Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
When Dr. Watson is running in the background you will see an additional icon
displayed on your taskbar.
You can click the Details button in the error message to view the information
that is gathered by Dr. Watson. However, in most cases you will want to have a
record of what was happening at the point at which the fault occurred. If this is
the case, you can generate a log file by double-clicking the Dr. Watson icon on
the taskbar. In either case, Dr. Watson gathers information about the operating
system and then a Dr. Watson dialog box is displayed.
The log files produced by Dr. Watson have a .wlg extension and they are
stored in the \ Windows \ Drwatson folder. The log file provides a great deal
of useful information including the name of the program that has created the
fault, the program that the fault occurred in (not necessarily the same), and the
memory address where the fault occurred. It is important to note that Dr. Watson
cannot create a snapshot if the program does not respond (i.e. if it hangs).
Dr. Watson collects detailed information about the state of the operating
system at the time of a program fault. Dr. Watson then intercepts the software
faults, identifies the software that has produced the fault, and then provides
a detailed description of the cause. When this feature is enabled, Dr. Watson
automatically logs this information.
When Dr. Watson is loaded, click any tab to move out of the text box. The
Dr. Watson window closes if you press ENTER. To view the advanced tabs in
Dr. Watson, follow these steps:
1
Double-click the Dr. Watson icon.
2
On the View menu, click Advanced View.
The following tabs will then be displayed (see Figure 13.2) providing detailed
information about the system:
System
Includes information that you would see on the General
tab of System Properties.
Tasks
Includes information about the tasks that were running
when the snapshot was taken. This tab also includes
information about the program, the version, the
manufacturer, the description, the path, the type, and the
program that this program is related to (when this
information is available) (See Figure 13.3).
Startup
Includes information about the programs that are
configured to load during Startup. This tab includes
the program name, and information about where the
program was loaded from, and the command line that
is used to load the program (See Figure 13.4).
Hooks
Provides information about modules that have intercepted
(i.e. 'hooked') various aspects of the system. This tab
can be used to show the hook type, the application, and
the path (See Figure 13.5).
Kernel Drivers
Includes information about where the Kernel-mode
drivers are installed, including the name of the driver,
the version, the manufacturer, the description, the
likely path, information about where the driver is
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