Packaging and sending log files from the System Management page

To provide trace information to IBM® Support about the performance of IBM Spectrum Control, you might be asked to package and send a set of log files. One way to package and send the log files is from the Spectrum Control System Management page.

Before you begin

To package and send IBM Spectrum Control log files, you must be assigned to the Administrator role and open a support ticket with IBM Support. You can open a support ticket in IBM Spectrum® Control as described in the following procedure or on the IBM Support website. For information about how to open a support ticket on the IBM Support website, go to Getting support.

Tip: Before you package the log files, you can, optionally, adjust the level of trace recording for each component server. By selectively setting trace levels, you can provide IBM Support with more information on particular component servers that are the suspected source of the problem. You can also reduce the trace level for a particular component server to improve system performance.

About this task

When the IBM Spectrum Control component servers are running, they write trace information to log files. The log files contain trace information for component servers such as the Data server, Device server, Web server, and Alert server.

On the System Management page, you can collect the log files from all the component servers and package them into a single compressed file. You can then send the file to IBM Support automatically using FTP or manually after packaging is complete.

You can also package the log files from the command line. For more information, go to Packaging log files from the command line and sending them to IBM Support.

Tip: Only one version of the log file package is retained at a time. When you create a new package, the previous package is overwritten.

Procedure

To package log files on the System Management page and send them to IBM Support, complete the following steps:

  1. In the menu bar, go to Home > System Management.
  2. Optional: To adjust the trace level for any of the component servers, complete the following steps:
    1. Click Component Servers in the Components section. In the Component Servers pane, you can view performance information for each component server. The current trace level for each of the services on a component server is displayed.
    2. Adjust the trace level for a component server by clicking Off or On for each of the component's services.
      Tip: If you adjust the trace level for one or more component servers, wait at least several hours before you package the log files. If you package the log files too soon after you adjust the trace levels, the logs will not contain enough traces at the new level. Before you create the logs, you might want to try to re-create the problem so that the log files contain the relevant trace data.
  3. Click Get Support in the General section.
  4. If you do not already have a support ticket associated with your issue, click Open Support Ticket on the Get Support page to open a support ticket. A support ticket is used by IBM Support to track and manage your issue and is required when you upload a log file package.
  5. Click Collect Log.
  6. Optional: If you wish to automatically send your logs using FTP, under Option 1: Automatic Upload, enter your support ticket number and your email address and then click Collect and Upload log.
  7. Optional: If you prefer not to automatically send your logs using FTP, click Collect and Download Log under Option 2: Manual Upload.
  8. Click Close to close out of the Creating Logs and Collect Log windows.
  9. If you selected Collect and Download Log in step 7, after the log package is created, select the appropriate manual upload method under Manual Upload and complete the indicated steps.
    Note: The manual upload methods are also detailed on Getting support.
    For more information about resolving any FTP-related problems when you upload the package, see Troubleshooting FTP transfers.

Results

It can take 20 minutes or longer for IBM Spectrum Control to generate and package the log files. You can do other work or log out of IBM Spectrum Control while the package is being created. When the process completes, you can download the package by clicking the provided link on the System Management page.
Depending on the environment, the size of the log file package can vary. Its size is determined by the following factors:
  • How frequently the product is used
  • The number of resources that are monitored, the type of data that is being collected, and how frequently that data is collected
  • The length of time that the product has been up and running
For example, if the product monitors five storage systems over a period of three days, and collects asset and performance each day, the size of the package might be 200 - 300 MB.