FIGURE G

Take a look at your log. Click picture for a larger image.

The default display behavior is to show the first 250 lines of the log, but you can specify any range of lines and refresh the screen to get to the portion of the log that you would like to see.

Summary
The WebSphere Application Server includes support for a variety of logging options. By following the instructions found in the IBM document Integrating Jakarta Commons Logging with IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 (see above), you can implement Log4j, Java 1.4 logging, or any number of other logging facilities.

But before you do, it might be a worthwhile effort to take a look at the native trace logging facilities that you get by default when you use the IBM WebSphere ApplicationServer. You might just discover that you would be better off not going to all of that trouble!

Jeff Chilton is a Contributing Editor for DominoPower and WebSpherePower magazines, and in his spare time serves as Vice President of Fulfillment for Echo Technology Group, Inc., an IT consulting firm that specializes in enterprise-focused best practices. Visit http://www.teametg.com for more information or email him at jchilton@teametg.com.