Windows CPU scalability
Test that your service scales as expected when CPU capacity is limited. Gremlin will consume CPU in 3 stages: 50%, 75%, and 90%.
Experiment types
CPU
Targets
Windows
Length
15 minutes
How this Scenario works
This Scenario progressively consumes CPU on your Windows Server hosts in three stages: 50%, 75%, and 90%. This simulates the kind of CPU pressure that can come from traffic spikes, resource-intensive workloads, or noisy neighbors on shared infrastructure.
Why run this Scenario?
- Validate that auto-scaling and load balancing respond correctly to CPU pressure on Windows Server instances.
- Verify that Windows Performance Monitor and your alerting tools detect CPU saturation before it impacts services.
- Test application performance under constrained CPU on Windows to identify degradation thresholds specific to .NET and IIS workloads.
- Optimize Windows host sizing and capacity planning based on real CPU pressure behavior.
What to expect when you run it
As CPU usage increases on Windows hosts, systems automatically scale based on the thresholds you've set, maintaining service performance throughout.
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