`
`Logfile
`
`From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
`
`Logfile Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
`
`In computing, a logfile is a file that records either events that occur in an operating system or other software runs,
`or messages between different users of a communication software. Logging is the act of keeping a log. In the
`simplest case, messages are written to a single logfile.
`
`A transaction log is a file (i.e., log) of the communications (i.e., transactions) between a system and the users of
`that system,[1] or a data collection method that automatically captures the type, content, or time of transactions
`made by a person from a terminal with that system.[2] For Web searching, a transaction log is an electronic record
`of interactions that have occurred during a searching episode between a Web search engine and users searching for
`information on that Web search engine.
`
`Many operating systems, software frameworks, and programs include a logging system. A widely used logging
`standard is syslog, defined in Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) RFC 5424). The syslog standard enables a
`dedicated, standardized subsystem to generate, filter, record, and analyze log messages. This relieves software
`developers of having to design and code their own ad hoc logging systems.
`
`Contents
`
`1 Event logs
`1.1 Transaction logs
`2 Message logs
`2.1 Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
`2.2 Instant messaging (IM)
`2.3 Transaction Log Analysis
`3 See also
`4 References
`
`Event logs
`
`Event logs record events taking place in the execution of a system in order to provide an audit trail that can be
`used to understand the activity of the system and to diagnose problems. They are essential to understand the
`activities of complex systems, particularly in the case of applications with little user interaction (such as server
`applications).
`
`It can also be useful to combine log file entries from multiple sources. This approach, in combination with
`statistical analysis, may yield correlations between seemingly unrelated events on different servers. Other solutions
`employ networkwide querying and reporting.
`
`Transaction logs
`
`Most database systems maintain some kind of transaction log, which are not mainly intended as an audit trail for
`later analysis, and are not intended to be humanreadable. These logs record changes to the stored data to allow the
`database to recover from crashes or other data errors and maintain the stored data in a consistent state. Thus,
`database systems usually have both general event logs and transaction logs.
`
`https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logfile
`
`1/3
`
`
`
`6/21/2016
`
`Message logs
`
`Logfile Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
`
`Internet Relay Chat (IRC), instant messaging (IM) programs, peertopeer file sharing clients with chat functions,
`and multiplayer games (especially MMORPGs) commonly have the ability to automatically log (i.e. save) textual
`communication, both public (IRC channel/IM conference/MMO public/party chat messages) and private chat
`messages between users.
`
`Message logs are almost universally plain text files, but IM and VoIP clients (which supports textual chat, e.g.
`Skype) might save them in HTML files or in a custom format to ease reading and encryption.
`
`Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
`
`In the case of IRC software, message logs often include system/server messages and entries related to channel and
`user changes (e.g. topic change, user joins/exits/kicks/bans, nickname changes, user status changes), making them
`more like a combined message/event log of the channel in question, but such a log isn't comparable to a true IRC
`server event log, because it only records uservisible events for the time frame the user spent being connected to a
`certain channel.
`
`Instant messaging (IM)
`
`Instant messaging and VoIP clients often offer the chance to store encrypted logs to enhance the user's privacy.
`These logs require a password to be decrypted and viewed, and they are often handled by their respective writing
`application.
`
`Transaction Log Analysis
`
`The use of data stored in transaction logs of Web search engines, Intranets, and Web sites can provide valuable
`insight into understanding the informationsearching process of online searchers.[3] This understanding can
`enlighten information system design, interface development, and devising the information architecture for content
`collections.
`See also
`
`Common Log Format
`Data logger
`Digital traces
`Event Viewer
`Java Logging Frameworks – logging frameworks for Java
`List of web analytics software
`Log management and intelligence
`Logging as a Service (LaaS)
`MultiTail – tool for watching logging (for UNIX)
`Pantheios – logging API library
`Server log
`Syslog
`Web counter
`Web log analysis software
`References
`
`https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logfile
`
`2/3
`
`
`
`Logfile Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
`6/21/2016
`1. Peters, T. (1993). The history and development of transaction log analysis. Library Hi Tech., 42(11), 41−66
`2. Rice, R. E., & Borgman, C. L. (1983). The use of computermonitored data in information science. Journal of the
`American Society for Information Science, 44, 247−256
`3. Jansen, B. J. 2006. Search log analysis: What is it; what's been done; how to do it. Library and Information Science
`Research, 28(3), 407432
`
`Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Logfile&oldid=700391632"
`
`Categories: Computer errors
`
`This page was last modified on 18 January 2016, at 06:33.
`Text is available under the Creative Commons AttributionShareAlike License; additional terms may apply.
`By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark
`of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit organization.
`
`https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logfile
`
`3/3