diff --git a/doc/nvmf.md b/doc/nvmf.md
index 966a0771f..eb1b4697b 100644
--- a/doc/nvmf.md
+++ b/doc/nvmf.md
@@ -231,3 +231,51 @@ Disconnect:
 ~~~{.sh}
 nvme disconnect -n "nqn.2016-06.io.spdk:cnode1"
 ~~~
+
+## Enabling NVMe-oF target tracepoints for offline analysis and debug {#nvmf_trace}
+
+SPDK has a tracing framework for capturing low-level event information at runtime.  The NVMe-oF
+target is instrumented with tracepoints to enable analysis of both performance and application
+crashes.  (Note: the SPDK tracing framework should still be considered experimental.  Work to
+formalize and document the framework is in progress.)
+
+To enable the instrumentation, start the target with the -e parameter:
+
+~~~{.sh}
+app/nvmf_tgt/nvmf_tgt -e 0xFFFF
+~~~
+
+Information about the shared memory file will appear in the log:
+
+~~~{.sh}
+app.c: 527:spdk_app_setup_trace: *NOTICE*: Tracepoint Group Mask 0xFFFF specified.
+app.c: 531:spdk_app_setup_trace: *NOTICE*: Use 'spdk_trace -s nvmf -p 24147' to capture a snapshot of events at runtime.
+app.c: 533:spdk_app_setup_trace: *NOTICE*: Or copy /dev/shm/nvmf_trace.pid24147 for offline analysis/debug.
+~~~
+
+Note that when tracepoints are enabled, the shared memory files are not deleted when the application
+exits.  This ensures the file can be used for analysis after the applicatione exits.  On Linux, the
+shared memory files are in /dev/shm, and can be deleted manually to free shm space if needed.  A system
+reboot will also free all of the /dev/shm files.
+
+The spdk_trace program can be found in the app/trace directory.  To analyze the tracepoints on the same
+system running the NVMe-oF target, simply execute the command line shown in the log:
+
+~~~{.sh}
+app/trace/spdk_trace -s nvmf -p 24147
+~~~
+
+To analyze the tracepoints on a different system, first prepare the tracepoint file for transfer.  The
+tracepoint file can be large, but usually compresses very well.  This step can also be used to prepare
+a tracepoint file to attach to a GitHub issue for debugging NVMe-oF application crashes.
+
+~~~{.sh}
+bzip2 -c /dev/shm/nvmf_trace.pid24147 > /tmp/trace.bz2
+~~~
+
+After transferring the /tmp/trace.bz2 tracepoint file to a different system:
+
+~~~{.sh}
+bunzip2 /tmp/trace.bz2
+app/trace/spdk_trace -f /tmp/trace
+~~~
diff --git a/lib/event/app.c b/lib/event/app.c
index 86b735bc3..3ed7f0a17 100644
--- a/lib/event/app.c
+++ b/lib/event/app.c
@@ -529,6 +529,9 @@ spdk_app_setup_trace(struct spdk_app_opts *opts)
 				       opts->name,
 				       opts->shm_id >= 0 ? "-i" : "-p",
 				       opts->shm_id >= 0 ? opts->shm_id : getpid());
+#if defined(__linux__)
+			SPDK_NOTICELOG("Or copy /dev/shm%s for offline analysis/debug.\n", shm_name);
+#endif
 			spdk_trace_set_tpoint_group_mask(tpoint_group_mask);
 		}
 	}