Answers.Body: <p>It really depends on the type of error you are getting. If something is wrong with the display or some ajax functionality isn't working I check the JavaScript console. If there is an actual error message I check the php log and then turn on display back-trace to get a better view of where the problem is occurring.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2015-04-09T15:45:48.573Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2015-04-09T15:45:48.573Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Tyrell Cook
Body: <p>When a bug or problem arises, one must often seek out the corresponding error-messages or error-logs. Since Civi runs on a large stack, there can be several layers to check, e.g.</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li>The browser's Javascript console</li>
  <li>The Civi application log</li>
  <li>The PHP error log</li>
  <li>The httpd log</li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>The answers vary a bit (depending on CMS, browser, server platform, etc), but there's also a fairly limited range -- in general usage, there are only a handful of common CMSs (Drupal/Joomla/WordPress), common browsers (Firefox/Chrome/Safari/IE), and common server platforms. For web-designers and moderately-technical site builders, it would help to have a cheatsheet with common places to look.</p>
  
  <p>I found a couple pages about debugging strategies in Civi. The <a href="https://civicrm.org/bug-reporting" rel="noreferrer">bug-reporting</a> page discusses the high-level business process of using forums and issue trackers. The <a href="http://wiki.civicrm.org/confluence/display/CRMDOC/Debugging+for+developers" rel="noreferrer">Debugging for developers</a> page is very developer-centric (eg adding new log statements to the source-code; installing+configuring xdebug). However, I could not find a concrete list of places or instructions for checking logs.</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-12-08T17:33:15.183Z
Comments.Text: See also http://civicrm.stackexchange.com/questions/6399/civicrm-is-showing-a-blank-page-white-screen-how-do-i-debug-this/6400
Comments.UserDisplayName: Chris Burgess
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-09-01T17:42:13.183Z
Comments.Text: Aha a trick question, where the only correct answer involves someone else creating some new documentation! Very clever, Tim. I'd love to see such a thing as well, i.e. a "how to find more if something is going wrong" for non-developers.
Comments.UserDisplayName: Alan Dixon
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2015-09-01T22:21:59.197Z
Comments.Text: Drats! You saw through my scheme!
Comments.UserDisplayName: Tim Otten
Tags: <debugging><logs>
Title: Where should one look for logs when debugging a new problem?
ThreadText: # Where should one look for logs when debugging a new problem?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2015-04-08)
  
  When a bug or problem arises, one must often seek out the corresponding error-messages or error-logs. Since Civi runs on a large stack, there can be several layers to check, e.g.
  
  * The browser's Javascript console
  * The Civi application log
  * The PHP error log
  * The httpd log
  
  The answers vary a bit (depending on CMS, browser, server platform, etc), but there's also a fairly limited range -- in general usage, there are only a handful of common CMSs (Drupal/Joomla/WordPress), common browsers (Firefox/Chrome/Safari/IE), and common server platforms. For web-designers and moderately-technical site builders, it would help to have a cheatsheet with common places to look.
  
  I found a couple pages about debugging strategies in Civi. The [bug-reporting](https://civicrm.org/bug-reporting) page discusses the high-level business process of using forums and issue trackers. The [Debugging for developers](http://wiki.civicrm.org/confluence/display/CRMDOC/Debugging+for+developers) page is very developer-centric (eg adding new log statements to the source-code; installing+configuring xdebug). However, I could not find a concrete list of places or instructions for checking logs.
  
  **Tags:** debugging, logs
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_2**: Aha a trick question, where the only correct answer involves someone else creating some new documentation! Very clever, Tim. I'd love to see such a thing as well, i.e. a "how to find more if something is going wrong" for non-developers.  
  > **username_0**: Drats! You saw through my scheme!  
  > **username_1**: See also http://civicrm.stackexchange.com/questions/6399/civicrm-is-showing-a-blank-page-white-screen-how-do-i-debug-this/6400  
  
  ---
  
  ## 1 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2015-04-09. Score: 3
  
  It really depends on the type of error you are getting. If something is wrong with the display or some ajax functionality isn't working I check the JavaScript console. If there is an actual error message I check the php log and then turn on display back-trace to get a better view of where the problem is occurring.
  
  
  ---
  
  