Abstract: The causes of performance changes in a distributed system often elude even its developers. This paper develops a new technique for gaining insight into such changes: comparing system behaviours from two executions (e.g., of two system versions or time periods). Building on end-to-end request flow tracing within and across components, algorithms are described for identifying and ranking changes in the flow and/or timing of request processing. The implementation of these algorithms in a tool called Spectroscope is described and evaluated. Six case studies are presented of using Spectroscope to diagnose performance changes in a distributed storage system caused by code changes, configuration modifications, and component degradations, demonstrating the value and efficacy of comparing request flows. Preliminary experiences of using Spectroscope to diagnose performance changes within Google are also presented.