Generating JVM heap dump from an AIX® core file

Technote (FAQ)
Problem
It is sometimes difficult or impossible to collect a heapdump from a WebSphere® Application Server Java Virtual Machine (JVM) that is suspected of having memory allocation or storage issues. It is possible, however, to generate a heapdump from a JVM core file.
Cause
How to collect heap information on AIX
Solution
Generating a heapdump file from an AIX core file:

A heap dump file can be generated from an AIX core file utilizing the jcore tool attached below.

The command is:

./jcore [core] -d > heapdump.txt

This command regenerates a heapdump_fromcore.txt file from an AIX core file even though the core file might have been generated from an older Java™ SDK build without heapdump support.

This process can take a considerable amount of time to complete. For example, a 1 GB heap that includes many small objects might take 30 minutes to process.

Note: You can download Jcore from the document referenced the Related information section.
Related information
Troubleshooting a Java™ virtual machine crash on AIX®












Document Information

Product categories: Software, Application Servers, Distributed Application & Web Servers, WebSphere Application Server, Java SDK
Operating system(s): AIX
Software version: 3.5, 4.0, 5.0, 5.1, 6.0
Software edition: Edition Independent
Reference #: 1162811
IBM Group: Software Group
Modified date: 2004-03-09