[apple/syslog.git] / syslogd.tproj / syslog.conf.5

.\" Copyright (c) 1990, 1991, 1993
.\"	The Regents of the University of California.  All rights reserved.
.\"
.\" Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
.\" modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
.\" are met:
.\" 1. Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
.\"    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
.\" 2. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
.\"    notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the
.\"    documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
.\" 3. All advertising materials mentioning features or use of this software
.\"    must display the following acknowledgement:
.\"	This product includes software developed by the University of
.\"	California, Berkeley and its contributors.
.\" 4. Neither the name of the University nor the names of its contributors
.\"    may be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software
.\"    without specific prior written permission.
.\"
.\" THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE REGENTS AND CONTRIBUTORS ``AS IS'' AND
.\" ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
.\" IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
.\" ARE DISCLAIMED.  IN NO EVENT SHALL THE REGENTS OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE
.\" FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL
.\" DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS
.\" OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION)
.\" HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT
.\" LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY
.\" OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF
.\" SUCH DAMAGE.
.\"
.\"     from: @(#)syslog.conf.5	8.1 (Berkeley) 6/9/93
.\"	$NetBSD: syslog.conf.5,v 1.4 1996/01/02 17:41:46 perry Exp $
.\"
.Dd June 9, 1993
.Dt SYSLOG.CONF 5
.Os
.Sh NAME
.Nm syslog.conf
.Nd
.Xr syslogd 8
configuration file
.Sh DESCRIPTION
The
.Nm syslog.conf
file is the configuration file for the
.Xr syslogd 8
program.
It consists of lines with two fields: the
.Em selector
field which specifies the types of messages and priorities to which the
line applies, and an
.Em action
field which specifies the action to be taken if a message
.Xr syslogd
receives matches the selection criteria.
The
.Em selector
field is separated from the
.Em action
field by one or more tab characters.
.Pp
The
.Em Selectors
function
are encoded as a
.Em facility ,
a period (``.''), and a
.Em level ,
with no intervening white-space.
Both the
.Em facility
and the
.Em level
are case insensitive.
.Pp
The
.Em facility
describes the part of the system generating the message.
Legacy facility names are: auth, authpriv, cron, daemon, kern, lpr, mail,
mark, news, syslog, user, uucp and local0 through local7.
These keywords (with the exception of mark) correspond to the
similar
.Dq Dv LOG_
values specified to the
.Xr openlog 3
and
.Xr syslog 3
library routines.
.Pp
Apple System Log messages, sent using the
.Xr asl 3
library routines permit the facility name to be an arbitrary string,
although users of the system are encouraged to use a 
.Dq reverse ICANN
naming convention, for example
.Dq com.apple.system.syslog .
Since these facility names may contain dot characters, the names may be enclosed in
either singe quote or double quote characters.
.Pp
The
.Em level
describes the severity of the message, and is a keyword from the
following ordered list (higher to lower): emerg, alert, crit, err,
warning, notice, info and debug.
These keywords correspond to the
similar
.Pq Dv LOG_
values specified to the
.Xr syslog
library routine.
.Pp
See
.Xr syslog 3
for a further descriptions of both the
.Em facility
and
.Em level
keywords and their significance.
.Pp
If a received message matches the specified
.Em facility
and is of the specified
.Em level
.Em (or a higher level) ,
the action specified in the
.Em action
field will be taken.
.Pp
Multiple
.Em selectors
may be specified for a single
.Em action
by separating them with semicolon (``;'') characters.
It is important to note, however, that each
.Em selector
can modify the ones preceding it.
.Pp
Multiple
.Em facilities
may be specified for a single
.Em level
by separating them with comma (``,'') characters.
.Pp
An asterisk (``*'') can be used to specify all
.Em facilities
or all
.Em levels .
.Pp
The special
.Em facility
``mark'' receives a message at priority ``info'' every 20 minutes
(see
.Xr syslogd 8 ) .
This is not enabled by a
.Em facility
field containing an asterisk.
.Pp
The special
.Em level
``none'' disables a particular
.Em facility .
.Pp
The
.Em action
field of each line specifies the action to be taken when the
.Em selector
field selects a message.
There are four forms:
.Bl -bullet
.It
A pathname (beginning with a leading slash).
Selected messages are appended to the file.
.It
A hostname (preceded by an at (``@'') sign).
Selected messages are forwarded to the
.Xr syslogd
program on the named host.
.It
A comma separated list of users.
Selected messages are written to those users
if they are logged in.
.It
An asterisk.
Selected messages are written to all logged-in users.
.El
.Pp
Blank lines and lines whose first non-blank character is a hash (``#'')
character are ignored.
.Sh EXAMPLES
.Pp
A configuration file might appear as follows:
.Bd -literal
# Log all kernel messages, authentication messages of
# level notice or higher and anything of level err or
# higher to the console.
# Don't log private authentication messages!
*.err;kern.*;auth.notice;authpriv.none	/dev/console

# Log anything (except mail) of level info or higher.
# Don't log private authentication messages!
*.info;mail.none;authpriv.none		/var/log/messages

# The authpriv file has restricted access.
authpriv.*						/var/log/secure

# Log all the mail messages in one place.
mail.*							/var/log/maillog

# Everybody gets emergency messages, plus log them on another
# machine.
*.emerg							*
*.emerg							@arpa.berkeley.edu

# Root and Eric get alert and higher messages.
*.alert							root,eric

# Save mail and news errors of level err and higher in a
# special file.
uucp,news.crit						/var/log/spoolerr
.Ed
.Sh FILES
.Bl -tag -width /etc/syslog.conf -compact
.It Pa /etc/syslog.conf
The
.Xr syslogd 8
configuration file.
.El
.Sh BUGS
The effects of multiple selectors are sometimes not intuitive.
For example ``mail.crit,*.err'' will select ``mail'' facility messages at
the level of ``err'' or higher, not at the level of ``crit'' or higher.
.Sh SEE ALSO
.Xr asl 3 ,
.Xr syslog 3 ,
.Xr syslogd 8
.Sh HISTORY
The
.Nm
file appeared in
.Bx 4.3 ,
along with
.Xr syslogd 8 .
Commit	Line	Data
b16a592a A	1	.\" Copyright (c) 1990, 1991, 1993
	2	.\" The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
	3	.\"
	4	.\" Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
	5	.\" modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
	6	.\" are met:
	7	.\" 1. Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
	8	.\" notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
	9	.\" 2. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
	10	.\" notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the
	11	.\" documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
	12	.\" 3. All advertising materials mentioning features or use of this software
	13	.\" must display the following acknowledgement:
	14	.\" This product includes software developed by the University of
	15	.\" California, Berkeley and its contributors.
	16	.\" 4. Neither the name of the University nor the names of its contributors
	17	.\" may be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software
	18	.\" without specific prior written permission.
	19	.\"
	20	.\" THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE REGENTS AND CONTRIBUTORS ``AS IS'' AND
	21	.\" ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
	22	.\" IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
	23	.\" ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE REGENTS OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE
	24	.\" FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL
	25	.\" DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS
	26	.\" OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION)
	27	.\" HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT
	28	.\" LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY
	29	.\" OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF
	30	.\" SUCH DAMAGE.
	31	.\"
	32	.\" from: @(#)syslog.conf.5 8.1 (Berkeley) 6/9/93
	33	.\" $NetBSD: syslog.conf.5,v 1.4 1996/01/02 17:41:46 perry Exp $
	34	.\"
	35	.Dd June 9, 1993
	36	.Dt SYSLOG.CONF 5
	37	.Os
	38	.Sh NAME
	39	.Nm syslog.conf
	40	.Nd
	41	.Xr syslogd 8
	42	configuration file
	43	.Sh DESCRIPTION
	44	The
	45	.Nm syslog.conf
	46	file is the configuration file for the
	47	.Xr syslogd 8
	48	program.
	49	It consists of lines with two fields: the
	50	.Em selector
	51	field which specifies the types of messages and priorities to which the
	52	line applies, and an
	53	.Em action
	54	field which specifies the action to be taken if a message
	55	.Xr syslogd
	56	receives matches the selection criteria.
	57	The
	58	.Em selector
	59	field is separated from the
	60	.Em action
	61	field by one or more tab characters.
	62	.Pp
	63	The
	64	.Em Selectors
65	function
66	are encoded as a
67	.Em facility ,
68	a period (``.''), and a
69	.Em level ,
70	with no intervening white-space.
71	Both the
72	.Em facility
73	and the
74	.Em level
75	are case insensitive.
76	.Pp
77	The
78	.Em facility
c4fdb7d1 A	79	describes the part of the system generating the message.
c4fdb7d1 A	80	Legacy facility names are: auth, authpriv, cron, daemon, kern, lpr, mail,
b16a592a A	81	mark, news, syslog, user, uucp and local0 through local7.
	82	These keywords (with the exception of mark) correspond to the
	83	similar
	84	.Dq Dv LOG_
	85	values specified to the
	86	.Xr openlog 3
	87	and
	88	.Xr syslog 3
	89	library routines.
	90	.Pp
c4fdb7d1 A	91	Apple System Log messages, sent using the
	92	.Xr asl 3
	93	library routines permit the facility name to be an arbitrary string,
	94	although users of the system are encouraged to use a
	95	.Dq reverse ICANN
	96	naming convention, for example
	97	.Dq com.apple.system.syslog .
	98	Since these facility names may contain dot characters, the names may be enclosed in
	99	either singe quote or double quote characters.
	100	.Pp
b16a592a A	101	The
	102	.Em level
	103	describes the severity of the message, and is a keyword from the
	104	following ordered list (higher to lower): emerg, alert, crit, err,
	105	warning, notice, info and debug.
	106	These keywords correspond to the
	107	similar
	108	.Pq Dv LOG_
	109	values specified to the
	110	.Xr syslog
	111	library routine.
	112	.Pp
	113	See
	114	.Xr syslog 3
	115	for a further descriptions of both the
	116	.Em facility
	117	and
	118	.Em level
	119	keywords and their significance.
	120	.Pp
	121	If a received message matches the specified
	122	.Em facility
	123	and is of the specified
	124	.Em level
	125	.Em (or a higher level) ,
	126	the action specified in the
	127	.Em action
	128	field will be taken.
	129	.Pp
	130	Multiple
	131	.Em selectors
	132	may be specified for a single
	133	.Em action
	134	by separating them with semicolon (``;'') characters.
	135	It is important to note, however, that each
	136	.Em selector
	137	can modify the ones preceding it.
	138	.Pp
	139	Multiple
	140	.Em facilities
	141	may be specified for a single
	142	.Em level
	143	by separating them with comma (``,'') characters.
	144	.Pp
	145	An asterisk (``*'') can be used to specify all
	146	.Em facilities
	147	or all
	148	.Em levels .
	149	.Pp
	150	The special
	151	.Em facility
	152	``mark'' receives a message at priority ``info'' every 20 minutes
	153	(see
	154	.Xr syslogd 8 ) .
	155	This is not enabled by a
	156	.Em facility
	157	field containing an asterisk.
	158	.Pp
	159	The special
	160	.Em level
	161	``none'' disables a particular
	162	.Em facility .
	163	.Pp
	164	The
165	.Em action
166	field of each line specifies the action to be taken when the
167	.Em selector
168	field selects a message.
169	There are four forms:
170	.Bl -bullet
171	.It
172	A pathname (beginning with a leading slash).
173	Selected messages are appended to the file.
174	.It
175	A hostname (preceded by an at (``@'') sign).
176	Selected messages are forwarded to the
177	.Xr syslogd
178	program on the named host.
179	.It
180	A comma separated list of users.
181	Selected messages are written to those users
182	if they are logged in.
183	.It
184	An asterisk.
185	Selected messages are written to all logged-in users.
186	.El
187	.Pp
188	Blank lines and lines whose first non-blank character is a hash (``#'')
189	character are ignored.
190	.Sh EXAMPLES
191	.Pp
192	A configuration file might appear as follows:
193	.Bd -literal
194	# Log all kernel messages, authentication messages of
195	# level notice or higher and anything of level err or
196	# higher to the console.
197	# Don't log private authentication messages!
198	.err;kern.;auth.notice;authpriv.none /dev/console
199
200	# Log anything (except mail) of level info or higher.
201	# Don't log private authentication messages!
202	*.info;mail.none;authpriv.none /var/log/messages
203
204	# The authpriv file has restricted access.
205	authpriv.* /var/log/secure
206
207	# Log all the mail messages in one place.
208	mail.* /var/log/maillog
209
210	# Everybody gets emergency messages, plus log them on another
211	# machine.
212	.emerg
213	*.emerg @arpa.berkeley.edu
214
215	# Root and Eric get alert and higher messages.
216	*.alert root,eric
217
218	# Save mail and news errors of level err and higher in a
219	# special file.
220	uucp,news.crit /var/log/spoolerr
221	.Ed
222	.Sh FILES
223	.Bl -tag -width /etc/syslog.conf -compact
224	.It Pa /etc/syslog.conf
225	The
226	.Xr syslogd 8
227	configuration file.
228	.El
229	.Sh BUGS
230	The effects of multiple selectors are sometimes not intuitive.
231	For example ``mail.crit,*.err'' will select ``mail'' facility messages at
232	the level of ``err'' or higher, not at the level of ``crit'' or higher.
233	.Sh SEE ALSO
c4fdb7d1	234	.Xr asl 3 ,
b16a592a A	235	.Xr syslog 3 ,
	236	.Xr syslogd 8
	237	.Sh HISTORY
	238	The
	239	.Nm
	240	file appeared in
	241	.Bx 4.3 ,
	242	along with
	243	.Xr syslogd 8 .