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Performance Monitoring Made Easy with Typeperf: A Windows Command-Line Tool

vijay k

What is Typeperf?

Typeperf is a command-line utility in Windows that allows users to monitor system performance by collecting data from performance counters. It is a lightweight, built-in tool that outputs real-time data on CPU usage, memory, disk, network, and more.

It acts as a simpler alternative to GUI-based tools like Performance Monitor (Perfmon), offering flexible options for logging, filtering, scripting, and automating performance analysis tasks.

📌 Key Features:

  • Collects real-time system performance data
  • Supports logging output to CSV or binary files
  • Can be scheduled or scripted for automation
  • Offers remote machine monitoring

Major Use Cases of Typeperf

Typeperf is popular among system administrators, DevOps engineers, and performance testers. Here are some of its most common use cases:

✅ 1. Real-Time Performance Monitoring

Quickly monitor CPU load, disk activity, memory usage, and network performance on a live system from the command line.

✅ 2. Logging System Metrics

Automatically log performance metrics to files for historical analysis or troubleshooting system issues over time.

✅ 3. Remote System Monitoring

Capture performance data from remote Windows systems using administrative access.

✅ 4. Integration with Scripts and Automation

Incorporate Typeperf in PowerShell, CMD, or batch scripts for automated performance tracking in CI/CD pipelines.

✅ 5. Performance Benchmarking

Used to compare system performance before and after changes (e.g., app deployment, patching, configuration updates).

How Typeperf Works (Architecture)

Typeperf works by interacting with Windows Performance Counters—a structured system built into Windows that tracks various aspects of system performance.

🔧 High-Level Architecture:

  1. Performance Counters Layer
    Windows exposes counters such as:
    • \Processor(_Total)\% Processor Time
    • \Memory\Available MBytes
    • \LogicalDisk(_Total)\% Free Space
  2. Query Engine (Typeperf Utility)
    Typeperf acts as a CLI engine that queries these counters in real-time or at a scheduled interval.
  3. Output Layer
    The results can be:
    • Displayed live in the terminal
    • Logged to a CSV or binary log file
    • Parsed by automation scripts or monitoring tools

🔐 Security Note:

To access remote counters or certain privileged counters, administrator rights are required.

Basic Workflow of Typeperf

Here’s a simplified overview of how Typeperf fits into a performance monitoring workflow:

  1. Identify Performance Metrics Needed
  2. Run Typeperf Command with Proper Counter Name(s)
  3. Choose Live Monitoring or Log Output
  4. Parse or Analyze Data
  5. Use for Troubleshooting or Reporting

Step-by-Step Getting Started Guide for Typeperf

Let’s walk through how to start using Typeperf effectively on a Windows machine.

✅ Step 1: Open Command Prompt as Administrator

  • Press Win + R, type cmd, then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open with admin privileges.

✅ Step 2: List All Available Counters

typeperf -q

This may take a few seconds and prints all performance counters available on your machine.

✅ Step 3: Monitor a Specific Counter

Example – Monitor total CPU usage:

typeperf "\Processor(_Total)\% Processor Time"

Output will look like:

"(PDH-CSV 4.0)","\\COMPUTERNAME\Processor(_Total)\% Processor Time"
"04/24/2025 10:34:15.456","15.231"
"04/24/2025 10:34:16.456","18.453"
...

✅ Step 4: Log Performance Data to CSV

typeperf "\Memory\Available MBytes" -si 5 -f CSV -o memory_log.csv
  • -si 5: Sample interval every 5 seconds
  • -f CSV: Output format
  • -o: Output file

✅ Step 5: Monitor Multiple Counters Simultaneously

typeperf "\Processor(_Total)\% Processor Time" "\Memory\Available MBytes" -si 3 -o perf_data.csv

✅ Step 6: Monitor a Remote System (if needed)

typeperf "\\RemotePC\Processor(_Total)\% Processor Time" -u "DOMAIN\Username" -p "password"

Make sure:

  • Remote performance logging is enabled
  • You have necessary firewall rules and permissions

✅ Step 7: Stop Logging

Press Ctrl + C to stop live logging.

Advanced Options

  • -cf <filename>: Read counter list from a file
  • -sc <count>: Number of samples to collect
  • -y: Suppress confirmation prompts

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