The present invention relates generally to the field of system performance management, and more particularly to monitoring device usage.
In the field of information technology (IT), system performance management pertains to the monitoring and measurement of relevant performance metrics of a computing system. Such performance metrics include measurements of utilization of resources such as processors, memory, or storage media. Information gained through system performance management can grant insights useful for outage prevention or remediation, service level management, and capacity planning. This information improves an organization's ability to allocate IT resources where needed and to plan for future IT needs.
Queueing theory is the mathematical study of queues. In queueing theory, a model is constructed so that queue lengths, waiting times, and other metrics can be predicted. In the context of computing, examples of queues include streaming a video, where a router queues packets of data waiting to be transmitted to another router. Another example includes a hardware component of a computer, such as a network adapter, that queues incoming or outgoing packets that are waiting to be processed or transmitted by the network adapter.