The Windows Server 2012 Task Manager
is similar to its Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2
predecessors in that it offers multifaceted functionality. You can view
and monitor processor, memory, application, network, disk, services,
user, and process-related information in real time for a given system.
This utility is a well-known favorite among IT personnel and is great
for getting a quick view of key system health indicators with the
lowest performance overhead.
To begin using Task Manager, use any of the following methods:
• Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc (or Ctrl+Alt+End if connected through Remote Desktop).
• Right-click the taskbar and select Task Manager.
• Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete, and then click Task Manager.
When you start Task Manager, a screen similar to that shown in Figure 1 opens.
Figure 1. Summary view of Windows Server 2012 Task Manager.
The default view of Task Manager in Windows
Server 2012 is the Summary view, which shows the list of running
applications. You can end applications from this view.
The More Details button opens the more familiar Task Manager window, which contains the following five tabs:
• Processes—On this
tab, you can find basic information about processes currently running
on the system. Sorted by application processes and background
processes, available data includes CPU and memory usage, process
status, command line, and more.
Note
One welcome addition to the Windows Server
2012 version is a better identification of the program using commonly
used processes, such as Microsoft Management Console or Services Host.
Task Manager now identifies the specific application or service for
each instance of the process, as shown in figure 2.
Figure 2. Improved process identification in Windows Server 2012 Task Manager.
• Performance—This tab
provides a lot of information about CPU utilization and configuration,
memory usage and allocation and network utilization and configuration.
• Users—This tab displays users who are currently logged on to the system and includes the option to disconnect users.
• Details—The Details
tab presents detailed information about running processes in a view
familiar from earlier versions of the Task Manager tool. The more
in-depth information includes I/O information, session ID, memory pool
data, and visibility and control into process affinity and priority.
• Services—A
somewhat recent addition to Task Manager is the Services tab. With it,
administrators can see what services are running and can start and stop
services without having to load an additional console.
As you can see, Task Manager presents a
variety of valuable real-time performance information. This tool is
particularly useful for determining what processes or applications are
problematic and gives you an overall picture of system health with
quick access to terminate applications and processes or identify
potential bottlenecks.
There are limitations, however,
which prevent it from becoming a useful tool for long-term or
historical analysis. For example, Task Manager cannot store collected
performance information for future analysis and viewing; it is capable
of monitoring only certain aspects of the system’s health, and the
information that is displayed pertains only to the local machine. For
these reasons alone, Task Manager is typically used for troubleshooting
and only the most basic of capacity planning tasks.
