I’m frequently asked questions about which PerfMon counters to use & what thresholds to rely on.  I’ve been amalgamating this information for years in the form of an Excel workbook:  PerfMon_Counters_Digest_w_Vital_Signs_Correlation_v6.xls.

The current incarnation of this workbook includes worksheets related to the following topics:

·         Performance objects for SQL Server 2000, 2005, & 2008

·         Information related to logman.exe which I use to create, stop & start PerfMon counter logs

·         List of counter thresholds

·         I/O notes & references

An Excel workbook cannot easily provide a comprehensive primer.  However, if you already have a working knowledge of PerfMon, you should be able to hit the ground running with the counters & thresholds documented here.  As stated this is a work-in-progress which will from time-to-time be modified (& hopefully improved!).

Microsoft PFE Shane Creamer is the Yoda of PerfMon.  He has created a workshop called Vital Signs.  It is already available for public consumption, and he’s rumored to be updating it soon to a formal SKU.  Whether you’re new to PerfMon or want to take your skills from Padawan to Jedi Master, the Vital Signs workshop is for you.  Stay tuned for details.

I invite any insights & feedback.