Benchmarking servers based on production data

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-readable instructions, the instructions comprising:

• instructions for receiving, at a development server computer and from a production server computer, a workload data that is representative of a workload of the production server computer, the workload of the production server computer resulting from multiple input and/or output (I/O) operations performed by a first application deployed at the production server computer;
• instructions for generating, at the development server computer and in response to receiving the workload data, a benchmark program using the workload data, the generating performed automatically in response to receiving the workload data;
• instructions for executing the benchmark program at a candidate server computer to simulate the workload of the production server computer at the candidate server computer;
• and instructions for generating performance results of the candidate server computer based on the benchmark program;
• wherein the instructions for receiving the workload data include:
• instructions for sending a trace program to the production server computer that records the input and/or output (I/O) operations, and
• instructions for invoking the recording of the I/O operations at the production server computer based on a specified trigger condition.

A system, comprising:

• a processor;
• a first module configured to:
• invoke a trace program at a production server computer, the trace program generating a workload data that is representative of a workload of the production server computer;
• receive the workload data from the production server computer;
• generate, in response to receiving the workload data from the production server computer, a benchmark program using the workload data, the benchmark program being executable at one or more candidate server computers, and
• invoke the benchmark program at the one or more candidate server computers to facilitate measurement of a performance of the one or more candidate server computers in processing the workload data;
• and
• a second module configured to:
• execute the trace program at the production server computer to generate the workload data, and
• execute the benchmark program at the one or more candidate server computers to generate performance results indicative of a performance of the candidate server computer in processing the workload data.