Troubleshooting

Last published : Sep 24, 2026
If the responder feature does not work as expected after you have configured it, you can use some common tools to access NetScaler resources and diagnose the problem.
Related information

Resources for Troubleshooting

For best results, use the following resources to troubleshoot an integrated cache issue on a NetScaler appliance:
  • The ns.conf file
  • The relevant trace files from the client and the NetScaler appliance
In addition to the above resources, the following tools expedite troubleshooting:
  • The iehttpheaders or a similar utility
  • The Wireshark application customized for the NetScaler trace files

Troubleshooting Responder Issues

  • Issue
    The Responder feature is configured, but the responder action is not working.
    Resolution
    • Verify that the feature is enabled.
    • Check the hit counters of any of the policies to see if the counters are getting incremented.
    • Verify that the policies and actions are configured correctly.
    • Verify that the actions and policies are bound appropriately.
    • Record the packet traces on the client and the NetScaler appliance, and analyze the them to get some pointer to the issue.
    • Record the iehttpHeaters packet traces on the client and verify the HTTP requests and responses to get some pointer to the issue.
  • Issue
    You need to create a maintenance page.
    Resolution
  1. Configure the services and virtual Server.
  2. Configure a backup virtual server with a service bound to it. This ensures that the status of the Web site is always displayed as UP.
  3. Configure the primary virtual server to use the backup virtual server as a backup.
  4. Create a responder action with an appropriate target. Following is an example for your reference:
    add responder action sorry_page respondwith q{"HTTP/1.0 200 OK" +"\r\n\r\n" + "<html><body>Sorry, this page is not available\</body>\</html>" + "\r\n"}
  5. Create a responder policy and bind the action to it.
  6. Bind the responder policy to the backup virtual Server.