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Glite Dictionary
💻 Error report 🔍 Finding the cause
traceback

traceback

7.5
A way of finding where something started, for example the source of a problem
  • noun
  • /ˈtreɪsˌbæk/
translation icon : seguimiento
  • After conducting a thorough traceback, we discovered that the problem was caused by outdated libraries.

Examples

  • To resolve the issue, I performed a traceback to see where the malfunction originated.

  • The developer used the error message to perform a traceback and identify the bug in the software.

  • I'd appreciate any traceback you could point me to, but I do know that Gov. Palin used the term on her Facebook posting of 7 August.

    Blog text (21)

Synonyms

tracing
vstraceback
  • Specialized
5 5.8

Recording the path of requests through a computer system to find problems

tracks back to find the original source or cause
backtracking
vstraceback
1 5.3

Going back along the same route to return to a previous point

follows events back to identify the origin or cause

Surface Forms

traceback singular
tracebacks plural

Morphology

traceback = trace (transparent) = back + trace

This sense is a straightforward nominalization of the verb phrase 'trace back' meaning to track something to its origin, so the meaning follows directly from the components. [Postprocessing: moved 'back' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

The word traceback comes from trace ('a small mark or trail') and back ('to go to an earlier place'), so a traceback is the process of following a trail back to find the original source or cause of a problem.