CLR Profiler and the WebDev Server

CLR Profiler for the .NET Framework 2.0 is available for download.

The profiler is a good tool to use when you want to find out what’s happening in memory. For instance, ASP.NET developers using InProc sessions state are always curious about how much memory they are using. Assuming the web project is file system based, the first step is to get CLR Profiler to work with the development web server: WebDev.WebServer.exe.

The profiler can’t attach to a running process, so you have to tell the profiler how to launch the web server. WebDev requires at least two parameters: a port number (/port), and a physical path (/path) to the web application. Once profiler is running, you can use the File -> Set Parameters menu option and enter these parameters. The command line parameters together will look like /port:2112 /path:”c:\src\webapp1”.

With parameters set, you can launch the web server by clicking “Start Application” in the profiler form and browse to WebDev.WebServer.exe in the framework installation directory (typically \Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.xxxx). The server icon will appear in the tray, where you can right click the icon and select “Open in Web Browser”. The application might feel sluggish during profiling.

While interacting with the web application you can press “Show Heap Now” to view a heap graph. A heap graph can be a busy looking diagram, but you can filter the view. For instance, to see what’s hanging around in session state, right click the graph and choose “Filter”. Enter “System.Web.SessionState” to filter the types, and you’ll be able to see the type and size of objects in session.

The CLRProfiler.doc file included with the tool contains a solid tutorial on using and interpreting profiler results. The document is worth a read, even if you don’t plan on using the tool right away. Someday it might come in handy.