Logs
Log Concepts
This section describes Ops Center Protector's logging features.
For further information, refer to:
About logs
Ops Center Protector maintains a list of log messages generated by the various subsystems running on Protector nodes. All log messages and are sent to and stored on the Master node, where they are made available via the user interface.
Each log entry includes the following information in addition to a short textual description of the event:
- A unique ID assigned to every log entry, useful when discussing logs with colleagues and support engineers.
- Audit Flag indicating a change to the system status. These cannot be modified or deleted, for compliance purposes. The identity of the user initiating the action is recorded.
- Date and time recording when the log was generated on the originating node and received by the master node.
- Level identifying the importance of the log entry.
- Attachment enabling additional context information to be attached to the log entry.
- An ID identifying the position within the Protector code where the message was generated. The ID can be used to reference an engineering support database that provides additional description and identifies possible causes and solutions.
Numerous filters can be applied to the displayed logs to enable the user to locate relevant entries.
Log entries that relate to a particular activity, such as a repository resynchronization, are marked with a session marker. This session marker can be used to filter the logs so that only the log entries relating to that activity are displayed.
Log entries can be acknowledged by the user and marked with a comment so that it is clear that the event has been noticed and addressed.
The entire log data-base can be exported in various file formats so that it can be analyzed offline or presented in a report.
If a specific event or set of events occurs in the logs then notifications can be generated via email, SNMP or the OS System Event Log.
Logs UI Reference
This section describes the Logs UI, accessed via the Main Banner.
For further information, refer to:
Logs Inventory
The Logs Inventory displays system wide events for the purpose of operation confirmation, health monitoring, fault diagnosis and auditing.
| Control | Description |
 Purge Logs | Removes all logs of a given age and older from the log manager database. Logs marked as 'Audit' cannot be removed. The Purge Logs Dialog is displayed prior to the logs being purged. |
 Edit purge schedule | Allows the automatic log purge schedule to be configured. The Log Purge Schedule is displayed. |
 Acknowledge All Error Logs | Acknowledges all unacknowledged error logs in the log database. Unacknowledged error logs are displayed with a red background. Acknowledged logs are displayed in green and the acknowledgment message, date and time are displayed alongside the log entry. The Acknowledge Logs Dialog is displayed prior to the logs being acknowledged. |
 Export Logs | Exports the log database as a file, respecting the currently specified filter terms. The Export Logs Dialog is displayed prior to the logs being exported. |
 Acknowledge Selected Logs | Enabled only if one or more log entries are selected. Acknowledges all selected logs in the log database. Unacknowledged error logs are displayed with a red background. Acknowledged logs are displayed in green and the acknowledgment message, date and time are displayed alongside the log entry. The Acknowledge Logs Dialog is displayed prior to the logs being acknowledged. |
 Create Log Notification | Enabled only if one log entry is selected. Creates a log notification condition for that log message type. The Notification Wizard is displayed to assist in creating the notification condition. |
 Condensed View | Display a subset of the log fields in the log table. |
 Extended View | Display all of the log fields in the log table. |
| Log Entry | Refer to the Log Fields table below for a full description of all fields. |
| Filter on Message | Filters the log table so that only logs containing the specified string in the Log Message field are displayed. |
| Filter on Date Time Range | Filters the log table so that only logs from the specified Master date and time are displayed. Opens the Date Time Range Picker. |
| Filter on Actioned By | Filters the log table so that only logs relating to the specified node that performs an action are displayed. |
| Filter on Actioned For | Filters the log table so that only logs relating to the specified node that requests an action are displayed. |
| Filter on Category | Filters the log table so that only logs of the specified Category are displayed. |
| Filter on Log Level | Filters the log table so that only logs of the specified Level and above are displayed. |
| Filter on Acknowledgement | Filters the log table so that only acknowledged or unacknowledged logs are displayed. |
| Filter on Log Type | Filters the log table so that only audit logs are displayed. |
| Field Name | Description |
 Select Log Entry | Each log entry can be selected using the selection checkbox. Click one or more log entries to apply an action to that item. |
 Sequence Number | All logs have a sequence number associated with them representing the order in which they arrived at the master node. Some logs that are used for statistics and reporting do not appear in the log inventory and consequently there will gaps in the displayed sequence numbers. |
 Audit | Audit logs are marked with a  icon. Click on the Audit icon if present to display the audit information for the corresponding log message. Audit messages cannot be removed from the log database. |
 Session | Logs relating to a session are marked with a  icon. Click on the Session icon if present to display all log messages that pertain to that same session. The Session Log Details is displayed. |
| Master Date | The date and time at which the log message was stored within the master node’s log database. Each log entry appears in the log table in descending time order, with the latest log displayed first. |
| Local Date | The date and time at which the message was actually logged by the machine that generated the message. Due to network speed, connectivity issues or different time zones this can differ from the Master Date. |
| Actioned By | The machine from which the specific action is performed. |
| Action For | The machine that requested the specific action. |
| Category | The Protector component that generated the log. A special category named Session is used to indicate the start and end of a sequence of log entries relating to a specific transaction or job. Refer to Session Log Details for details. |
| Level | How important the log message is. This can be one of four values:
|
 Attachment | A  icon is displayed if an attachment is included with the log entry. It provides further information that can aid understanding. Click on the Attachment icon if present to display the Log Attachments Dialog which shows additional supporting information that cannot be displayed within the log table. |
| Log ID | A unique identifier that enables that log message to be looked up in the knowledge base. Not all log entries have a Log ID assigned (i.e. the ID is set to 0). If you require assistance regarding an unassigned ID, please contact support. |
| Log Message | The actual text content of the log message. When searching this field, words that are entered in the search box must appear in the log message text. Log messages are displayed with alternating background shading to aid readability. |
| Acknowledgment | A note entered by the user who acknowledged the log message and the date & time of acknowledgement. (See Acknowledgement Selected Logs button). |
Detail – These log messages can describe intricacies of a process, or non-critical information and do not require any action by the user.
Information – These messages give a higher-level overview of a process, and usually indicate normal operation. These messages do not require any action by the user.
Warning – Messages logged at warning level can indicate that the user should investigate the subject of the message to see if it requires further action. Warning messages are not necessarily critical.
Error – Error messages are only logged when the attention of the user is required. They appear with a red background and cause an error badge to appear on relevant nodes within the Purge Logs Dialog
The Purge Logs dialog is displayed when the user attempts to remove logs from the log database.
| Control | Description |
| Purge Logs Older Than | Specify the date and time, using the Date Time Picker, on and before which logs must originate for them to be deleted from the log database. Logs newer than this date and time will not be deleted. |
| I understand log entries... | As an interlock, this checkbox must be ticked in order to proceed with the purge operation. The Confirm button will not be enabled unless the checkbox is ticked. |
Log Purge Schedule
The Log Purge Schedule dialog is displayed when the user clicks on the Log Purge Schedule icon.
The Log Purge Schedule dialogs allows a user to enable or disable the automatic purging of logs. If enabled the user configures the maximum number of weeks logs are kept by for. 
| Control | Description |
| Never | Disable automatic log purging. |
| Older than 13 weeks | Enable automatic log purging causing log messages which are older than, or become older than, the specified number of weeks to be permanently deleted. NoteAudit logs are not deleted. |
| Acknowledgement checkbox | To enable the automatic purging feature, the user must acknowledge that purged logs are not recoverable. |
Acknowledge Logs Dialog
The Acknowledge Logs dialog is displayed when the user attempts to acknowledge a log message in the log database.
| Control | Description |
| Acknowledgment | Optional. Enter a short message that describes the action taken or reason for acknowledging the log. This will be appended with the date and time of acknowledgment upon confirmation. Drag the handle at the bottom right of the edit box to expand it. |
Export Logs Dialog
The Log Export dialog is displayed when the user clicks on the export icon on the Logs or Session page.
| Control | Description |
| Export Format | Select one of the following:
|
| Export | Click to begin the export process. The dialog will display progress of the export process and the export file will automatically be downloaded when ready. The export will be automatically downloaded even if the dialog is closed. |
Session Log Details
The Logs Session Details page is displayed when the user clicks on a Session icon in a log message.
A session contains all the logs related to a specific transaction or job. Log entries belonging to sessions are identified in the Logs Inventory by a Session icon. Several sessions can however be interleaved in the main Log, making it difficult to trace through a specific one, however all the logs from one specific session can be viewed on this page.
| Control | Description |
| Export Session Logs | Exports the log database entries for the displayed session as a file, respecting the currently specified filter terms. The Export Logs Dialog is displayed prior to the logs being exported. |
| Summary | Provides summary information about the session. |
| Parameters | Identifies additional details for the session, where possible including, Source, Destination, Policy and Operation. |
| Condensed View | Display a subset of the log fields in the session table. Green when selected, black when deselected. |
| Extended View | Display all of the log fields in the session table. Green when selected, black when deselected. |
| Log Entry | Each log entry for the selected session appears in the session log table in descending time order, with the latest log displayed first. The log table is described in detail in Logs Inventory |
| Filter on Message | Filters the log table so that only logs containing the specified string in the Log Message field are displayed. |
| Filter on Actioned By | Filters the log table so that only logs relating to the specified node that performed the action are displayed. |
| Filter on Category | Filters the log table so that only logs of the specified Category are displayed. |
| Filter on Log Level | Filters the log table so that only logs of the specified Level and above are displayed. |
| Filter on Acknowledgement | Filters the log table so that only acknowledged or unacknowledged logs are displayed. |
Log Attachments Dialog
The Log Attachments dialog is displayed when the user clicks on the attachment icon for a log message.
| Control | Description |
| Attachment File Name | Each attachment is selected by clicking the buttons down the left side of the dialog. |
| Attachment text | The attachment text for the selected attachment is displayed in a text box to the right. |
| Download the attachment | Click here to download the selected attachment as a .txt file. A tool tip is displayed indicating where the file will be downloaded. The download location may be configured via your browser. Your browser may prompt you when the file has downloaded and enable you to open it in a text editor. |
Log Tasks
For further information, refer to:
How to view logs
Ops Center Protector generates log messages as it performs activities. These can be viewed as follows:
Procedure
Click Logs on the Main Banner to open the Logs Inventory.
All log messages are displayed in a table with the most recently generated log message listed first.Click on the Condensed View or Extended View buttons to view fewer or more columns in the table.
Select one or more log entries you want to perform an action on, by clicking the check box buttons within the table.
You can then Acknowledge Selected Logs or Create Log Notifications for a message by clicking on the buttons above the table.To view the attachments for a specific log entry, click on the Attachments icon in the table next to the log entry.
The Log Attachments Dialog is displayed.To view only those logs that are associated with the same session (a job logs to a session), click the View Session icon in the table next to the log entry.
The Session Log Details are displayed, listing all logs for the session.