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8.3: Logs

8.3: Logs

WebSphere Application Server provides many error logs to help you diagnose run-time problems. This section describes these error logs telling you where to find and how to format the files. The logs are:

The tools required to process some of these logs (as well as some of the trace logs) are described in Using Internal Tools. You can also refer to Problem determination hints and tips for additional tips on the use and processing of some of these error logs. If you need to report a problem to IBM, you might need to gather some of these error logs and send them to IBM for diagnosis; for more information, refer to How to report a problem to IBM.

View the following graphic for a description of the log and trace points in WebSphere Application Server:

tracepoints graphics

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Activity log for problem determination

The activity log captures events that show a history of WebSphere Application Server's activities. Some of the entries in the log are informational, while others report on system exceptions, such as returned CORBA exceptions.

When you encounter WebSphere Application Server run-time errors, you will often find it useful to use Log Analyzer to read the activity log and try to diagnose the problem yourself. When you need assistance from IBM to help you diagnose problems, you will be asked to provide the formatted activity log output to IBM.

Location of the activity log

There is one activity log for each host machine. The activity.log file resides in the logs directory of where the product is installed. All application servers, including the administrative server, write error records to this file. The activity.log file is a binary file and cannot be viewed with an ascii editor. You can view the activity.log file in one of two ways:

How to view the activity.log file with Log Analyzer

  1. Change the directory to:
    product_installation_root/bin
  2. Run the waslogbr script file, which is called:
    • waslogbr.bat on Windows NT
    • waslogbr.sh on Unix systems
    It needs to be run from the bin directory cited above.
    This will start the Log Analyzer graphical interface.
  3. In the interface:
    1. Select File>Open.
    2. Navigate to the directory containing the activity.log file.
    3. Select the activity.log file.
    4. Select Open.

    How to view the acitivity.log file on a remote machine using showlog

    The Log Analyzer cannot be used to view remote files. An alternate tool named showlog can be used instead of Log Analyzer to format the activity.log file for viewing when no GUI display capabilities are available.

    showlog.bat or showlog.sh is a script/batch file that can be found in the bin directory of the WebSphere Application Server installation. Follow these instructions to use showlog:

    1. Change directory to:
      product_installation_root/bin
    2. Run the showlog tool with no parameters to display the usage instructions:
      • On Windows NT, run showlog.bat
      • On Unix systems, run showlog.sh
    Examples:
    • To direct the activity log contents to stdout, use the invocation:
      showlog activity.log
    • To dump the activity.log to a text file that can be viewed using a text editor, use the invocation:
      showlog activity.log textFileName
  4. Changing activity.log file size

    In the course of using Log Analyzer, you might have to set the maximum activity.log file size. The activity.log file grows to a predetermined size and then wraps. The default size is 1MB. Follow these steps to change the log size:

    1. Open the properties file in a text editor:
      product_installation_root/properties/logging.properties
    2. For the SHARED_LOG_LENGTH property, specify the value you would like in Kilobytes (KB). If an individual size is entered, the default size is used.
      • Example: To change the log size to 2MB, enter in the line:
        SHARED_LOG_LENGTH=2048 (do not use spaces)

    The size change will take effect at the next server startup.

    See other related tasks, including changing the port of the logging service, diagnosing port conflicts and confirming the creation of the activity.log file in the Log Analyzer section.

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    stderr and stdout logs for problem determination

    The stderr and stdout logs capture events presented through two of the three standard I/O streams, or:

    • stdin - arguments entered with a command or program
    • stdout - output displayed to the user
    • stderr - errors thrown by the code

    In WebSphere Application Server, the stdout and stderr logs are created for:

    • Application servers
    • Servlet redirectors

    The application server stderr and stdout logs contain application server communication. Output from System.err.println and System.out.println statements in the servlet code also appear in the application server stdout and stderr logs.

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    Out-of-process(oop) logs for problem determination

    There are two types of out-of-process logs: those created for administrative servers and those created for application servers. These logs contain error and informational messages generated from the native code portion of the out-of-process engine. This information reflects server startup and server status change requests (start/stop/restart).

    The default log file mask setting for the oop logs is error. If these logs have a file length of zero, no error messages were generated during the server status change requests.

    To change the default log file file mask setting:
    1. Select the process to trace, for example Servlet Engine.
    2. Click the Advanced tab for the Servlet Engine.
    3. Click the Settings button.
    4. Choose the log file mask from one of four options.
    5. Click the Restart Plug-in button

    The oop log files are now dated so the file format is consistent with that of the HTTP Server trace logs. For example, an administrative server oop log file name is: adminserver_native.log.was.oop.Thu_May_26_23.26.20.2000

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    Windows NT Identifierwasdb2 log

    This log is created when the DB2 database, was, is configured. Review this log to determine if the was database was created correctly and if WebSphere Application Server can connect to it. Errors creating the system management repository tables will be logged in this file.

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    Windows NT Identifierwssetup log

    This log is created during the install process. Review this log to ensure the install process was successful. The install process consists of:

    • Verifying prerequisites
    • Downloading files
    • Updating the configuration files for both WebSphere Application Server and the Web server

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    UNIX identifierWebSphere.instl

    On AIX and Solaris, a native install of WebSphere Application Server generates the WebSphere.instl log that is located in the /tmp directory.

    Information on the WebSphere Application Server install process on HP is placed in the HP system log, swagent.log, that is located in the/opt/WebSphere/AppServer/var/adm/sw directory.

    See the file, Sample Logs, for examples of WebSphere.instl and swagent.log logs.

    See the file, WebSphere Application Server Directories, for a listing of files and directories in Version 3.5. This listing may help with problem determination.

    The Related information links to instructions and additional detail about enabling and interpreting logs.

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