Hi Dwight,

Are these log files from the default pmlogger instance? If so, does using the -a (archive) option work, instead of the -p option (meant for archive folio formats instead)?

Aka, something like #pmcollectl -sD -a /var/log/pcp/pmlogger/<hostname>/20151221.14.26.0

-a is invalid/not supported option?  help file says -p?

# pmcollectl -sD -a /var/log/pcp/pmlogger/<hostname>/20151222.00.10.0 
pmcollectl: invalid option -- 'a'
Usage: pmcollectl [options]
Interactive: [-v] [-h host] [-s subsys] [-c N] [-i N] [-R N]
Write raw logfile: pmcollectl -f rawfile [-c N] [-i N] [-R N]
Read raw logfile: pmcollectl -p rawfile

Options:
  -v, --verbose         Produce verbose output
  -p, --playback        Read sample data from file
  -c COUNT, --count=COUNT
                        Number of samples
  -f FILENAME, --filename=FILENAME
                        Name of output file
  -R N, --runtime=N     How long to take samples
  -i N, --interval=N    The sample time interval
  -s SUBSYS, --subsys=SUBSYS
                        The subsystem to sample
  -h HOST, --host=HOST  metrics source is PMCD on host
  -V, --version         display version number and exit
  -?, --help            show this usage message and exit

Older pmcollectl only deals with "archive folios", which are like groups of archive files, and reads from them with the -p (playback) option.  Newer pmcollectl deals directly with archives too, and reads from them with the more pcp-typical -a option.

One can create archive-folios from archive files using the mkaf program:

# cd /var/log/pcp/*/$HOSTNAME
# /usr/libexec/pcp/bin/mkaf ARCHIVE-FILE > my.af
# cat my.af 
[...]
# pmcollectl -p my.af

(Note that the .af file should be in the same directory as the archives themselves.)