Cannot locate performance tools when launching python profiling

[Wycc20]

Environment

Steps to Reproduce

1. Create python application project and add "Lib\test\pythoninfo.py" and remove the default .py file
2. Debug->Launch Python Profiling …
3. Checked the option "Open project" and select the current project in drop-down list.
4. Click "Start".

Expected behavior
The .vsp file should be generated and opened in VS.

Actual behavior
An error dialog box appears "Cannot locate performance tools".

[linette-zyy]

This issue is also reproduced on 18.0.0 Preview 1.0 [10929.73.d18.0].

[StellaHuang95]

There are two separate issues that need to be addressed to support profiling in PTVS for Dev18.

Issue 1: The existing profiling functionality that worked in Dev17 for older Python versions is now broken in Dev18.

The way it works in dev17 is that PTVS creates its own DLL (VsPyProf.dll) that hooks into Python and communicates with the existing Visual Studio performance tools (VSPerfMon.exe and VSPerfCmd.exe). PTVS doesn't need to implement the low-level performance data collection, file I/O, and .vsp file generation. It leverages the profiling infrastructure and just provides the Python-specific integration layer.

But the Diagnostics Hub team deprecated and removed VSPerfMon.exe and VSPerfCmd.exe from the Dev18 shipping manifest. So the solution might be talk to the team and have them ship the executables with VS.

Issue 2: Support profiling for newer Python versions

Even with the executables restored, the current profiling implementation won't support newer Python versions due to breaking changes in Python's internal struct.

We will have to leverage the etwtrace package and integrate with the diagnostics hub in VS. The frontend part of the work of collecting profiling parameters and user interface has already implemented. But for the package invocation and Diagnostics Hub integration part might require significant effort, depending on the Diagnostics Hub team's willingness to support this integration.

Telemetry and Decision Making
Telemetry collection has been added to the latest VS release to gather profiling usage metrics. This data can be used to make future decisions on potential feature deprecations.