Method and apparatus for runtime error handling

• US 7,861,120 B2
• Filed: 12/14/2007
• Issued: 12/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Cui, WeiYi
• Primary Examiner(s): GUYTON, PHILIP A
• Application Number:
  US12/002,070
• Publication Number:
  US 20090158099A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,110 Days
• Field of Search: 714/38, 717/124
• US Class Current: 714/38.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0748 in a remote unit communicating with a single-box computer node experiencing an error/fault remote testing G06F11/2294
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0778 Dumping, i.e. gathering error/state information after a fault for later diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0793 Remedial or corrective actions recovery from an exception in an instruction pipeline G06F9/3861; by retry G06F11/1402; for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40

Abstract

A method and an apparatus for receiving an error notification associated with a runtime error of a software application to generate a plurality of context attributes from a runtime state of the software application associated with an instant of time of the runtime error are described. One or more potential solutions are searched from a data storage including a solution repository based on the plurality of context attributes at substantially the same instant of time. An acceptable solution for the runtime error is determined based on the one or more potential solutions. The solution repository is updated with a new solution if the acceptable solution cannot be determined.

Claims

1. A computer method for analyzing execution of a software application, the method comprising:

generating, in response to receiving an error notification associated with a runtime error of a software application, a plurality of context attributes from a runtime state of the software application, the runtime state being associated with an instant of time of the runtime error;

searching for one or more potential solutions from a data storage including a solution repository based on the plurality of context attributes at substantially the same instant of time, wherein the searching is based on a search setting;

determining an acceptable solution for the runtime error based on the one or more potential solutions;

updating the solution repository with a new solution if the acceptable solution cannot be determined;

storing the plurality of context attributes into the data storage; and

updating the search setting, wherein a plurality of potential solutions from the updated solution repository are searched based on the plurality of context attributes according to the updated search setting, and wherein the plurality of potential solutions include the new solution description.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of context attributes include one or more business context attributes and wherein generating a plurality of context attributes further comprises:

determining the one or more business context attributes from a business context of the runtime state of the software application according to a type of the runtime error.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the business context attributes include an expected value attribute, an actual value attribute and a comment attribute, the comment attribute being associated with a text value.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein searching for one or more potential solutions comprises:

assigning confidence values to the one or more potential solutions; and

ranking the one or more potential solutions according to the confidence values.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the acceptable solution is determined based on the confidence values.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

presenting the one or more potential solutions in an order based on the ranking.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of context attributes include one or more client context attributes and one or more server context attributes, wherein the method further comprises:

generating the one or more server context attributes in response to receiving a message including the one or more client context attributes.

8. A method, comprising:

executing, in response to receiving a software plug-in from a remote server, the software plug-in to run a software application;

generating, in response to receiving an error notification from a runtime error of the software application, an error message including a plurality of context attributes from a runtime state of the software application, the runtime state being associated with an instant of time of the runtime error;

sending the error message to the remote server;

presenting, in response to receiving a response based on the plurality of context attributes from the remote server, a user interface including the response for the runtime error;

wherein

the response is configured to include an acceptable solution for the runtime error based on one or more potential solutions from a data storage including a solution repository, wherein the one or more potential solutions are searched based on the plurality of context attributes at substantially the same instant of time,

the solution repository is updated with a new solution if the acceptable solution cannot be determined;

the search for one or more potential solutions is based on a search setting,

the plurality of context attributes are stored into the data storage; and

the search setting is updated, wherein a plurality of potential solutions from the updated solution repository are searched based on a plurality of context attributes according to the updated search setting, and wherein the plurality of potential solutions include the new solution description.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

sending a notification address to the remote server to register the notification address via the user interface to receive notification messages include solutions to the runtime error, wherein the response includes a message indicating the runtime error has been reported.

10. A machine-readable storage medium having instructions therein, which when executed by a machine, causes the machine to perform a method for analyzing execution of a software application, the method comprising:

generating, in response to receiving an error notification associated with a runtime error of a software application, a plurality of context attributes from a runtime state of the software application, the runtime state being associated with an instant of time of the runtime error;

searching for one or more potential solutions from a data storage including a solution repository based on the plurality of context attributes at substantially the same instant of time, wherein the searching is based on a search setting;

determining an acceptable solution for the runtime error based on the one or more potential solutions;

updating the solution repository with a new solution if the acceptable solution cannot be determined;

storing the plurality of context attributes into the data storage; and

updating the search setting, wherein a plurality of potential solutions from the updated solution repository are searched based on the plurality of context attributes according to the updated search setting, and wherein the plurality of potential solutions include the new solution description.

11. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the plurality of context attributes include one or more business context attributes and wherein generating a plurality of context attributes further comprises:

determining the one or more business context attributes from a business context of the runtime state of the software application according to a type of the runtime error.

12. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the business context attributes include an expected value attribute, an actual value attribute and a comment attribute, the comment attribute being associated with a text value.

13. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein searching for one or more potential solutions comprises:

assigning confidence values to the one or more potential solutions; and

ranking the one or more potential solutions according to the confidence values.

14. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the acceptable solution is determined based on the confidence values.

15. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 14, further comprising:

presenting the one or more potential solutions in an order based on the ranking.

16. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein the plurality of context attributes include one or more client context attributes and one or more server context attributes, and wherein the method further comprises:

generating the one or more server context attributes in response to receiving a message including the one or more client context attributes.

17. A machine-readable storage medium having instructions therein, which when executed by a machine, causes the machine to perform a method, the method comprising:

executing, in response to receiving a software plug-in from a remote server, the software plug-in to run a software application;

generating, in response to receiving an error notification from a runtime error of the software application, an error message including a plurality of context attributes from a runtime state of the software application, the runtime state being associated with an instant of time of the runtime error;

sending the error message to the remote server;

presenting, in response to receiving a response based on the plurality of context attributes from the remote server, a user interface including the response for the runtime time error;

wherein

the response is configured to include an acceptable solution for the runtime error based on one or more potential solutions from a data storage including a solution repository, wherein the one or more potential solutions are searched based on the plurality of context attributes at substantially the same instant of time,

the solution repository is updated with a new solution if the acceptable solution cannot be determined;

the search for one or more potential solutions is based on a search setting,

the plurality of context attributes are stored into the data storage; and

the search setting is updated, wherein a plurality of potential solutions from the updated solution repository are searched based on the plurality of context attributes according to the updated search setting, and wherein the plurality of potential solutions include the new solution description.

18. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 17, wherein the method further comprises:

sending a notification address to the remote server to register the notification address via the user interface to receive notification messages include solutions to the runtime error, wherein the response includes a message indicating the runtime error has been reported.