Competition for hardware resources occurs when many users are initiating actions close together in time, or a large number of background events are occurring simultaneously. When the code servicing a particular action must wait for hardware to become available in order to complete its task, your application exhibits slow performance.
If your application exhibits slow performance, you'll want to identify the performance bottlenecks and determine if a hardware upgrade is worthwhile.
The following sections will acquaint you with the hardware factors affecting performance and suggest some opportunities for improvement.
| Section | Description |
| CPU Use | Describes CPU use and how to improve it. |
| Memory Usage and Allocation | Describes the factors that affect memory use and how to fix it. |
| Minimizing Disk I/O | Explains how disk I/O affects your application and makes suggestions for minimizing it. |
| Optimizing Network Hardware | Describes the factors that influence network performance and how to increase network throughput. |