#MICROSOFT ERROR REPORTING UPDATE SOFTWARE#

Without the proper PDB files, the developer can't use any crash reports.

A PDB file is used by a debugger to tell where in the original source code the program is at when debugging the program. The other containing the release plus the release's PDB files. Lastly, the developer has to create two installers: One being the usual release. When used incorrectly (easy enough to do so), wrong information about the crash can be sent, or in the worst case, cause a second crash to occur. Windows Error Reporting requires integration with various Windows APIs and many of them are quite difficult to use correctly. Secondly, once a developer gains access to the system, they discover they have to modify their source code. That staggering pricetag alone causes most developers to be unable to join the WER program in the first place. So, what exactly does it take to integrate WER? First and foremost, to just gain access to the system requires a Verisign Class 3 Digital ID.

#MICROSOFT ERROR REPORTING UPDATE SOFTWARE#

One would think every software author would be on board with this WER thing. information about the crash simply gets thrown out). That means the WER data sent by the user is completely ignored by the WER system (i.e. By default, applications are not WER enabled. The official website of Windows Error Reporting (WER):Īll that sounds good in writing until developers start reading the 'fine print' on what is required. The user clicks the 'Send Error Report' and the bugs get fixed. End-users of Windows see something like this when the application crashes: To summarize the Wikipedia article, WER gathers error reports in a central location (Microsoft servers) and developers of software then can log into the system and retrieve those error reports and thus fix bugs. Windows Error Reporting, or WER for short, is a set of technologies Microsoft put together for Windows XP and expanded upon for Windows Vista:

This blog entry will thus be a little more professional as a result. If you are reading this, you are probably coming from the CubicleSoft website to learn more about Windows Error Reporting.

Microsoft error reporting update