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Tracing Packets › SmartTrace Definitions

SmartTrace Definitions

SmartTrace definitions provide more targeted tracing than is available through the PT command. You can add and activate these definitions from the All Traces panel, which you can access from the Packet Tracing Menu or using the /TRALL shortcut.

CA NetMaster NM for TCP/IP provides a number of definition types that you can use. A definition type provides various criteria that you can specify. For example, a TCP trace provides the following criteria:

Example: Trace Packets in an Intermittent TCP Connection

Resets are occurring in a TCP connection intermittently. You want to find out the packet activity before a reset. You decide to create a SmartTrace definition to capture this activity. You want the trace to stop when a TCP RST packet is received and capture the packets up to that point. The following process shows you how to create the definition:

  1. From the All Traces panel, press F4 (Add) to add a new TCP trace.
  2. Name and provide a short description for the trace, and specify the local and foreign hosts that are having intermittent TCP connections, for example:

    The screen capture identifies the connection trace.

  3. Press F8 (Forward) twice to display Page 3 of the definition, and specify the RST flag as the criteria for the trace to stop:

    The screen capture shows the criteria for the trace to stop.

  4. Press F8 (Forward), and accept the values on Page 4. The trace keeps up to 250 packets before a TCP RST packet is received.

    The screen capture shows the general options of the trace such as the number of packets to keep and whether to trace additional packets after the stop criteria is met.