AIX Version 4.3 Differences Guide

6.14 Error Message Templates (4.3.2)
When an application wants to log an error to the AIX error log, it writes
information about the error, specifically the error identifier, resource name, and
error specific data to the /dev/error special file. The error daemon reads from the
special file and logs the information in the error log. The errpt command, which is
used to display error messages, reads the error message template repository to
determine how to interpret and display the error data.
On previous versions of AIX, it is not possible for an error message template
definition to contain any message text. It can only contain codepoints, which are
two byte message numbers used to reference predefined message strings. The
codepoints refer to messages defined by the IBM SNA Generic Alert Architecture
described in SNA Formats, GA27-3136. The architecture imposes restrictions on
the message numbering and message length that can be used. The message
strings are kept in the codepoint.cat file, which is a specially formatted message
catalog.
AIX 4.3.2 has updated the errpt command, along with the commands used for
updating the error template repository, to understand an additional error template
format, which can define messages from a normal format NLS message catalog
as well as using the previous codepoint method.
A template may contain all NLS messages, all codepoints, or a combination of
both. An NLS message is represented with a message set number, a message
number, and a default text string to be printed if the associated message catalog
is not present. Each error template also specifies the message catalog to be used
for messages referenced by that template.
*!sample.cat
* sample error template using NLS messages
+ SAMPLE:
Err_Type = UNKN
Class = S
Report = TRUE
Log = TRUE
Alert = FALSE
Comment = "Sample of msgs in templates"
Err_Desc = {1, 2, "SAMPLE DESCRIPTION TEXT"}
Fail_Causes = {0, 0xeb54, ""), (1, 5, "default cause"},
{3, 5, "default cause 2"}, {3, 6, "default cause3"}
Prob_Causes = {2, 1, "Bad Operator"}, {2, 2, "Bad Programmer"}
User_Causes = {2, 5, "User pressing wrong key"}
User_Actions = {2, 6, "Read the manual"},
{2, 7, "Take a long long long\n\t\
long, really long, look at the manual."}
Inst_Causes = {0, 0, ""}
Inst_Actions= {2, 8, "reinstall"}
Fail_Actions = {2, 9, "kick it"}
Detail_Data = 226, {0, 0x8004,""} ,ALPHA
Detail_Data = 4, {2, 10, "regester value"} ,HEX
This dramatically increases the number of messages that can be used by an error
template, as it is no longer restricted to the messages defined by the IBM Alert
Architecture. The trade off is that the new error messages are no longer alertable.
In addition to increasing the number of messages available to an error template,
this enhancement has also increased the number of detail data items up to a
maximum of sixteen.
140 AIX Version 4.3 Differences Guide