1. A distributed database management system comprising: means for identifying a database component in a distributed database at which a flow of data terminates, the distributed database comprising a plurality of database components being stored on different hardware memory devices and together creating the distributed database, that appears to applications as a single database; means for determining one or more topology paths between database components in a distributed database and links between the database components paths by identifying a destination component at which a flow of data terminates, traversing database component links from the destination component toward a source component from which the flow of data originates, and including one or more database components that are traversed as part of the one or more identified topology paths; means for traversing database component links between database components from the identified database component toward an originating database component from which the flow of data was started; means for including one or more database components and links that are traversed as part of one or more identified topology paths where at least one topology path traverses components and component links associated with databases stored on at least two different storage mechanisms; means for obtaining performance data collected by for individual database components in the one or more identified topology paths; means for aggregating the database components, performance-related information associated with the database components, and database component links to form a topology of the distributed database that includes performance information for individual database components in the distributed database means for identifying one or more database components as bottleneck components based, at least in part, on the performance data; and means for providing a visual representation of the one or more identified topology paths based, at least in part, on the performance data for one or more database components.