Thread Validator Help

Zoom Window Out
Larger Text | Smaller Text
Hide Page Header
Show Expanding Text
Print Topic
Send Mail Feedback
Share This Topic
Save Permalink URL

First Run Configuration

First run configuration

For new users of Thread Validator, a configuration wizard appears the first time you run the application.

The wizard collects a few details about environment, tools, update requirements (for non-evaluation users) and ends with a short video tutorial.

first-run-config-dialog

User interface mode

After the introductory page, the wizard presents options for configuring the how the launch, inject and wait dialogs present information to you.

first-run-config-user-interface-mode

•Wizard mode instructionStep guides you through the tasks in a linear fashion

•Dialog mode instructionStep all options are contained in a single dialog

Experienced users will find this mode quicker to use

These settings can be changed at any time via the User Interface Mode option on the Settings menu.

Symbol search path environment variables

After the introductory page, the wizard presents options for using environment variables for symbol search paths when finding PDB symbols.

You don't have to choose any of these options as Thread Validator will try to automatically determine symbol path information.

These environment settings can be changed at any time via the Configure Symbol Handling Environment Variables on the Symbol Server page of the Settings Dialog.

Symbol lookup

The next page of the wizard allows you to specify which IDE, Compiler or Linker you're using.

This is important as it affects how symbol lookup is performed. Visual Studio has various quirks in its history of symbol handling and we have to work around that.

The default settings are shown below, although the Visual Studio version may vary.

These lookup settings can be changed at any time on the Symbol Lookup page of the Settings Dialog.

Hook Insertion

The next page of the wizard allows you to specify which synchronization functions will be monitored.

Two check boxes control which groups of hooks are inserted into your application.

•Synchronization functions instructionStep inserts hooks for tracking synchronization objects into the target program

If enabled, the default behaviour is that critical section enter and leave events will be tracked. Additional functions can then be specified below.

•Functions working with waitable handles instructionStep hooks (below) for tracking functions that create, manage and destroy waitable handles will be inserted into the target program

A few additional functions (Sleep, and critical section related functions) are also monitored.

Specify which groups of functions should have data collected from them using the individual check boxes. (See note about memory below).

Any collected data can be viewed on the Active Objects and Analysis tabs.

Groups of items	Functions that...
•Critical Section	initialize, modify and destroy
•Event	create, open and destroy
•Mutex	create, open and destroy
•Semaphore	create, open and destroy
•Register Wait	register and unregister
•Waitable Timer	create, open and destroy
•Job Object	create, open and destroy
•Process	create, open and destroy
•Thread	create, open and destroy
•File	create, open and destroy files (of any type)
•Duplicate Handle	miscellaneous handle functions
•Change Notification	create, open and destroy file change notifications
•Timer Queue	create, open and destroy timer queues and timer queue timers

Other options:

•Sleep

Sleep and SleepEx

For many applications, enabling Sleep will generate a lot of data,

as various threads sleep from time to time.

•Collect NULL and Invalid Handles

information about failed handle creation

When collecting waitable handles, you may also want to collect information about failed handle creation using this option.

•Select/Deselect All instructionStep switches all the above functions allocating waitable handles - i.e. not Sleep and invalid handles

note It's recommended that options in this section are only enabled if you need to monitor the data. If you subsequently find that memory consumption is very high, consider changing the settings here, or on the Historical Data tab.

These hook insertion settings can be changed at any time on the Hook Insertion page of the Settings Dialog.

Software update credentials

The software updates page of the wizard is only shown to non-evaluation users.

You can configure your software update credentials within the application and where updates are downloaded to.

first-run-config-dialog-update

You can test the login details to ensure they are valid:

•Test login details instructionStep click to check your entered details are valid (requires an internet connection)

Valid details will be confirmed:

Invalid details may mean you entered credentials for another application in the Validator suite, or they could have been entered incorrectly.

You should have received the correct credentials when you purchased Thread Validator.

If you experience problems, check with your system administrator or contact Software Verify.

These update credentials can be changed at any time from the Software Updates menu.

Software update download location

It’s important to be able to specify where software updates are downloaded to because of potential security risks that may arise from allowing the TMP directory to be executable.

We use the TMP directory as a default, but if you're not comfortable with that you can specify your preferred download directory. This allows you to set permissions for TMP to deny execute privileges if you wish.

An invalid directory, e.g. one that does not exist, will show text in red and will not be accepted until a valid folder is entered.

•Reset instructionStep reverts the download location to the user's TMP directory

The default location is c:\users\[username]\AppData\Local\Temp

The download location can be changed at any time from the Software Updates menu.

Build example projects

The next page of the wizard allows you to build the example projects that ship with Thread Validator.

The example projects demonstrate various application types containing bug you may wish to investigate with Thread Validator.

settings-first-run-settings-wizard-build-example-projects

•Visual Studio... instructionStep opens the example projects solution with the version of Visual Studio selected

•Download... instructionStep downloads a prebuilt version of the example projects, unzips them and installs them in the examples folder in the Thread Validator installation directory

If you choose this option and you have not installed Thread Validator in the default location (assuming a 64 bit OS) the source file paths in the debug information will be incorrect - you will need to use the File Locations settings to inform Thread Validator of the correct location(s).

•Open example projects folder... instructionStep opens the folder that contains all example projects

Video overview of application

The final page of the wizard presents a short video overview of Thread Validator.

note The video has audio

More help is available via the Tutorials tab and the Help menu.

The video is also available on the product website. Visit https://www.softwareverify.com/products.php and find the product link for Thread Validator.

•Finish instructionStep closes the First Run Configuration dialog leaving the application ready to use

Please enable JavaScript to view this site.