Gain insights into debugging Linux process and kernel failures using GDB and crash utility. Delve into memory dump analysis, identifying issues like memory leaks, CPU spikes, and deadlocks.

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It’s essential to examine core dumps to diagnose any non-trivial hangs or crashes due to a user process or the kernel faults. Most people have no training in dealing with core dumps, so the causes of most crashes remain undiagnosed.

This course starts with debugging core dumps. You will learn how to debug the Linux process and kernel failures (using the GDB debugger and the crash utility), browse core memory dumps, identify corruption, memory leaks, CPU spikes, halted threads, deadlocks and wait chains, among other things.

Instead of taking a theoretical route, you will focus on hands-on lessons on a variety of memory analysis patterns found in 64-bit core memory dumps from the x64 architecture. You will follow the novel pattern-oriented diagnostic analysis approach that considerably helps with the analysis. Moreover, the course will provide you with problematic applications and the associated core dumps, along with brief descriptions of relevant patterns and some frequently asked questions.

Accelerated Linux Core Dump Analysis

Which function call is a clear indication of an unhandled runtime exception in the stack trace?

Which function call is a clear indication of an unhandled runtime exception in the stack trace?

To identify handled and unhandled exceptions


How can symbolic information help us in the stack trace?


How can symbolic information help us in the stack trace?

The return address of the caller of the `sleep` function


The instruction that’ll be executed next


The return address for a function called from within the `sleep` function

When examining memory contents with `x/100a $rsp`, one of the output lines contains `0x45a9fa <sleep+58>`. What does the address `0x45a9fa` represent?

When examining memory contents with <code>x/100a $rsp</code>, one of the output lines contains <code>0x45a9fa &lt;sleep+58&gt;</code>. What does the address <code>0x45a9fa</code> represent?

**(Select all that apply.)** Which analysis patterns are used to check whether some code was possibly executed from some component? 


 


(Select all that apply.) Which analysis patterns are used to check whether some code was possibly executed from some component?

**(Select all that apply.)** What commands do you use to see the execution residue for thread 2? 

 







(Select all that apply.) What commands do you use to see the execution residue for thread 2?

Coincidental symbolic information pattern

We can examine the raw stack data to see the past processes. What is this pattern called?


We can examine the raw stack data to see the past processes. What is this pattern called?

Test your knowledge of runtime exceptions and execution residues.

Getting Started

Fundamentals of Core Dump Analysis

Using GDB With Multi-Threaded Applications

Null Pointer Patterns and External Debugging Information

Spiking Threads

Heap Corruption

Stack Corruption and Overflow

Active Threads

Runtime Exceptions and Execution Residues

Heap Errors

Deadlocks

Post-processing

Kernel Dump Analysis with Crash

Wrapping Up

Appendix

Quiz: Runtime Exceptions and Execution Residues