Cisco 500-425 Cisco AppDynamics Associate Administrator (CAAA) Exam Practice Test

Server performance data is the information that AppDynamics collects and reports about the health and availability of the servers that host your applications and their components. Server performance data includes metrics such as CPU utilization, memory usage, disk I/O, network traffic, and so on. You can use server performance data to monitor and troubleshoot the performance issues of your servers and applications.

According to the Server Visibility - AppDynamics, the following two reasons are important for the engineer to view and analyze server performance data at this time:

• Visualizing application performance during normal operations helps identify when the application performance is abnormal: This means that by comparing the current server performance data with the historical or baseline data, you can detect any anomalies or deviations that may indicate a potential problem or degradation of your application performance. For example, you can use the Server Dashboard to see the current and historical trends of the server metrics, and use the Anomaly Detection feature to identify any outliers or unusual patterns.
• Graphs and charts collected at this time are useful for showing application owners the stability of their application: This means that by using the graphical and visual representations of the server performance data, you can communicate and demonstrate the reliability and efficiency of your application to the stakeholders and customers. For example, you can use the Server Health Report to generate a summary of the server health status, availability, and performance over a specified time period, and share it with the application owners.

Therefore, A (Visualizing application performance during normal operations helps identify when the application performance is abnormal) and B (Graphs and charts collected at this time are useful for showing application owners the stability of their application) are two important reasons for the engineer to view and analyze server performance data at this time. References:

• Server Visibility - AppDynamics
• Cisco AppDynamics Associate Administrator Certification
• Server Monitoring - AppDynamics

According to the Data Collectors document1, a data collector is a configuration that captures application data from a method invocation or an HTTP request. A data collector is associated with a specific method signature or an HTTP parameter name. Therefore, if a new class and method have been deployed to the application, or a new method parameter has been added to an instrumented class, the existing data collector may not match the new code and may need to be updated. However, if the business transaction has been deprecated, or a new HTTP parameter has been added to an existing business transaction, the existing data collector may still work as expected, unless the data collector is specifically configured to filter by the business transaction name or the HTTP parameter value. References:

• Data Collectors

Infrastructure monitoring is the feature in AppDynamics that allows you to monitor and troubleshoot the health and availability of the servers that host your applications and their components. Infrastructure monitoring includes metrics such as CPU utilization, memory usage, disk I/O, network traffic, and so on. You can use infrastructure monitoring to detect and resolve the problems that affect the performance and reliability of your servers and applications.

According to the Server Visibility - AppDynamics, the following kind of problem is detected with infrastructure monitoring:

• Process level problems: These are the problems that occur at the process level of the server, such as high CPU consumption, memory leaks, excessive disk I/O, or network congestion. You can use infrastructure monitoring to identify the processes that are consuming the most resources, and drill down to the details of each process, such as the command line, the environment variables, the open files, the threads, and the sockets. You can also use infrastructure monitoring to correlate the process level problems with the application performance problems, such as slow response time, high error rate, or low throughput.

Therefore, E (process level problems) is the correct answer. References:

• Server Visibility - AppDynamics
• Cisco AppDynamics Associate Administrator Certification
• Server Monitoring - AppDynamics

The default length of time events can be viewed with full detail before being purged is 7 days, unless archived. Events are records of significant occurrences in the monitored environment, such as errors, exceptions, policy violations, health rule violations, and more. You can view the events in the Controller UI under Events > All Events. You can also archive the events to retain them for longer periods or export them to external systems1 References: 1: Events

An exception in AppDynamics is a code-level event that indicates a problem or abnormality in the execution of a business transaction. AppDynamics captures and presents information on exceptions in the monitored environment, and allows you to configure the rules and criteria for detecting and reporting exceptions.

According to the Errors and Exceptions - AppDynamics, the following two types of events would be marked as an exception in AppDynamics:

• A custom-configured error method and error message: This is a type of event that you can define as an exception based on a specific method and message that indicate an error condition in your application code. You can configure the error detection rules to mark a business transaction as an error and capture the exception information when such a method and message are encountered. For example, you can configure a rule to mark a business transaction as an error and capture the exception when the method com.example.MyClass.myMethod returns the message Invalid input.
• Any message that is logged with a severity of Error or Fatal: This is a type of event that AppDynamics automatically detects as an exception based on the log messages that are generated by your application code. AppDynamics scans the log messages for the keywords Error or Fatal, and marks the business transaction as an error and captures the exception information when such a message is found. For example, AppDynamics will mark a business transaction as an error and capture the exception when the log message contains Error: Null pointer exception.

Therefore, B (a custom-configured error method and error message) and C (any message that is logged with a severity of Error or Fatal) are two types of events that would be marked as an exception in AppDynamics. References:

• Cisco AppDynamics Associate Administrator Certification
• Errors and Exceptions - AppDynamics
• Error Detection - AppDynamics

According to the Upgrade the Java Agent document1, one of the reasons to upgrade AppDynamics agents is to resolve agent issues, such as bugs, performance problems, or compatibility issues withthe Controller or the monitored application. Another reason to upgrade AppDynamics agents is to take advantage of new features, such as enhanced metrics, dashboards, alerts, or integrations, that are introduced in newer agent versions. Therefore, the correct answer is A and D. Database issues and application upgrade are not directly related to the agent upgrade, unless they affect the agent functionality or compatibility. References:

• Upgrade the Java Agent

According to the Actions document1, there are four types of standard controller actions that are available to be created: Notification, Diagnostic, Remediation, and JIRA. Each type of action has different subtypes that perform specific tasks. For example, the Notification type includes Email, SMS, and HTTP Request subtypes, while the Diagnostic type includes Thread Dump, Heap Dump, and Diagnostic Session subtypes. Therefore, the correct answer is D and E, as Email and Thread Dump are subtypes of standard controller actions. Resolve, Close Incident, and Undeploy are not standard controller actions, but they may be custom actions that are created by the user or the administrator. References:

• Actions

A data collector is used to capture application data in a single business transaction. A data collector is a configuration that specifies what data to capture from a business transaction and how to store it in the AppDynamics Controller or the analytics platform. You can capture data from HTTP requests, method invocations, custom fields, or information points. You can also apply filters and transformations to the captured data. The captured data can be used for various purposes, such as adding context to business transactions, creating custom metrics, triggering health rules, enriching transaction analytics, or creating business journeys.https://university.appdynamics.com/certifications/associate-administrator

https://docs.appdynamics.com/appd/22.x/latest/en/application-monitoring/business-transactions

A health rule violation canceled warning event or a health rule violation canceled critical event is generated when the health rule processor can no longer accurately assert that the health rule violation continues to violate or that it has ended1. This can happen when the health rule is edited or disabled, among other reasons1. Adding a new condition to the health rule or disabling the health rule are two actions that would trigger a health rule violation canceled event, as they would change the evaluation criteria or stop the evaluation altogether1. Marking the health rule as canceled or removing the health rule from a policy are not valid actions, as they do not affect the health rule configuration or status

https://docs.appdynamics.com/appd/22.x/22.1/en/appdynamics-essentials/alert-and-respond/troubleshoot-health-rule-violations

By default, the Java Agent enables two Sensitive Data Filters substring: substring “key” and substring “password”. These filters prevent the agent from capturing and sending any data that contains these substrings to the Controller, such as query parameters, HTTP headers, cookies, environment variables, or system properties. This helps to protect sensitive information from being exposed in the Controller UI or reports. You can also add more filters or modify the existing ones by editing the agent configuration file1 References: 1: Filter Sensitive Data

Percentile metrics are a way to measure the distribution of response times for a Business Transaction. They show the value below which a certain percentage of measurements fall. For example, the 50th percentile metric shows the median response time, and the 99th percentile metric shows the worst-case response time for 99% of the transactions. To enable percentile metrics, you need to go to Configuration > Slow Transaction Thresholds and indicate 5 whole numbers between 1 and 99 as Percentiles to Collect. You can then view the percentile metrics in the Metric Browser under Business Transaction Performance > Business Transactions > > > Percentiles.

<a href="https://docs.appdynamics.com/display/PRO45X/Percentile+Metrics">https://docs.appdynamics.com/display/PRO45X/Percentile+Metrics

To create a user in the web user interface, you need to go to Settings > Groups and Roles > Create User. This option allows you to add a new user account and assign it to one or more groups. You can also specify the user’s name, email, password, and authentication method1 References: 1: Create Users

Error configuration is a feature in AppDynamics that allows you to exclude certain types of errors and exceptions from being reported on the dashboard. You can use error configuration to filter out noise and focus on the most relevant and actionable issues.

According to the Error Configuration - AppDynamics, the following types of errors and exceptions can be excluded using error configuration:

• Database error return codes: These are codes that indicate a problem with the database server, such as 0x80004005 (access denied) or 0x8000005E (access violation). You can exclude these errors from being reported on the dashboard by adding them to the error configuration list.
• JavaScript errors: These are errors that occur in the browser due to invalid or malformed JavaScript code, such as syntax errors or reference errors. You can exclude these errors from being reported on the dashboard by adding them to the error configuration list.

Therefore, A (Database error return codes) and C (JavaScript errors) are two options that can be excluded using error configuration. References:

• Error Configuration - AppDynamics
• Cisco AppDynamics Associate Administrator Certification
• [Create and Manage Error and Exception Configurations - AppDynamics]

Two types of information that can be shared without an AppDynamics login are Flow Map and Custom Dashboards. Flow Map is a graphical representation of the application topology, showing the interactions between the tiers, nodes, backends, and remote services. CustomDashboards are user-defined views of the application performance data, metrics, and events. You can share these types of information by generating a shareable link from the Controller UI, which can be accessed by anyone who has the link, without requiring a login12 References: 1: Share a Flow Map 2: Share a Custom Dashboard

To create a user group in AppDynamics, you need to go to Settings > Administration > Groups. A user group is a collection of users who share the same roles and privileges. You can use user groups to manage user access and permissions more easily. You can add, edit, delete, or duplicate user groups from the Groups tab on the Administration page.

According to the Manage Users and Groups - AppDynamics, the following steps are required to create a user group:

• Click the Add button on the Groups tab.
• Enter a name and description for the group.
• Select one or more roles for the group from the Available Roles list. You can also create a new role by clicking the Add Role button.
• Click Save.

Therefore, D (Settings > Administration > Groups) is the correct answer. References:

• Manage Users and Groups - AppDynamics
• Cisco AppDynamics Associate Administrator Certification
• User Management - AppDynamics

When you have a custom dashboard that has only one widget, you can delete that widget by clicking the Delete Widget button on the widget properties panel. This will remove the widget from the dashboard, but it will not delete the dashboard itself. You can still view and edit the dashboard from the Controller UI or the Events Service.

According to the Create and Manage Custom Dashboards and Templates - AppDynamics, when you delete a widget from a custom dashboard, AppDynamics does not create a blank widget because empty dashboards are not allowed. Instead, it preserves the existing widgets on the dashboard and displays them in a single row.

Therefore, B (The widget is deleted, but an empty custom dashboard is maintained) is true. References:

• Create and Manage Custom Dashboards and Templates - AppDynamics
• How to bulk delete custom dashboards using API - Cisco … - AppDynamics
• Custom Dashboard Permissions - docs.appdynamics.com

According to the Reports document1, the Report Type field determines what kind of information is captured in the report. There are different report types available, such as Application Health Report, Dashboard Report, Controller Audit Report, and so on. Each report type has different fields in the Report Data tab that can be customized. Therefore, to get the desired information in the report, you need to select the appropriate Report Type from the dropdown menu when creating a scheduled report. References:

• Reports

According to the Widgets document1, there are various types of widgets that can be used to create visual representations of data in custom dashboards and war rooms. Some of the widget types are:

• Flow Map: A flow map widget displays the flow of traffic between different entities, such as applications, tiers, nodes, backends, and so on. You can customize the flow map to show different metrics, filters, and drill-down options.
• iFrame: An iFrame widget allows you to embed an external web page or another dashboard within a custom dashboard. You can specify the URL, height, and width of the iFrame widget.
• Health List: A health list widget displays the health status of different entities, such as applications, tiers, nodes, business transactions, and so on. You can customize the health list to show different metrics, filters, and drill-down options.

Therefore, the correct answer is A, B, and C. Snapshot and Funnel Analysts are not widget types, but features or tools that can be accessed from other widgets or dashboards. References:

• Widgets