How to Troubleshoot Problems

This section provides guidelines for analyzing and identifying the source of problems during installation and uninstallation of Java ES.

This section contains the following subsections:

• Examining Installation Log Files

• Using the Log Viewer

• Verifying Product Dependencies

• Checking Resources and Settings

• Checking Postinstallation Configuration

• Checking the Distribution Media

• Checking Directory Server Connectivity

• Removing Web Server Files and Directory

• Verifying Passwords

• Examining the Installed or Uninstalled Product Components

• Verifying Administrator Access for Uninstallation

Examining Installation Log Files

If a problem occurs during installation or uninstallation, the first place to look for information on what happened is the installation logs. Informational, warning, and error messages are issued after such operations as user choices, package manipulations, and installation or uninstallation steps. Messages on installation, uninstallation, and install-time configuration are gathered into the source log files. Information that is displayed for each message includes date and time, log level, module ID, and the message text. Passwords are never included.

Log File Formats

There are four types of log files that capture installation or uninstallation information:

• A summary provides a high-level description of what was installed and configured.

• A detail version A file contains completion information.

• A detail version B file contains more details on the log messages.

• A debug file contains information that is relevant when installation fails. Use the debug file when one of the other log files indicates an error.

The log messages are stored in a Sun standard format called Unified Logging Format (ULF). If you find ULF difficult to read, you can use the Java ES Log Viewer to view the log messages.

Source log files can be edited with a text editor. The following table lists the formats of the source log files.

Table 9–1 Log File Formats

Logged Entity	Log File Name Format
Installer	Java_Enterprise_System_5_install.Atimestamp
	Java_Enterprise_System_5_install.Btimestamp
	JavaES_Install_log.timestamp
	Java_Enterprise_System_5_Summary_Report_install.timestamp
Uninstaller	Java_Enterprise_System_5_uninstall.Atimestamp
	Java_Enterprise_System_5_uninstall.Btimestamp
	JavaES_UnInstall_log.timestamp
	Java_Enterprise_System_5_Summary_Report_uninstall.timestamp

After an uninstallation, the uninstaller removes the installer, the Log Viewer , and itself. However, source log files are not removed and are stored in the following locations:

• Solaris: /var/sadm/install/logs

• Linux and HP-UX: /var/opt/sun/install/logs

To Use Log Files for Troubleshooting

1. Examine the summary file. For example:

   Java_Enterprise_System5_Summary_Report_install.timestamp

   If a problem occurred, determine which component caused the problem. Determine if multiple problems occurred. You will probably need to look at one or both of the detail logs.

2. Examine the detail log. For example:

   JavaES_Install_logtimestamp

   Look for the first error or warning that occurred and resolve it. Sometimes resolving one error resolves a number of seemingly unrelated errors that follow.

Using the Log Viewer

The Java ES Log Viewer provides a graphical display for viewing the ULF log messages from the JavaES_Install_log.timestamp file or the JavaES_UnInstall_log.timestamp file. You display a log file by selecting Open in the File menu on the Log Viewer main page. If the file you specify already exists or cannot be opened for writing, a Log Viewer error occurs and you are returned to the Log Viewer main page. Such a file cannot exist in the directory used by the installer to store source logs.

The messages that meet your filtering criteria are displayed in a single log table when you click the Search button. After the log table is displayed, an individual row in the log table can then be selected for detailed display, including display in multiple-line format.

How Filtering Works

To tailor your logging output, you indicate your display preferences and search criteria on the Log Viewer main page after you have selected a ULF log file. Display Preferences indicate what language you want your selection displayed in, and what limitations to apply in displaying the filtered records.

• Language. Chooses a translation language for viewing messages. The default is English. This list is populated from the translation resource bundles stored by the installer. If a resource bundle is not specified, messages and the Log Viewer interface are displayed in English.

• Timestamp. Sets the records to be filtered or displayed. Choices are View All, Most Recent, and Oldest.

  • View All. All data is filtered and displayed.

  • Most Recent. All data is filtered, and the most recent data is displayed first.

  • Oldest. All data is filtered, and the oldest data is displayed first.

There are three ways to filter messages so that the messages displayed are of sufficient importance or interest: by log level, by logger, and by content.

• Log Level. Chooses a log level for filtering messages. Choices are SEVERE, ERROR, WARNING, INFO, CONFIG, FINE, FINER, and FINEST. Selecting FINEST is equivalent to selecting all records for display. When you select a log level, only messages having that log level or a level greater in severity are displayed. If you do not want to include any message except those that have the exact log level you specify, click the Do not include more severe messages checkbox.

• Logger. Chooses none or one of the loggers that apply to the file you opened. A logger (moduleID in a ULF file) indicates what part of the installer is writing the log message. The main loggers are JAVAESConfig, JAVAESInstall, or JAVAESUninstall. Only messages associated with the logger you selected are displayed. In addition, product component loggers can be specified. For example, WebServerInstall, AccessManagerConfig, DirectoryServerUnInstall.

• Content. When you enter a string, such as “configure,” in the Only Show Entries Containing text box, only messages that contain that string are selected.

Some typical search criteria:

• Display only the SEVERE log messages in this file.

• Display only the log messages with a log level greater than or equal to ERROR.

• Display only the log messages from installation that have a log level greater than or equal to ERROR.

• Display only the log messages from uninstallation events.

To Run the Log Viewer

Because the Log Viewer operates in read-only mode, multiple users can run the Log Viewer at the same time.

1. On the command line, navigate to the location of the Log Viewer:

   • Solaris SPARC: /var/sadm/prod/SUNWentsys5i/Solaris_sparc

   • Solaris x86: /var/sadm/prod/SUNWentsys5i/Solaris_x86

   • Linux: /var/sadm/prod/sun-entsys5i/Linux_x86

   • HP-UX: /var/sadm/prod/sun-entsys5i/HPUX_PA-RISC

2. Start the Log Viewer.

   ./viewlog

   The Log Viewer main page is displayed.

3. In the File menu, select a log file for display.

   If the file you select is not ULF, you receive a message saying the selected file is not ULF and cannot be selected. Only ULF files can be displayed using the Log Viewer.

   If no ULF log files are available, the installation or uninstallation might not be completed yet. Wait and try again.

4. Choose Display Preferences and Search Criteria for your scenario.

5. Click Search.

   The log table displays the records that match your filtering criteria.

Verifying Product Dependencies

A number of product components have installation-time interdependencies. Problems that affect one product component can affect other product components. First, you should familiarize yourself with the information in Sun Java Enterprise System 5 Installation Planning Guide.

• Review the summary file and log files to see whether related products have failed. These might provide a clue as to what to fix first.

• Check that you have specified correct connection information. For example:

  • Does the information that you provided when configuring Directory Server match the directory information you provided for product components that use that Directory Server?

  • Does the Access Manager information that you provided for Portal Server or Portal Server Secure Remote Access match the information you provided for Access Manager?

In addition to product component interdependencies, some product components depend on the existence of Solaris packages that might not be installed on the host. The absence of these packages could cause installation failures. Read the “Software Requirements” section of the Release Notes for details.

If a problem occurs starting a product component, examine that product component's log files. Locations of many product component log files are listed in Product Component Troubleshooting Tips.

Checking Resources and Settings

The following host-level issues can cause installation problems.

• Updates. Have you applied the recommended updates (patches)?

• Disk Space. How is the disk partitioned, and to what partitions do installation directories point? The installation directories /var/sadm and /etc/opt, or the non-default directories that you specify, need sufficient disk space.

• Network Ports. During configuration, you supply port numbers for Java ES product components. Check the following:

  • Examine the standard port numbers in the file /etc/services .

  • Look at the summary log file to compare your settings with the standards. Did you mistype a port number or set one server to the port that is typically used for another?

  • Use the command netstat -a to view current port use on the system. Did you assign a port number that was already in use?

  IP Addresses. During configuration, you specify IP addresses. Check that you entered the correct IP addresses. These are some questions to resolve:

  • Does this system have multiple network interfaces, each with its own IP address?

  • In a high availability configuration, did you specify the IP address of the logical host or the IP address of a cluster node?

Checking Postinstallation Configuration

If you are having problems starting product components, verify that the procedures outlined in Chapter 6, Completing Postinstallation Configuration were followed correctly.

Checking the Distribution Media

If you are installing from a DVD or CD, examine the media for dirt or damage. Dirty discs can result in installation problems.

Checking Directory Server Connectivity

If you are installing a product component that relies on Directory Server, problems can be caused by one of these problems:

• You specified an incorrect user ID and password for Directory Server.

• You specified an incorrect LDAP port.

• Directory Server is unreachable.

  The interactive modes of the installer check for Directory Server connectivity during installation, but silent mode does not. If you perform a silent installation when Directory Server is not available, installation of Access Manager or Portal Server could fail.

Removing Web Server Files and Directory

To prevent the overwriting of customized files, such as edited configuration files, Web Server cannot be installed into a directory that contains files.

If you are reinstalling Web Server, check the installation directories to ensure that they are empty. If they are not empty, archive the files elsewhere and retry the installation.

Verifying Passwords

The installer queries you to supply a number of passwords for product components. If you are installing different product components on different hosts, it is important to ensure that you supply matching passwords on each host.

To resolve password problems, you might need to uninstall and then reinstall. If the uninstall fails, refer to Installation Fails Due to Files Left Behind During an Uninstallation.

Examining the Installed or Uninstalled Product Components

If you have installed product components but are having problems and cannot reinstall or uninstall, check the installed component packages using the Solaris pkginfo command, the Linux rpm command, or the HP-UX swlist command. Compare the results with the Java ES packages listed in Chapter 5, List of Installable Packages, in Sun Java Enterprise System 5 Installation Reference for UNIX. Additional troubleshooting information is in Installation Fails Due to Files Left Behind During an Uninstallation.

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Tip –

On Solaris 9 and Solaris 10, you can also use the product registry (prodreg tool) which provides a graphical interfaces that indexes components and their packages, superseding the pkg utilities. To invoke the product registry, type prodreg at the command prompt. For more information, refer to the prodreg(1) man page.

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Verifying Administrator Access for Uninstallation

During uninstallation, you might need to grant administrator access to the uninstaller, as described in Granting Administrator Access for the Uninstaller.