The jhat (Java Heap Analysis Tool) utility provides the ability to analyze the contents of the Java heap. It can be used to analyze a heap dump file, which is generated if the PingDirectory server encounters an out of memory error (as a result of the "-XX:+HeapDumpOnOutOfMemoryError" JVM option) or from the use of the jmap command with the "-dump" option.

The jhat tool acts as a web server that can be accessed by a browser in order to query the contents of the heap. Several predefined queries are available to help determine the types of objects consuming significant amounts of heap space, and it also provides a custom query language (OQL, the Object Query Language) for performing more advanced types of analysis.

The jhat tool can be launched with the path to the heap dump file, like:
jhat /path/to/heap.dump
This command causes the jhat web server to begin listening on port 7000. It can be accessed in a browser at http://localhost:7000 (or http://address:7000 from a remote system). An alternate port number can be specified using the "-port" option, like:
jhat -port 1234 /path/to/heap.dump

To issue custom OQL searches, access the web interface using the URL http://localhost:7000/oql/ (the trailing slash must be provided). Additional information about the OQL syntax can be obtained in the web interface at http://localhost:7000/oqlhelp/.