Sarah's Shortcuts: Lions, tigers, and errors, oh my!

"Error" and "bear" sound pretty much the same when you're in the South. Regardless of your geographical location, they can both be a bit frightful when they unexpectedly pop up. Okay, so bears don't really pop, but you get the picture.

If your first instinct is to call Support (regarding errors, not bears), we'll be glad to help you. However, you can substantially shorten the troubleshooting process and potentially solve the problem on your own by going through the following steps:

1. Copy the exact error and enter it in Knowledgebase. We create a solution for every case we work in Support, so it's very likely that the error and its resolution have already been documented. If the same error appears in multiple solutions, check the environment (i.e., "Occurs when . . .") and the cause to find the closest match.

2. When in doubt, reboot. This classic troubleshooting step works more often than you'd expect. You may also find that the error resolves itself if you simply exit and sign out of the program and then log back in. Sometimes all it takes is a fresh start.

3. Narrow down the culprit. If you're able to duplicate the error, the question is who to blame: your user name, your computer, or your database? 
   a. Try to duplicate the error when logged into your computer as a different user (preferably Supervisor). If that fixes it, you may need to recreate your RE user name.  
   b. See if the error occurs when logged in on another computer or on the server. If not, you can run an update/repair on your computer or update/repair the deploy kit, respectively.
   c. Try duplicating the error within your sample database to determine whether the problem is rooted in your live database.

Knowledgebase goes into greater detail about these general troubleshooting steps for error messages (BB204470). If these instructions seem like another language to you, don't hesitate to contact Support for assistance; that's what we're here for. But you may surprise yourself with your newly discovered error-hunting skills.