---
title: Start and stop recording
description: To start a recording event:
component: pingam
version: 8.1
page_id: pingam:maintenance:rest-api-record-start-stop
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingam/8.1/maintenance/rest-api-record-start-stop.html
keywords: ["Monitoring", "REST API"]
page_aliases: ["maintenance-guide:rest-api-record-start-stop.adoc"]
---

# Start and stop recording

To start a recording event:

1. Send an HTTP POST request to the `/json/records` endpoint with the `_action=start` parameter.

2. Specify a JSON payload.

   Find details of the payload contents and an example in [Capture troubleshooting information](record-troubleshooting.html).

You must authenticate to AM as an administrative user to obtain an SSO token prior to calling the `/json/records` REST endpoint. You then pass the SSO token in the `iPlanetDirectoryPro` header as proof of authentication.

```bash
$ curl \
--request POST \
--header "Content-Type: application/json" \
--header "iPlanetDirectoryPro: AQIC5…​" \
--header "Accept-API-Version: resource=1.0" \
--data ' {
  "issueID": 103572,
  "referenceID": "policyEvalFails",
  "description": "Troubleshooting artifacts in support of case 103572",
  "zipEnable": true,
  "configExport": {
   "enable": true,
   "password": "5x2RR70",
   "sharePassword": false
  },
  "debugLogs": {
   "debugLevel": "MESSAGE",
   "autoStop": {
    "time":  {
     "timeUnit": "SECONDS",
     "value": 15
    },
    "fileSize": {
     "sizeUnit": "GB",
     "value": 1
    }
   }
  },
  "threadDump" : {
   "enable": true,
   "delay" :  {
    "timeUnit": "SECONDS",
    "value": 5
   }
  }
 }' \
https://am.example.com:8443/am/json/records?_action=start
{
    "recording":true,
    "record":{
        "issueID":103572,
        "referenceID":"policyEvalFails",
        "description":"Troubleshooting artifacts in support of case 103572",
        "zipEnable":true,
        "threadDump":{
            "enable":true,
            "delay":{
                "timeUnit":"SECONDS",
                "value":5
            }
        },
        "configExport":{
            "enable":true,
            "password":"xxxxxx",
            "sharePassword":false
        },
        "debugLogs":{
            "debugLevel":"message",
            "autoStop":{
                "time":{
                    "timeUnit":"MILLISECONDS",
                    "value":15000
                },
                "fileSize":{
                    "sizeUnit":"KB",
                    "value":1048576
                }
            }
        },
        "status":"RUNNING",
        "folder":"/path/to/am/var/debug/record/103572/policyEvalFails/"
    }
}
```

The `curl` command output is indented for ease of reading. The actual output is *not* indented, and the actions available from the `/json/records` endpoint do not support the `_prettyPrint` parameter.

To **stop** a recording event, send an HTTP POST request to the `/json/records` endpoint, specifying the `_action=stop` parameter in the URL:

```bash
$ curl \
--request POST \
--header "iPlanetDirectoryPro: AQIC5…​" \
--header "Accept-API-Version: resource=1.0" \
https://am.example.com:8443/am/json/records?_action=stop
```

If there is no active recording event, AM returns a 400 error code.

If there is an active recording event, output similar to the following appears:

```none
{
  "recording": false,
  "record": {
    "issueID": 103572,
    "referenceID": "policyEvalFails",
    "description": "Troubleshooting artifacts in support of case 103572",
    "zipEnable": true,
    "threadDump": {
      "enable": true,
      "delay": {
        "timeUnit": "SECONDS",
        "value": 5
      }
    },
    "configExport": {
      "enable": true,
      "password": "xxxxxx",
      "sharePassword": false
    },
    "debugLogs": {
      "debugLevel": "message",
      "autoStop": {
        "time": {
          "timeUnit": "MILLISECONDS",
          "value": 15000
        },
        "fileSize": {
          "sizeUnit": "KB",
          "value": 1048576
        }
      }
    },
    "status": "STOPPED",
    "folder": "/path/to/am/var/debug/record/103572/policyEvalFails/"
  }
}
```