Can I load test a publilc Web site without creating VUser script?

Question

Can I directly apply load to a specific website by providing a URL without creating Vuser script?

I need to do something like have 100 users per second access www.google.com with HP LoadRunner.

Answer 1

There is several issues here.

1. Load testing a random website is essentially, and can be looked upon as (both legally and ethically speaking) a DOS attack. This can cause you a lot of problems. Also, IIRC Google has built in capabilities to limit such activities from a single IP. I STRONGLY suggest against doing this without prior permission from the owner of the website and server.
2. VUsers are what tells the script what to do and is how they control things like the amount of consecutive users. From what it sounds like, you are trying to learn how to use LoadRunner and analyze results. VUsers are what their name says, virtual users. If the website has 0 users than it has 0 load. The same applies to LoadRunner.

Some suggestions, if you are trying to learn LoadRunner, set up a basic, locally hosted website. Add some code in that will create choke points in different sections of your code. This works better if someone else creates the choke points or if the choke points are being randomly injected into the code. Creating the VUsers with the record functionality will be extremely simple and easy.

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To go into more detail about randomly injecting choke points, in case you don't have someone to assist you with the code. Create an array of all of the points you want to access. Have the array randomly select one and store it while the server is active. At the end of each call, have it access a function using something like (This is in Java):

if (webPageName.equals(randomlySelectedPage)) {
     try {
        java.util.Random rand = new java.util.Random();
        Thread.sleep(rand.nextInt(1000));
    } catch (InterruptedException ex) {
        Logger.getLogger(randomChecking.class.getName()).log(Level.SEVERE, null, ex);
    }
}

This will add a random pause only into the randomly selected page and you have to discover where it is. If you want to make a game out of it, have it pop up a GUI where you have to enter in the page you think it is and it can monitor your "Win" percentage.