This blog will explain how to debug a background batch program with real background mode (SY-BATCH is X).
Questions that will be answered are:
- How to debug a running job?
- How to debug a completed job?
Starting the debug mode for batch job
First we plan a single run of the batch job. In our example we run program RSWAITSEC which does nothing more than wait.
In SM37 show the job run:
Select the job and in the command line enter the background debug command JDBG:
Now the debugger starts first in the batch job part. Hit F7 a few time (F7 = jump back out of routine) until you reach the real program:
As you can see here the SY-BATCH variable is X, which means you are debugging with real background mode on.
SM50 background debugging
If you want to debug a running job, you have to goto SM50 and select the background process. Then choose the menu option Administration / Program / Debugging. Confirm the prompt:
Wait until the running SQL statement has completed and debug mode will start.
Please be very careful with this kind of debugging in a productive system. If you cancel the debug session there might be a rollback work statement triggered, which can cause database inconsistencies.
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