Patent ID: 7752013

Claim:
One or more tangible computer-storage media having computer-useable instructions embodied thereon for performing a method of identifying a server associated with meaningful variance characteristics, the method comprising: receiving a set of current performance data associated with a first server; filtering statistical aberrations from the set of current performance data associated with the first server, 1) wherein the statistical aberrations are determined based on comparing the set of current performance data associated with the first server to benchmark ranges determined from a set of modified historical performance data associated with the first server, and 2) wherein the modified historical performance data includes historical performance data associated with the first server that has been modified to remove aberrations of data; generating a set of relative performance-variance values associated with the first server based on the filtered statistical aberrations of the first server, wherein each relative performance-variance value is associated with a time horizon comprising a specified duration of time occurring periodically on given days of the week at given times of day; repeating the filtering of statistical aberrations step for a plurality of servers; repeating the generating of relative performance-variance values based on the filtering statistical aberrations step for the plurality of servers, thereby generating a set of relative performance-variance values associated with each of the plurality of servers; determining from the relative performance-variance values associated with the first server and the plurality of servers boundaries that define acceptable-variance bands associated with each time horizon associated with the relative performance-variance values associated with the first server; benchmarking at least a portion of the relative performance-variance values associated with the first server against the acceptable-variance bands to count a total number of exceptions; based on the relative performance-variance values associated with the first server, automatically identifying the first server comprises at least one relative performance-variance value that exceeds a given threshold value associated with an acceptable-variance band; and based on the automatic identifying the first server comprises at least one relative performance-variance value that exceed a given threshold value associated with an acceptable-variance band, determining the first server is a candidate for further investigation as to whether the first server is approaching a fault state.