tiger-crash-dump

name	tiger-crash-dump
description	Identify and access crash dumps from CI test failures in Azure DevOps, for both normal test runs and Helix-based tests.

Tiger Crash Dump Analysis Skill

This skill helps identify crash dumps produced during CI test failures and guides you to access them.

Detecting Crash Dumps

Crash dumps are indicated by examining error messages or stack traces in the test_results table. Look for:

1. The phrase "Test host crash detected" in error_message or stack_trace
2. A file name ending in .dmp in the error_message or stack_trace

Example queries to find crash dumps

-- Find test results mentioning crash dumps
SELECT tr.organization, tr.run_id, tr.result_id, tr.test_case_title, tr.error_message
FROM test_results tr
WHERE tr.error_message LIKE '%Test host crash detected%'
   OR tr.error_message LIKE '%.dmp%'
   OR tr.stack_trace LIKE '%.dmp%';

-- Find crash dumps for a specific build
SELECT tr.organization, tr.run_id, tr.result_id, tr.test_case_title,
       tr.error_message, tr.helix_job_name, tr.helix_work_item_name
FROM test_results tr
JOIN test_runs r ON r.organization = tr.organization AND r.run_id = tr.run_id
WHERE r.build_id = @buildId
  AND (tr.error_message LIKE '%Test host crash detected%'
       OR tr.error_message LIKE '%.dmp%'
       OR tr.stack_trace LIKE '%.dmp%');

Accessing Crash Dumps

The method for retrieving the dump file depends on whether the test ran on Helix or not.

Normal (non-Helix) tests

When helix_job_name is NULL, the crash dump is uploaded inside an Azure DevOps pipeline artifact associated with the test job.

Download dump files directly:

# Download all dump files from a build
tiger azdo download-dumps <build-id>

# Download dumps only from a specific test run
tiger azdo download-dumps <build-id> --run-id <run-id>

# Specify output directory
tiger azdo download-dumps <build-id> --output ./dumps

This command scans build artifacts, finds .dmp files, and downloads them individually without downloading entire artifacts.

The tiger CLI is available at ../../tiger (relative to this skill).

How it works under the hood:

1. Lists all artifacts for the build
2. If --run-id is provided, filters to the artifact matching that test run's name
3. Fetches the file manifest for each artifact (supports both Container and PipelineArtifact types)
4. Downloads only files ending in .dmp

Fallback — download the full artifact:

If download-dumps doesn't work, you can download the entire artifact containing the dump:

# List artifacts to find the right one
tiger azdo artifacts <build-id>

# Download the full artifact (artifact name = test run name with underscores + "Attempt N Logs")
tiger azdo download <build-id> --artifact "<artifact-name>" --output ./logs.zip

As a last resort, use the AzDO REST API or the build's Artifacts tab in the web UI.

Helix tests

When helix_job_name is NOT NULL, the crash dump is stored as a file in the Helix work item.

Use the helix_work_items table to find the dump file:

SELECT hwi.job_name, hwi.work_item_name, hwi.files
FROM helix_work_items hwi
WHERE hwi.job_name = @helixJobName
  AND hwi.work_item_name = @helixWorkItemName;

The files column contains a JSON array of file entries. Look for entries with a file name ending in .dmp. Each entry has a download URI.

helix_work_items Table Schema

Column	Type	Description
job_name	TEXT	Helix job ID (matches test_results.helix_job_name)
work_item_name	TEXT	Helix work item name (matches test_results.helix_work_item_name)
state	TEXT	Work item state (e.g. "Passed", "Failed")
exit_code	INTEGER	Process exit code (non-zero often indicates a crash)
console_output_uri	TEXT	URI to the console log for the work item
files	TEXT	JSON array of uploaded files with download URIs

Primary key: (job_name, work_item_name)

Parsing the files column

The files column is a JSON array of objects. Each object has:

• fileName — the file name (look for .dmp suffix)
• uri — download URI for the file

Example:

[
  {"fileName": "core.12345.dmp", "uri": "https://helix.dot.net/api/..."},
  {"fileName": "console.log", "uri": "https://helix.dot.net/api/..."}
]

Example: finding dump URIs from Helix

-- Get all Helix work items with dump files for a build
SELECT hwi.job_name, hwi.work_item_name, hwi.files
FROM helix_work_items hwi
JOIN test_results tr ON tr.helix_job_name = hwi.job_name
                    AND tr.helix_work_item_name = hwi.work_item_name
JOIN test_runs r ON r.organization = tr.organization AND r.run_id = tr.run_id
WHERE r.build_id = @buildId
  AND hwi.files LIKE '%.dmp%';

Then parse the JSON in the files column to extract the URI for the .dmp file.

Summary

Scenario	Where to find the dump
Normal test (helix_job_name IS NULL)	AzDO build artifact named after the test run
Helix test (helix_job_name IS NOT NULL)	helix_work_items.files JSON array