Refactor Java agent to let applications manage the log handlers

[deliverable/lttng-ust.git] / doc / java-agent.txt

======================
 Using the Java agent
======================

The agent can be built in three different configurations:

1) Java agent with JUL support:

$ ./configure --enable-java-agent-jul

2) Java agent with Log4j support:

$ export CLASSPATH=$CLASSPATH:/path/to/log4j.jar
$ ./configure --enable-java-agent-log4j

3) Java agent with JUL + Log4j support

$ export CLASSPATH=$CLASSPATH:/path/to/log4j.jar
$ ./configure --enable-java-agent-all

To build the agent with log4j support, make sure that the log4j jar
is in your Java classpath.

The configure script will automatically detect the appropriate Java
binaries to use in order to build the Java agent.

Enabling the JUL support will build a "lttng-ust-agent-jul.jar" file. Enabling
the log4j support will build a "lttng-ust-agent-log4j.jar". Both of these jars
depend on a third "lttng-ust-agent-common.jar", which will always be built.

All these archives will be installed in the arch-agnostic "$prefix/share/java"
path, e.g: "/usr/share/java". You need to make sure the .jar for the logging
API you want to use (either lttng-ust-agent-jul.jar or -log4j.jar) is on your
application's classpath.

Both logging libraries also require an architecture-specific shared object
(e.g: "liblttng-ust-jul-jni.so"), which is installed by the build system when
doing "make install". Make sure that your Java application can find this shared
object, by using the "java.library.path" property if necessary.

In order to use UST tracing in your Java application, you simply need to
instantiate a LttngLogHandler or a LttngLogAppender (for JUL or Log4j,
respectively), then attach it to a JUL or Log4j Logger class.

Refer to the code examples in examples/java-jul/ and examples/java-log4j/.

LTTng session daemon agents will be initialized as needed. If no session daemon
is available, the execution will continue and the agents will retry connecting
every 3 seconds.


==============
 Object model
==============

The object model of the Java agent implementation is as follows:

---------
Ownership
---------
Log Handlers: LttngLogHandler, LttngLogAppender
  n handlers/appenders, managed by the application.
  Can be created programmatically, or via a configuration file,
  Each one registers to a specific agent singleton (one per logging API) that is loaded on-demand

Agent singletons: LttngJulAgent, LttngLog4jAgent
  Keep track of all handlers/appenders registered to them.
  Are disposed when last handler deregisters.
  Each agent instantiates 2 TCP clients, one for the root session daemon, one for the user one.
  One type of TCP client class for now. TCP client may become a singleton in the future.

-------
Control
-------
Messages come from the session daemon through the socket connection.
Agent passes back-reference to itself to the TCP clients.
Clients use this reference to invoke callbacks, which modify the state of the agent (enabling/disabling events, etc.)

---------
Data path
---------
Log messages are generated by the application and sent to the Logger objects,
which then send them to the Handlers.

When a log event is received by a Handler (publish(LogRecord)), the handler
checks with the agent if it should log it or not, via
ILttngAgent#isEventEnabled() for example.

Events that are logged call the native tracepoint through JNI, which generates
a UST event. There is one type of tracepoint per domain (Jul or Logj4).