright IBM Corporation 2000, 2006. All Rights Reserved.