Generating Objects

This section provides an overview and explains how to generate each object type that SMS Object Generator can create. It includes the following topics:

For an overview of these objects, see Chapter 1, “Introducing Systems Management Server Version 2.0,” in the SMS 2.0 Administrator’s Guide. For detailed information about specific objects, see the related flowcharts in Chapters 16 through 25 of this book.

Each of the procedures for generating specific object types ends with clicking the Start toolbar in the SMS Object Generator window to start a session of SMS Object Generator. When you click Start, the Generate: <Object Type> window opens. The session continues as long as this window is open (even if it is minimized), or until the schedules for all the generated objects have elapsed.

In the Generate: <Object Type> window, you can:

Procedure Bullet  To force Object Generator to generate the objects specified for a specific session

After you test the effects of individual SMS objects on your site, use SMS Object Generator to generate multiple objects and object types simultaneously to simulate the activity of a busy and fully functional SMS site hierarchy.

Note   To set the parameters for each object type, you click that object type under Objects to Generate in the SMS Object Generator window to display the properties dialog box for that object type. To generate an object type, you must ensure that the check box for that object type is selected when you click Start to launch an SMS Object Generator session. You can display the property dialog box for an object type without selecting the check box, by clicking the object type name under Objects to Generate rather than the check box.

Generating DDRs

During normal SMS operations, DDRs are created by all SMS discovery methods. You can generate synthetic DDRs to test the effect of discovery methods on system performance.

The resource records in the SMS site database are created when Inventory Data Loader processes DDRs at the site server. These resource records must exist before certain other objects, such as inventory objects, can be processed. Therefore, you must run SMS Object Generator to create DDRs, and then run it again to create these other objects.

When you use SMS Object Generator to generate DDRs, you must specify how many DDRs to generate and where to place them. The following sections in this chapter explain how to determine these settings:

For more information about SMS discovery methods, see the following:

Determining how many DDRs to generate

As already mentioned, each SMS discovery method generates DDRs. To test this load in your pilot project, you need to generate a stream of DDRs in your pilot site similar to the stream of DDRs that will be generated by the discovery methods you enable in your production site.

In general, each discovery method creates one DDR for each resource it discovers. For example, each client-based discovery method creates one DDR per client per interval (for Heartbeat Discovery) or per logon (for any logon discovery method). Other discovery methods create one DDR for each resource they enumerate. For example, Windows NT User Group Discovery creates a DDR for each user group in each of the domains you configure it to search.

For information about how many objects each SMS component produces, see Table 2.2, “Objects Generated by SMS Components,” in Chapter 2, “Designing Your SMS Site Hierarchy and Running the Pilot Project,” in this resource guide.

For tolerance testing, increase the number of DDRs until system performance falls below acceptable levels. Use this test to identify the upper limits that your system can tolerate for the number of discovery methods enabled and the frequency for each of these methods.

Determining the DDRs’ object path

SMS Object Generator places the objects it creates in the directory you specify as the object path. The object path for DDRs produced by Heartbeat Discovery is the \\<ServerName>\CAP_<SiteCode>\Ddr.box directory on a client access point (CAP).

The object path for DDRs produced during client logon (by one of the logon discovery methods) is the \\<ServerName>\SMSlogon\Ddr.box directory on the logon point.

The object path for DDRs produced on a server (by Windows NT User Discovery, Windows User Group Discovery, or Network Discovery) is the SMS\Inboxes\Ddm.box directory on the site server. Note that, although the DDR directories on the CAPs and logon points are named Ddr.box, the directory on the site server is named Ddm.box.

Decide which site systems you want your load to originate from and then write the objects to those locations. This will provide you with some idea of the load signature on those site systems.

You can also set SMS Object Generator options to write the DDRs to a Temp directory. Later, you can transfer these files to the DDR object path that you define. For information about using the Temp directory, see “Setting File Locations and File Transfer Behavior” in the “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” section earlier in this chapter.

Procedure for generating DDRs

After you decide how many DDRs to generate and the object path to use for them, use the following procedure to generate DDRs.

Procedure Bullet  To generate DDRs

  1. In the SMS Object Generator window, click Discovery Data Record in the Objects to Generate list to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane. Or, click the Discovery Data Record check box to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane and also mark the object for generation.
  2. Click the Discovery Data Record tab and then enter the total number of DDRs you want to generate in Number of Objects.

    – Or –

    Enter Infinite to continue generating objects according to schedule until the schedule is complete. Note that the limits you set in the options for this session of SMS Object Generator might reduce the number of objects created.

  3. In the same tab, specify the object path for the DDRs by typing the full path or by clicking Browse to select a path. Select the \\<ServerName>\CAP_<SiteCode>\Ddr.box directory on the CAP, the \\<ServerName>\SMSlogon\Ddr.box directory on the logon point, or the SMS\Inboxes\Ddm.box directory on the site server.

    The DDR path you select will depend on which part of the network you are trying to stress and which components you are trying to simulate.

  4. Click the Properties tab and then verify the starting IP address. Each DDR will report a synthetic resource with a different IP address, starting with the IP address you specify in this tab. Begin with IP addresses within the site boundaries.

    If the number of DDRs generated is likely to use all the IP addresses within the current site boundaries, complete the settings in the Site Boundary tab (as described later in this procedure) to automatically extend the site boundaries to include the new IP addresses.

  5. In the Properties tab, verify the site information in Subnet Mask, Primary Site Code, and Primary Site Server.
  6. In the same tab, specify the agent name for the synthetic discovery method that will generate these DDRs. You can enter any name you want. To help distinguish the sources of objects in your pilot site, use different agent names for different objects and different SMS Object Generator sessions.
  7. In the same tab, select an operating system from the Operating System list that corresponds to the type of resource that the generated DDRs will report.

    – Or –

    Type a different operating system name.

  8. Click the Schedule tab and then click Schedule.
  9. Complete the settings in the Scheduler - Data Discovery Record dialog box as described in “Scheduling Object Generation” earlier in this chapter.
  10. Click the Site Boundary tab and then specify additional subnets to be used for IP addresses generated for the DDRs if all the available addresses are used before DDR generation is completed. Verify that the server name and site code for the primary site server are correct.

    If any of these additional subnets are used, you can add them automatically to the site boundaries for the site specified under Primary Site Server. To set this option, select the Auto update subnet boundary when generating objects check box. If the user account you are using to run Object Generator does not have permissions to configure site boundaries, enter the user name and password of a user account that does have these permissions under User Logon.

  11. Continue to configure other object types that you want to create in this SMS Object Generator session.
  12. Click Options in the SMS Object Generator toolbar to verify options for this SMS Object Generator session. For more information, see “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” earlier in this chapter.
  13. After you configure all the object types that you want to generate and set the appropriate options for this SMS Object Generator session, click Start on the SMS Object Generator toolbar.

    – Or –

    On the Action menu, click Start.

Generating Inventory Objects

SMS Object Generator can create the following objects:

The procedures for creating these objects are almost identical, so they are described together in this section.

Each time hardware inventory runs on a client, a HIC or a HID file is created on that client. Likewise, when software inventory is gathered for a client, a SIC or a SID file is created on that client. Complete inventory objects (HICs and SICs) are reported when client software is first installed or a resynchronization is initiated. Delta hardware inventory objects (HIDs and SIDs) are usually reported during the normal hardware or software inventory cycle on each client.

The software inventory objects you generate with SMS Object Generator appear on the site server as *.sic or *.sid files in the SMS\Inboxes \Sinv.box directory.

For hardware inventory, as the HIC or HID file is copied to the CAP and then copied from the CAP to the site server, it becomes a MIF file (*.mif). Therefore, the hardware inventory objects you generate with SMS Object Generator appear on the site server as *.mif files in the SMS\Inboxes\Datalder.box directory.

SMS Object Generator can use its templates to generate hardware inventory objects, and it can dynamically create software inventory objects. Or, SMS Object Generator can base the objects it generates on templates you create, as described in “Creating Template Hardware Inventory Files” and “Creating Template Software Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter. Whether you use the provided templates or complete inventory templates that you create, you can control the size of the generated objects when you configure object generation from within SMS Object Generator. (If you use a template HID or SID that you have created as a source file, SMS Object Generator uses the entire file to generate the objects; you cannot use a subset of a template that is itself a delta inventory object.)

Different information in inventory files can greatly change system performance, so you should conduct tests with sizes and types of inventory that reflect the inventory cycles you expect on your production site. Increasing the size or frequency of inventory collection can have serious implications for performance. These tests can help you ensure that your SMS site can handle the added load before you increase inventory collection on your production site.

If you plan to use custom MIF files in your site and you want to test their impact on system performance, you must create your own MIF file templates to test system performance, as described in “Creating Template Hardware Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter. Likewise, to test the impact of specific software inventory scenarios, you must create your own software inventory templates, as described in “Creating Template Software Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter.

Generating both complete and delta synthetic inventories will help you see their effects on system performance. Observing how quickly inventories are accepted from the client and processed on the site server in your pilot site can help you determine how much inventory data you want to collect, and how often you want to collect it.

Preparing to generate inventory objects

Before you can use SMS Object Generator to generate inventory objects, you must set site boundaries for your pilot site. When you configure inventory object generation, you need to know these boundaries so that you can specify the range of IP addresses that SMS Object Generator can use as sources of the generated objects.

You must also have resource records in your SMS site database with the same GUID numbers that you will use for your inventory objects. Create these resource records by running SMS Object Generator to generate DDRs before you run SMS Object Generator to generate inventory objects.

Before the site can process a delta inventory object for a resource, it must have a record of a complete inventory for that resource. Run SMS Object Generator once to generate complete inventory objects and then run it again to generate delta inventory objects.

To test the effects of custom hardware inventory MIFs on your site, you must prepare template MIF files and place them in a directory that SMS Object Generator can access. For information about creating template MIF files, see “Creating Template Hardware Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter.

To test the effect of specific software inventory scenarios that you expect to encounter in your production site, you must create a template file for a complete software inventory before generating software inventory objects. For information about creating template software inventory files, see “Creating Template Software Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter.

Determining how many inventory objects to generate

The number of hardware or software inventory files you generate depends on the total number of computers connected to your network.

To test your system design, generate a complete hardware inventory and a complete software inventory for each client. Then generate delta inventories at least large enough to reflect the day-to-day changes on clients in your production site.

To create a tolerance test, increase the size and number of hardware inventory and software inventory objects until you see system performance fall below acceptable levels. For example, after you generate a complete inventory for all your client records, generate delta hardware inventory objects that are 100 percent of the complete hardware inventory and delta software inventory objects with the same number of files as the complete software inventory. Increase the rate at which these delta inventories are generated until performance crosses the threshold you have defined. This will help you define the total number of computers that your network and SMS site configuration can handle well.

For information about how many objects each SMS component produces, see Table 2.2, “Objects Generated by SMS Components,” in Chapter 2, “Designing Your SMS Site Hierarchy and Running the Pilot Project.”

Determining paths for inventory objects

SMS Object Generator places the objects it creates in the directory you specify as the object path. The object path for hardware inventory is the Inventry.box directory on a CAP. The object path for software inventory is the Sinv.box directory on a CAP. Decide which CAPs you want your load to originate from. This will provide you with an idea of the load signature on the CAP and its associated site server.

You can also set SMS Object Generator options to write the MIF files to a Temp directory. Later, you can transfer these files to the hardware inventory and software inventory object paths that you define. For information about using the Temp directory, see “Setting File Locations and File Transfer Behavior” in the “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” section earlier in this chapter.

Procedure for generating inventory objects

After you have prepared your servers to run SMS Object Generator and have decided how many hardware and software inventory objects to generate and what object path to use for them, use the following procedure to generate these objects.

Procedure Bullet  To generate hardware inventory and software inventory files

  1. In the SMS Object Generator window, click any of the following items in the Objects to Generate list to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane:
    • HW Inv Complete
    • HW Inv Delta
    • SW Inv Complete
    • SW Inv Delta

    2. Or, select the check box beside the object name to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane and to also mark the object for generation.

  2. Click the Inventory Object tab and then enter the total number of objects you want to generate.

    – Or –

    Enter Infinite to continue generating objects according to schedule until the schedule is complete. Note that the limits you set in the options for this SMS Object Generator session might reduce the number of objects created.

  3. In the same tab, designate an object path in Inventory Object Path by typing the full path or by clicking Browse and selecting a path. The object path for hardware inventory is the Inventry.box directory on the CAP that you want to test. The object path for software inventory is the Sinv.box directory on the CAP that you want to test.
  4. If you are using a template that you generated, in the same tab, click Custom and enter the full path, or click Browse to select a path.

    For hardware inventory (complete or delta) the template must be a MIF file. For more information about generating template MIF files for your site, see “Creating Template Hardware Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter.

    For software inventory, you can specify a source SIC or SID template file that you created earlier. For more information about generating template software inventory files for your site, see “Creating Template Software Inventory Files” earlier in this chapter.

    If you are not supplying a custom template for these objects, click Pre-defined (the default setting).

  5. In the Inventory Object tab, use the slider or sliders to control the size of objects generated. (The slider is not available if you are using a custom SID file.) For complete hardware inventory, the slider specifies the file size. For delta hardware inventory, there are two sliders: one specifies the template file size; the other specifies the percent change in hardware inventory from the template.

    For software inventory, the slider controls the number of files reported in the inventory.

  6. Click the Properties tab and then verify the agent name for the synthetic client agent that will generate these MIF files. You can enter any name you want. To help distinguish the sources of objects in your pilot site, use different agent names for different objects and different SMS Object Generator sessions.
  7. In the same tab, verify the starting IP address. When inventory objects are generated, they will appear to come from resources with a series of IP addresses, beginning with the IP address you enter in this tab.

    Make sure that your site is prepared to accept the IP addresses you designate. You can do this by verifying that the IP addresses you select are included in the site boundaries for your site.

  8. In the same tab, verify the site information in Subnet Mask and Site Code.
  9. Click the Schedule tab and then click Schedule. Complete the settings in the Scheduler: <Object Type> dialog box as described in “Scheduling Object Generation” earlier in this chapter.
  10. Continue to configure other object types that you want to create in this session of SMS Object Generator.
  11. Click Options in the SMS Object Generator toolbar to verify options for this session of SMS Object Generator. For more information, see “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” earlier in this chapter.
  12. After you configure all the object types that you want to generate and set the appropriate options for this session of SMS Object Generator, click Start on the SMS Object Generator toolbar.

    – Or –

    On the Action menu, click Start.

Generating Status VarFiles

A Status VarFile (SVF) contains a status message. These messages are generated by client and server components to notify SMS administrators of system issues. Because SMS sites process many of these objects every day — thousands in the case of large sites — the load created by SVFs should be tested in your pilot project. For a detailed description of status messages, see Chapter 20, “Understanding the SMS Status System,” in the SMS 2.0 Administrator’s Guide and Chapter 26, “Status Messages,” in this Guide.

You can see how your network runs on a day-to-day basis by stressing your system with these messages. Loading the system with only these messages will give you an indication of system performance during increased client activity. Generating SVF files with other object types will help complete your picture of system load.

Determining how many status VarFiles to generate

The majority of status objects processed by an SMS site server are generated by client system activity, particularly the processing of advertisements, hardware inventory, and software inventory. SMS server components generate a relatively small number of status objects. Therefore, when generating load for your pilot project, you should make sure that most of the status objects are client-generated messages.

The number of SVF files your product site will generate depends on many factors, including the total number of clients, system maintenance routines, and software distribution loads. It can be difficult to estimate how many SVFs are required to mimic system averages. However, you can calculate a baseline for testing system response by considering that one status message is created for each of the following events:

Based on these common tasks, you can calculate the number of SVFs to generate daily as follows:

Calculate the number of advertisements.
For each currently active advertisement, estimate the number of clients that will receive that advertisement in a day. If you calculate this number by adding up the total number of clients in each collection advertised to, you might obtain a slightly high figure because each client only receives a single copy of the advertisement, even if the advertisement is sent to several collections that the client belongs to. Add the totals for all advertisements to calculate the number of advertisements received by clients.
Calculate the advertised programs’ run load.
Estimate the number of clients that will actually run these advertisements. Multiply the result by two. This number represents the load associated with running advertised programs.
Calculate the hardware inventory load.
If hardware inventory is enabled on the site, calculate the daily hardware inventory load from the hardware inventory schedule and the total number of clients in the site. If hardware inventory is performed daily, the hardware inventory load equals the number of clients. If hardware inventory is performed weekly on a random schedule, the hardware inventory load equals the number of clients, divided by seven. If all clients run hardware inventory on the same day, use the number of clients for the hardware inventory load.
Calculate the software inventory load.
If software inventory is enabled on the site, calculate the daily software inventory load from the software inventory schedule and the total number of clients in the site. If software inventory is performed daily, this number equals the number of clients. If software inventory is performed weekly on a random schedule, this number equals the number of clients, divided by seven. If all clients run software inventory on the same day, the software inventory load equals the number of clients.

Daily SVF load = (number of advertisements) + (advertised programs run load) + (hardware inventory load) + (software inventory load).

For tolerance testing, increase the number of SVF files until system performance falls below acceptable levels.

Determining the SVF object path

SMS Object Generator places the objects it creates in the directory you specify as the object path. The object path for SVF files is the Statmsgs.box directory on a CAP. Decide which CAPs you want your load to originate from, so that you have an idea of the load signature on the CAP, as well as on its site server.

You can also set the SMS Object Generator options to write the SVF files to a Temp directory. Later, you can transfer these files to the SVF object path that you define. For information about using the Temp directory, see “Setting File Locations and File Transfer Behavior” in the “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” section earlier in this chapter.

Procedure for generating status VarFiles

After you have decided how many status VarFiles to generate and where to place them, use the following procedure to generate these files.

Procedure Bullet  To generate status VarFiles

  1. In the SMS Object Generator window, click Status VarFile in the Objects to Generate list to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane.

    – Or –

    Select the Status VarFile check box to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane and to mark the object for generation.

  2. Click the Status VarFile tab and then enter the total number of objects you want to generate.

    – Or –

    Enter Infinite to continue generating objects according to schedule until the schedule is complete. Note that the limits you set in the options for this SMS Object Generator session might reduce the number of objects created.

  3. In the same tab, specify the object path for the status VarFiles by typing the full path or by clicking Browse to select a path. Select the Statmsgs.box directory on the CAP that you want your load to originate from. The path you select will depend on which part of the network you are trying to stress.
  4. In the same tab, to set any of the following options, click Advanced Properties for SVF and then enter the following information in the Advanced Properties for Status Messages dialog box:
    • The source of the message. In the Module Name list, specify whether the message appears to come from a client or a server. In the Component Name list, select the client or server component that the messages will appear to come from.
    • The type of message. Select the appropriate check boxes to select Per-client, Transaction, or both. If you select Transaction, you must also specify whether you want success or failure messages and whether you want milestone-level messages or full details.
    • The message string. Click Add to add lines to the message, click Delete to remove lines from the message, and press the ARROW keys to rearrange the lines in a message. You can specify any message that you find useful.

    The options you set in this dialog box will affect all messages created in this session of SMS Object Generator.

  5. Click the Properties tab and then verify the site code.
  6. Click the Schedule tab and then click Schedule.
  7. Complete the settings in the Scheduler - Status VarFile dialog box, as described in “Scheduling Object Generation” earlier in this chapter.
  8. Continue to configure other object types that you want to create in this SMS Object Generator session.
  9. Click Options in the SMS Object Generator toolbar to verify options for this SMS Object Generator session. For more information, see “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” earlier in this chapter.
  10. After you configure the object types that you want to generate and set the appropriate options for this SMS Object Generator session, click Start on the SMS Object Generator toolbar.

    – Or –

    On the Action menu, click Start.

Generating Site Control Files

A site control file (*.ct2) contains the information about the configuration of a site server. SMS Object Generator creates site control files that represent synthetic secondary sites with all their possible site system roles enabled. These files will help you understand how your SMS network will handle many distribution points, logon points, and CAPs.

Preparing to generate site control files

Each site control file identifies a single computer as the site server. When site control files are generated in a synthetic site hierarchy, they must appear to originate at a computer that is actually in the pilot site. For this purpose, one computer can represent the site server for many synthetic secondary sites. Before you can use SMS Object Generator to generate site control files, you must decide which computer to use for this purpose, and you must have one address configured for it in your pilot primary site.

Determining how many CT2 files to generate

Generate as many synthetic secondary sites as you are likely to have in your SMS production environment.

Procedure for generating site control files

After you have decided how many site control files to generate and which computer will represent the secondary site server for the secondary site or sites, use the following procedure to generate these files.

Procedure Bullet  To generate site control files

  1. In the SMS Object Generator window, click Site Control File in the Objects to Generate list to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane.

    – Or –

    Select the Site Control File check box to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane and to also mark the object for generation.

  2. Click the Site Control File tab and then enter the number of CT2 files to generate and the starting site code. SMS Object Generator will generate sites with successive site codes, beginning with the site code you specify in this tab.

    If you want SMS Object Generator to continue incrementing the site code, even if it means overwriting existing site codes, select the Overwrite existing generated site code check box. This option enables you to reuse a string of site codes in successive SMS Object Generator sessions.

    Caution   If your primary site code is in the series SMS Object Generator is creating, and you select the Overwrite existing generated site code check box, SMS Object Generator might overwrite the primary site code. This could disrupt your pilot site.

  3. In the Site Control File tab, in Shared Machine, enter the computer name of the physical computer that will be used as a site server for the synthetic secondary sites. You must already have a valid address in your primary site for SMS Object Generator to use as an example, and it must already refer to the shared computer.
  4. Click the Properties tab and then verify the primary site code and the primary site server name.
  5. Click the Schedule tab and then click Schedule. Complete the settings in the Scheduler - Site Control File dialog box as described in “Scheduling Object Generation” earlier in this chapter.
  6. Continue to configure other object types that you want to create in this SMS Object Generator session.
  7. Click Options in the SMS Object Generator toolbar to verify options for this SMS Object Generator session. For more information, see “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” earlier in this chapter.
  8. After you configure all the object types that you want to generate and set the appropriate options for this SMS Object Generator session, click Start on the SMS Object Generator toolbar.

    – Or –

    On the Action menu, click Start.

Generating Packages

By using SMS Object Generator to create synthetic packages, you can estimate the effects of package distribution on your network.

You can generate programs and advertisements with the packages. If you generate advertisements, you must specify collections to send the advertisements to. For the advertisements to reflect the impact on a production site, these collections must have as many members as they will have in the production site. Run SMS Object Generator to create DDRs that will populate your collections. Then, run SMS Object Generator again to generate advertisements.

Determining how many packages to generate

Estimate the number and sizes of packages that you will use in your production site. When you specify package source directories for your synthetic packages, choose directories that either have the actual files you will package or that have approximately the same number and size of files as the package source directories in your production sites.

Procedure for generating packages

After you have decided how many packages to generate and the characteristics of these packages, use the following procedure to generate these files.

Procedure Bullet  To generate packages

  1. In the SMS Object Generator window, click Packages in the Objects to Generate list to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane.

    – Or –

    Select the Packages check box to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane and also mark the object for generation.

  2. Click the Packages tab and then enter the total number of packages you want to generate.

    – Or –

    Enter Infinite to continue generating objects according to schedule until the schedule is complete. Note that the limits you set in the options for this SMS Object Generator session might reduce the number of objects created.

  3. Click the Packages tab and then enter the full path of the source directory for your package, or click Browse to select the path.
  4. In the same tab, select an executable file by clicking Browse or entering the name of the executable file for your package that is found in your source directory.
  5. In the same tab, indicate whether to generate programs, distribution points, and advertisements by selecting the appropriate check boxes.

    If you select the Advertisements check box, click the Properties tab and then verify that the settings for the primary site code and primary site server are correct. Then, click the Packages tab and click Refresh. Select the collections that you want to send advertisements to in the Select collections you want to use for advertisements list.

  6. Click the Properties tab and then verify that the information in Primary Site Code and Primary Site Server are correct, if you have not done so already.
  7. Click the Schedule tab and then click Schedule. Complete the settings in the Scheduler - Package dialog box as described in “Scheduling Object Generation” earlier in this chapter.
  8. Continue to configure other object types that you want to create in this SMS Object Generator session.
  9. Click Options in the SMS Object Generator toolbar to verify options for this SMS Object Generator session. For more information, see “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” earlier in this chapter.
  10. After you configure all the object types that you want to generate and set the appropriate options for this SMS Object Generator session, click Start on the SMS Object Generator toolbar.

    – Or –

    On the Action menu, click Start.

Generating Advertisements

By using SMS Object Generator to create synthetic advertisements, you can estimate the impact of advertisements on your network.

When you generate advertisements, you must specify collections to send the advertisements to. For the advertisements to reflect the impact on a production site, these collections must have as many members as they will have in the production site. Run SMS Object Generator to create DDRs that will populate your collections. Then run SMS Object Generator again to generate advertisements.

Determining how many advertisements to generate

Estimate the number and size of advertisements that you will use in your production site. Use the following tips to generate advertisements that will produce realistic tests:

Procedure for generating advertisements

After you have decided how many advertisements to generate and the characteristics of these advertisements, use the following procedure to generate these files.

Procedure Bullet  To generate advertisements

  1. In the SMS Object Generator window, click Advertisements in the Objects to Generate list to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane.

    – Or –

    Select the Advertisements check box to display the parameters for that object in the properties pane and also mark the object for generation.

  2. Click the Advertisements tab and then enter the total number of advertisements you want to generate.

    – Or –

    Enter Infinite to continue generating objects according to schedule until the schedule is complete. Note that the limits you set in the options for this SMS Object Generator session might reduce the number of objects created.

  3. Click the Advertisements tab, and then select the package and program that you want to advertise from the Package and Program lists.
  4. In the same tab, you can optionally select the Expire on check box and enter the date and time when you want the advertisement to expire.
  5. In the Properties tab, verify that the settings for the primary site code and primary site server are correct. Then, click the Advertisements tab and then click Refresh. Select the collections that you want to receive the advertisements in the Select collections you want to use for advertisements list.
  6. Click the Properties tab and then verify that the information in Primary Site Code and Primary Site Server is correct, if you have not done so already.
  7. Click the Schedule tab and then click Schedule. Complete the settings in the Scheduler - Advertisements dialog box as described in “Scheduling Object Generation” earlier in this chapter.
  8. Continue to configure other object types that you want to create in this SMS Object Generator session.
  9. Click Options in the SMS Object Generator toolbar to verify options for this SMS Object Generator session. For more information, see “Setting SMS Object Generator Options” earlier in this chapter.
  10. After you configure all the object types that you want to generate and set the appropriate options for this SMS Object Generator session, click Start on the SMS Object Generator toolbar.

    – Or –

    On the Action menu, click Start.