Techniques for troubleshooting problems
Troubleshooting is a systematic approach to solving a problem. The goal of troubleshooting is to determine why something does not work as expected and how to resolve the problem. Certain common techniques can help with the task of troubleshooting.
The first step in the troubleshooting process is to describe the problem completely. Problem descriptions help you and the IBM® technical support representative know where to start to find the cause of the problem. This step includes asking yourself questions to help you identify the source of a problem:
- Is your configuration supported?
Review the IBM® Connections system requirements topic.
Refer to the Planning the installation topic for information about the supported deployment scenarios.
- Have any error messages been issued? See Error message reference for a list of possible error messages and descriptions. Review the issues listed in the Troubleshooting tips section to see if the problem you are having is addressed there.
- Have you applied the latest product fixes? See Getting product fixes for more details.
- Have you searched knowledge bases for a related problem report? See Searching knowledge bases for more details.
- If the checklist does not guide you to a resolution, collect additional diagnostic data to send to IBM® Support. This data is necessary for IBM® Support to effectively troubleshoot and assist you in resolving the problem.
The answers to these questions typically lead to a good description of the problem, which can then lead you to a problem resolution.