Configuring Data Collector Sets

When reviewing the performance of a server, I normally include a large set of performance counters. I configure the counters to collect multiple times every minute for an entire day. When finished, I have a complete picture of the performance of every aspect of the system for the day.

Windows includes a feature known as Data Collector Sets that allows us to define this configuration. Once defined, we can execute it locally or remotely, and it will run automatically for the predefined time frame.

In this recipe, we will be creating a basic Data Collector Set that will collect performance data from a system every 10 seconds for 24 hours. This data will be saved to the local filesystem in a format that can be accessed by PowerShell, Excel, and other reporting tools. We will then export this configuration and use it to configure remote systems.

Getting ready

For this recipe, we will need two Server 2012 systems. Additionally, we will need a manually created Data Collector...