Four log files are produced by PhoneNet as it operates. These log files are useful both for keeping track of PhoneNet activity and for diagnosing problems with PhoneNet as they occur.

All PhoneNet log files are kept in the PMDF log directory, (i.e., in PMDF_LOG: on OpenVMS, or in /pmdf/log/ on UNIX, or in C:\pmdf\log\ on NT). A separate copy of each log file is maintained for each PhoneNet channel and for each master and slave. A typical log file name is ph_x_y.log, where x is the name of the channel with which the log file is associated and y is either master for an outbound call or slave for an inbound call.

The log files are:

Dial protocol transaction log (di_x_y.trn)

This file contains a complete transcript of the most recent PhoneNet session. This log shows the low-level protocol and is generally useful only for purposes of pinpointing where a failure is occurring. A new version of this file is created for each session. The TRANSCRIBE channel option can be used to disable creation and maintenance of this log file if desired.

Dial protocol error log (di_x_y.log)

This file contains a list of all the transmission errors detected by the dial protocol (DI routines). It should be examined and purged periodically by the system manager. This file is appended to rather than recreated for each session. This file will be created automatically if it does not exist.

Message log (ph_x_y.log)

This file contains a list of all the messages that have been transmitted or received. It is useful for keeping track of the number and volume of messages handled by PhoneNet. This file is appended to rather than recreated for each session. This file will be created automatically if it does not exist. The LOGGING channel option can be used to disable creation and maintenance of this log file if desired. With the addition of a general logging facility activated by the logging channel keyword in PMDF V3.0, this log file has become redundant. It will be removed in some future release of PMDF. Sites that use the information logged in this file are advised to revise their software to use the information logged in the general PMDF log file instead.

SLAVE error log (err_x.log)

This file contains any reports of errors detected during the operation of the SLAVE program. Its contents are generally not useful. A new version of this file is created each time SLAVE runs.

Additional log files are created by the jobs that run MASTER either in response to message queueing or for polling purposes. These files are described in detail in the section on PMDF command files below.