/sac-debug

Provide guided SAC script debugging assistance.

Debugging Workflow

Step 1: Gather Information

Ask the user for:

1. Error message (if any) - exact text from console or SAC
2. Script location - which event handler (onSelect, onClick, onInitialization)?
3. Widget types involved - Chart, Table, Button, Dropdown?
4. SAC environment - Analytics Designer or Optimized Story Experience?
5. What should happen vs what actually happens

Step 2: Common Error Analysis

"undefined is not a function"

Cause: Calling a method that doesn't exist on the object

Check:

// Wrong: Method name typo or doesn't exist
Chart_1.getDataSoruce(); // Typo!

// Correct:
Chart_1.getDataSource();

Resolution:

1. Verify method name spelling
2. Check if method exists for this object type
3. Verify widget type supports the API

"Cannot read property 'X' of undefined"

Cause: Object is null/undefined when accessing property

Check:

// Wrong: selections might be empty
var value = Chart_1.getSelections()[0]["Location"];

// Correct: Check array length first
var selections = Chart_1.getSelections();
if (selections.length > 0) {
    var value = selections[0]["Location"];
}

Resolution:

1. Add null/undefined checks
2. Verify widget reference exists
3. Check if data source is assigned

"TypeError: X is not iterable"

Cause: Trying to iterate over non-array

Check:

// Wrong: getSelections() might return null
for (var sel of Chart_1.getSelections()) { }

// Correct: Check for array
var selections = Chart_1.getSelections() || [];
for (var i = 0; i < selections.length; i++) { }

Filter Not Applied (Silent Failure)

Cause: Dimension name doesn't match model exactly

Check:

// Wrong: Case mismatch or wrong name
ds.setDimensionFilter("location", "US");  // lowercase!

// Correct: Use exact dimension name from model
ds.setDimensionFilter("Location", "US");  // Match model case

Resolution:

1. Open model in SAC
2. Copy exact dimension technical name
3. Names are case-sensitive

Step 3: Debugging Techniques

Console Logging

// Add at script start
console.log("=== Script started ===");

// Log variables
console.log("Widget:", typeof Chart_1, Chart_1);
console.log("DataSource:", Chart_1.getDataSource());
console.log("Selections:", JSON.stringify(Chart_1.getSelections()));

// Log before operations
console.log("Applying filter:", dimensionName, filterValue);

View Console Output

1. Press F12 to open Browser DevTools
2. Go to Console tab
3. Filter by Info level
4. Look for script output (may be in sandbox.worker.main.*.js)

Safe Widget Access Pattern

// Check widget exists
if (typeof Chart_1 !== "undefined" && Chart_1 !== null) {
    var ds = Chart_1.getDataSource();
    if (ds !== null) {
        // Safe to proceed
        ds.setDimensionFilter("Location", "US");
    } else {
        console.error("Chart_1 has no data source assigned");
    }
} else {
    console.error("Chart_1 widget not found");
}

Step 4: Common Issues Checklist

Widget Issues:

• Widget name spelled correctly (case-sensitive)?
• Widget exists on the current page?
• Widget visible and not hidden by conditional?
• Data source assigned to widget?

Data Source Issues:

• Dimension/measure names match model exactly?
• Filter values exist in the data?
• Model has data for the filter combination?

API Issues:

• Method exists for this widget/object type?
• Correct number and type of parameters?
• Using Analytics Designer API in OSE (may not work)?

Selection Issues:

• Checking if selections array is empty?
• Using correct dimension key from selection object?
• Selection event actually fires (test with console.log)?

Step 5: Test Patterns

Minimal Test Script

// Test 1: Widget exists
console.log("Test 1 - Widget:", Chart_1);

// Test 2: Data source
console.log("Test 2 - DS:", Chart_1.getDataSource());

// Test 3: Get data
console.log("Test 3 - ResultSet:", Chart_1.getDataSource().getResultSet());

// Test 4: Selections
console.log("Test 4 - Selections:", Chart_1.getSelections());

Event Fire Test

// Add to event handler to confirm it fires
console.log("EVENT FIRED: onSelect at " + new Date().toISOString());

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Quick Reference: Error Messages

Error	Likely Cause	Fix
undefined is not a function	Wrong method name	Check API docs
Cannot read property X of undefined	Null object access	Add null checks
X is not iterable	Non-array iteration	Verify array type
No error but no effect	Wrong dimension name	Check model schema
Script doesn't run	Event not connected	Check widget events

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Based on the provided error information, analyze the issue and provide:

1. Root cause explanation
2. Step-by-step fix with code
3. Prevention tip for future