Interpreting multi-threaded CLI trace output

CLI traces can trace multi-threaded applications. The best way to trace a multithreaded application is by using the CLI keyword: TracePathName. This will produce trace files named p<pid>t<tid>.cli where <tid> is the actual thread id of the application.

If you must know what the actual thread id is, this information can be seen in the CLI Trace Header:

[ Process: 3500, Thread: 728 ]
[ Date & Time:          02/17/2006 04:28:02.238015 ]
[ Product:              QDB2/NT DB2 v9.1.0.190 ]
...

You can also trace a multithreaded application to one file, using the CLI keyword: TraceFileName. This method will generate one file of your choice, but can be cumbersome to read, as certain API's in one thread can be executed at the same time as another API in another thread, which could potentially cause some confusion when reviewing the trace.

It is usually recommended to turn TraceTimeStamp on so that you can determine the true sequence of events by looking at the time that a certain API was executed. This can be very useful for investigating problems where one thread caused a problem in another thread (for example, CLI0125E - Function sequence error).