////
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    contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file distributed with
    this work for additional information regarding copyright ownership.
    The ASF licenses this file to You under the Apache License, Version 2.0
    (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with
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         http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

    Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
    distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
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////
= Log4j 2 API
Ralph Goers <rgoers@apache.org>

++++
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="../css/tables.css">
++++

[#FlowTracing]
== Flow Tracing

The `Logger` class provides logging methods that are quite useful for
following the execution path of applications. These methods generate
logging events that can be filtered separately from other debug logging.
Liberal use of these methods is encouraged as the output has been found
to

* aid in problem diagnosis in development without requiring a debug
session
* aid in problem diagnosis in production where no debugging is possible
* help educate new developers in learning the application.

The most used methods are the entry() or traceEntry() and exit() or
traceExit() methods. entry() or traceEntry() should be placed at the
beginning of methods, except perhaps for simple getters and setters.
entry() can be called passing from 0 to 4 parameters. Typically these
will be parameters passed to the method. traceEntry() can be passed a
format String and a variable list of parameters, or a Message. The
entry() and traceEntry() methods log with a level of TRACE and uses a
Marker with a name of "ENTER" which is also a "FLOW" Marker and all
message strings will begin with "event", even if a format String or
Message is used.

The main difference between the entry and traceEntry methods is that the
entry method accepts a variable list of objects where presumably each is
a method parameter. The traceEntry method accepts a format string
followed by a variable list of objects, presumably included in the
format String. It is not possible to have a single method that includes
both of these as it would be ambiguous whether the first String is a
parameter or a format String.

An exit() or traceExit() method should be placed before any return
statement or as the last statement of methods without a return. exit()
and traceExit() can be called with or without a parameter. Typically,
methods that return void will use exit() or traceExit() while methods
that return an Object will use exit(Object obj) or traceExit(object, new
SomeMessage(object)). The exit() and traceExit() methods log with a
level of TRACE and uses a Marker with a name of "EXIT" which is also a
"FLOW" Marker and all message strings will begin with "exit", even if a
format String or Message is used.

The throwing() method can be used by an application when it is throwing
an exception that is unlikely to be handled, such as a RuntimeException.
This will insure that proper diagnostics are available if needed. The
logging event generated will have a level of ERROR and will have an
associated Marker with a name of "THROWING" which is also an "EXCEPTION"
Marker.

The catching() method can be used by an application when it catches an
Exception that it is not going to rethrow, either explicitly or attached
to another Exception. The logging event generated will have a level of
ERROR and will have an associated Marker with a name of "CATCHING" which
is also an "EXCEPTION" Marker.

The following example shows a simple application using these methods in
a fairly typical manner. The throwing() is not present since no
Exceptions are explicitly thrown and not handled.

[source,java]
----
package com.test;

import org.apache.logging.log4j.Logger;
import org.apache.logging.log4j.LogManager;

import java.util.Random;

public class TestService {
    private Logger logger = LogManager.getLogger(TestService.class.getName());

    private String[] messages = new String[] {
        "Hello, World",
        "Goodbye Cruel World",
        "You had me at hello"
    };
    private Random rand = new Random(1);

    public void setMessages(String[] messages) {
        logger.traceEntry(new JsonMessage(messages));
        this.messages = messages;
        logger.traceExit();
    }

    public String[] getMessages() {
        logger.traceEntry();
        return logger.traceExit(messages, new JsonMessage(messages));
    }

    public String retrieveMessage() {
        logger.entry();

        String testMsg = getMessage(getKey());

        return logger.exit(testMsg);
    }

    public void exampleException() {
        logger.entry();
        try {
            String msg = messages[messages.length];
            logger.error("An exception should have been thrown");
        } catch (Exception ex) {
            logger.catching(ex);
        }
        logger.exit();
    }

    public String getMessage(int key) {
        logger.entry(key);

        String value = messages[key];

        return logger.exit(value);
    }

    private int getKey() {
        logger.entry();
        int key = rand.nextInt(messages.length);
        return logger.exit(key);
    }
}
----

This test application uses the preceding service to generate logging
events.

[source,java]
----
package com.test;

public class App {

    public static void main( String[] args ) {
        TestService service = new TestService();
        service.retrieveMessage();
        service.retrieveMessage();
        service.exampleException();
    }
}
----

The configuration below will cause all output to be routed to
target/test.log. The pattern for the FileAppender includes the class
name, line number and method name. Including these in the pattern are
critical for the log to be of value.

[source,xml]
----
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Configuration status="error">
  <Appenders>
    <Console name="Console" target="SYSTEM_OUT">
      <ThresholdFilter level="ERROR" onMatch="ACCEPT" onMismatch="DENY"/>
      <!-- Flow tracing is most useful with a pattern that shows location.
           Below pattern outputs class, line number and method name. -->
      <PatternLayout pattern="%d{HH:mm:ss.SSS} %-5level %class{36} %L %M - %msg%xEx%n"/>
    </Console>
    <File name="log" fileName="target/test.log" append="false">
      <PatternLayout pattern="%d{HH:mm:ss.SSS} %-5level %class{36} %L %M - %msg%xEx%n"/>
    </File>
  </Appenders>
  <Loggers>
    <Root level="trace">
      <AppenderRef ref="log"/>
    </Root>
  </Loggers>
</Configuration>
----

Here is the output that results from the Java classes and configuration
above.

....
19:08:07.056 TRACE com.test.TestService 19 retrieveMessage -  entry
19:08:07.060 TRACE com.test.TestService 46 getKey -  entry
19:08:07.060 TRACE com.test.TestService 48 getKey -  exit with (0)
19:08:07.060 TRACE com.test.TestService 38 getMessage -  entry parms(0)
19:08:07.060 TRACE com.test.TestService 42 getMessage -  exit with (Hello, World)
19:08:07.060 TRACE com.test.TestService 23 retrieveMessage -  exit with (Hello, World)
19:08:07.061 TRACE com.test.TestService 19 retrieveMessage -  entry
19:08:07.061 TRACE com.test.TestService 46 getKey -  entry
19:08:07.061 TRACE com.test.TestService 48 getKey -  exit with (1)
19:08:07.061 TRACE com.test.TestService 38 getMessage -  entry parms(1)
19:08:07.061 TRACE com.test.TestService 42 getMessage -  exit with (Goodbye Cruel World)
19:08:07.061 TRACE com.test.TestService 23 retrieveMessage -  exit with (Goodbye Cruel World)
19:08:07.062 TRACE com.test.TestService 27 exampleException -  entry
19:08:07.077 DEBUG com.test.TestService 32 exampleException - catching java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException: 3
        at com.test.TestService.exampleException(TestService.java:29) [classes/:?]
        at com.test.App.main(App.java:9) [classes/:?]
        at com.test.AppTest.testApp(AppTest.java:15) [test-classes/:?]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(NativeMethodAccessorImpl.java:39) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.java:25) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Method.java:597) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.executeMethodBody(TestMethodRunner.java:99) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.runUnprotected(TestMethodRunner.java:81) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.BeforeAndAfterRunner.runProtected(BeforeAndAfterRunner.java:34) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.runMethod(TestMethodRunner.java:75) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.run(TestMethodRunner.java:45) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassMethodsRunner.invokeTestMethod(TestClassMethodsRunner.java:66) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassMethodsRunner.run(TestClassMethodsRunner.java:35) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassRunner$1.runUnprotected(TestClassRunner.java:42) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.BeforeAndAfterRunner.runProtected(BeforeAndAfterRunner.java:34) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassRunner.run(TestClassRunner.java:52) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.junit4.JUnit4TestSet.execute(JUnit4TestSet.java:35) [surefire-junit4-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.junit4.JUnit4Provider.executeTestSet(JUnit4Provider.java:115) [surefire-junit4-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.junit4.JUnit4Provider.invoke(JUnit4Provider.java:97) [surefire-junit4-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(NativeMethodAccessorImpl.java:39) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.java:25) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Method.java:597) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.ProviderFactory$ClassLoaderProxy.invoke(ProviderFactory.java:103) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at $Proxy0.invoke(Unknown Source) [?:?]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.SurefireStarter.invokeProvider(SurefireStarter.java:150) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.SurefireStarter.runSuitesInProcess(SurefireStarter.java:91) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.ForkedBooter.main(ForkedBooter.java:69) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
19:08:07.087 TRACE com.test.TestService 34 exampleException -  exit
....

Simply changing the root logger level to DEBUG in the example above will
reduce the output considerably.

....
19:13:24.963 DEBUG com.test.TestService 32 exampleException - catching java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException: 3
        at com.test.TestService.exampleException(TestService.java:29) [classes/:?]
        at com.test.App.main(App.java:9) [classes/:?]
        at com.test.AppTest.testApp(AppTest.java:15) [test-classes/:?]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(NativeMethodAccessorImpl.java:39) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.java:25) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Method.java:597) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.executeMethodBody(TestMethodRunner.java:99) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.runUnprotected(TestMethodRunner.java:81) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.BeforeAndAfterRunner.runProtected(BeforeAndAfterRunner.java:34) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.runMethod(TestMethodRunner.java:75) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestMethodRunner.run(TestMethodRunner.java:45) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassMethodsRunner.invokeTestMethod(TestClassMethodsRunner.java:66) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassMethodsRunner.run(TestClassMethodsRunner.java:35) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassRunner$1.runUnprotected(TestClassRunner.java:42) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.BeforeAndAfterRunner.runProtected(BeforeAndAfterRunner.java:34) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.junit.internal.runners.TestClassRunner.run(TestClassRunner.java:52) [junit-4.3.1.jar:?]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.junit4.JUnit4TestSet.execute(JUnit4TestSet.java:35) [surefire-junit4-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.junit4.JUnit4Provider.executeTestSet(JUnit4Provider.java:115) [surefire-junit4-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.junit4.JUnit4Provider.invoke(JUnit4Provider.java:97) [surefire-junit4-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(NativeMethodAccessorImpl.java:39) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at sun.reflect.DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(DelegatingMethodAccessorImpl.java:25) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at java.lang.reflect.Method.invoke(Method.java:597) ~[?:1.6.0_29]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.ProviderFactory$ClassLoaderProxy.invoke(ProviderFactory.java:103) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at $Proxy0.invoke(Unknown Source) [?:?]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.SurefireStarter.invokeProvider(SurefireStarter.java:150) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.SurefireStarter.runSuitesInProcess(SurefireStarter.java:91) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
        at org.apache.maven.surefire.booter.ForkedBooter.main(ForkedBooter.java:69) [surefire-booter-2.7.2.jar:2.7.2]
....
