diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/cc/NodeControllerState.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/cc/NodeControllerState.java
index 85ce104..63fc26b 100644
--- a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/cc/NodeControllerState.java
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-cc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/cc/NodeControllerState.java
@@ -125,6 +125,10 @@
 
     private final long[] ipcMessageBytesReceived;
 
+    private final long[] diskReads;
+
+    private final long[] diskWrites;
+
     private int rrdPtr;
 
     private int lastHeartbeatDuration;
@@ -184,6 +188,9 @@
         ipcMessagesReceived = new long[RRD_SIZE];
         ipcMessageBytesReceived = new long[RRD_SIZE];
 
+        diskReads = new long[RRD_SIZE];
+        diskWrites = new long[RRD_SIZE];
+
         rrdPtr = 0;
     }
 
@@ -219,6 +226,8 @@
             ipcMessageBytesSent[rrdPtr] = hbData.ipcMessageBytesSent;
             ipcMessagesReceived[rrdPtr] = hbData.ipcMessagesReceived;
             ipcMessageBytesReceived[rrdPtr] = hbData.ipcMessageBytesReceived;
+            diskReads[rrdPtr] = hbData.diskReads;
+            diskWrites[rrdPtr] = hbData.diskWrites;
             rrdPtr = (rrdPtr + 1) % RRD_SIZE;
         }
     }
@@ -303,6 +312,8 @@
         o.put("ipc-message-bytes-sent", ipcMessageBytesSent);
         o.put("ipc-messages-received", ipcMessagesReceived);
         o.put("ipc-message-bytes-received", ipcMessageBytesReceived);
+        o.put("disk-reads", diskReads);
+        o.put("disk-writes", diskWrites);
 
         return o;
     }
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/common/heartbeat/HeartbeatData.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/common/heartbeat/HeartbeatData.java
index e46449b..e999913 100644
--- a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/common/heartbeat/HeartbeatData.java
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-common/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/common/heartbeat/HeartbeatData.java
@@ -45,4 +45,6 @@
     public long ipcMessageBytesSent;
     public long ipcMessagesReceived;
     public long ipcMessageBytesReceived;
+    public long diskReads;
+    public long diskWrites;
 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/NodeControllerService.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/NodeControllerService.java
index 245d988..1cee330 100644
--- a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/NodeControllerService.java
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/NodeControllerService.java
@@ -66,6 +66,8 @@
 import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.application.NCApplicationContext;
 import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.dataset.DatasetPartitionManager;
 import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.IOManager;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling.IIOCounter;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling.IOCounterFactory;
 import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.net.DatasetNetworkManager;
 import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.net.NetworkManager;
 import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.partitions.PartitionManager;
@@ -145,6 +147,8 @@
     private final MemoryManager memoryManager;
 
     private boolean shuttedDown = false;
+    
+    private IIOCounter ioCounter;
 
     public NodeControllerService(NCConfig ncConfig) throws Exception {
         this.ncConfig = ncConfig;
@@ -173,6 +177,7 @@
         registrationPending = true;
         getNodeControllerInfosAcceptor = new MutableObject<FutureValue<Map<String, NodeControllerInfo>>>();
         memoryManager = new MemoryManager((long) (memoryMXBean.getHeapMemoryUsage().getMax() * MEMORY_FUDGE_FACTOR));
+        ioCounter = new IOCounterFactory().getIOCounter();
     }
 
     public IHyracksRootContext getRootContext() {
@@ -429,6 +434,9 @@
             hbData.ipcMessagesReceived = ipcPC.getMessageReceivedCount();
             hbData.ipcMessageBytesReceived = ipcPC.getMessageBytesReceived();
 
+            hbData.diskReads = ioCounter.getReads();
+            hbData.diskWrites = ioCounter.getWrites();
+            
             try {
                 cc.nodeHeartbeat(id, hbData);
             } catch (Exception e) {
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IIOCounter.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IIOCounter.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6774262
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IIOCounter.java
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2013 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling;
+
+public interface IIOCounter {
+
+    /**
+     * @return the number of block reads from the very beginning
+     */
+    public long getReads();
+
+    /**
+     * @return the number of block writes from the very beginning
+     */
+    public long getWrites();
+}
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterDefault.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterDefault.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f53f79c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterDefault.java
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2013 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling;
+
+public class IOCounterDefault implements IIOCounter{
+
+    @Override
+    public long getReads() {
+        return 0;
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public long getWrites() {
+        return 0;
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterFactory.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterFactory.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..06ccfaf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterFactory.java
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2013 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling;
+
+public class IOCounterFactory {
+
+    /**
+     * Get the IOCounter for the specific underlying OS
+     * 
+     * @return an IIOCounter instance
+     */
+    public IIOCounter getIOCounter() {
+        String osName = System.getProperty("os.name").toLowerCase();
+        if (osName.indexOf("nix") >= 0 || osName.indexOf("nux") >= 0 || osName.indexOf("aix") >= 0) {
+            return new IOCounterLinux();
+        } else if (osName.indexOf("mac") >= 0) {
+            return new IOCounterOSX();
+        } else {
+            return new IOCounterDefault();
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterLinux.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterLinux.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c172c41
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterLinux.java
@@ -0,0 +1,76 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2013 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling;
+
+import java.io.BufferedReader;
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.io.InputStreamReader;
+import java.util.StringTokenizer;
+
+public class IOCounterLinux implements IIOCounter {
+    public static final String COMMAND = "iostat";
+
+    @Override
+    public long getReads() {
+        try {
+            long reads = extractColumn(4);
+            return reads;
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new IllegalStateException(e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public long getWrites() {
+        try {
+            long reads = extractColumn(5);
+            return reads;
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new IllegalStateException(e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    private long extractColumn(int columnIndex) throws IOException {
+        BufferedReader reader = exec(COMMAND);
+        String line = null;
+        boolean device = false;
+        long reads = 0;
+        while ((line = reader.readLine()) != null) {
+            if (line.contains("Blk_read")) {
+                device = true;
+            }
+            if (device == true) {
+                StringTokenizer tokenizer = new StringTokenizer(line);
+                int i = 0;
+                while (tokenizer.hasMoreTokens()) {
+                    String column = tokenizer.nextToken();
+                    if (i == columnIndex) {
+                        reads += Long.parseLong(column);
+                    }
+                    i++;
+                }
+            }
+        }
+        reader.close();
+        return reads;
+    }
+
+    private BufferedReader exec(String command) throws IOException {
+        Process p = Runtime.getRuntime().exec(command);
+        return new BufferedReader(new InputStreamReader(p.getInputStream()));
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterOSX.java b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterOSX.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5f56ca8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks/hyracks-control/hyracks-control-nc/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/control/nc/io/profiling/IOCounterOSX.java
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2013 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.io.profiling;
+
+public class IOCounterOSX implements IIOCounter {
+
+    @Override
+    public long getReads() {
+        return 0;
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public long getWrites() {
+        return 0;
+    }
+
+}