Exception Chaining in Java: Explanation & Practice

Problem summary

Create a ServiceException that wraps lower-level exceptions while preserving the original cause.

Starter code

class ServiceException extends Exception {
    // Constructor that accepts message and cause
}

class DataException extends Exception {
    public DataException(String msg) { super(msg); }
}

public class Main {
    static void fetchData() throws DataException {
        throw new DataException("Database connection failed");
    }
    
    static void processRequest() throws ServiceException {
        try {
            fetchData();
        } catch (DataException e) {
            // Wrap in ServiceException
            throw new ServiceException("Service failed", e);
        }
    }
    
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        try {
            processRequest();
        } catch (ServiceException e) {
            System.out.println("Caught: " + e.getMessage());
            System.out.println("Cause: " + e.getCause().getMessage());
        }
    }
}

Expected output and test cases

• Exception chain preserved

  Caught: Service failed
  Cause: Database connection failed

Hints

1. Use super(message, cause) constructor
2. getCause() returns the wrapped exception
3. Helps trace root cause of errors

Related Exception Handling exercises

• Practice Aggregate Multiple Exceptions in Java
• Practice Graceful Degradation in Java
• Practice Custom AutoCloseable in Java

Practice all Exception Handling exercises · Run this idea in the Java compiler