Viewing and analyzing test results

When it comes to viewing your test results, JMeter comes with a vast number of components to aid this regard. Each component gives a different perspective into how to visualize your test results. Deciding which to use depends mostly on what kind of data you are interested in for a test run. Also, JMeter doesn't place a limit on how many of these listeners you can use on a test script, so it's not uncommon to see scripts with several results listeners.

How to do it…

In this recipe, we will cover three of the most popular built-in viewing components you will most likely need for your scripts. This is by no means an exhaustive list, so be sure to explore other viewing components. Perform the following steps:

1. Launch JMeter.
2. Open a previously recorded test script.
3. Add a View Results Tree listener by navigating to Test plan | Add | Listener | View Results Tree.
4. Add a Aggregate Report listener by navigating to Test plan | Add | Listener | Aggregate Report.
5. Add View Results in table by navigating to Test plan | Add | Listener | View Results In Table.
6. Start the test.
7. Examine the results on each of the added results listeners. The entire process is shown in the following screenshot:
   

   Adding the View Results Tree listener

The View Results Tree component is shown in the following screenshot:

How it works…

Once added, the test results will be written in real time to these listeners as the test is going on. Each listener gives a different data representation of the test results. Depending on what you are interested in, you will use a different set of listeners.

There's more…

There are graph listeners that plot graphs in real time, helping you visualize your test results in a graphical way. Also, there are extensions to JMeter that provide even additional result listeners just in case you need more than the built-in listener components.