Traces for SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator

Use

When errors occur it can be useful to record system responses in the form of traces. SAP support has tools to evaluate these traces.

This may be the case, for example, if you are obtaining different results for a BI query depending on whether you use the SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator.

Integration

To record traces for query execution, use the query monitor (see Query Monitor).

To record performance traces, use the BI accelerator monitor (see Using the SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator Monitor).

Activities

Trace for Queries in the Query Monitor

Activation

In the query monitor you can execute and debug queries.

...

       1.      Select the query for which you want to record a trace.

       2.      Choose  Execute and Debug. The Debug Options dialog box appears. The options are ordered in a hierarchy.

       3.      Choose BIA Server ® BIA Default Trace.

If you set the indicator for the BIA Default Trace, the system automatically activates all the traces listed under this option that log information about the query that is currently being executed.

You can also choose a single trace type.

Overview of BIA Default Traces

Trace Type	Description
BIA Python Trace	The BI accelerator index server is traced. The system generates a Python program that can be executed. To find out the selections for a query, for example, support can reproduce a query (without recording the ABAP read interface).
BIA Plan Trace	The executor (a component of the BI accelerator) is traced. The system generates a program that can be executed. To analyze the steps that the BI accelerator executes (the execution plan), support can reproduce a query (without recording the ABAP read interface).
BIA ABAP Trace	The system records the parameterization of the read interface. To analyze the problems with the RFC server, for example, support can reproduce a query on the basis of the BI accelerator indexes (without the InfoCubes).
BIA Standard Trace	The system records the trace with particular internal settings (trace levels). The result is returned in the form of a text file, is linked to the query, and is only valid for this query. This trace records error messages. If, for example, a query throws an exception, you can replay the trace to receive more precise error messages.

Display

If you have activated one of the three trace types, the system displays the trace after the query has been executed. You can edit the trace file and save it locally.

Runtime problems may arise for large trace files. For this reason, you can also save the trace file without displaying it and editing it.

Performance Trace in the SAP NetWeaver BI Accelerator Monitor

Activation

You can activate a performance trace in the BI accelerator monitor. This logs system responses. SAP support has tools for evaluating these system responses. The trace is written in save-optimized format (*.tpt).

To activate a trace, choose Performance Trace ® Start Trace Recording from the menu.

A dialog box appears in which you set:

●      whether you want to start the trace for a particular user

●      when you want to stop the trace

For performance reasons, we recommend that you do not choose a time that is too far in the future.

In the status bar, the system shows how long trace recording has left to run (for example,

BI Accelerator Monitor (Trace Recording Still Active 00:10:30).

If a trace recording is already running, you cannot start a new one.

Stop Trace Recording

To stop a trace that is running, choose Performance Trace ® Stop Trace Recording from the menu. If you do not stop a trace in this way, the system stops recording automatically at the time you defined.

You cannot select this menu option if no trace recording is running.

Save Trace File

To save a trace file locally, choose Performance Trace ® Save Trace File from the menu. When the trace file has been saved successfully, the SAP system automatically deletes the trace file from the system.

Display Trace Information

To display important key figures for the trace, choose Performance Trace ® Display Trace Information from the menu. The system displays the following key figures for the trace:

●      Start time

●      Stop time

●      Remaining time

●      Users

●      File size in kilobytes

Delete Trace File

When you save a trace file, it is automatically deleted from the SAP system.

However, if you want to delete a file without saving it, choose Performance Trace ® Delete Trace File from the menu. The SAP system deletes the trace file from the system.

This is useful if the trace file has become too large.