29
Fri, Nov
0 New Articles

TechTip: An Easier Way to Search Through Massive Job Logs

Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

Cilasoft offers its new Job Log Explorer tool to the IBM i community at no cost.

Anyone who has searched through mountains of pages in job logs to find specific program messages during the process of troubleshooting knows all too well how time-consuming and tedious this task can be. In fact, as my team and I have worked with customers and partners over the years, we’ve commonly heard complaints about this very thing. But what’s surprising is there hasn’t been a useful tool available (at least that we could find) to help quickly isolate critical job information in these ungainly job logs. It’s basically a process of repeatedly pressing the F16 (Shift+F4) search key while trying various search terms.

 

One day, while working with a customer who was burdened by the mind-numbing tediousness of combing through a particularly large job log, one of our technicians decided to do something about it. He came back to the office and created a flexible, simple-to-use tool for searching job logs. The rest of us began to use and refine it, and it definitely made our lives easier, so we decided we should give it a nice interface and share it with customers and partners. And then we thought, “Let’s go a step further and share this tool with the entire IBM i community and do so for no charge to make life a little easier for everyone.” In August of this year, we introduced the Cilasoft Job Log Explorer and it is available here as a free download. All we ask in return is you give us basic contact information when you download the tool and then re-register the license annually at no cost.

 

By making this tool available to everyone for free, we admit it helps with the publicity of Cilasoft and its security and compliance offerings; however, our intention wasn’t to create some kind of free software that identifies issues in your environment that can only be resolved with paid software (as is often the case when free software is being offered by vendors). Once we created this simple tool and found how useful it is, our primary motivation was to share it broadly with the IBM i community and lessen one of our common headaches.

 

Key Features of Job Log Explorer

  • View any job log directly from within its output queue on any connected system. Users can view job logs for a specific user or work with job logs as locally saved text files.
  • Sort job entries by severity, text, message ID, etc. Job logs accessed by the tool are automatically parsed into columns for easy reading and click-sorting.
  • Filter job entries by single or multiple parameters using “And” and “Or” filtering options.
  • Supported languages for job logs are English, Spanish, German, Italian, French, and Portuguese. The tool interface is available in English, French, or Spanish.
  • Save filtered job entries as a separate file in .xml, .csv, or .html formats.
  • Advance to any specified page within a job log.

 

Below are a few screens to give you a better sense of the features of the tool (click on any of these to see a larger version):

 

092316MarmoratFig1

Figure 1: This is the main navigation and log-viewing screen (click here).

 

092316MarmoratFig2

Figure 2: The multiple-criteria filter selection window is used for saving filters and loading existing filters (click here).

 

092316MarmoratFig3

Figure 3: The remote system connection window is used to find job logs on a specific output queue or get a log for a specific job (click here).

 

We all face enough challenges as software developers and system managers, which is why I hope Job Log Explorer will benefit you. Click here to download the tool and give it a try. I encourage you to let me know what you think of Job Log Explorer and how it could be improved. You will find my email address in my bio, below.

 

 

BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS

LATEST COMMENTS

Support MC Press Online

$

Book Reviews

Resource Center

  • SB Profound WC 5536 Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application. You can find Part 1 here. In Part 2 of our free Node.js Webinar Series, Brian May teaches you the different tooling options available for writing code, debugging, and using Git for version control. Brian will briefly discuss the different tools available, and demonstrate his preferred setup for Node development on IBM i or any platform. Attend this webinar to learn:

  • SB Profound WP 5539More than ever, there is a demand for IT to deliver innovation. Your IBM i has been an essential part of your business operations for years. However, your organization may struggle to maintain the current system and implement new projects. The thousands of customers we've worked with and surveyed state that expectations regarding the digital footprint and vision of the company are not aligned with the current IT environment.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT Generic IBM announced the E1080 servers using the latest Power10 processor in September 2021. The most powerful processor from IBM to date, Power10 is designed to handle the demands of doing business in today’s high-tech atmosphere, including running cloud applications, supporting big data, and managing AI workloads. But what does Power10 mean for your data center? In this recorded webinar, IBMers Dan Sundt and Dylan Boday join IBM Power Champion Tom Huntington for a discussion on why Power10 technology is the right strategic investment if you run IBM i, AIX, or Linux. In this action-packed hour, Tom will share trends from the IBM i and AIX user communities while Dan and Dylan dive into the tech specs for key hardware, including:

  • Magic MarkTRY the one package that solves all your document design and printing challenges on all your platforms. Produce bar code labels, electronic forms, ad hoc reports, and RFID tags – without programming! MarkMagic is the only document design and print solution that combines report writing, WYSIWYG label and forms design, and conditional printing in one integrated product. Make sure your data survives when catastrophe hits. Request your trial now!  Request Now.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericForms of ransomware has been around for over 30 years, and with more and more organizations suffering attacks each year, it continues to endure. What has made ransomware such a durable threat and what is the best way to combat it? In order to prevent ransomware, organizations must first understand how it works.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericIT security is a top priority for businesses around the world, but most IBM i pros don’t know where to begin—and most cybersecurity experts don’t know IBM i. In this session, Robin Tatam explores the business impact of lax IBM i security, the top vulnerabilities putting IBM i at risk, and the steps you can take to protect your organization. If you’re looking to avoid unexpected downtime or corrupted data, you don’t want to miss this session.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericCan you trust all of your users all of the time? A typical end user receives 16 malicious emails each month, but only 17 percent of these phishing campaigns are reported to IT. Once an attack is underway, most organizations won’t discover the breach until six months later. A staggering amount of damage can occur in that time. Despite these risks, 93 percent of organizations are leaving their IBM i systems vulnerable to cybercrime. In this on-demand webinar, IBM i security experts Robin Tatam and Sandi Moore will reveal:

  • FORTRA Disaster protection is vital to every business. Yet, it often consists of patched together procedures that are prone to error. From automatic backups to data encryption to media management, Robot automates the routine (yet often complex) tasks of iSeries backup and recovery, saving you time and money and making the process safer and more reliable. Automate your backups with the Robot Backup and Recovery Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAManaging messages on your IBM i can be more than a full-time job if you have to do it manually. Messages need a response and resources must be monitored—often over multiple systems and across platforms. How can you be sure you won’t miss important system events? Automate your message center with the Robot Message Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAThe thought of printing, distributing, and storing iSeries reports manually may reduce you to tears. Paper and labor costs associated with report generation can spiral out of control. Mountains of paper threaten to swamp your files. Robot automates report bursting, distribution, bundling, and archiving, and offers secure, selective online report viewing. Manage your reports with the Robot Report Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAFor over 30 years, Robot has been a leader in systems management for IBM i. With batch job creation and scheduling at its core, the Robot Job Scheduling Solution reduces the opportunity for human error and helps you maintain service levels, automating even the biggest, most complex runbooks. Manage your job schedule with the Robot Job Scheduling Solution. Key features include:

  • LANSA Business users want new applications now. Market and regulatory pressures require faster application updates and delivery into production. Your IBM i developers may be approaching retirement, and you see no sure way to fill their positions with experienced developers. In addition, you may be caught between maintaining your existing applications and the uncertainty of moving to something new.

  • LANSAWhen it comes to creating your business applications, there are hundreds of coding platforms and programming languages to choose from. These options range from very complex traditional programming languages to Low-Code platforms where sometimes no traditional coding experience is needed. Download our whitepaper, The Power of Writing Code in a Low-Code Solution, and:

  • LANSASupply Chain is becoming increasingly complex and unpredictable. From raw materials for manufacturing to food supply chains, the journey from source to production to delivery to consumers is marred with inefficiencies, manual processes, shortages, recalls, counterfeits, and scandals. In this webinar, we discuss how:

  • The MC Resource Centers bring you the widest selection of white papers, trial software, and on-demand webcasts for you to choose from. >> Review the list of White Papers, Trial Software or On-Demand Webcast at the MC Press Resource Center. >> Add the items to yru Cart and complet he checkout process and submit

  • Profound Logic Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application.

  • SB Profound WC 5536Join us for this hour-long webcast that will explore:

  • Fortra IT managers hoping to find new IBM i talent are discovering that the pool of experienced RPG programmers and operators or administrators with intimate knowledge of the operating system and the applications that run on it is small. This begs the question: How will you manage the platform that supports such a big part of your business? This guide offers strategies and software suggestions to help you plan IT staffing and resources and smooth the transition after your AS/400 talent retires. Read on to learn: