Log and Trace Buffer Extraction After System Crash
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional techniques for extracting log and trace data from buffers during a system crash are inefficient, often requiring re-creation of the system problem, time-consuming memory dumps, and costly customized hardware-dependent code, leading to incomplete data retrieval and high development costs.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that register and reserve log and trace buffers before a system failure, generating an in-memory file during a fast reboot to preserve data, allowing for easy extraction after the reboot without losing any information, using a common infrastructure shared by multiple applications and tools.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If conventional crash dump tools are used to extract log and trace data, then data can be retrieved after system crash, but the process is time-consuming and inefficient due to dumping entire system memory
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary log and trace buffer data from memory rather than dumping the entire system memory. The crash dump tool is modified to identify and extract only the relevant buffer contents, separating the needed information from the unnecessary bulk memory dump.
Solution Approach 2:
The memory dump process is segmented into identifying specific buffer regions and extracting only those portions containing log and trace data. This divides the monolithic memory dump into targeted extractions from specific memory addresses where buffers are located.
2Loss of information
If kernel level debuggers are used to extract buffer data, then data can be obtained, but the system problem must be re-created which is inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by recording the contents of log and trace buffers directly to persistent storage during normal operation, before the crash occurs. This preliminary data preservation eliminates the need to re-create system problems or use complex debugger procedures after the crash.
Solution Approach 2:
The logging and tracing tools automatically perform the data preservation function themselves, writing buffer contents to persistent storage without requiring external debugger intervention. The system serves its own data preservation needs through built-in functionality.
3Loss of information
If customized code is developed for each log or trace tool to extract buffers, then data extraction is possible, but development and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal crash dump tool that can extract data from multiple different log and trace tools through a common interface. The tool is designed to work with various buffer types and logging mechanisms without requiring customized code for each specific tool, reducing development and maintenance complexity.
4Loss of information
If hardware-dependent code is developed for each device to extract messages, then device-specific data can be retrieved, but development and maintenance costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The crash dump tool is designed with universal hardware independence, using standard memory addressing and file I/O operations that work across different hardware platforms. The tool extracts buffer data through software-based memory access rather than hardware-specific mechanisms, making it adaptable to various devices without requiring hardware-dependent code.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for extracting data of a buffer after a failure of an operating system. An application is registered prior to the failure. The registering includes identifying a buffer in which the data to be extracted is stored prior to the failure. The buffer is reserved to maintain the data residing in the buffer as unchanged from initiation to completion of a fast reboot of the operating system. The fast reboot is responsive to the failure. An in-memory file is generated during the fast reboot, points to the data residing in the buffer, and is stored in volatile memory and not in persistent storage. The data is extracted via an instruction which is executed by the application after completion of the fast reboot, and which operates on the in-memory file.