JVM Heap analysis – Identifying memory leaks using Eclipse MAT
As part of the regular pre-Production testing it is common to conduct Performance tests for load under Peak and Soak conditions. So we had this Weblogic platform on which all Peak tests were good and so also were the 12 hour Soak tests. The JVM memory usage graph plotted showed regular GC clearing up memory and no obvious leaks. A simple graph plotted in Excel showing JVM Used Heap over time is shown below. It shows the pattern fairly close to an ideal sawtooth. An additional test planned was an Extended Soak – mainly letting the system run as per expected normal volumes over 7 or 10 days to see if the JVM would throw up any unusual memory usage patterns or memory leaks. And we came across some interesting issues !! We did not have much of a problem for the first 24 and 48 hours – but after 48 hours (2 whole days) of continuous load, the graph showed that the JVM was unable to clear up any memory even after GC. As the graphs above show the Weblogic server...