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Establishing a baseline

Establishing a baseline

What you learned in Module 2:

  • How k6 runs your test (virtual users, iterations, three script parts)
  • How to install k6, write a script, and run it locally
  • How to send the same run to Grafana Cloud k6 for stored results and dashboards
  • Which built-in metrics k6 reports and when to lean on local vs cloud execution

What you’ll do in this module:

  • What is a baseline? — Why it comes before stress, spike, and soak
  • Key baseline metrics — Latency, throughput, errors, and check pass rate
  • Designing a load profile — Stages and ramping
  • Checks vs thresholds — Per-response correctness vs whole-run pass or fail
  • Results to thresholds — Set thresholds from what you measured
  • When thresholds fail — Terminal output, exit codes, and regression patterns
  • Establish a baseline learning path — The hands-on path
  • Baseline complete — Debrief and what carries into the wrap-up

Estimated time: 20-25 minutes

Script

You finished a working test and you can open it in Grafana Cloud k6. Module three asks whether those numbers are acceptable for your team and how to make the next run pass or fail on purpose.

The recap you just saw lists what module two covered: how k6 drives load, installing the tool, writing and running QuickPizza locally, streaming results to Grafana Cloud k6, which built-in metrics show up where, and when to pick local versus cloud execution. The upcoming section defines baselines before stress, spike, or soak, walks the headline metrics, designs staged load, separates checks from thresholds, turns measurements into thresholds, handles failures and exit codes, runs the establish-a-baseline learning path, and closes with a debrief before wrap-up. Plan about twenty to twenty-five minutes of hands-on time for this module.

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