Data Transformation Engine Map Designer Reference Guide
Chapter 17 - Debugging a Map  Trace File 
Map Designer Reference Guide 
256 
For example, if you mistakenly defined an item to be an integer but the data is 
actually a decimal number, that data object is considered invalid because it does 
not match its type definition. To validate data, the data is compared to its 
definition. If data is determined to be invalid, either the data is bad or the 
definition is wrong. 
In addition, the command server window shows the progress as the data is 
mapped. The command server window indicates when it is finding input objects 
and building output objects. 
Trace File 
The trace file is a text file that records the progress during the execution of a map. 
You can choose to trace the input data, the output data or both. The trace file is a 
debugging aid used to diagnose invalid data or incorrect type definitions. 
When input data is traced, the trace file provides a step-by-step account of the 
data objects found, the reason the data is found to be invalid, sizes and counts of 
data objects, and the data object position in the data stream. When output data is 
traced, the trace file specifies the objects that are built and the output objects that 
evaluate to NONE. 
Note  Turn on the trace file only for debugging purposes. The trace file can slow down 
execution. 
For input data tracing, a message exists in the trace file for each input data object 
indicating whether the data object is valid. If the data is invalid, the message 
indicates the reason the data is invalid. 
Creating a Trace File 
The name and location of the trace file is defined in the Map Settings dialog box. 
The default name of the trace file is the executable map name, plus the file name 
extension .mtr. For example, if your executable map name is MyMap, the trace 
file is MyMap.mtr. The default location of the trace file is the map execution 
directory. 
To create a trace file 
1  Select the map. 
2  From the Map menu, choose Settings. 
3  Specify the desired MapTrace MapTrace Settings. 
4  Click OK. 










