about this tool

Adobe Analytics™ debugger is a web service tool that allows you to examine and debug data beacons in a new way. Instead of relying on navigation to a website and opening a Javascript Bookmarklet to debug your request, you can simply change the tracking server for your requests to target scdebugger.com. Our service will store all debug data beacons sent to it for a limited time, allowing you to examine and perform analysis on them at your leisure. It also will perform some crucial validation tests to ensure data will be captured correctly when you move your implementation to production.

Where this debugger really shines is in the non-browser environment. If you wish to test your Data Insertion API implementation, you end up needing to install a packet sniffer, grab the packets you wish to debug, and then try to interpret what the beacons are actually sending. Just imagine the hassle of trying to test a new app for a set-top box or connected TV! Now, with scdebugger.com, you can simply send your data beacons here and perform debugging in a much more user-friendly environment.

What's more, you can create or specify a Variable Map to help interpret the context of all the variables in the data beacon! You can even choose to forward these data beacons on to the actual data collection server if you wish to see how everything looks in the actual Adobe Analytics environment!

using scdebugger.com

How to Collect Debug Data

Easy! Instead of sending your request to an omtrdc.net or 2o7.net domain, simply send the request to scdebugger.com. If you are using a JavaScript or AppMeasurement library, simply set your trackingServer variable to scdebugger.com.

Analyzing Debug Data

After you sent data into scdebugger.com, you can easily examine and debug those data beacons by going to parser.scdebugger.com and entering in the Account ID/RSID you sent your data beacons to. From there, you will be able to access, validate, test, and manipulate all your debug requests as needed.

Forwarding Debug Data to Adobe Analytics™

You can choose to forward debug data collected from a specific report suite to your actual Adobe Analytics™ data collection servers. In the SDR Variable Mapping tool referenced in the previous section, simply enter the tracking server address in the "301 Redirection Host" field and click update to enable this functionality. To remove the redirect, simply perform an SDR Variable Map purge (in the 'tools' sidebar menu on most debugging pages). Please note that multi-suite tagging will not automatically forward requests to the actual data collection servers unless the entire multi-suite string (e.g. "suite1,suite2") is also set up to forward hits via redirect.

SDR Variable Maps

New Feature: Now you can manually assign friendly names and notes to your report suite's variables from the web! Now when you load the Data Beacon Analysis page, you only need to click on the '+' icon in the Variable or Note column to add your own meta-data. Save the meta-data by pressing Enter in the text field when done.

SDR refers to Solution Design Reference, a document commonly generated by those who implement Adobe Analytics™ tracking code. If you wish to upload an SDR Variable Map to give context information to your data beacons, you must follow the explicit format outlined below:

  • The first row in your table contains the header data and will not be imported. The headers are as follows:
    • Variable Name - Data in this column must match the query string parameter that is used in the data beacon (e.g. "v1" for Custom Conversion Variable 1/eVar1)
    • Friendly Name - A friendly contextual name for what this variable is supposed to contain.
    • Note - Any additional notes about the variable. Try to keep these concise so as to improve readability in the report tables.
    • Screenshot Example:
  • The filename should match the Account ID/RSID you are sending the data beacons to. For example, if I were sending data to the "scdebuggertest" report suite, the resulting filename would be scdebuggertest.csv.
  • SDR Variable Maps must be uploaded in .CSV format. If using Excel, simply save your variable map as the type "CSV Comma-delimited (*.csv)"
When you have the file created, click on the "Define SDR Map" in the sidebar menu on your parser.scdebugger.com site to upload the mappings.

disclaimers and terms of service(why alpha?)

Although this tool was created by an Adobe employee, it is not an official Adobe service/application and thus cannot be supported as such. Originally created as a proof-of-concept tool for eventual productization, it is meant to be used by anyone who needs to validate their data collection processes.

The validity of data collection or analysis cannot be guaranteed, and you use this tool at your own risk. The author assumes no responsibility for maintaining the tool or its validation algorithms. The author also cannot be held responsible for any damages caused through the use of this tool.

The security of data collected by this service is also not guaranteed, and by using Adobe Analytics™ debugger you agree to not hold the author liable for any damages.

trademark

Adobe Analytics™ is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems, Inc., which has no affiliation with or official legal responsibility for this site and its content.