Provided by: libdevel-dprof-perl_20110802.00-5build1_amd64 bug

NAME

       Devel::DProf - a DEPRECATED Perl code profiler

SYNOPSIS

               perl -d:DProf test.pl

ACHTUNG!

       "Devel::DProf" is DEPRECATED and will be removed from a future version of Perl. We
       strongly recommend that you install and use Devel::NYTProf instead, as it offers
       significantly improved profiling and reporting.

DESCRIPTION

       The Devel::DProf package is a Perl code profiler.  This will collect information on the
       execution time of a Perl script and of the subs in that script.  This information can be
       used to determine which subroutines are using the most time and which subroutines are
       being called most often.  This information can also be used to create an execution graph
       of the script, showing subroutine relationships.

       To profile a Perl script run the perl interpreter with the -d debugging switch.  The
       profiler uses the debugging hooks.  So to profile script test.pl the following command
       should be used:

               perl -d:DProf test.pl

       When the script terminates (or when the output buffer is filled) the profiler will dump
       the profile information to a file called tmon.out.  A tool like dprofpp can be used to
       interpret the information which is in that profile.  The following command will print the
       top 15 subroutines which used the most time:

               dprofpp

       To print an execution graph of the subroutines in the script use the following command:

               dprofpp -T

       Consult dprofpp for other options.

PROFILE FORMAT

       The old profile is a text file which looks like this:

               #fOrTyTwO
               $hz=100;
               $XS_VERSION='DProf 19970606';
               # All values are given in HZ
               $rrun_utime=2; $rrun_stime=0; $rrun_rtime=7
               PART2
               + 26 28 566822884 DynaLoader::import
               - 26 28 566822884 DynaLoader::import
               + 27 28 566822885 main::bar
               - 27 28 566822886 main::bar
               + 27 28 566822886 main::baz
               + 27 28 566822887 main::bar
               - 27 28 566822888 main::bar
               [....]

       The first line is the magic number.  The second line is the hertz value, or clock ticks,
       of the machine where the profile was collected.  The third line is the name and version
       identifier of the tool which created the profile.  The fourth line is a comment.  The
       fifth line contains three variables holding the user time, system time, and realtime of
       the process while it was being profiled.  The sixth line indicates the beginning of the
       sub entry/exit profile section.

       The columns in PART2 are:

               sub entry(+)/exit(-) mark
               app's user time at sub entry/exit mark, in ticks
               app's system time at sub entry/exit mark, in ticks
               app's realtime at sub entry/exit mark, in ticks
               fully-qualified sub name, when possible

       With newer perls another format is used, which may look like this:

               #fOrTyTwO
               $hz=10000;
               $XS_VERSION='DProf 19971213';
               # All values are given in HZ
               $over_utime=5917; $over_stime=0; $over_rtime=5917;
               $over_tests=10000;
               $rrun_utime=1284; $rrun_stime=0; $rrun_rtime=1284;
               $total_marks=6;

               PART2
               @ 406 0 406
               & 2 main bar
               + 2
               @ 456 0 456
               - 2
               @ 1 0 1
               & 3 main baz
               + 3
               @ 141 0 141
               + 2
               @ 141 0 141
               - 2
               @ 1 0 1
               & 4 main foo
               + 4
               @ 142 0 142
               + & Devel::DProf::write
               @ 5 0 5
               - & Devel::DProf::write

       (with high value of $ENV{PERL_DPROF_TICKS}).

       New "$over_*" values show the measured overhead of making $over_tests calls to the
       profiler These values are used by the profiler to subtract the overhead from the runtimes.

       Lines starting with "@" mark the amount of time passed since the previous "@" line.  The
       numbers following the "@" are integer tick counts representing user, system, and real
       time.  Divide these numbers by the $hz value in the header to get seconds.

       Lines starting with "&" map subroutine identifiers (an integer) to subroutine packages and
       names.  These should only occur once per subroutine.

       Lines starting with "+" or "-" mark normal entering and exit of subroutines.  The number
       following is a reference to a subroutine identifier.

       Lines starting with "*" mark where subroutines are entered by "goto &subr", but note that
       the return will still be marked as coming from the original sub.  The sequence might look
       like this:

               + 5
               * 6
               - 5

       Lines starting with "/" is like "-" but mark where subroutines are exited by dying.
       Example:

               + 5
               + 6
               / 6
               / 5

       Finally you might find "@" time stamp marks surrounded by "+ & Devel::DProf::write" and "-
       & Devel::DProf::write" lines.  These 3 lines are outputted when printing of the mark above
       actually consumed measurable time.

AUTOLOAD

       When Devel::DProf finds a call to an &AUTOLOAD subroutine it looks at the $AUTOLOAD
       variable to find the real name of the sub being called.  See "Autoloading" in perlsub.

ENVIRONMENT

       "PERL_DPROF_BUFFER" sets size of output buffer in words.  Defaults to 2**14.

       "PERL_DPROF_TICKS" sets number of ticks per second on some systems where a replacement for
       times() is used.  Defaults to the value of "HZ" macro.

       "PERL_DPROF_OUT_FILE_NAME" sets the name of the output file.  If not set, defaults to
       tmon.out.

BUGS

       Builtin functions cannot be measured by Devel::DProf.

       With a newer Perl DProf relies on the fact that the numeric slot of $DB::sub contains an
       address of a subroutine.  Excessive manipulation of this variable may overwrite this slot,
       as in

         $DB::sub = 'current_sub';
         ...
         $addr = $DB::sub + 0;

       will set this numeric slot to numeric value of the string "current_sub", i.e., to 0.  This
       will cause a segfault on the exit from this subroutine.  Note that the first assignment
       above does not change the numeric slot (it will mark it as invalid, but will not write
       over it).

       Another problem is that if a subroutine exits using goto(LABEL), last(LABEL) or
       next(LABEL) then perl may crash or Devel::DProf will die with the error:

          panic: Devel::DProf inconsistent subroutine return

       For example, this code will break under Devel::DProf:

          sub foo {
            last FOO;
          }
          FOO: {
            foo();
          }

       A pattern like this is used by Test::More's skip() function, for example.  See perldiag
       for more details.

SEE ALSO

       perl, dprofpp, times(2)