Intel® Inspector User Guide for Windows* OS

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ID 767798
Date 5/15/2022
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Document Table of Contents
Document Table of Contents x
Intel® Inspector User Guide for Windows* OS
Intel® Inspector User Guide for Windows* OS x
Get Started Before You Begin Set Up a Project Collecting Results Investigating Results Testing for Regressions Suppressions Support API Support Troubleshooting User Interface Reference Problem Type Reference Command Line Interface Support MPI Applications Support Appendix Notices and Disclaimers
Get Started x
Dynamic Analysis vs. Static Analysis Key Terminology Sample Applications and Tutorials Workflows-Quick Paths to Maximizing Productivity
Workflows-Quick Paths to Maximizing Productivity x
Analysis Workflow Reporting Workflow Regression Testing Workflow
Before You Begin x
Visual Studio* Integration Standalone Intel Inspector GUI Startup Tasks
Startup Tasks x
Change Result and Result Directory Name Templates Choose Baseline Results for Setting States Display Application Output
Set Up a Project x
Build Your Application Choose Projects Configure Projects
Build Your Application x
Configure Debug Mode for Applications in the Visual Studio* IDE Set Up Applications to Build in Debug Mode in the Visual Studio* IDE
Choose Projects x
Choose Projects in the StandaloneIntel Inspector GUI Choose Projects in the Visual Studio* IDE Create Projects in the StandaloneIntel Inspector GUI Create Solutions/Projects From Applications in the Visual Studio* IDE
Configure Projects x
Binary/Symbol Search and Source Search Locations Choose Data Sets Manage Suppression Rules Search Non-standard Directories Set Project Properties-Advanced Setting Target Application Properties-Basic
Collecting Results x
Configuring Analyses Running Analyses Examining Result Data During Analysis
Configuring Analyses x
Memory Error Analysis Types Threading Error Analysis Types Managing Custom Analysis Types
Running Analyses x
Running Memory Error and Threading Error Analyses Stopping Analyses
Examining Result Data During Analysis x
Finding Memory Leaks On Demand Measuring Memory Growth
Investigating Results x
Viewing Results Choosing Problems Interpreting Result Data and Resolving Issues Investigating Problems Using Interactive Debugging Collaborating on Results Exporting and Importing Files Comparing Results
Viewing Results x
About Viewing Results Managing Help Snippet Displays Opening Results Showing Result Summaries
Choosing Problems x
Deselecting Filter Criteria Refining the Source File Set Selecting Filter Criteria Selecting Problems
Interpreting Result Data and Resolving Issues x
Severity Levels States Accessing Explain Problem Help Changing States Customizing Frame Presentation Customizing Data Columns Editing Source Code
Investigating Problems Using Interactive Debugging x
Intel Inspector Debug Extensions in the Visual Studio* IDE Disabling and Re-enabling Problem Breakpoints Stopping Analyses During Interactive Debugging
Collaborating on Results x
State Merge Merging States Across Results Reporting Result Data
Exporting and Importing Files x
Exporting Archives Importing Archives and Other Files
Testing for Regressions x
Testing for Regressions: Recommended Approach Testing for Regressions: Other Approaches
Suppressions Support x
Suppressions Support Using the GUI Suppressions Support Using Handwritten Suppression Rules Suppressions Support Using Third-party Suppression Rules
Suppressions Support Using the GUI x
Typical Suppressions Usage Model Using the GUI Suppression Rule Reach in the GUI Suppression Rule Examples in the GUI Defining Suppression Rules in the GUI Deleting Suppression Rules Applied to Marked Result Data in the GUI
Suppressions Support Using Handwritten Suppression Rules x
Typical Suppressions Usage Models Using Handwritten Suppression Files Suppression Rule Syntax in Text Format Suppression Rule Examples in Text Format
Suppressions Support Using Third-party Suppression Rules x
Typical Suppressions Usage Models Using Third-party Suppression Files Third-party Suppression Files
API Support x
APIs for Custom Synchronization APIs for Custom Memory Allocation APIs for Collection Control
Troubleshooting x
Troubleshooting Anti-virus Software Issues Troubleshooting Application Crashes Troubleshooting Internal Thread Suspension Attempt Troubleshooting No Problems Detected Troubleshooting No Symbolic Information Troubleshooting OpenMP* Technology Issues Troubleshooting Out-of-memory Conditions Troubleshooting Tamper-resistance Issues Troubleshooting Unexpected Application Behavior During Memory Error Analyses
User Interface Reference x
Context Menus: Problem Details Pane Context Menus: Project Navigator Context Menus: Solution Explorer Context Menus: Sources Window Panes Context Menus: Summary Window Panes Dialog Box: Corresponding inspxe-cl Command Options Dialog Box: Create a Project Dialog Box: Create Suppression Dialog Box: Custom Analysis Dialog Box: Delete Suppressions Dialog Box: Disabled Problem Breakpoints Dialog Box: Export Result Dialog Box: Merge States Dialog Box: Options-General Dialog Box: Options-Result Location Dialog Box: Options-State Management Dialog Box: Problem Report Dialog Box: Project Properties-Binary/Symbol Search Dialog Box: Project Properties-Source Search Dialog Box: Project Properties-Suppressions Dialog Box: Project Properties-Target Dialog Box: Refine Source File Set Dialog Box: Select Stack Frame(s) Dialog Box: View Stack Hot Keys Pane: Analysis Type-Custom Pane: Analysis Type-Memory Errors Pane: Analysis Type-Threading Errors Pane: Application Output Pane: Code and Stack Pane: Code Locations Pane: Collection Log Pane: Collector Messages Pane: Compare Results Pane: Filters Pane: Import Result Pane: Launch Application Pane: Problem Details Pane: Problems Pane: Project Navigator Pane: Timeline Toolbar: Command Toolbar: Intel Inspector Toolbar: Navigation Window: Collection Log Window: Compare Results Window: Import Result Window: Sources Window: Summary After Analysis Is Complete Window: Summary During Analysis
Problem Type Reference x
Cross-thread Stack Access Data Race Deadlock GDI Resource Leak Incorrect memcpy Call Invalid Deallocation Invalid Memory Access Invalid Partial Memory Access Kernel Resource Leak Lock Hierarchy Violation Memory Growth Memory Leak Memory Not Deallocated Mismatched Allocation/Deallocation Missing Allocation Thread Exit Information Thread Start Information Unhandled Application Exception Uninitialized Memory Access Uninitialized Partial Memory Access
Command Line Interface Support x
Command Syntax Command Syntax Alternatives and Rules Command Line Output Collecting Result Data from the Command Line Working with Reports from the Command Line Working with Suppressions from the Command Line inspxe-cl Actions, Options and Arguments
Working with Reports from the Command Line x
Reporting Result Data from the Command Line Saving and Formatting Reports from the Command Line Interpreting Result Data from the Command Line
Working with Suppressions from the Command Line x
Creating a Suppress-All File from the Command Line Converting Third-Party Suppression Files from the Command Line Applying Suppression Files from the Command Line Workaround for Disabled Suppressions from the Command Line
inspxe-cl Actions, Options and Arguments x
app-working-dir archive-name baseline-result collect collect-with command convert-suppression-file create-suppression-file <span class='option'>csv-delimiter</span> executable-of-interest export filter finalize format help include-snippets include-sources import knob knob-list merge-states module-filter module-filter-mode no-auto-finalize no-summary option-file quiet report report-all report-output result-dir return-app-exitcode search-dir sort-asc sort-desc suppression-file user-data-dir verbose version
MPI Applications Support x
MPI Analysis Workflow Configure Installation Options Collect MPI Performance/Correctness Data Finalize MPI Collected Data View MPI Collected Data MPI Analysis Limitations Support of Non-Intel MPI Implementations Additional MPI Resources
Appendix x
Product Design Sample Code Caveats Intel Inspector Filenames and Locations Notational Conventions Related Information System APIs Supported During Memory Error Analysis System APIs Supported During Threading Error Analysis Evaluation Features
Intel® Inspector User Guide for Windows* OS

knob

Specify additional settings for a collect or collect-with action.

Syntax

-knob <knob-name>=<knob-value>

-k <knob-name>=<knob-value>
Arguments

Available knobs and values are dependent on the specified analysis type. For a complete list, use the knob-list action.

<knob-name>

Description

analyze-stack=true | false

Default: false

Analyze invalid and uninitialized accesses to thread stacks. Enabling this setting is useful when:

  • You want as thorough an analysis as possible.

  • An application calls alloca().

High cost.

Recommendation:

  • Enable the first time you analyze an application and periodically thereafter.

  • Enable to analyze automatic variables.

Supported analysis: mi3
detect-invalid-accesses=true | false

Default: true

Detect problems where an instruction reads or writes an uninitialized or invalid memory location. Enabling this setting is useful when an application:

  • Exhibits unexpected behavior.

  • Shows evidence of uninitialized values in computations.

    High cost.

Recommendation: Enable.

Supported analysis: mi2, mi3
detect-leaks-on-exit=true | false

Default: true

Enable this setting to report typical memory leaks in which the application allocates a memory block, never releases it, and doesn’t keep a pointer to the block (e.g. unreachable memory blocks). Enabling is useful when an application:

  • Runs out of memory.

  • Appears to be using more memory than expected.

Extremely low cost - especially if used only with the Remove duplicates checkbox selected.

Recommendation: Enable.

Supported analysis: mi1, mi2, mi3
detect-resource-leaks=true | false

Default: true

Enable this setting to detect open kernel and GDI handles when the application ends. For example, the application may open a file, get its handle, but never close or release that handle until it stops running. On Windows, GDI resources are limited, and the application may experience some drawing issues if it uses more than ~10,000 of these types of handles at once (pen, bitmap, brush, etc.).

Enabling is useful when analyzing Windows* GUI applications.

Low cost.

Recommendation: Enable the first time you analyze an application and periodically thereafter.

Supported analysis: mi1, mi2, mi3
enable-memory-growth-detection=true | false

Default: true

Set to true to enable buttons in the GUI that let you send commands during application execution. This will show you a list of reachable and unreachable memory blocks for a time segment.

Enabling is useful for modeling memory usage patterns and ensuring a transactional application deallocates all memory allocations after a transaction completes. (Use in conjunction with the Reset Leak/Growth Detection button and Show Leaks/Growth Now button during analysis.) Low cost.

Supported analysis: mi1, mi2, mi3
offload-target=default | cpu

Default: default

Use this argument to set up the device on which your application executes during offloaded code analysis.

  • default value does not change device settings and application execution control is defined by profiling process
  • cpu value forces offloaded code regions to execute on a CPU during offloaded code analysis

Supported analysis: mi1, mi2, mi3, ti1, ti2, ti3
filter-guaranteed-atomics=true | false

Default: false

Enable this setting to skip reporting races on guaranteed atomic operations on Intel® P6 processor family or newer. For details, please refer to the Guaranteed Atomic Operations section of the Intel® 64 and IA-32 Architectures Software Developer’s Manual, Volume 3A. Use with caution, other architectures might have another policy on atomic operations.

Supported analysis: ti2, ti3
filter-guaranteed-atomics=true | false

Default: false

Enable this setting to skip reporting races on guaranteed atomic operations on Intel® P6 processor family or newer. For details, please refer to the Guaranteed Atomic Operations section of the Intel® 64 and IA-32 Architectures Software Developer’s Manual, Volume 3A. Use with caution, other architectures might have another policy on atomic operations.

Supported analysis: ti2, ti3
remove-duplicates=true | false

Default: true

Enable this setting to avoid showing duplicate occurrences of a detected problem in the Code Locations pane. Disabling is:

  • Useful when you need to fully visualize all threads and problem occurrences in relation to time

  • Low cost in terms of time; however, the number of duplicate errors could crowd out the number of unique errors.

Recommendation: Enable.

Supported analysis: mi3, ti3
scope=normal | extreme

Default: normal

Normal/normal=Set memory access byte granularity to 4 bytes, do not detect data races on stack accesses, and defer memory check. High cost.

Extremely thorough/extreme=Set memory access byte granularity to 1 byte, detect data races on stack accesses, and do not defer memory check. Extremely high cost.

Supported analysis: ti3
stack-depth=<value>

Available values are: 1 8 16 24 32

Default: 16

Provide more or less call stack context for detected errors. A high setting is useful when analyzing highly object-oriented applications. A higher number does not significantly impact cost.

Recommendation: Use only as large a value as an application requires to display complete call paths.

Supported analysis: mi1, mi2, mi3, ti1, ti2, ti3
still-allocated-memory=true | false

Default: true

Detect problems where a still-reachable block of memory is allocated but not released when the application stops executing. Cost is proportional to the number of memory blocks still allocated when the application stops executing.

Recommendation: Enable this setting to investigate memory growth.

Supported analysis: mi1, mi2, mi3
terminate-on-deadlock=true | false

Default: false

Stop analysis and application execution if the Intel® Inspector detects a deadlock. Enabling this setting is useful when running your application as part of a kernel or unit testing suite.

Low cost.

Recommendation: Disable. Instead, use the corresponding knob in the command line interface to perform kernel or unit testing in a nightly scenario. If the Intel® Inspector identifies a deadlock, decide if it is appropriate to continue analysis.

Supported analysis: ti1, ti2, ti3
use-maximum-resources=true | false

Default: false

Potentially detect more data race and cross-thread stack access errors; however, do not optimize memory consumption and performance.

High cost.

Recommendation: Disable this setting to find most of your threading problems. After you find and fix the problems, enable the setting for more complete coverage.

Supported analysis: ti3
Actions Modified

collect, collect-with

Description

Use the knob action-option when you want to specify an additional setting for a collect or collect-with action. For a full list of available knobs, use the knob-list action.

Example

This command uses the collect-with action to perform memory error analysis using the detect-memory-leaks knob on myApp. 

$ inspxe-cl -collect-with runmc -knob detect-memory-leaks true -- myApp
Parent topic: inspxe-cl Actions, Options and Arguments

See Also

knob-list action
Level Two Title