Tomcat/tc Server log file types
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Tomcat/tc Server log file types

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Article ID: 329356

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Updated On:

Products

VMware

Issue/Introduction

This article provides information on the types of log files generated by Tomcat/tc Server while operational.


Symptoms:



Cause

Resolution

In a typical Tomcat/tc Server installation, various types of logs are generated in the logs folder while the server is running.
You can find these types of log files in the logs directory:

  • Console log
    • catalina.out
    • wrapper.log
    • tomcatX-stdout.log
    • tomcatX-stderr.log
  • Java logs
    • catalina.[date].log
    • localhost.[date].log
  • Access log
    • localhost_access_log.[date].log
You may see these log files if the corresponding manager, host-manager, and admin application of Tomcat are installed:
  • manager.[date].log
  • host-manager.[date].log
  • admin.[date].log
The name of the logs given here are just for indicative purpose and the date pattern could be something like YYYY-MM-DD. It is possible to change the name and date format of the logs. The Tomcat application specific logs are generated in accordance with the application. Below is a short description of the above three types of logs:

  1. Console log

    When running in Unix/Linux, console output is redirected to a file named catalina.out, which is the sink for System.out and System.err. This file is not managed by logging facilities. In a Windows environment, this log is named tomcatx-stdout.log and tomcatx-stderr.log [1]. In Tomcat/tc Server it is named wrapper.log. This log is not rotated by default, as it requires external programs for rotation.

    For more information, see the See Also field of this article.
  2. Java logs

    Tomcat uses java.util.logging by default for logging. This can be defined globally (using logging.properties in the conf directory), or locally in per application logging.properties. The default global configuration defines two log files - catalina.[date].log and localhost.[date].log. The file - catalina.[date].log file caters for Catalina engine logs. The localhost.[date].log file is more application related. Alternatively, log4j may be used to configure these logs.

    For more information, see the logging section of Tomcat and tc Server official documentation.
  3. Access log

    Access log can be used to collect request processing metrics by Tomcat. Access logs allow you to analyze request processing time, request method, page hit count, session activity, and more. You can configure access logs for context, host, or engine.

    For a full list of capabilities and configuration options, see the access log valve section of your Tomcat documentation.


Additional Information


Pivotal Links

Pivotal tc Server Knowledge Base:
Rotating catalina.out log file on Linux / Unix
Deleting or rotating the wrapper.log file in vFabric tc Server

Impact/Risks:


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