Techniques for troubleshooting problems

Troubleshooting is a systematic approach to solving a problem. The goal of troubleshooting is to determine why something does not work as expected and how to resolve the problem. Certain common techniques can help with the task of troubleshooting.

The first step in the troubleshooting process is to describe the problem completely. Problem descriptions help you and the IBM® technical-support representative know where to start to find the cause of the problem. This step includes asking yourself questions to help you identify the source of a problem:

  1. Is your configuration supported?

    Review HCL Docs system requirements.

  2. Have you searched knowledge bases for a related problem report? See Searching knowledge bases for more details.
  3. Have you applied the latest product fixes?
  4. If the checklist does not guide you to a resolution, collect additional diagnostic data to send to IBM® Support. This data is necessary for IBM® Support to effectively troubleshoot and assist you in resolving the problem. See Resolving a problem.

The answers to these questions typically lead to a good description of the problem, which can then lead you to a problem resolution.