XADM: How to Manually Create a User.dmp File with Dr.Watson

This article describes how to use the Microsoft Windows default troubleshooting feature, Dr. Watson, to create a User.dmp file.

Dr.Watson is the Microsoft Windows NT and Windows 2000 just-in-time default troubleshooting feature. If you configure Dr.Watson as the default troubleshooting feature, the feature is activated when a program such as the Microsoft Exchange information store experiences an unhandled exception. This behavior results in an access violation, and the program quits. Additionally, you can manually activate Dr. Watson to quit a program and create a User.dmp file and a Drwtsn32.log file. You can also use this feature to determine whether Dr.Watson can successfully create a User.dmp file on the local computer.

The default configuration for Dr.Watson can vary and it depends on the Windows platform. To view the default configuration, click Start, click Run, and then type drwtsn32. The following information reports the differences between Windows NT and Windows 2000.

NOTE: Options that are not mentioned are the same for both platforms.

For Windows NT 4.0:

• The log file (Drwtsn32.log) path is Windir (Winnt).
• The crash dump (User.dmp) path is Windir\user.dmp.
• The Visual Notification option is enabled.

For Windows 2000:

• The log file (Drwtsn32.log) path is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\DrWatson.
• The crash dump (User.dmp) path is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\DrWatson\User.dmp.
• The Visual Notification option is not enabled.

To manually activate Dr.Watson on either platform, follow these steps:

1. Determine the Process Identification Number for the program that you want to quit. To do this, start Task Manager, and then click the Processes tab. In the Image Name column, locate the program, and then note the Process Identification Number.
2. Quit Task Manager.
3. Click Start, click Run, and then type drwtsn32 -p PID Number.
   
   where PID Number is the Process Identification Number determined in step one.
4. For Windows NT 4.0:
   
   In the Dr.Watson dialog box that is displayed, click OK. The Drwtsn32.log and User.dmp file can be found in the location that is noted at the beginning of this section.
   
   For Windows 2000:
   
   You do not receive notification because the Visual Notification option is not enabled by default. The Drwtsn32.log and User.dmp file can be found in the location that is noted at the beginning of this section.