Creating Java Runtime Snapshot using VisualVM

Owned by Lutz Klabuhn
Last updated: Nov 30, 2023
2 min read

The steps described here are necessary in order to be able to analyze long-running processes in jBEAM.

Download and install VisualVM tool. Previously this tool was shipped with the Java JDK installation and is now published standalone under: https://visualvm.github.io/

  1. I.e. on a Microsoft Windows system, you can simply download it as zip file. And extract it to a location you have permission to. Find the …/bin/visualvm.exe to start the VisualVM tool.

  2. Now start jBEAM if not yet done. But do not start the long-running action yet!

  3. Now in the VisualVM tool, select (double click) the jBEAM process, i.e. com.AMS.jBEAM_Extern.jBMain (pid 10960)

     

  4. Now, to find out what and why the jBEAM processes take so long, go to Sampler tab:

  5. Now go back to jBEAM and start the long-running task.

  6. And while it is running, go back to VisualVM in the Sampler tab - click the CPU button:

  7. Now let it run for a few seconds or minutes in this 'stuck' state and then press the Stop button. Followed by pressing the Snapshot button:

  8. Clicking the Snapshot button opens a new “[snapshot] …“ tab: inside it, find the disc icon and press the Export Snapshot Data context menu entry:

  9. Send us the created .nps file.