Macromedia flex builder-using flex builder User Manual

Testing and debugging Flex files

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Debugging applications by monitoring interactions with the server

If your Flex application isn’t working as expected, you can use the Network Monitor to look for 
clues to the problem. When enabled, the Network Monitor monitors and records all data 
transactions with the server and displays the information in the Results panel.

The Network Monitor records and displays the following information:

•

Events relating to the MXML service tags, including the 

<mx:WebService>

, 

<mx:HTTPService>

, and 

<mx:RemoteObject>

 tags

•

Transport layer information, including SOAP envelopes and AMF/FlashRemoting packets

•

Interactions resulting from the use of the ActionScript XML object, such as XML.send() and 
XML.sendAndLoad()

•

HTTP traffic

The Network Monitor displays data that comes from the server in its native ActionScript 
equivalent.

In general, the Network Monitor captures and stores all event data until you either quit the 
application or explicitly clear the data. The events are displayed in chronological order. You can 
also selectively filter out specific events.

This section contains the following topics:

•

•

•

•

Turning on the Network Monitor

The Network Monitor inserts itself between the application and the server to gain complete 
access to the data passing between them. You must enable it before using it.

To enable the Network Monitor:

1.

Make sure a Flex server is defined as the testing server.

For more information, see 

.

2.

In the Network Monitor panel in the Results panel group (Window > Results), click the Play 
button on the sidebar and select Settings.

The Network Monitor Settings dialog box appears.

3.

In the Network Monitor Settings dialog box, accept the default port values or specify the local 
communication ports that the Network Monitor should listen in on.