Trace logs, which contain information such as stack traces and informational messages, are available on both Windows clients (Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8) as well as Windows servers. This example configures the only SharePoint functionality currently available for a client-side trace: BCS.
Enabling a new client-side trace
Trace logging is not enabled by default, but it can be activated from within PerfMon by generating a new data collector set. Trace logging can have an effect on performance, so it is recommended that this functionality not be enabled unless required for troubleshooting efforts.
To perform client-site tracing, do the following:
1. Run perfmon.exe.
2. In the left pane, expand the Data Collector Sets section and then right-click User Defined.
3. From the New menu, select Data Collector Set.
4. When the Create New Data Collector Set dialog box appears, enter a name for the set and select the Create Manually (Advanced) radio button. Click Next.
5. On the What Type Of Data Do You Want To Include? page, leave the Create Data Logs radio button selected and select the Event Trace Data check box. Click Next.
6. On the Which Event Trace Providers Would You Like To Enable? page, select Add.
7. In the Event Trace Provider dialog box, scroll down and select the Microsoft-OfficeBusiness Connectivity Services event trace provider and then click OK.
8. Returning to the Which Event Trace Providers Would You Like To Enable? screen, verify that your new provider is shown and then click Next.
9. On the Where Would You Like The Data To Be Saved? page, you can choose a new location or leave the default. Make a note of this location and then click Finish.
Running the new client trace
Now that the trace has been configured, it is available to run as desired from within PerfMon, as follows:
1. Run perfmon.exe.
2. In the left pane, expand Data Collector Sets and then expand User Defined, selecting your recently configured trace.
3. Right-click your data collector set and click Start.
4. Perform the BCS activities for which you want to capture trace data.
5. After you complete your activities, stop the trace by right-clicking the data collector set and clicking Stop.
Reviewing the client trace results
The results of the client trace can be reviewed from within Event Viewer. Follow these steps:
1. Run eventvwr.exe.
2. On the Action menu, select Open Saved Log.
3. In the Open Saved Log dialog box, navigate to the location in which you specified for the data to be saved when you created the data collector set.
4. Within this folder, you see one or more folders. The names of each of these folders begin with the machine name and then the year, month, and date in which the trace was performed. Expand this folder.
5. Within this folder is an *.etl file. Open this file in Event Viewer.
6. Correlation (activity) IDs are generated on both the server and the client when items are created, updated, or deleted in external data. The Correlation ID column may not appear by default.
7. To display the Correlation ID column, from the View menu, select Add/Remove Columns.
