Infrastructure Metrics

Motivation

Measurements of compute, memory, storage, network, cache, database, and queue resource behavior.

Where it fits

This concept provides a shared vocabulary for designing, documenting, measuring, or operating software systems.

Mental model

Treat it as a structured tool: define the question being answered, use consistent terminology, and connect the result to decisions and follow-up work.

Subconcepts

CPU Utilization

The proportion of available processor capacity in use.

Memory Usage

Used, available, cached, and pressured memory over time.

Disk I/O

Storage read and write throughput, operations, latency, and queueing.

Network Bandwidth

Network bytes transferred relative to available link capacity.

Cache Hit Ratio

The proportion of cache lookups served without consulting the backing store.

DB Connection Pool Usage

Used and waiting database connections relative to the configured pool.

Queue Depth

The amount of work waiting in a queue.

Practical use

Resource metrics become actionable when paired with workload, saturation thresholds, service-level signals, and known bottlenecks.

Common mistakes

• Using ambiguous definitions or units.
• Collecting or documenting information without connecting it to a decision.
• Failing to keep the artifact or measurement current as the system changes.

Related concepts

See the linked concepts in the knowledge graph for prerequisites and adjacent practices.