Performance Monitoring Using JMeter + InfluxDB + Grafana

Project information

Tech Stack: JMeter | InfluxDB | Grafana
Linkedin Artical: Performance Monitoring Using JMeter + InfluxDB + Grafana

I recently wrote an article on how to set up a basic integration of JMeter, InfluxDB, and Grafana to monitor performance test data in real-time. This setup provides a simple yet powerful way to visualize metrics 📊 and gain insights into application performance 🚀.

Here’s what the process involved:

🔹 Configuring JMeter to send test data to InfluxDB using a backend listener.
🔹 Setting up InfluxDB to store test metrics 💾.
🔹 Connecting Grafana to InfluxDB and creating dashboards to display the data 📈.

While this is a foundational setup, it opens up endless possibilities for customization and scaling based on specific testing needs. I hope this article helps you take the first steps toward creating powerful visualizations for your performance test data. With the right tools 🛠️ and a bit of experimentation, you can unlock valuable insights and make informed decisions.

✨ Happy testing! ✨

How to Set Up JMeter, InfluxDB, and Grafana Locally for Performance Monitoring

Introduction

When it comes to performance testing, it’s not just about running the tests—it’s also about understanding the results. That’s where data visualization comes in. Instead of sifting through raw numbers, you can use dashboards to see your test results in real-time and spot trends or issues easily.

In this article, I’ll show you how to take your JMeter performance test results and bring them to life in a Grafana dashboard. To do this, we’ll use InfluxDB as the database to store your test data and Grafana to create beautiful, interactive visualizations.

Whether you’re new to performance testing or just looking to improve your reporting, this step-by-step guide will help you set up everything you need in a local environment. By the end, you’ll have a working setup that lets you monitor and analyze your test results like a pro!

1. Prerequisites

Before we get started, make sure you've downloaded JMeter and have a sample JMeter test script ready

1.1 JMeter installation and create a test script

Download JMeter and extract it to a location of your choice

Create a sample JMeter test script

This GitHub repository contains sample test scripts for creating an employee in OrangeHRM demo website

2. Setting up the environment

2.1 Installing InfluxDB

Go to the InfluxDB download page
Select the version and platform you want to download
Copy that installation command and execute it using PowerShell it will download influxDB and install in the "C:\Program Files\InfluxData\influxdb\" directory

or else you can download separately and extract it "C:\Program Files\InfluxData\"

Go to the location where InfluxDB is extracted and run the executable file using Command Prompt. Once executed, it will display the port numbers to access InfluxDB locally

Open your browser navigate to http://localhost:8086
If you are accessing the InfluxDB web interface for the first time, it will prompt you to set up your initial user. Once the setup is complete, an API token will be generated, or you can create your own API token later and stored securely for future us.

After clicking the 'Continue' button, you will be redirected to the final step. In this step, click 'Quick Start' to navigate to the InfluxDB dashboard.

2.2 Installing Grafana

Navigate to Grafana Download page
Select platform you want to download
Download Grafana installer and install the setup

Once you finish installation Grafana will be already running as a service
Open browser and navigate to http://localhost:3000
Enter "admin" for both username and password
Click "Login" button you will navigate to home page

3. Configuring JMeter to Send Data to InfluxDB

Open JMeter with sample test script or create a new test script

Tip: If you're creating a new test script, use the BlazeMeter Auto Correlation Recording Plugin. It will identify dynamic values and handle them automatically.

Add backend listener to the thread group and need to some configurations to the backend listener

Change "Backend Listener implementation" to 3rd option in the list which is "org.apache.jmeter.visualizers.backend.influxdb.InfluxdbBackendListenerClient"
Update "indluxdbUrl" to influxdb write API("POST http://localhost:8086/api/v2/write)
Provide the organization name and bucket name created during the InfluxDB initial setup as query parameters to the API http://localhost:8086/api/v2/write?org=[organization_name]&bucket=[bucket_name] e.g.: http://localhost:8086/api/v2/write?org=JIG&bucket=jmeter
Add API token to the backend listener that you stored earlier during the InfluxDB initial setup as an additional parameter
Click the "Add" button located at the bottom of the Backend Listener to create a new field.
In the newly added field, enter "influxdbToken" as the name. Note that this variable name is case-sensitive, so ensure it is entered exactly as shown.
Provide your API token as the value for this field and save
You can optionally change the application name and test title, but it’s not mandatory
Run your test

Go to InfluxDB and navigate to "Data Explorer"
Select your bucket
"Select 'jmeter' under the measurement filter. If you changed the default measurement name in the Backend Listener, the updated name will appear here.
The next field will show all the data being sent from JMeter to InfluxDB.
Select the data you want to display and submit it. InfluxDB will then present the selected data as a graph

What is happening here is when you add a Backend Listener in JMeter and configure it with the InfluxDB API and token, JMeter sends performance metrics to InfluxDB during the test. InfluxDB stores this data, and you can later visualize it in tools like Grafana for analysis.

4. Setting Up Grafana to Visualize JMeter Data

4.1 Connecting Grafana to InfluxDB

Navigate to Grafana
Go to "Conncetions -> Data Sources" and click "Add New Data Source Button"
Select 'InfluxDB' as the data source, as the data will be retrieved from InfluxDB.
Select query language as "Flux"

Flux is a data scripting and query language by InfluxData for InfluxDB 2.x, designed for advanced data analysis and integration with various sources. It uses a functional approach with powerful operators and functions for time-series data transformations, analytics, and more

Set the HTTP URL to the InfluxDB address, usually http://localhost:8086. If you're using Docker, enter the container's IP address. For secured URLs, enable 'Basic Auth' and provide the username and password.
Under "InfluxDB Details" section give you're organization name, bucket name and token
Click "save" button if the connection is successful a success message will display

After successfully connecting InfluxDB to Grafana, you can visualize the data stored in InfluxDB.

4.2 Create Custom Dashboards

Navigate to "Explore"
Select your data source using the dropdown in the top of the screen
Click on 'Sample Query' and select 'Simple Query'; this will display a simple Flux query that retrieves data from a specific measurement and field within the last hour from the given InfluxDB bucket

Change the bucket name and measurement name (it should be 'jmeter' if not modified in the JMeter backend listener), then specify the field or fields you want to retrieve from InfluxDB.
After updating the query, run your test plan and the query. The selected field data will be displayed as a real-time graph.

Save this graph to the dashboard by clicking the 'Add to Dashboard' button. You can view the saved dashboards on the dashboard screen and add more graphs to the same dashboard.

4.3 Create Dashboards Using Dashboard Templates

Navigate to Grafana Dashboards
Select a dashboard to display JMeter performance metrics
Copy the dashboard ID or download the JSON file; you can import the dashboard using either option
Navigate back to Grafana
Go to "Dashboards" and click "Import" button
Provide dashboard ID or upload the JSON file then click "Load" button
In this step update the dashboard name, folder path (if applicable), select the data source, and click the 'Import' button to successfully import the dashboard

5. Summary

This article covered the basics of setting up a pipeline to visualize test data using JMeter, InfluxDB, and Grafana. While this is a foundational setup, it opens the door to powerful insights by transforming raw performance metrics into visual, actionable data. Feel free to explore further by tweaking queries, adding more complex graphs. Customizing dashboards and experimenting with Flux queries can help you gain deeper insights tailored to your needs. In the next article, we’ll take this a step further, diving into advanced configurations. This is just the beginning—stay curious and keep experimenting.

Ramesh Lakmal