BI performance counter: Processor Queue Length

Applies to

Operating System

Description

Returns the number of threads in the ready state on all processors.

This counter needs to be divided by the number of processors on the server. If this value exceeds 10 per processor frequently and is correlated with high Processor % Usage Time further investigation is required.

Resolved by

DBAs

Suggested solutions

  1. Determine whether the CPU activity is coming from SQL Server. Use tools such as Windows Performance Monitor or Task Manager to check for other programs on the server consuming CPU (e.g. anti-virus, IIS, etc.). If these programs are utilizing CPU take any needed measures to reduce the CPU activity or move the applications off the server
  2. Indexing, look for high CPU queries. Reduce sorting and hash operations
  3. Upgrade CPU capacity
  4. Ensure Windows Power Plan is set to High Performance
  5. For virtual servers ensure that the host is not oversubscribed

Additional research

Optimizing SQL Server CPU Performance

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