diff --git a/framework/yii/base/Application.php b/framework/yii/base/Application.php
index 495c1f8..09951bd 100644
--- a/framework/yii/base/Application.php
+++ b/framework/yii/base/Application.php
@@ -67,10 +67,20 @@ class Application extends Module
 	 * Constructor.
 	 * @param array $config name-value pairs that will be used to initialize the object properties.
 	 * Note that the configuration must contain both [[id]] and [[basePath]].
+	 * @throws InvalidConfigException if either [[id]] or [[basePath]] configuration is missing.
 	 */
 	public function __construct($config = array())
 	{
 		Yii::$app = $this;
+		if (!isset($config['id'])) {
+			throw new InvalidConfigException('The "id" configuration is required.');
+		}
+		if (isset($config['basePath'])) {
+			$this->setBasePath($config['basePath']);
+			unset($config['basePath']);
+		} else {
+			throw new InvalidConfigException('The "basePath" configuration is required.');
+		}
 
 		$this->preInit($config);
 
@@ -83,37 +93,24 @@ class Application extends Module
 	/**
 	 * Pre-initializes the application.
 	 * This method is called at the beginning of the application constructor.
-	 * When this method is called, none of the application properties are initialized yet.
-	 * The default implementation will initialize a few important properties
-	 * that may be referenced during the initialization of the rest of the properties.
 	 * @param array $config the application configuration
-	 * @throws InvalidConfigException if either [[id]] or [[basePath]] configuration is missing.
 	 */
-	public function preInit($config)
+	public function preInit(&$config)
 	{
-		if (!isset($config['id'])) {
-			throw new InvalidConfigException('The "id" configuration is required.');
-		}
-		if (!isset($config['basePath'])) {
-			throw new InvalidConfigException('The "basePath" configuration is required.');
-		}
-
-		$this->setBasePath($config['basePath']);
-		Yii::setAlias('@app', $this->getBasePath());
-		unset($config['basePath']);
-
-		if (isset($config['vendor'])) {
-			$this->setVendorPath($config['vendor']);
+		if (isset($config['vendorPath'])) {
+			$this->setVendorPath($config['vendorPath']);
 			unset($config['vendorPath']);
+		} else {
+			// set "@vendor"
+			$this->getVendorPath();
 		}
-		Yii::setAlias('@vendor', $this->getVendorPath());
-
-		if (isset($config['runtime'])) {
-			$this->setRuntimePath($config['runtime']);
-			unset($config['runtime']);
+		if (isset($config['runtimePath'])) {
+			$this->setRuntimePath($config['runtimePath']);
+			unset($config['runtimePath']);
+		} else {
+			// set "@runtime"
+			$this->getRuntimePath();
 		}
-		Yii::setAlias('@runtime', $this->getRuntimePath());
-
 		if (isset($config['timeZone'])) {
 			$this->setTimeZone($config['timeZone']);
 			unset($config['timeZone']);
@@ -202,7 +199,8 @@ class Application extends Module
 
 	/**
 	 * Returns the directory that stores runtime files.
-	 * @return string the directory that stores runtime files. Defaults to 'protected/runtime'.
+	 * @return string the directory that stores runtime files.
+	 * Defaults to the "runtime" subdirectory under [[basePath]].
 	 */
 	public function getRuntimePath()
 	{
@@ -215,16 +213,11 @@ class Application extends Module
 	/**
 	 * Sets the directory that stores runtime files.
 	 * @param string $path the directory that stores runtime files.
-	 * @throws InvalidConfigException if the directory does not exist or is not writable
 	 */
 	public function setRuntimePath($path)
 	{
-		$path = Yii::getAlias($path);
-		if (is_dir($path) && is_writable($path)) {
-			$this->_runtimePath = $path;
-		} else {
-			throw new InvalidConfigException("Runtime path must be a directory writable by the Web server process: $path");
-		}
+		$this->_runtimePath = Yii::getAlias($path);
+		Yii::setAlias('@runtime', $this->_runtimePath);
 	}
 
 	private $_vendorPath;
@@ -232,7 +225,7 @@ class Application extends Module
 	/**
 	 * Returns the directory that stores vendor files.
 	 * @return string the directory that stores vendor files.
-	 * Defaults to 'vendor' directory under applications [[basePath]].
+	 * Defaults to "vendor" directory under [[basePath]].
 	 */
 	public function getVendorPath()
 	{
@@ -249,6 +242,7 @@ class Application extends Module
 	public function setVendorPath($path)
 	{
 		$this->_vendorPath = Yii::getAlias($path);
+		Yii::setAlias('@vendor', $this->_vendorPath);
 	}
 
 	/**
diff --git a/framework/yii/base/Formatter.php b/framework/yii/base/Formatter.php
index d15e5f2..e62039e 100644
--- a/framework/yii/base/Formatter.php
+++ b/framework/yii/base/Formatter.php
@@ -39,17 +39,19 @@ class Formatter extends Component
 	public $datetimeFormat = 'Y/m/d h:i:s A';
 	/**
 	 * @var array the text to be displayed when formatting a boolean value. The first element corresponds
-	 * to the text display for false, the second element for true. Defaults to <code>array('No', 'Yes')</code>.
+	 * to the text display for false, the second element for true. Defaults to `array('No', 'Yes')`.
 	 */
 	public $booleanFormat;
 	/**
 	 * @var string the character displayed as the decimal point when formatting a number.
+	 * If not set, "." will be used.
 	 */
-	public $decimalSeparator = '.';
+	public $decimalSeparator;
 	/**
 	 * @var string the character displayed as the thousands separator character when formatting a number.
+	 * If not set, "," will be used.
 	 */
-	public $thousandSeparator = ',';
+	public $thousandSeparator;
 
 
 	/**
@@ -273,7 +275,11 @@ class Formatter extends Component
 	 */
 	public function asDouble($value, $decimals = 2)
 	{
-		return str_replace('.', $this->decimalSeparator, sprintf("%.{$decimals}f", $value));
+		if ($this->decimalSeparator === null) {
+			return sprintf("%.{$decimals}f", $value);
+		} else {
+			return str_replace('.', $this->decimalSeparator, sprintf("%.{$decimals}f", $value));
+		}
 	}
 
 	/**
@@ -287,6 +293,8 @@ class Formatter extends Component
 	 */
 	public function asNumber($value, $decimals = 0)
 	{
-		return number_format($value, $decimals, $this->decimalSeparator, $this->thousandSeparator);
+		$ds = isset($this->decimalSeparator) ? $this->decimalSeparator: '.';
+		$ts = isset($this->thousandSeparator) ? $this->thousandSeparator: ',';
+		return number_format($value, $decimals, $ds, $ts);
 	}
 }
diff --git a/framework/yii/base/Module.php b/framework/yii/base/Module.php
index fac4164..5f5c376 100644
--- a/framework/yii/base/Module.php
+++ b/framework/yii/base/Module.php
@@ -236,6 +236,9 @@ abstract class Module extends Component
 		$p = realpath($path);
 		if ($p !== false && is_dir($p)) {
 			$this->_basePath = $p;
+			if ($this instanceof Application) {
+				Yii::setAlias('@app', $p);
+			}
 		} else {
 			throw new InvalidParamException("The directory does not exist: $path");
 		}
diff --git a/framework/yii/db/ActiveRecord.php b/framework/yii/db/ActiveRecord.php
index 58411f0..6faebbf 100644
--- a/framework/yii/db/ActiveRecord.php
+++ b/framework/yii/db/ActiveRecord.php
@@ -275,10 +275,16 @@ class ActiveRecord extends Model
 	/**
 	 * Returns the schema information of the DB table associated with this AR class.
 	 * @return TableSchema the schema information of the DB table associated with this AR class.
+	 * @throws InvalidConfigException if the table for the AR class does not exist.
 	 */
 	public static function getTableSchema()
 	{
-		return static::getDb()->getTableSchema(static::tableName());
+		$schema = static::getDb()->getTableSchema(static::tableName());
+		if ($schema !== null) {
+			return $schema;
+		} else {
+			throw new InvalidConfigException("The table does not exist: " . static::tableName());
+		}
 	}
 
 	/**
diff --git a/framework/yii/db/mysql/Schema.php b/framework/yii/db/mysql/Schema.php
index 501149a..b42ef15 100644
--- a/framework/yii/db/mysql/Schema.php
+++ b/framework/yii/db/mysql/Schema.php
@@ -178,6 +178,7 @@ class Schema extends \yii\db\Schema
 	 * Collects the metadata of table columns.
 	 * @param TableSchema $table the table metadata
 	 * @return boolean whether the table exists in the database
+	 * @throws \Exception if DB query fails
 	 */
 	protected function findColumns($table)
 	{
@@ -185,7 +186,12 @@ class Schema extends \yii\db\Schema
 		try {
 			$columns = $this->db->createCommand($sql)->queryAll();
 		} catch (\Exception $e) {
-			return false;
+			$previous = $e->getPrevious();
+			if ($previous instanceof \PDOException && $previous->getCode() == '42S02') {
+				// table does not exist
+				return false;
+			}
+			throw $e;
 		}
 		foreach ($columns as $info) {
 			$column = $this->loadColumnSchema($info);
diff --git a/framework/yii/i18n/Formatter.php b/framework/yii/i18n/Formatter.php
index d688a15..948e277 100644
--- a/framework/yii/i18n/Formatter.php
+++ b/framework/yii/i18n/Formatter.php
@@ -30,21 +30,40 @@ class Formatter extends \yii\base\Formatter
 	 */
 	public $locale;
 	/**
-	 * @var string the default format string to be used to format a date using PHP date() function.
+	 * @var string the default format string to be used to format a date.
+	 * This can be "short", "medium", "long", or "full", which represents a preset format of different lengths.
+	 * It can also be a custom format as specified in the [ICU manual](http://userguide.icu-project.org/formatparse/datetime).
 	 */
 	public $dateFormat = 'short';
 	/**
-	 * @var string the default format string to be used to format a time using PHP date() function.
+	 * @var string the default format string to be used to format a time.
+	 * This can be "short", "medium", "long", or "full", which represents a preset format of different lengths.
+	 * It can also be a custom format as specified in the [ICU manual](http://userguide.icu-project.org/formatparse/datetime).
 	 */
 	public $timeFormat = 'short';
 	/**
-	 * @var string the default format string to be used to format a date and time using PHP date() function.
+	 * @var string the default format string to be used to format a date and time.
+	 * This can be "short", "medium", "long", or "full", which represents a preset format of different lengths.
+	 * It can also be a custom format as specified in the [ICU manual](http://userguide.icu-project.org/formatparse/datetime).
 	 */
 	public $datetimeFormat = 'short';
 	/**
 	 * @var array the options to be set for the NumberFormatter objects. Please refer to
+	 * [PHP manual](http://php.net/manual/en/class.numberformatter.php#intl.numberformatter-constants.unumberformatattribute)
+	 * for the possible options. This property is used by [[createNumberFormatter]] when
+	 * creating a new number formatter to format decimals, currencies, etc.
 	 */
 	public $numberFormatOptions = array();
+	/**
+	 * @var string the character displayed as the decimal point when formatting a number.
+	 * If not set, the decimal separator corresponding to [[locale]] will be used.
+	 */
+	public $decimalSeparator;
+	/**
+	 * @var string the character displayed as the thousands separator character when formatting a number.
+	 * If not set, the thousand separator corresponding to [[locale]] will be used.
+	 */
+	public $thousandSeparator;
 
 
 	/**
@@ -61,6 +80,16 @@ class Formatter extends \yii\base\Formatter
 		if ($this->locale === null) {
 			$this->locale = Yii::$app->language;
 		}
+		if ($this->decimalSeparator === null || $this->thousandSeparator === null) {
+			$formatter = new NumberFormatter($this->locale, NumberFormatter::DECIMAL);
+			if ($this->decimalSeparator === null) {
+				$this->decimalSeparator = $formatter->getSymbol(NumberFormatter::DECIMAL_SEPARATOR_SYMBOL);
+			}
+			if ($this->thousandSeparator === null) {
+				$this->thousandSeparator = $formatter->getSymbol(NumberFormatter::GROUPING_SEPARATOR_SYMBOL);
+			}
+		}
+
 		parent::init();
 	}
 
@@ -81,8 +110,11 @@ class Formatter extends \yii\base\Formatter
 	 * - a PHP DateTime object
 	 *
 	 * @param string $format the format used to convert the value into a date string.
-	 * If null, [[dateFormat]] will be used. The format string should be the one
-	 * that can be recognized by the PHP `date()` function.
+	 * If null, [[dateFormat]] will be used.
+	 *
+	 * This can be "short", "medium", "long", or "full", which represents a preset format of different lengths.
+	 * It can also be a custom format as specified in the [ICU manual](http://userguide.icu-project.org/formatparse/datetime).
+	 *
 	 * @return string the formatted result
 	 * @see dateFormat
 	 */
@@ -111,8 +143,11 @@ class Formatter extends \yii\base\Formatter
 	 * - a PHP DateTime object
 	 *
 	 * @param string $format the format used to convert the value into a date string.
-	 * If null, [[dateFormat]] will be used. The format string should be the one
-	 * that can be recognized by the PHP `date()` function.
+	 * If null, [[dateFormat]] will be used.
+	 *
+	 * This can be "short", "medium", "long", or "full", which represents a preset format of different lengths.
+	 * It can also be a custom format as specified in the [ICU manual](http://userguide.icu-project.org/formatparse/datetime).
+	 *
 	 * @return string the formatted result
 	 * @see timeFormat
 	 */
@@ -141,8 +176,11 @@ class Formatter extends \yii\base\Formatter
 	 * - a PHP DateTime object
 	 *
 	 * @param string $format the format used to convert the value into a date string.
-	 * If null, [[dateFormat]] will be used. The format string should be the one
-	 * that can be recognized by the PHP `date()` function.
+	 * If null, [[dateFormat]] will be used.
+	 *
+	 * This can be "short", "medium", "long", or "full", which represents a preset format of different lengths.
+	 * It can also be a custom format as specified in the [ICU manual](http://userguide.icu-project.org/formatparse/datetime).
+	 *
 	 * @return string the formatted result
 	 * @see datetimeFormat
 	 */
@@ -213,7 +251,7 @@ class Formatter extends \yii\base\Formatter
 	/**
 	 * Creates a number formatter based on the given type and format.
 	 * @param integer $type the type of the number formatter
-	 * @param string $format the format to be used
+	 * @param string $format the format to be used.  Please refer to [ICU manual](http://www.icu-project.org/apiref/icu4c/classDecimalFormat.html#_details)
 	 * @return NumberFormatter the created formatter instance
 	 */
 	protected function createNumberFormatter($type, $format)
diff --git a/framework/yii/logging/Target.php b/framework/yii/logging/Target.php
index fac8b53..7be7001 100644
--- a/framework/yii/logging/Target.php
+++ b/framework/yii/logging/Target.php
@@ -204,11 +204,9 @@ abstract class Target extends Component
 			if ($matched) {
 				foreach ($this->except as $category) {
 					$prefix = rtrim($category, '*');
-					foreach ($messages as $i => $message) {
-						if (strpos($message[2], $prefix) === 0 && ($message[2] === $category || $prefix !== $category)) {
-							$matched = false;
-							break;
-						}
+					if (strpos($message[2], $prefix) === 0 && ($message[2] === $category || $prefix !== $category)) {
+						$matched = false;
+						break;
 					}
 				}
 			}