I imagine that the class doing the work would have a variable which holds the statistic we care about. For instance SMTPHandler might keep an int connectionsDuringLastMinute, which value could be sampled and displayed on a little gauge like the temperature gauge on the dashboard of my car.
Similarly, that class could have a control variable, an int connectionsPerMinuteLimit, which the administrator could set, if needed, with a knob (or the best GUI equivalent) right under the gauge. This would cause SMTPHandler to refuse or defer some incoming connections.
That class might also keep a SortedSet of the IP addresses currently sending in the most mail, giving the administrator ability to limit the incoming rate from any given IP, just as easy as closing one of the windows a little bit in a car with electric windows.
Logging comes to us from an age before GUIs. It still serves some purposes well, but, for managing current, ongoing problems, much better pictures and real-time controls are within reach (hopefully speaking).
Anyhow, do others think of JMX as useful for such monitoring and control?
Rich
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