Handling a System Crash or Hang

Overview

Program Operation Indicators

Check the molecule spinner in the upper right corner of the window. While GeneLinker™ is busy performing a function (such as preparing to display a plot), this indicator is active. It may be that the experiment you are performing is complex and hence taking a long time to finish. In this situation, wait for the experiment to complete.

The Experiment Progress dialog reflects the progress of the running experiment. To cancel an experiment while it is running, click the Cancel button on the Experiment Progress dialog. When an experiment is cancelled, the data repository is returned to the state it was in as the experiment was started.

Program Hang

One indication that the application is hung is if the mouse cursor indicates that the application is busy, but it never returns from this busy state. Alternatively, the system may be hung if the mouse pointer appears normal but there is no response to input.

If the application crashes, GeneLinker™ may simply disappear, or the operating system may crash. Alternately, the operating system may report that GeneLinker™ or Java has caused a problem and GeneLinker™ is going to be terminated.

While inconvenient, a hang or a crash may also cause data to be lost. GeneLinker™ uses a data caching mechanism as a means to recover smoothly from hangs or crashes. When GeneLinker™ is restarted, it attempts to recover as much data as possible from its cached files.

Actions

If GeneLinker™ appears to be hung, on Windows® NT or 2000 it may be possible to see if it is still working by checking the Windows® Task Manager, as follows:

Right-click on an empty section of the Windows® Taskbar and select Task Manager. This launches the Task Manager applet.
Display the programs currently running by selecting the Processes tab.

GeneLinker™ appears in this list as 'java.exe' or 'javaw.exe'. The number under the CPU column header indicates the percentage of processor power that 'java.exe' or 'javaw.exe' is using.

If this number is zero, then GeneLinker™ is probably hung.
If it is not zero, then GeneLinker™ may be busy completing some task and you may wish to wait for it to complete.
If it stays at a high value (95+) for an inordinate length of time, GeneLinker™ may be hung. Note: the SLAM™ operation can take a very long time to complete its data processing. If you are running SLAM™, wait for the operation to complete.

Warning: Closing GeneLinker™ by ending the process from the Task Manager may lose recent changes to the data.

If GeneLinker™ is hung, you can try to close the application by clicking the close icon in the top right corner of the window. Closing GeneLinker™ in this way preserves changes to the data.
If GeneLinker™ crashes, restart the application. If the operating system crashes, reboot the computer.