System Utilities

The System utilities functionality contains the following tools:

• A Java logging tool to filter and view Java log messages.
• A File browser to browse through files on the web server as well as upload/download files.

In This Topic

Java Logging

The Java logging tool enables you to view Java logging messages for debugging purposes. By means of a filter mechanism you can adjust which messages you want to view. The tool can be used by system administrators for problem diagnosis and by software developers for detailed tracing. Java logging messages are produced by the standard java.util.logging class. For other logging options in XperienCentral, see Logs. For a complete documentation of the Java logging see https://docs.oracle.com/javase/8/docs/api/java/util/logging/Logger.html (link to Oracle).

Java logging messages appear in the Tomcat console as well, however, the Java logging tool described here has the following advantages:

• Usually the Tomcat console only shows warnings and errors. Lower level messages are not shown for performance reasons. With this tool, you can easily view all available logging messages.
• In the case of remote access, you usually cannot access the Tomcat console. This Java logging tool can be accessed directly from XperienCentral.

The filter mechanism is based on loggers and severity levels.

Loggers

Applications make logging calls on loggers. Typically, a logger is associated with a Java class or a Java package. In general, a logger has the same name as the class or package in which it is used. The name includes the path in the package tree, for example: nl.gx.product.systemwcb.log.panel.AvailableTabController.

With this tool you can connect loggers to filter on logging messages of specific Java classes or packages. Logger selection works in a hierarchical way. By only giving the upper part of a path, you select all loggers that are lower in the hierarchy. For instance, by enabling:

nl.gx.product.onlinehelp.helplistener.impl

You can also select the loggers:

nl.gx.product.onlinehelp.helplistener.impl.OnlineHelpFileUpdater
nl.gx.product.onlinehelp.helplistener.impl.OnlineHelpListenerImpl
nl.gx.product.onlinehelp.helplistener.impl.OnlineHelpNodeCreator

Severity levels

For each logger you can select one of seven levels ranging from the highest level SEVERE, to the lowest level FINEST. By selecting a specific severity level you also enable logging at all the higher levels. For example, if you select level INFO, you will enable the logging at the levels of INFO, WARNING and SEVERE. The available logging levels in descending order are:

• SEVERE (highest)
• WARNING
• INFO
• CONFIG
• FINE
• FINER
• FINEST (lowest)

In addition, you can select the level ALL in order to enable the logging of all possible messages (the same as selecting FINEST).

Other Handlers

The standard Java logging facility provides different logging handlers. This tool uses the MemoryHandler which means that you can connect various loggers and for each logger you can set a severity level. In addition, this tool affects two other handlers for which you can only set a severity level:

• ConsoleHandler: In XperienCentral, this handler is used by the Tomcat console.
• FileHandler: In XperienCentral, this handler is used by a number of logging files. These files are located in an Apache Tomcat directory, for example in: C:\GX\XperienCentral9\apache-tomcat\logs.

With this Java logging tool, you can choose the level at which the handlers should pass through logging messages. You can separately set the level for the ConsoleHandler and the FileHandler.

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Available Loggers

1. Navigate to Configuration > System Utilities and then click [Available loggers].
2. On the [Available loggers] tab,  select the loggers you want to connect.
3. Press [Connect logger]. The tool will select the tab [Connected loggers] and list the connected loggers. The list may also show other loggers that were connected earlier.
4. For each logger, select the desired lowest severity level and click [Apply].

Disconnecting Loggers Before Closing

After closing the Java logging tool, active loggers remain connected for 30 minutes. So, for performance reasons, it may be desirable to disconnect all loggers, before closing the logging tool.

To disconnect loggers, follow these steps:

1. On the tab [Connected loggers], select the loggers you want to disconnect (delete).
2. Click [Apply]. The checked loggers are removed from the list.

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Show Log Entries

1. After setting the loggers and severity levels, select the [Show log entries] tab. This tab shows the available Java logging messages. The list is not refreshed automatically.
2. To refresh the list, click [Update].
3. To delete the list, click [Clear].

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Handlers

1. Select the tab [Handlers]. The tab shows the lowest severity levels that currently have been set for the FileHandler and the ConsoleHandler.
2. Select the desired lowest levels from the drop-down menus.
3. Press [Set logger levels]. From now on, the handlers will only pass through logging messages with severity levels up to the lowest set level.

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Managing Web Server Files (Filebrowser)

The file browser allows you to browse through files at the web server. You can choose from one or more web server directories to browse through. Directories and files are shown in a tree view in which you can expand or collapse sub trees. You can move, copy, delete and rename directories and files. In addition you can create directories (folders) and upload files from your client computer to the web server. When uploading a zip file you can choose to automatically extract the file on the web server.

The directory structure is according to the J2EE platform, see http://java.sun.com/j2ee

 To use the file browser, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Configuration > System Utilities and then click the [File Browser] tab.
2. From the combo box, select the web server directory you want to browse through.
3. Browse through the tree by expanding or collapsing directory sub-trees. To expand click ‘+’ (plus) and to collapse click ‘–’ (minus).
4. To select a directory or file, just click on its icon or name.

Copying a Directory or File

1. Select the directory or file to be copied.
2. Click the [Copy] button.
3. Select the destination directory.
4. Click the [Paste] button. The directory or file is copied to the destination.

Deleting a directory or file

1. Select the directory or file to be deleted.
2. Click the [Delete] button. You are prompted to confirm.
3. Click [OK]. The directory or file is deleted.

Renaming a Directory or File

1. Select the directory or file to be renamed.
2. In the Name field, change the name.
3. Click the [Rename] button. The name is changed.

Creating a Directory

1. Select the directory in which the new (sub) directory is to be created.
2. Click the [New folder] button. A directory named New folder is created.
3. Rename the directory.

Uploading a File From Your Client Computer

1. Click the [Browse] button. A browser window for your client computer appears.
2. Browse and select the file to be uploaded. The selected path and file name appear in the input field.
3. In the case of a zip file, choose whether or not to automatically extract the file at the web server.
4. Select the destination directory at the web server.
5. Press the [Upload] button. The file is transferred from your client computer to the web server. If requested so, a zip file is automatically extracted.

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