What method is used to assess mission-critical applications?

Evaluating performance and downtime is crucial for assessing mission-critical applications because these applications are essential for the core functions of an organization. Performance metrics provide insight into how well the application operates under various conditions, such as during peak usage times. Additionally, monitoring downtime is vital since even minor outages can lead to significant disruptions in business operations and potential losses.

When an application is labeled as mission-critical, it implies that it supports essential processes that must remain operational to avoid negative impacts on business continuity, revenue, and customer satisfaction. Therefore, regularly evaluating performance indicators—such as response times, throughput, and error rates—alongside tracking instances of downtime helps organizations ensure that these applications meet the required standards of reliability and efficiency.

In contrast, while calculating total cost of ownership, conducting user satisfaction surveys, and reviewing vendor support contracts are all useful activities in assessing overall software health and value, they do not directly measure how well the application performs or how often it is unavailable, which are the most pressing factors for mission-critical systems.