Qcheck was designed for operation in Windows operating systems; it runs equally well in Windows 95, 98, NT or 2000. Check the Qcheck Web site for updates.
You may occasionally see a message from the Qcheck Console during test configuration or during the running of a Qcheck test. Some are merely warning messages that prompt you to change your test configuration to bring it within valid limits. For example, Qcheck returns a warning message if you choose a size larger than 1,000 kB in the Data Size field of the testing options when you're configuring a test of throughput.
Here's an example of a typical warning message:
Error messages differ from warning messages because they are generated by bad endpoint connections. Often, they merely inform you that you are attempting to run a test using a protocol that is not supported by one of the endpoints.
If you receive an error message, be sure to press the Help for this message button. Doing this takes you to Qcheck's NetIQ Message Reference, described below.
The error messages Qcheck returns are made up of five components:
· the time of day and date the error was detected,
· the endpoint that reported the error,
· the Details button, which offers a look at the call tree,
· the Error Message Identification Number, and
· a brief explanation of why the error probably occurred.
The first line of a Qcheck error message gives the time the error was detected, while the second line tells which computer detected the error. Qcheck uses the computer's network address to identify the endpoint, unless the Console has detected the error. The third line gives the return code that matches the error messages in Qcheck's database. Finally, the numerical Error Message ID and the error's title appear.
You can see exactly what the API returned to Qcheck when you ran your test. For a traceback of the API calls, press the Details button in the Error Message window and use the arrow to scroll down through the text.
Here's an example of a typical error message:
When you receive an unexplained error message, you should consult the NetIQ library of messages, listed in order of their identification numbers. Note that identification numbers always start with the letters CHR, to indicate that they also apply to NetIQ's network testing programs Chariot and Pegasus.
To access the full list of Qcheck messages, simply press the Help for this message button in a Message dialog. This action sends you directly to the online Message Reference manual, which opens in your browser window.
Qcherr.txt, located in your Qcheck directory, serves as an error log for Qcheck. Each time an error is detected, and a pop-up message appears on your screen, Qcheck also generates an error message and adds it to Qcherr.txt. Qcherr.txt saves all your error messages unless you delete them.
Qcheck's assertion error messages advise you to document the programming error you found, shut down Qcheck, and email a report to NetIQ Corporation for analysis. Extensive testing of Qcheck allows us to guarantee that these error messages are harmless and extremely rare. They usually indicate that Qcheck is interacting badly with another application you've installed on your computer, or that your test configuration caused a fault in one of the endpoints. Qcheck usually lets you continue a test even after an assertion error occurs.
If you ever do receive an assertion error message, look in your Qcheck directory for a file named assert.err. Please email it to support@qcheck.net for diagnosis. Updates on such errors, if they occur, will appear on the Qcheck Web site. If you keep us informed of assertion errors as they occur, we can continually ensure that Qcheck is running in top form.
Determining Which Computer Detected the Error
The first step in troubleshooting is usually determining which computer detected the error. For most errors involving setup and file manipulation, the Console is the computer that detects the error.
For errors that occur while running a test, the error could have been detected on a particular endpoint pair by the Console, by Endpoint 1, or by Endpoint 2. The program that detects the error reports to the Console, which shows the error and logs it. The first line of the Console error message tells which computer detected the error.
A formatted error log entry should contain a line of the following form:
Error was detected by Endpoint 1.
If the error was detected by Endpoint 1 or Endpoint 2, check the endpoint fields at the console to determine the actual network address of the computer where the error was detected. All Operator Actions described by the message help should be taken at the computer that detected the error, unless otherwise specified.
Although one computer may detect an error, the solution may actually lie elsewhere. For example, if Endpoint 1 detects an error indicating that a network connection could not be established, it may be because there is a configuration error in the middle of the network or at Endpoint 2.
