Using Essbase Logs

This chapter describes the logs that OLAP Server creates to record information about server, application, and database activities. Table 56 briefly describes each log:

Table 56: Summary of Logs

Type of Log
Location of Log
Information Included

OLAP Server log

ARBORPATH/essbase.log  

Server activities and errors

application log

ARBORPATH\app\application_name\
application_name.log  

Application activities and errors

outline change log

ARBORPATH\app\application_name\
database_name\database_name.olg  

Changes to the outline

exception log

 

One of these locations

ARBORPATH\log00001.xcp 
ARBORPATH\app\log00001.xcp 
ARBORPATH\app\application_name\
log00001.xcp 
ARBORPATH\app\application_name\
database_name\log00001.xcp  

Errors that result when OLAP Server stops abnormally

dimension build and data load error logs

ARBORPATH\client\dataload.err 

or

dimbuild.err  

Errors from a data load or a dimension build



Use this chapter to discover what information is written to a log and how you can use that information to maintain, tune, or troubleshoot OLAP Server.

This chapter includes the following sections:

Understanding Server and Application Logs

OLAP Server writes activities that occur in OLAP Server and application logs. The OLAP Serverlog is a text file in the ARBORPATH directory named essbase.log. In a standard installation, for example, the OLAP Server log is hyperion\essbase\essbase.log. Each application on an OLAP Server has its own application log. The application log is a text file in the ARBORPATH\app\application_name directory named application_name.log. For the Sample Basic database, for example, the application log is hyperion\essbase\app\sample\sample.log. Information in these logs can help you to pinpoint where and why an error occurred.

The following sections describe server and application logs:

For information about the actions you can perform on server and application logs, see Using Server and Application Logs. For information on filtering, searching, and analyzing logs using Administration Services, see Essbase Administration Services Online Help. For information about specific error messages, see the Error Messages Guide in \docs\errmsgs in your Essbase installation.

Understanding the Contents of the OLAP Server Log

OLAP Server writes activities that occur on the server in ARBORPATH\essbase.log. Use essbase.log to find out more about the activities on the server. These are some of the activities that you can assess:

This table lists the types of actions logged and the information included in the log message. For information about specific error messages, see the Error Messages Guide in \docs\errmsgs in your Essbase installation.

Table 57: Contents of the OLAP Server Log (essbase.log)  

Type of Action
Information Included

Actions performed at the server level, such as logging into a server or setting security

  • User name
  • Date and time
  • If changing permissions-user and group information and IP address of user
  • If logging in-the time and date the user last logged in
  • If logging out-the length of time the user was logged in
  • If creating or changing an application or database- request to create or open the object; loading, connecting, and starting the application or database to be created; and locking the object to be created or changed
  • If creating, changing, or viewing an application or database-requests to list applications and databases and requests to retrieve access information
  • Shut down or start up requests
  • Requests to retrieve and delete the OLAP Server log

Actions performed at the application level, such as viewing application settings, or viewing and changing custom-defined macros, custom-defined functions, and substitution variables

  • User name
  • Date and time
  • Requests to retrieve operating system resources, license information, and system-wide configuration
  • Retrieving and setting global values
  • If altering substitution variables-request to list and set substitution variables
  • If altering custom-defined macros-request to list and delete custom-defined macros
  • Requests to retrieve and delete the application log

Actions performed at the database level, such as creating data load rules, outlines, reports, or calculation scripts

  • User name
  • Date and time
  • Requests to retrieve client settings, user, and group information
  • Requests to list applications and databases
  • Requests to retrieve access information
  • Requests to lock objects
  • Returning objects


Example of an OLAP Server Log

Figure 515 shows the entries written to essbase.log when an example OLAP Server starts. First, the Sample application and the Basic database are loaded. The log includes information such as the time the application and database are loaded, the process ID assigned to the application by the operating system, and the startup of the security authentication module.

Figure 515: Startup Messages in the OLAP Server Log

[Tue Nov 06 07:54:16 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1054014)
Database Basic loaded 
[Tue Nov 06 07:54:16 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1051061)
Application Sample loaded - connection established 
[Tue Nov 06 07:54:16 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1054027)
Application [Sample] started with process id [1300] 
[Tue Nov 06 07:54:18 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1054014)
Database Basic loaded 
[Tue Nov 06 07:54:23 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1051134)
External Authentication Module: [LDAP] enabled 
[Tue Nov 06 07:54:23 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1051051)
Hyperion Essbase OLAP Server - started 

Figure 516 shows a single error. The admin user tried to rename an application using a name that already exists on that server. The log includes information such as the user name, the time of the error, and the operation that failed and caused the error.

Figure 516: Error Messages in the OLAP Server Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:00:04 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1051001)
Received client request: Rename Application (from user admin) 
[Tue Nov 06 08:00:04 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Error(1051031)
Application Testing already exists 
[Tue Nov 06 08:00:04 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Warning(1051003)
Error 1051031 processing request [Rename Application] - disconnecting 

Finally, Figure 517 shows a shutdown. The log includes information such as the name of the application shut down and the time of the shutdown.

Figure 517: Shut Down Messages in the OLAP Server Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:00:46 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1054005)
Shutting down application Sample 
[Tue Nov 06 08:00:52 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1051052)
Hyperion Essbase OLAP Server - finished 

Understanding the Contents of the Application Log

OLAP Server writes application activities that occur, such as calculations, on the server in ARBORPATH\app\application_name\application_name.log. For the Sample Basic database, for example, the application log is hyperion\essbase\app\sample\sample.log. For information about specific error messages, see the Error Messages Guide in \docs\errmsgs in your Essbase installation.

Use application_name.log to find out more about the activities in an application. These are some of the activities you can assess:

This table lists the types of actions logged and the information included in the log message.

Table 58: Contents of the Application Log (application_name.log)  

Type of Action
Information Included

Actions performed at the database level, such as loading data, clearing data, or calculating data

  • User name
  • Date and time
  • Application and database name and time
  • If starting application-loading Java modules, and reading and writing database and application information
  • If loading databases- information about dimension sizes, dynamic calculation members, blocks, cache sizes, index page size, and I/O information
  • If starting databases-application and database setup information, including reading free space information, writing database parameters, retrieving state information, writing application and database definition information, retrieving database volumes, and writing database mapping
  • If loading-the load command, parallel data load information, cells updated and elapsed load time

Actions performed at the outline level, such as restructuring

  • User name
  • Date and time
  • Information about dimension sizes, dynamic calculation members, blocks, cache sizes, index page size, I/O information, and restructure elapsed time

Actions performed at the spreadsheet level, such as lock and send

  • User name
  • Date and time
  • Action performed


Example of an Application Log

The following sections show example entries in the application log, including a standard startup and shutdown, and an example of the messages logged when an error occurs.

Example 1: Startup Messages in the Application Log

Figure 518 shows all the entries written to application_name.log when OLAP Server starts. The log includes information such as the time the application starts, when application and database information is read and written, when the application is ready for login requests, and when the database is loaded.

Figure 518: Initials Startup Messages in the Application Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:14 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1002035)
Starting Essbase Server - Application [Sample] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1200480)
Loaded and initialized JVM module 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019008)
Reading Application Definition For [Sample] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019009)
Reading Database Definition For [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019021)
Reading Database Mapping For [Sample] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019010)
Writing Application Definition For [Sample] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019011)
Writing Database Definition For [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019022)
Writing Database Mapping For [Sample] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013202)
Waiting for Login Requests 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Load Database] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019018)
Writing Parameters For Database [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019017)
Reading Parameters For Database [Basic] 

After OLAP Server starts, OLAP Server writes information about the dimensions and members in the outline, such as the dimension sizes and dynamic calculation information, to the application log:

Figure 519: Database Outline Messages in the Application Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019012)
Reading Outline For Database [Basic]

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1007043)
Declared Dimension Sizes = [20 17 23 25 5 3 5 3 15 8 6 ]

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1007042)
Actual Dimension Sizes = [20 14 20 25 4 3 5 3 15 8 5 ]

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1007125)
The number of Dynamic Calc Non-Store Members = [8 6 0 0 2 ]

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1007126)
The number of Dynamic Calc Store Members = [0 0 0 0 0 ]

Next, OLAP Server writes information about the blocks in the database, including the block size, the number of declared and possible blocks, and the number of blocks needed to perform calculations (you can use this to estimate the retrieval performance for members of sparse dimensions tagged as Dynamic Calc) to the application log:

Figure 520: Block-Related Messages in the Application Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1007127)
The logical block size is [1120] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1010008)
Maximum Declared Blocks is [575] with data block size of [1700] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1010007)
Maximum Actual Possible Blocks is [500] with data block size of [192] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1200481)
Formula for member [Opening Inventory] will be executed in [CELL] mode 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1012710)
Essbase needs to retrieve [1] Essbase Kernel blocks in order to calculate the top dynamically-calculated block. 

Next, OLAP Server writes information about the caches set for each database to the application log, as illustrated in Figure 521.

Figure 521: Cache Messages in the Application Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1012736)
The Dyn.Calc.Cache for database [Basic] can hold a maximum of [2340] blocks. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1012737)
The Dyn.Calc.Cache for database [Basic], when full, will result in [allocation from non-Dyn.Calc.Cache memory]. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019018)
Writing Parameters For Database [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019017)
Reading Parameters For Database [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1070013)
Index cache size ==> [1048576] bytes, [1024] index pages. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1070014)
Index page size ==> [1024] bytes. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1070081)
Using buffered I/O for the index and data files. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1070083)
Using waited I/O for the index and data files. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019019)
Reading Data File Free Space Information For Database [Basic]... 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1006025)
Data cache size ==> [3145728] bytes, [2048] data pages 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1006026)
Data file cache size ==> [0] bytes, [0] data file pages 

The final messages logged at startup refer to general database information:

Figure 522: General Database Messages in the Application Log

[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database Volumes] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Set Database State] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019018)
Writing Parameters For Database [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019018)
Writing Parameters For Database [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database State] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database Info] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [SetApplicationState] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019010)
Writing Application Definition For [Sample] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019011)
Writing Database Definition For [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:47:15 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019022)
Writing Database Mapping For [Sample] 

Example 2: Errors in the Application Log

The following example shows a single error. An unknown member was found in the data load file; this caused the load to fail. First, you see the request for the data load, then the error message, and, finally, information messages describing the data values changed by the data load and the data load elapsed time.

[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013210)
User [admin] set active on database [Basic] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]
Local/Sample/Basic/admin/Info(1013091)
Received Command [DataLoad] from user [admin] 
[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]
Local/Sample/Basic/admin/Info(1003040)
Parallel dataload enabled: [1] block prepare threads, [1] block write threads. 
[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]
Local/Sample/Basic/admin/Error(1003000)
Unknown Item [500-10] in Data Load, [0] Records Completed 
[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]
Local/Sample/Basic/admin/Warning(1003035)
No data values modified by load of this data file 
[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]
Local/Sample/Basic/admin/Info(1003024)
Data Load Elapsed Time : [0.11] seconds 
[Tue Nov 06 08:49:52 2001]
Local/Sample/Basic/admin/Info(1019018)
Writing Parameters For Database [Basic] 

Example 3: Shutdown Messages in the Application Log

The following messages are logged when OLAP Server performs a normal shut down. First information about the database is retrieved, then the database is unloaded, free space information is written, and the server shuts down.

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:26 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013214)
Clear Active on User [admin] Instance [1]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database Info]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database State]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database Volumes]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database State]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Get Database Volumes]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013205)
Received Command [Unload Database]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019018)
Writing Parameters For Database [Basic]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1019020)
Writing Free Space Information For Database [Basic]

[Tue Nov 06 08:50:34 2001]Local/Sample///Info(1013207)
RECEIVED SHUTDOWN COMMAND - SERVER TERMINATING

Server and Application Log Message Categories

Table 59 provides error message categories for each error number range that is shown in the first column. When you receive an error message, use this table to identify the Essbase component to which the error is related. For information about specific error messages, see the Error Messages Guide in \docs\errmsgs in your Essbase installation.

Table 59: Error Message Categories  

Error Message Number Range
Component That Generated the Error

1001000-1001999

Report Writer

1002000-1002999

General server

1003000-1003999

Data load

1004000-1004999

General server

1005000-1005999

Backup, export, or validate

1006000-1006999

Data cache

1007000-1007999

Outline restructure

1008000-1008999

System calls, portable layer, ASD, or Agent

1009000-1009999

Restoring ASCII data

1010000-1010999

Internal (block numbering)

1011000-1011999

Internal (utilities)

1012000-1012999

Calculator

1013000-1013999

Requestor

1014000-1014999

Lock manager

1015000-1015999

Alias table

1016000-1016999

Report Writer

1017000-1017999

Currency

1018000-1018999

Not currently used

1019000-1019999

Database objects

1020000-102999

Spreadsheet extractor

1021000-1021999

SQL Interface

1022000-1022999

Security

1023000-1023999

Partitioning

1024000-1024999

Query Extractor

1030000-1030999

Application Programming Interface (API)

1040000-1040999

General network

1041000-1041999

Network-Named Pipes

1042000-1042999

Network-TCP

1043000-1049999

Not currently used

1050000-1055999

Agent

1056000-1059999

Not currently used

1060000-1060999

Outline API

106100-1069999

Not currently used

1070000-1070999

Index manager

1071000-1079999

Not currently used

1080000-1080099

Transaction manager

1081000-1089999

Not currently used

1090000-1099999

Rules file processing

1010000-1019999

Not currently used

1100000-1100999

Not currently used

1110000-1119999

Hyperion Web Gateway (HWG)

1120000-1129999

Grid API

1130000-1139999

Miscellaneous

1140000-1149999

Linked Reporting Objects (LRO)

1150000-1159999

Outline synchronization

1160000-1169999

Outline change records

1170000-1179999

Attributes

1180000-1189999

Showcase

1190000-1199999

Enterprise Integration Services

1200000-1200999

Calculator framework



Using Server and Application Logs

The following sections describe the actions you can perform on server and application logs.

For information about server and application logs, see Understanding Server and Application Logs.

You can also view, filter, search, and analyze logs using Administration Services. For more information, see Essbase Administration Services Online Help. For information about specific error messages, see the Error Messages Guide in \docs\errmsgs in your Essbase installation.

Setting the Type of Server Messages Logged

By default, the OLAP Server log, ARBORPATH\essbase.log, lists the following types of messages:

This table lists the setting that you specify in the OLAP Server's essbase.cfg file to determine what types of messages OLAP Server writes to the OLAP Server log. If you change an essbase.cfg setting, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 60: Setting Messages in the Server Using essbase.cfg

Setting
Definition
For More Information
AGENTLOGMESSAGELEVEL 

An essbase.cfg setting that determines whether OLAP Server writes all messages, warning messages, or error messages to the OLAP Server log

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Setting the Type of Application Messages Logged

By default, the application log, ARBORPATH\app\application_name\application_name.log, lists the following types of messages:

This table lists settings that you specify in the OLAP Server's essbase.cfg file and a command that you can use in a calculation script to determine what types of messages OLAP Server writes to the application log. If you change an essbase.cfg setting, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 61: Setting Messages in the Application Log  

Setting
Definition
For More Information

LOGMESSAGELEVEL

An essbase.cfg setting that determines whether OLAP Server writes all messages, warning messages, or error messages to the application log

Technical Reference in the docs directory

TIMINGMESSAGES

An essbase.cfg setting that determines whether OLAP Server writes the duration of each spreadsheet and report query to the application log

Technical Reference in the docs directory

SSLUNKNOWN

An essbase.cfg setting that determines whether OLAP Server writes error messages when it encounters an unknown member name during a spreadsheet operation to the application log

Technical Reference in the docs directory

SET MSG

A calculation script setting that determines whether OLAP Server writes the following items to the application log during the duration of the calculation script:

  • A summary of calculation statistics
  • Detailed calculation statistics
  • All messages, warning messages, error messages, or no messages

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Viewing the Server and Application Logs

When you view a log, you are viewing a snapshot. To view an updated version of a log, close and reopen the log. You can choose to view a log from a specific date to the present or to view the entire log.

You must have Supervisor permissions to view OLAP Server logs, and you must have at least Application Designer permissions to view application logs.

To view a server or application log, follow the instructions in this table:

Table 62: Viewing the Server and Application Logs

Tool
Instructions
For More Information

Application Manager

To view the OLAP Server log, connect to the server and select Server > View Event Log.

To view the application log, connect to the server, select the application, and select Application > View Event Log.

Application Manager online help.

Administration Services

To view the OLAP Server log, select the OLAP server in Enterprise View > right-click > select View Log.

To view the application log, select the application in Enterprise View > right-click > select View Log.

Essbase Administration Services Online Help



Clearing the Server and Application Logs Immediately

The server and application logs use disk space on the server. Occasionally, you may need to clear entries from a log before it grows too large. Clearing the server log removes all entries in the log, but does not remove the server log itself. Clearing the application log removes all the entries in the application log and deletes the application log itself. Be sure to back up each log before you clear it.

You must have Supervisor permissions to clear server and application logs

To clear a server or application log immediately, use the instructions in this table:

Table 63: Clearing the Server and Application Logs Immediately

Tool
Instructions
For More Information

Application Manager

To clear the OLAP Server log, connect to the server and select Server > Delete Event Log.

To clear the application log, connect to the server, select the application, and select Application > Delete Event Log.

Application Manager online help.

Administration Services

To view the OLAP Server log, select the OLAP server in Enterprise View > right-click > select Delete Log.

To view the application log,, select the application in Enterprise View > right-click > select Delete Log.

Essbase Administration Services Online Help

MaxL

To clear the OLAP Server log:

alter system clear logfile;

To clear the application log:

alter application application_name clear logfile;

Technical Reference in the docs directory

ESSCMD

To clear the server log:

DELETELOG "";

To delete the application log:

DELETELOG "appname";



To clear a server or application log each time the server or application restarts, see Clearing the Server and Application Logs Upon Restart.

To conserve space by limiting the items logged in the OLAP Server log or application log, see Setting the Type of Server Messages Logged or Setting the Type of Application Messages Logged.

Clearing the Server and Application Logs Upon Restart

By default, OLAP Server appends messages to the end of the server and application logs. As described in Table 64, you can set OLAP Server to clear the OLAP Server log each time the server is restarted or the application log each time the application is restarted. If you change OLAP Server's essbase.cfg file, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 64: Clearing the Server and Application Logs upon Restart

Setting
Description
For More Information

CLEARLOGFILE

An essbase.cfg setting that, when set to TRUE, clears the OLAP Server log each time OLAP Server restarts and the application log each time the application restarts

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Note: To clear a server or application log without restarting the server or application, see Clearing the Server and Application Logs Immediately. To conserve space by limiting the items logged in the OLAP Server log or application log, see Setting the Type of Server Messages Logged or Setting the Type of Application Messages Logged.

Setting Delimiters in the Server and Application Logs

You can change the symbol used to delimit log entries for server and application logs. This also affects messages logged in the Agent window. By default, OLAP Server uses spaces to delimit fields in a log, as in the following example:

[Thu May 10 20:14:46 2001]Local/ESSBASE0///Info(1051051)
Hyperion Essbase OLAP Server - started 

You can also use characters to delimit the entries in the server and application logs. If possible, use a character that does not occur frequently in your data, application, or database. The following example shows a log entry delimited by tildes (~):

Thu~May~10~20:16:13~2001~Local~ESSBASE0~~~Info~(1051051)~ \\ Hyperion Essbase OLAP Server - started 

This table lists setting that you specify in the OLAP Server essbase.cfg file to determine the delimiters that OLAP Server uses in the server and application logs. If you change an essbase.cfg setting, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 65: Setting Delimiters in Logs

Setting
Description
For More Information

DELMITEDMSG

An essbase.cfg setting that, when set to TRUE, adds a tilde (~) between each field in the server and application logs

To specify a different delimiter, use the DELIMITER setting.

Technical Reference in the docs directory

DELIMITER

An essbase.cfg setting that specifies the delimiter used between each field in the server and application logs

OLAP Server enables you to use the following characters as log delimiters: tilde (~), the default delimiter; caret (^); colon (:); ampersand (&); and asterisk (*).

The DELIMTER setting only works when DELIMITEDMSG is set to TRUE.

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Understanding and Using the Outline Change Log

You can set OLAP Server to create an outline change log that saves outline modification information to a text file. You can review the outline change log at any time to see all the changes that have been made to an outline since the log was first created. This information helps you to roll back an outline to a previous version. The outline change log is a text file in the ARBORPATH\app\application_name\database_name directory named database_name.olg. For the Sample Basic database, for example, the outline change log is hyperion\essbase\app\sample\basic\basic.olg.

The following sections describe the outline change log and the actions that you can perform on it.

Understanding the Contents of the Outline Change Log

You can set OLAP Server to write changes to the outline to ARBORPATH\app\application_name\database_name\
database_name.olg.

This table lists the types of actions written to the outline change log and the information included in the log message.

Table 66: Outline Change Log Contents  

Type of Change
Information Included

Add a dimension

  • Name of dimension
  • Type of dimension (dense or sparse)
  • Dimension tag (if any)
  • Name of left sibling of dimension (if any)
  • Level number of dimension
  • Generation number of dimension

Delete a dimension

  • Name of dimension

Update a dimension

  • Name of dimension
  • Dimension tag
  • Type of dimension (dense or sparse)
  • Level name changes (if applicable)
  • Generation name changes (if applicable)

Rename a dimension

  • Old name of dimension
  • New name of dimension

Move a dimension to a new position

  • Name of dimension
  • Old location, including left sibling of dimension
  • New location, including left sibling of dimension

Add a member to a dimension

  • Name of new member or members
  • Unary calculation symbol for member
  • Level number of member
  • Generation number of member
  • Status of member (Store, Share)
  • Member alias (if applicable)
  • Account type of member (if applicable)
  • User-defined attributes of member (if applicable)
  • Calculation formula for member (if applicable)

Update a member of a dimension

  • Name of member updated
  • Member properties that were updated

Rename a member of a dimension

  • Old name of member
  • New name of member

Move a member of a dimension to a new position

  • Name of member moved
  • New location
  • Names of parent and left sibling in new location


The outline change log program reads outline information from left to right. If you are looking at an outline, the left sibling is the sibling directly above (to the left of) the newly added dimension or member. This rule does not apply if the immediately preceding dimension or member is a parent. If a newly added (or moved) member is the first child of its parent or if the member is the first dimension in the outline, the outline change log identifies the old location of the dimension or member as None.

Example of an Outline Change Log

When a user makes and saves changes to an outline, Essbase writes the change information into the outline change log as a group of entries. Each group of entries begins and ends with identifying information so that you can easily identify each revision, from newest to oldest.

Figure 523 shows one record, indicating that since the outline change log was started, the outline was modified once. First, the outline change log lists the beginning of the change, including the application and database changed; the time of the change; and the user making the change. Next, the outline change log lists the change: a member named 100-50 was added to the Product dimension. Finally, the outline log lists the end of the change, including the application and database changed; the time of the change; and the user making the change.

Figure 523: Sample Outline Change Log

[Begin Outline Change for Sample/Basic, Sat Nov 03 12:49:31 2001,
By admin] 
Number of member changes for dimension "Product" : 1  
Added new member "100-50" to "100" : 
Left sibling - "100-40"
Status - Store Data
Added alias "Cherry Cola" to alias table "Default" 
Unary calc symbol - Add
Level Number - 0
Generation Number - 3
[End Outline Change for Sample/Basic, Sat Nov 03 12:49:32 2001, By admin] 

Creating Outline Change Logs

By default, OLAP Server does not create an outline change log. Table 67 lists the setting that you specify in the OLAP Server's essbase.cfg file to create an outline change log. If you change an essbase.cfg setting, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 67: Creating an Outline Change Log Using essbase.cfg

Setting
Description
For More Information

OUTLINECHANGELOG

An essbase.cfg setting that, when set to TRUE, creates an outline change log

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Note: During a restructure, Essbase holds outline change information in memory until all updates have been made to the outline change log. Turning on the outline change log may, therefore, affect restructure performance. Conditions Affecting Database Restructuring discusses other conditions that affect restructure performance.

Viewing Outline Change Logs

Because the outline change log is an ASCII text file, you can view it by opening it in any text editor. The outline change log is located in the ARBORPATH\app\application_name\database_name directory and is named database_name.olg. For the Sample Basic database, for example, the outline change log is located in hyperion\essbase\app\sample\basic\basic.olg.

Setting the Size of the Outline Change Log

The default size for the outline change log is 64,000 bytes. When the log reaches this size, Essbase copies the contents of database_name.olg to a new file with the .olb extension. For example, when basic.olg reaches 64,000 bytes the contents are copied to basic.olb. After this copy, database_name.olg is cleared. New log entries are written to basic.olg.

Each time the outline change log reaches its maximum file size, Essbase writes over the existing database_name.olb with the current database_name.olg. Retrieve information from database_name.olb before database_name.olg fills up.

The default, minimum, and maximum file sizes for the database_name.olb file are the same as the corresponding defaults specified for the database_name.olg file. For example, if you change the maximum size of the outline change log to 2 MB, you automatically set the .olb file to the same maximum size.

Table 68 lists the setting that you specify in the OLAP Server's essbase.cfg file to set the size of the database_name.olb file. If you change an essbase.cfg setting, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 68: Setting the Outline Change Log Size Using essbase.cfg

Setting
Instructions
For More Information

OUTLINECHANGELOGFILESIZE

An essbase.cfg setting that determines the size of the outline change log, database_name.olg

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Understanding and Using Exception Logs

When an OLAP Server, an application, or a database shut down incorrectly, OLAP Server sometimes creates a text file named log0000n.xcp. The following sections describe the server, application, and database exception logs and the actions that you can perform on them.

Understanding the Contents of Exception Logs

If an OLAP Server, an application, or a database shuts down abnormally and cannot restart, OLAP Server generates an exception log to help troubleshoot the problem. The location of the exception log depends on the component that shut down abnormally and the amount of information that OLAP Server had available at the time of the abnormal shutdown. Table 70 describes the location of the exception log for each type of abnormal shutdown.

This table lists the sections of the exception log and the information included in each section. If OLAP Server could not retrieve all the information before the shutdown finished, some of the later sections may be blank.

Table 69: Contents of the Exception Log (log00001.xcp)  

Section of Log
Information Included

General information

  • Date and time
  • Application and database name
  • Location of exception log
  • Process type

Use this information to determine which component shut down abnormally, and when it shut down.

Machine registers and stack information

  • General registers
  • Floating point registers
  • Hex registers
  • Stack trace
  • Stack dump

Contact Hyperion Technical Support for information on how to analyze this information.

Application-wide configuration

  • Server and application name
  • Elapsed application time; that is, how long the application was running
  • List of modules

Use this information to determine if the application shut down quickly and that all modules are correct. More information about modules is in the system-wide configuration section of the exception log.

Operating system resources

  • System date and time
  • Elapsed operating system time; that is, how long the operating system was running
  • Resource information, including CPU type, memory information, swap information, and drive information

Use this information to see if it is an operating system problem, such as a lack of memory.

System-wide configuration

  • Elapsed Essbase time; that is, how long Essbase was running
  • Essbase release information
  • Network information
  • Environment variables
  • Module information, including module name and release

Use this information to make sure that the release is the same for Essbase and each module, and the environment variables are set correctly.

essbase.cfg values

  • Values of all settings in the essbase.cfg file

Use this information to make sure that your OLAP Server is configured correctly.

License information

  • Serial number and license expiration date
  • Number of ports purchased and ports in use
  • Essbase options enabled
  • Other Hyperion products enabled

Use this information to make sure that the correct options of Essbase are installed and that you have purchased enough ports.

Client request activity

  • Server name
  • Application name
  • Thread information, including the number of threads
  • Request information
  • Detailed information about each thread, including the action it is performing, the database, user name, start time, and end time

Use this information to see how heavy the load on the server was, based on client requests.

File information

  • Page file size
  • Index file size

Use this information to determine whether the page file or the index is too large.

Database information

Use this information to make sure that your database is set up correctly.

Database statistics

Use this information to view dimension information and to see characteristics of data blocks in the database.



Example of an Exception Log

The following example is of an exception log. The first section of the log lists general information about the application and database. In this example, the OLAP Server shut down:

----- Exception Error Log Begin ----- 
Current Date & Time:   Sat Nov 24 13:25:13 2001
Process Type:          Server
Application Name:      Sample
Database Name:         Basic
Exception Log File:    C:\HYPERION\ESSBASE\log00001.xcp
Current Thread Id:     1116
Exception Code:        0xC0000005=Access Violation
Exception Flags:       0x00000000=Continuable
Exception Address:     0x002D2249
Exception Parameters:  2
Exception Parameter 0: 0x00000000=Read Violation 
Exception Parameter 1: 0x0000220A (Virtual Address) 

The next section of the log lists register and stack trace information. Hyperion Technical Support can examine this section of the log to assist in determining why an abnormal shutdown may have occurred.

----- Machine Registers ----- 
General Registers:
   EAX=0x00000000  EBX=0x01358008  ECX=0x00002200 
Control Registers:
   CS =0x0000001B  EIP=0x002D2249  Flg=0x00010202 
Segment Registers:
   DS =0x00000023  ES =0x00000023  FS =0x00000038 
Floating Point Registers:
   CWD=0xFFFF027F  SWD=0xFFFF0000  TWD=0xFFFFFFFF 
Register Area (Hex):
   00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 
...continued hexadecimal listings... 
Debug Registers:
   DR0=0x2F75C73B  DR1=0x75E07D39  DR2=0x1475FF16
   DR3=0x00000000  DR6=0x0000E00B  DR7=0x00000000 
----- Stack ----- 
Stack Trace:
    0: 0x002D2249
    1: 0x002D202D
...continued stack trace listings... 
Stack Dump (Hex):
   (Stack dump truncated from 1397 to 1024 bytes.)
   0x0012EA2C:  00000000 01358008 01358008 FFFFFFFF
   0x0012EA3C:  00002200 002D728C 0012EC6C 002D202D
...continued stack dump listings... 

The following section of the log lists application information:

----- Application-Wide Configuration ----- 
Server Name:           ASPEN
Application Name:      Sample
Elapsed App Time:      00:00:01:28
Module Count:          6
Module  0:             0x00241000 = C:\HYPERION\ESSBASE\BIN\ESSSEC.DLL
Module  1:             0x002C1000 = C:\HYPERION\ESSBASE\BIN\ESSNET.DLL
...continued module listings... 

The following section of the log lists operating system information. You can determine how much memory is available, how much swap space is used, and how much memory is available on each drive:

----- Operating System Resources ----- 
System Date & Time:    Sat Nov 24 13:25:13 2001
Elapsed OS Time:       02:03:03:10
OS Name & Version:     Windows NT 5.00
CPU Count:             1
CPU Type:              Pentium
Total Physical Memory: 327024 KB (334872576)
Free Physical Memory:  155760 KB (159498240)
Used Physical Memory:  171264 KB (175374336)
Swap Flags: 
   Enabled:            Y
   Disabled:           N
   File Found:         Y
   Denied:             N
Swap file(s):          C:\pagefile.sys 
Total Swap Space:      467192 KB (478404608)
Free Swap Space:       421528 KB (431644672)
Used Swap Space:       45664 KB (46759936)
Total Drives:          5
Current Drive:         3
Drive  1:
   Drive Name:         C
   Volume Label:       
   Drive Type:         Fixed
   File System:        NTFS
   Total Drive Space:  11778448 KB
  Free Drive Space:   8592548 KB
   Used Drive Space:   3185900 KB
...continued drive listings... 

The following section of the log lists system configuration information, such as paths or essbase.cfg settings:

----- System-Wide Configuration ----- 
Elapsed Essbase Time:  00:00:01:33
Essbase Version:       6.2.0
Essbase Description:   Ess62P0B128
Network Type:          Windows Sockets
Environment Variable:  ARBORPATH = C:\HYPERION\ESSBASE
Environment Variable:  ARBORMSGPATH = C:\HYPERION\ESSBASE\bin
Module Count:          13
Module  0:
   Module Name:        C:\HYPERION\ESSBASE\BIN\ESSUTL.DLL
   Module Version:     6.2.0.1
   Module Description: Ess62P0B128.1
   Module Use Count:   5
...continued module listings... 
----- ESSBASE.CFG Configuration Values ----- 
Configuration Value:   JvmModuleLocation = C:\Hyperion\Essbase\java\jre13\bin\hotspot\jvm.dll
Configuration Value:   AuthenticationModule = LDAP essldap.dll x
Configuration Value:   OUTLINECHANGELOG = TRUE 

The following section of the log lists license information (such as a serial number), the Essbase options (such as ports purchased), and Hyperion products purchased (such as Enterprise Integration Services):

----- License Information ----- 
Serial Number:         110047420012631A-00A4B010D74
License Expiry Date:   
Port Count:            10
Ports In Use Count:    0
Limited Use Version:   N
Read-Only SS:          N 
...continued Essbase options and Hyperion product listings... 

The following section of the log lists client activity, such as using Application Manager to view databases or using the Spreadsheet Add-in to view databases:

----- Client Request Activity ----- 
Server Name:           ASPEN
Application Name:      Sample  
Total Request Threads: 5
Avail Request Threads: 6
Total Requests:        56
Average Requests:      48.000000
Weighted Average:      7.440000
Statistics Per Minute:
   Current Requests:   48
   Minimum Requests:   48.000000
   Maximum Requests:   48.000000
Thread Count:          5
Thread Id 1444:
   Request Name:        List Objects
   Database Name:       Basic 
   User Name:           admin
   Start Time:          Sat Nov 24 13:24:37 2001
   End Time:            Sat Nov 24 13:24:37 2001
...continued thread listings... 
----- Exception Error Log End ----- 

Viewing Exception Logs

Because the exception change log is an ASCII text file, you can view it by opening it in any text editor. The location of the exception log depends on the component that shut down abnormally and the amount of information that OLAP Server had available at the time of the abnormal shutdown.

This table describes the location of the exception log.

Table 70: Location of the Exception Log

Component That Shut Down
Location of the Exception Log

OLAP Server

The log is in the ARBORPATH directory; for example, d:\essbase\log00001.xcp.

Application

If the application name is unknown, the log is in the ARBORPATH\APP directory; for example, d:\essbase\app\log00001.xcp.

If the application name is known, the log is in the application directory; for example, if the Sample application shut down abnormally, d:\essbase\app\sample\log00001.xcp.

Database

If the database name is unknown, the log is in the application directory; for example, if the Basic database shut down abnormally, d:\essbase\app\sample\log00001.xcp.

If the database name is known, the log is in the database directory; for example, if the Basic database shut down abnormally, d:\essbase\app\sample\basic\log00001.xcp.



Overwriting or Saving Existing Logs

By default, OLAP Server creates a new exception log each time it shuts down abnormally. Subsequent exception logs are numbered sequentially; for example, if log00001.xcp exists, the next log is named log00002.xcp, the next is log00003.xcp, and so on.

You can change a setting in the OLAP Server essbase.cfg to overwrite the existing exception log instead of creating a new log. If you change an essbase.cfg setting, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Use this table for more information about creating new exception logs:

Table 71: Creating New Exception Logs

Setting
Description
For More Information

EXCEPTIONLOG
OVERWRITE

An essbase.cfg setting that, when set to FALSE, creates a new exception log.

When set to TRUE, OLAP Server overwrites the existing exception log.

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Understanding and Using Dimension Build and Data Load Error Logs

OLAP Server writes errors that occur during a dimension build or data load in error logs. The log that OLAP Server chooses for errors depends on the operation that you perform, such as a data load or a dimension build, and how you perform it, such as using Application Manager or ESSCMD. The following sections describe the location of dimension build and data load errors and the actions that you can perform on data load and dimension build error logs:

Understanding Dimension Build and Data Load Error Logs

The dimbuild.err and dataload.err logs contain errors that occurred during a dimension build or a data load. The logs also contain the records that failed to load. After you fix the errors, you can reload the log files. For more information, see Loading Dimension Build or Data Load Error Logs.

The log that OLAP Server chooses for errors that occur during a dimension build or data load depends on how the dimension build or data load was started.

Use this table to find the default location for errors:

Table 72: Location of Dimension Build and Data Load Errors

Operation
Tool
Location of Error Log

Dimension build

Database > Load Data command in the Application Desktop window by choosing to modify the outline

ARBORPATH\client\dataload.err  

File > Update Outline command in the Outline Editor

ARBORPATH\client\dimbuild.err 

Data load

Database > Load Data command in the Application Desktop window without using a rules file

ARBORPATH\application_name\
application_name.log 

For more information, see Understanding the Contents of the Application Log.

Database > Load Data command in the Application Desktop window using a rules file

ARBORPATH\client\dataload.err 


To set the location and file name of dimension build and data load error logs, see Setting a Load or Build Error Log.

Example of a Dimension Build and Data Load Error Log

Figure 524 shows an entry in a data load log. The 500 member did not exist in the outline, so no data could be loaded to it. To solve this problem, you can perform a dimension build using the error log to create the missing member or you can add the missing member in the Outline Editor. Then restart the load.

Figure 524: Error Message in the Data Load Log

\\ Member 500 Not Found In Database
500   500-10   500-10-10 

Figure 525shows an entry in a dimension build log. The 600-20 member is not the parent of the 600 member. Make sure that you use the correct rules file with the correct text file. The record looks like it is for a level (bottom-up) build, but the error message indicates that OLAP Server is trying to perform a generation (top-down) build. When you correct the problem, restart the dimension build.

Figure 525: Error Message in the Dimension Build Log

\\Record #2 - Incorrect Parent [600-20] For Member [600] (3307)
600-20-10   600-20   600 

Viewing Dimension Build and Data Load Error Logs

Because the dimension build and data load error logs are ASCII text files, you can view them by opening them in any text editor. The dimension build error log is located in the ARBORPATH\client directory and is named dimbuild.err. The data load error log is located in the ARBORPPATH\client directory and is named dataload.err. In a standard installation, for example, the error logs are located in the hyperion\essbase\client directory.

If you have no error logs in that directory, see Setting a Load or Build Error Log.

Setting the Maximum Number of Errors

The default size of the dimbuild.err and the dataload.err files is 1,000 records. When the log reaches this size, OLAP Server does not write any other errors that it encounters to the log. The dimension build or data load, however, continues. Any subsequent errors are lost. You can set OLAP Server to write 1 to 65,000 records in the dimbuild.err and the dataload.err files. If you change the OLAP Server essbase.cfg file, restart OLAP Server to apply the change.

Table 73: Setting the Number of Error Records

Setting
Description
For More Information

DATAERRORLIMIT

An essbase.cfg setting that determines the number of records logged in the dimbuild.err and dataload.err files

Technical Reference in the docs directory



Loading Dimension Build or Data Load Error Logs

If the data load or dimension build fails, you must determine whether the Isolation Level transaction setting is Committed or Uncommitted. For more information, see Isolation Levels. If the Isolation Level transaction setting is Committed, you must restart the data load from the beginning. If the Isolation Level is Uncommitted, you can load only the records that failed by loading the error log. Only reloading the failed records is much faster than reloading every record, including those records that succeeded during the first load.

To reload the error log:

  1. If you load from the server, change the file extension from .err to .txt. For example, change the dataload.err file to dataload.txt.
  2. If you load from the client, you can leave the .err extension.

  3. Fix the problem that caused the dimension build or data load to fail. This might involve changing the outline, the text in the error log, or the rules file.
  4. Check the following:

  5. Load the error log using the appropriate rules file. For more information, see Introducing Data Loading.



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