OSF DCE Problem Determination Guide

1.1 Message Structure

Each message or code block contains several ﬁelds of information. With the exception

of the XDS, XOM, and Pthreads messages, the ﬁrst ﬁeld contains a unique 32-bit hex

value. XDS and XOM messages are X.500 compliant. The Pthreads messages are

Posix-compliant. As a result, they do not have an error number or a hex value. These

messages contain dashes (---) in the ﬁrst ﬁeld.

The second ﬁeld contains the symbolic name for the message or code. A few Pthreads

messages do not have a symbolic name. These messages contain dashes (---) in the

symbolic-name ﬁeld.

The symbolic name is followed by three ﬁelds containing the severity level, component,

and subcomponent name (which can be absent if not applicable). The sixth ﬁeld contains

the text of the message. The seventh ﬁeld contains an explanation of the event that

generated the message. The eighth ﬁeld contains a recovery action.

The following is an example of a typical DCE error message:

0x1131f08b dcp_s_cds_no_obj_mod_operation

Severity: Warning Component: dcp Subcomponent: dcp_svc_cds

Text: Option not speciﬁed.

Explanation: The object modify command requires one or more options.

Action: Retype the command with one or more of the following options: -add, -remove,

or -change..

The content of these eight ﬁelds is self explanatory with the exception of the severity and

the subcomponent ﬁelds.

1.1.1 Severity Levels

The level contained in the severity ﬁeld will generally be one of the following:

Fatal An unrecoverable error has occurred. The program usually terminates

and special recovery action is required.

Error An unexpected, nonterminal or correctable event. The program

continues, but some services may not be available. It might also

indicate that a request or action could not be completed.

Warning Action has been taken that may not be the desired or requested action.

For example, if a requested database was not found, the default might

be used. Or it may be a warning that some possibly undesired action

will take place, such as a directory that is not empty will be removed. It

might also indicate that a future problem will arise if action is not taken

now; for example, a printer might be low on paper.

Notice An event has taken place that does not directly require action; for

example, a process might have started as requested.

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