Use Visual Studio to Test XSLT Snippets for Tridion RTF Fields

Recently I've run into some issues with XML and XSLT, particularly the snippets one can add for applying special formatting on RTF fields.  

These snippets can be accessed by viewing a schema's RTF field, selecting the field, clicking the Edit Formatting Features button and navigating to the last tab on the resulting pop-up, tab called "Filtering XSLT".  

I found it quite helpful to run this fast-as-fast-can-be little validation test to narrow down a particular mishap in XSLT.  Certainly, there are much better and more equipped tools out there such as XMLSpy or <oXygen/> for instance, but in my case, speed was of the essence, and as I was not handling a very complex piece of content or elaborate stylesheet, the following steps zapped some light on right away.

1. Open Visual Studio, for instance VS 2012

 

 

2. Load an XML snippet

     Go to File, Open, File.. and select an XML snippet file, for instance the source/content of an RTF field from Saved from Tridion in a sample XML file.  

3. Load an XSLT snippet

     After loading the XML file, the Visual Studio top menu will change and also show an XML main option.  Go to XML, Start XSLT Debugging.  A window will popup to allow you to select the XSLT stylesheet to process.  Navigate to the location of the XSLT, select the stylesheet and click Open.

4. Test run

     Visual Studio will start processing the two files, applying the XSLT to the XML and then reporting back on progress.  It is also possible to add breakpoints here and run through more carefully, or the opposite, run through without any kind of debugging.  The right hand side window will show the resulting XML, labeled with the stylesheet name and an .XML extension.

5. Look for issues reported in Visual Studio

     Any issues detected will show in the Output window so you can take a look and handle them one by one to work through each.

     The only unfortunate discovery I made on this little inside tool is that loading the XSLT becomes cached and the only way to reload it is by restarting Visual Studio.  If anyone found a way to load it without closing, please post back!

Cheers!

Queue Purging in SDL Tridion 2013 SP1

Have you ever pulled the curtain looking for something, anything to help you fix some issue, situation, or state of affairs?

You sit in the middle of the room scratching your head and thinking you have looked everywhere, done anything and everything you possibly could and yet, you're still facing a problem.

I love that place.  My back against the wall.  Me and the empty space of possibility because I know, I know I am still missing something and I will find it.  All I have to do is find it.  And this time, well, this next idea, I'll have to find it outside the box.

I had such a moment a few days ago when I was troubleshooting a publisher service.

It just wouldn't publish.  No matter what.  Not after restarting, not after putting it in debug mode.

Nothing was written in the logs, and checking the publishing queue with "All" entries showed only a few items, all in some sort of finished state.  

Or did it.

As I was sitting there drawing blanks, I remembered troubleshooting the deployer some time back where the solution was to clear out the transactions folder.  Some things had been left there from previous sessions.  No, no one knows why anymore, they were months old.

"Clear out, clean out.."  Ding! I almost jumped as the light bulb lit above my head.  "Purge!  Let's try purge!".  What if the invisible is not so invisible after all.  What if this unpredictable behavior was due to existing "queued" transactions still waiting to publish or left in some unresolved state.  Bouncing on what if-what if's, I set out to find out on my Indiana Jones leap of faith.

In 2013 SP1, we can purge existing items stored in queues in two very quick steps:

1. Load the SDL Tridion system administration .NET assembly 

2. Purge messages from various queues

Both steps are executed via the command line and with system administration rights.  

Open a Powershell prompt and type (step 1):

> Import-Module Tridion.ContentManager.Automation

Follow with the purge itself (step 2):

> Remove-TcmQueueMessage

This second command also allows you to purge by queue type, just add the respective parameter at the end, one of five:

PublishQueue, DeployQueue, SearchQueue, WorkflowAgentQueue, BatchQueue

In my case, since I was on a test machine, I went full-throttle and cleared all messages. This is what it took, and lo and behold, it worked like a charm, the Publisher started working after one more health-check restart.

Hoozaaa!  

There is another command which allows you to inspect the queue contents as well:

> Get-TcmQueueInfo

Purge is typically recommended periodically for maintenance and to free up room in the database.

Obviously these commands should be coordinated and run outside of business hours when the system is not busy.  

An advance notice is helpful as well in case anyone still happens to be working at the time the commands are issued.  Should their transactions suddenly disappear, at minimum they can relate what happened to the notification and resubmit the work again.

For more information, read through the online documentation.

Tracing in SDL Tridion 2013 SP1 - A walk in the park, or.. beach

Some time ago, a little birdie told me in SDL Tridion 2013 SP1, all windows services can be started in debug mode.

While I have not made the time to check this out, I have through experience and some focused searches discovered that tracing has been taken to yet another higher level.

Some of the logs below will be familiar from previous versions, however, there are a few surprises you won't mind finding out about.

Like a walk on the beach, where tracing back the same path you took to arrive where you are can be both nostalgic and new, here is a collection of traces to walk you from the Content Manager to the Content Delivery and back in case you need to revisit some points in time..

What	Where (log or trace file)	How (Config file & Steps)
CME Javascript/CSS	Browser Developer Tools (eg. Sources and Console tabs) IE Firefox Firebug Chrome	http://sdllivecontent.sdl.com/LiveContent/content/en-US/SDL%20Tridion%20full%20documentation-v1/GUID-9652A9DD-3E44-44ED-98C8-28A7FF955CA0 %TRIDION_HOME% WebRoot\Configuration\system.config 1. Disable JS/CSS minifiers <filters>     <filter for="Script" type="Tridion.Web.UI.Resources.Filters.JScriptMinifier, Tridion.Web.UI.Resources.Filters" enabled="never"> ... <filter for="Style" type="Tridion.Web.UI.Core.Configuration.Resources.Filtering.CssCompressorFilter, Tridion.Web.UI.Core" enabled="never" /> 2. Refresh browser 3. Can call GUI urls with mode=js 4. Check Sources, Console tabs in browser developer tools to set breakpoints and/or follow execution or variable values
IIS	%SystemDrive%\inetpub\logs\LogFiles\ <ID of Web site>	Usually enabled, if disabled, check how to enable depending on IIS version
CMS Events	%SystemRoot%\System32\Winevt\Logs\ Tridion.evtx %SystemRoot%\System32\Winevt\Logs\ Tridion Content Manager.evtx	Enabled by default, look for them in the Windows Event Viewer console
CMS Core Service	Own trace	%TRIDION_HOME%\bin\TcmServiceHost.exe.config http://sdllivecontent.sdl.com/LiveContent/content/en-US/SDL%20Tridion%20full%20documentation-v1/GUID-FE919074-22B4-4A00-BDB7-92EF0DC20C3C
CME Server Log / CMS WCF	%TRIDION_HOME%\web\WebUI\WebRoot\ Tridion.Web.trace	%TRIDION_HOME%\web\WebUI\WebRoot\bin\web.config http://sdllivecontent.sdl.com/LiveContent/content/en-US/SDL%20Tridion%20full%20documentation-v1/GUID-16AB0377-ECB7-4FCC-9EB3-128F75AF1E90
CMS Workflow Service	Own trace	%TRIDION_HOME%\bin\TcmWorkflowAgent.exe.config
CMS Search Indexer	Own trace	%TRIDION_HOME%\bin\TcmSearchIndexer.exe.config
CMS Batch Processor	Own trace	%TRIDION_HOME%\bin\TcmBatchProcessor.exe.config
CMS Publisher Service	TRIDION_HOME%\bin\TcmPublisher.exe.config Tridion.ContentManager.Publisher.log	To run publisher in debug mode from command line: not supported, not documented, unexpected results: dies when user running it logs off? -only to be done in Production envs under Customer Support request publisherpath>TcmPublisher.exe /debug ---------------- To have publisher log to file: - In MMC set "Publisher settings" - "Activate logging to publisher actions" option to "true", don't need to restart COM+ or Publisher - Check "c:\program files\tridion\log\Tridion.ContentManager.Publisher.log" - (It doesn't track when rendering in TemplateBuilder template tool) - Publisher log configurable in : \Tridion\bin\TcmPublisher.exe.config
CM Transport	c:\tridion\log\cd_transport_<date>.log	%TRIDION_HOME%\config\logback.xml <property name="log.level" value="ALL"/> or <property name="log.level" value="TRACE"/>
CD Transport	c:\tridion\log\cd_transport_<date>.log c:\tridion\log\cd_core_<date>.log	%TRIDION_DEPLOYER_HOME%\bin\config\logback.xml http://sdllivecontent.sdl.com/LiveContent/content/en-US/SDL%20Tridion%20full%20documentation-v1/GUID-DF88578C-8B32-4933-A6F5-939DA3275D95
CD Deployer	c:\tridion\log\cd_deployer_<date>.log c:\tridion\log\cd_core_<date>.log	Normal Trace and Hibernate Trace %TRIDION_DEPLOYER_HOME%\bin\config\logback.xml <property name="log.level" value="ALL"/> or <property name="log.level" value="TRACE"/> ----------------------------------------------------- <root level="ON">      <appender-ref ref="rollingCoreLog"/> </root>
OutBoundEmail	C:\Program Files (x86)\Tridion\Log\OutBoundEmail.log	%TRIDION_HOME%\config\OutboundEmail.xml <Log>         <Folder>C:\Program Files (x86)\Tridion\log</Folder>         <Level>5</Level> </Log>
UGC	%TRIDION_HOME%\web\WebUI\WebRoot\ Tridion.Web.Trace	1. Backup %TRIDION_HOME%\web\WebUI\WebRoot\Tridion.UGC.Model.dll 2. Replace with %TRIDION_HOME%\web\WebUI\WebRoot\trace\Tridion.UGC.Model.dll 3. Reset IIS

As with any logging in general, beware lots and lots of data will be accumulated in a very short amount of time.

So

- focus your actions

- limit the number of users in the system during tracing

- check there is enough memory available

- check there is enough storage available

and.. don't forget to turn off the traces when done investigating!

Happy tracing!

Quantifying Rambles

Recently I've come across a concept which oddly I had partaken as a matter of fact, part of life, encountered in my daily routines and more so pretty much everywhere else I turned around.

I'm talking about the myriad of little devices tracking here, there, everywhere, from time to calories, from steps we take to where we are and where we go, and the concept behind it I've come to know is called QS or quantifying self.

Being both a sci-fi fan and a techy, my mind inventoried a quick little list of hot wearable technology:

- watches

- cell phones

- fit bands

- tablets

- chips

.. and then raced ahead on what else is in prototype mode and/or about to hit the market..

- Google (eye)glass(es)

- electronic clothing

- tracking rings and fit bracelets

- more sophisticated watches

- portable SixthSense projections

- self-aware devices fixing themselves or communicating information to each other via 'speckled' computing

.. all capturing, analyzing and measuring themselves or any one person in a given context or scenario.

So then my train of thought took a light curve and I began wondering what life would be like soon enough, what I'd be spending my time using in my working environment.  How would I handle all this semantic data physically, and what would connect me to the software I work with?  The concept is not new, but what's changing is the hardware.

From quantifying self to quantifying content, I think there will emerge a more proprietary standard platform of software to enable communication between devices and even between devices and people!  We are probably already seeing some of it reflected in the meta of responsive design, where HTML is now changing to account for context and descriptive attributes in its format as a language, founded on the principles of XML.

Already today, I can connect to SDL Tridion using my phone, my tablet, my laptop and so why not in the near future, from anything else I might happen to wear.  For instance, I could be walking in a botanical garden wearing the new Google glasses and presented with more in-depth information about the flowers I'm looking over feel inspired to create a new marketing campaign spun from African orchids.  I could press my bracelet and open a projection of the GUI which by now may have morphed into a semantic taxonomy of sorts, ready for me to begin quantifying content, tip-tap, quick selections, move on to typing a few key sentences and off it goes, workflow-ed for approval and review, prepped for publishing in a cloud.

Perhaps another even shorter path to my web_of_things Content Manager could come directly prepped with all the data, and I would simply instruct it at a touch to insert itself in the software for other tracking, management, analysis and use.

The technology is in motion, like spring, it has only just begun to blossom.  Soon enough intelligent-data-aware objects will drive much of what we are and do; set the wheels in motion and start thinking about what this might mean to you.  Start classifying your content and quantifying your future business.

Troubleshoot the SDL Tridion Deployer Service - Part 2

Here we are as promised, in part 2 of troubleshooting the Deployer I continue to follow more ways to figure out what could be causing certain deployment woes.

Let's take a look at one of the most important lines in the cd_deployer_conf.xml file

<Queue>
        <Location Path="c:\tridion\incoming" WindowSize="20" Workers="10" Cleanup="true" Interval="2s"/>

1. Cleanup set to false - an excellent source of data is letting the deployment package remain in the folder where it was created, instead of having it removed as part of cleanup.  This is possible by setting the attribute Cleanup="false" in the cd_deployer_conf.xml file.  This package then can be inspected to match what is being moved by the Transport service and whether it matches expectations.  Remember to set this back to "true" when done debugging as files may collect here quickly and take up unnecessary space.

Also, this package can be dropped in the incoming folder of a working deployer to ensure there is nothing wrong with the package itself.

2. Is the incoming folder clean - another great checkpoint, having packages left over may cause the deployer to continue and try processing what it finds in this folder, possibly being hung by a transaction it can no longer distribute correctly

3. Increase/decrease WindowSize - use this to control how many packages the deployer allows in the queue and should handle at one point , thus helpful for cases when items are showing as "Waiting for Deployment".

4. Increase/decrease Workers - change this setting to define the number of deployer threads, also helpful when seeing "Waiting for Deployment".  Use it together with WindowSize to fine tune performance - how many deployment threads at a time should handle a given number of packages, carefully, though, tread as logically as Mr. Spock because giving the deployer threads too many packages too handle, will cause whatever cannot be processed at one time to go on hold - in "Waiting for Deployment", and typically this is seen when the WindowSize is more than double the number of Workers

5. Type of deployer and associated problems - there are several types of deployers, beware which one is in use, and possibly issues surrounding it based on type

• Windows Service - think start/stop/restart/dependencies only works for non HTTP/HTTPS transport protocols
• HTTP/HTTPS - think IIS, web.config, upload module, authentication
• • Test URL: http://HOST:PORT/HTTPUpload.aspx
• Java - think Tomcat, web.xml, web-inf classes, war file
• • Test URL: http://HOST:PORT/cd_upload/httpupload

6. Is the issue due to another service, are the Transport and Publisher in trouble, and the Deployer is stuck because of that instead?

7. Are there any extensions or custom modules installed on the deployer ? (http://sdllivecontent.sdl.com/LiveContent/content/en-US/SDL%20Tridion%20full%20documentation-v1/GUID-894AB0F0-313C-45A3-B8FC-8A02DA894C93)

Has the default behavior of the deployer been modified?

Take note of entries not part of the sample deployer configuration file available from install, such as the example below:

<Module Type="CacheFlusher" Class="com.tridion.examples.CacheFlusher">

8. Multi-threading - is the number of deployer threads too high compared to the number of the server's CPU cores?

9. WindowSize = 0  - if the window size is set to 0 (default), the Deployer sets no limit on the number of items in transit, guess what will happen based on what we talked in the previous points!

10. Constraint violations - may occur for different reasons, varying from table keys, to amount or type of content inserted in the Broker, and probably best addressed by contacting Support.  Prevention is always good medicine so periodically check the hotfixes section on SDL Tridion World for issues already discovered and addressed.

Until next time, happy troubleshooting!

Troubleshoot the SDL Tridion Deployer Service - Part 1

The Deployer Service is step 3, the finalizing step in the SDL Tridion publishing process.

In working with the Deployer, I've come across different reasons something could go sideways, and so in time, several best practices, a certain analysis pattern and some specific areas of interest began to emerge in the way I look at an issue here. 

The purpose of the Deployer service is to complete the publishing process by taking the transport package available in a specified location, usually known as the "incoming" folder, and processing its instructions.  This is done in accordance with the deployer's configuration (a combination of deployment information and data storage options).

It's hard to pinpoint where I begin, hence the brainstorming below.  Typically if there is a specific error I consider that the starting line, and so the next logical step takes me over to the logs, but more often than not, I feel better equipped to work on figuring out an issue if I know the architecture of the system involved.  It also helps to pay close attention to the "behavior" exhibited.  

Time and time again the first question that surfaces especially in situations where seemingly unexplainable ghosting behavior is observed becomes about the number, type and setup of deployers.  These have actually become my favorites: explain the unexplainable!

As I begin the analysis, I make sure I have the following 3 things: 

- the item id

- the publish queue transaction id I will need to trace along

- the timeframe in which the issue occured

.. and of course, as much clarity as I can muster about the symptoms experienced.

1. Are there 2+ (multiple) deployers referencing the same incoming folder - the behavior encountered is somewhat mystical in nature - records will not arrive at their destinations, transactions will not show up in the logs, and so content will not be available on the respective websites.

This can happen should 2+ deployers be configured to monitor the same incoming folder, a racing condition can occur, where the two deployers begin to compete and pickup transports depending on availability.

2. Are licenses correct - validate the path specified for configuration files, and if necessary, remember to request licenses ahead of time from SDL Customer Support.

3. Are there multiple destinations in the target - this is important to be aware of proper permissions and correct paths or urls. 

4. Is there a "rogue" deployer running somewhere - another mystical behavior, the clue here is to watch if transactions just "disappear" and don't show up in known logs at all, with some other deployer running and picking up jobs.  An interesting place to check in this case is the QUEUE_CONSUMERS table, look for machines activated which should not be. Deactivate what should not be in use anymore.  Note the deployer itself is not registered in the QUEUE_CONSUMERS table, the reason this is mentioned is to serve as a hint for what machines may possibly be carrying it which should not.  It is possible to have a deployer installed and running from a Content Manager server, although the preferred setup for scalability and performance is to decouple Content Delivery from Content Management.

5. Check what hotfixes are installed - perhaps the error message is a clear indication of an issue already fixed, an excellent source for this is available on http://www.sdltridionworld.com, I login and visit the Support section to check what hotfixes are posted and/or have been installed.

6. Check cd_core and cd_deployer logs - I look here to trace a specific transaction or item, best bet is to put these in DEBUG or TRACE mode, however beware logs will grow quite rapidly depending on the volume of data published.  Also search for "ERROR"s or "WARN"ings. 

7. Are there jars missing - probably one of the lengthier checks, but this can be scripted for comparison against a working site or the installation folders.  Typically the errors for this will be "Class not found", or "java.lang.NullPointerException", and so I follow the stacktrace to determine what call may have originated the issue and therefore what is missing.

8. Is the storage configured correctly -  beware what is defaulted and what becomes inherited.  Beware what is going to the file system or to the database.  Beware what is cached.  Beware the database connections information is up to date and test connections are working.

9. Is the cd_deployer_conf.xml correct - is the xml formatted correctly, are locations and paths correct?

10. Setup hibernate logging - If errors seemingly database related  are seen, this logging can trace most calls to the database.  This type of logging comes with a high warning: information will be logged quickly so use it to replicate the issue fast and when ready, turn off promptly.  Check Tridion StackExchange for steps on how to enable it and detect what hibernate entries look like.

By now, I may have solved the issue, or otherwise I am in possession of quite some good information and ready to perform more indepth analysis.  If I still cannot determine root cause or fix the issue, I continue my research further to increase the information collected.

In Part 2 of the article, I follow on with more clues, tips and fixes.

How to Setup Classic Editing Workflow in SDL Tridion 2013 SP1

SDL Tridion 2013 SP1 introduced two new approaches related to workflow functionality.  As such the product now provides four types of workflow for implementations:

• Bundle Workflow
• Task Workflow
• Programmatic Workflow
• Classic Editing Workflow 

The last type of workflow is also known as legacy workflow these days, having been superseded by the Bundle and Task workflows.  I recently did some work using this type of workflow and while getting started, I made my way across the following steps I thought would be useful to keep track of.  As interesting and beneficial the Bundle and Task workflows are, perhaps some implementations will decide to retain legacy workflow for a while longer, so here we go.

1. Classic Editing / Legacy workflow does not install by default, so the previous default Component and Page Process will not be available in the box.. out of the box

2. Workflow diagrams are created and edited with Visio.  Installing Microsoft Office Visio 2013 is preferred, otherwise Visio 2010 is also supported (although you may need to install updates the first time the client runs)

3. Install Visio Workflow Designer Client from Content Manager\Additional Products\Visio Workflow Designer is necessary as well.  This is the extension applied to Visio which enables connectivity between Visio and the Tridion Content Manager.  Once this runs, the next time you open Visio, you will notice and recognize several new Tridion icons appear in Visio, under the SDL Tridion Workflow Shapes section.

4. To bring in previos classic workflow processes, you can export Tridion Visio diagrams from 2011 SP1 locally and import them in 2013 SP1 using Visio Tridion functionality

5. When working on step 4 above, if you get this screenshot on the 2013 system, you have not installed the actual legacy pack 

"Workflow Script Type with Name 'VBScript' was not found in the configuration file"

Run the installer and make sure the following option is set:

SDLTridion2013SP1CM.exe LEGACY_VISIBLE=TRUE

6. Once all this is in place, proceed to associate the newly imported workflows as needed in Schemas for Components, Structure Groups for Pages or Publications for Templates.  

Should some of the concepts need refreshing, review them again, and remember, workflows were meant to introduce simplicity as well as security by making sure that specific users go through steps in a specific order.  Always strive to simplify a given workflow and the results will be rewarding.