Introduction
Performance and monitoring is all about being proactive, and providing a healthy (free from viruses, enough storage space, proper server utilization, and so on), efficiently working SharePoint 2010 site for users. Sites may function, but an administrator must be cognizant enough to determine whether or not they are working efficiently and whether they can be scaled. To answer these questions, the administrator needs to be aware of the tools at his/her disposal.
SharePoint is a broad and deep application, having hundreds of different technologies built into it. Add to this the capability to integrate with existing technologies. The result of all this is a complex application that can efficiently resolve user issues but is challenging to monitor.
Let's take an example of the Content Query Web Part (CQWP). It is a great technology for exposing content on the home page from other parts of the site. Often, important content is buried across sites or deep within a site. Users have...