Monitoring FileMaker Server > Viewing log file entries
 
Viewing log file entries
Note  The following information is for server administrators and group administrators.
FileMaker Server tracks activity, client access, and other information as it operates and stores this information in log files.
1. Click Log Viewer.
2. Click Logs, then select one or more log files. See Selecting the log files.
.
To
Do the following
To set a date range for the log file entries
Click the calendars next to Start and End and select the start and end dates of the date range. All dates begin at 12:00 AM and end at 11:59 PM. If you select a start date and end date that are the same day, the date range is for a single 24-hour period. You can view log file events in the Log Viewer pane that were logged anytime in the past 15 days.
To filter the log file entries displayed in the Log Viewer pane based on type
Select a level of message (All, Error, Warning, or Information) for Type. See Filtering and sorting the log file entries.
To filter the log file entries displayed in the Log Viewer pane based on string matching in the Description column
Enter a filter string in the Filter field and click Filter. See Filtering and sorting the log file entries.
To view the most recently logged events, based on the options selected in the steps above
Click Refresh. See Refreshing the log viewer.
To export the displayed log file entries
Selecting the log files
To display entries from one or more specific log files, click Logs, select one or more of the following log files:
 
For Logs, select
To display entries from these log files
Server Events
Event.log and Event-old.log. See Event log.
Server Access
Access.log and Access-old.log. See Access log.
Web Publishing Core
FileMaker Data API
fmdapi.log for FileMaker Data API information. See FileMaker Data API log.
Whenever you select log files, the log viewer displays a table of the logged events in the selected date range from the associated log files that are stored on the master machine. Each row of the table represents an individual logged event. See the Notes below for details on managing the log file.
Filtering and sorting the log file entries
To specify the level of message to display, select All, Error, Warning, or Information for Type. Your selection applies to the log file entries currently displayed in the Log Viewer pane. To sort the entries in ascending or descending order, click a column heading, such as Event or Type.
To filter the messages displayed in the Log Viewer pane based on string matching in the Description column, enter a filter string in the Filter field and click Filter. The filter string is not case sensitive. For example, the filter string "max" displays all log messages that contain "Maximum" or "maximum" in the description.
To stop filtering based on string matching and display all log messages, delete the filter string in the Filter field and click Filter.
Refreshing the log viewer
The Log Viewer pane displays a snapshot of log entries from the selected log files. The log entries are not dynamically updated as FileMaker Server logs new events in the log files. Click Refresh to update the Log Viewer pane with the most recently logged events.
Exporting the log file entries
You can export the currently displayed log file entries in the Log Viewer pane to a file. The exported file lists the events in the sort order specified in the Log Viewer pane.
1. Click Export.
2. By default, the contents are saved in the file Export.tab.
•Windows: Depending on your browser, the file is saved in the Downloads folder. With some browsers, a new tab opens with the contents, and you can save the file with a new filename in a specific location.
•macOS: The Export.tab file is saved in your browser’s download folder.
3. Open and view Export.tab file in any text editor.
Notes
•If you are a group administrator, your server administrator must configure your administrator group to allow you to view log file entries. For more information, contact your server administrator.
•You can use the Log Viewer pane when the Database Server is running or stopped.
•You can directly interact with the list. For example, you can sort items in the list by clicking a column heading, put the columns in a different order by dragging the column heading, and resize the width of a column by dragging a column heading border.
•If the table in the Log Viewer pane is empty or you do not see the log file entries you expect, here are some possible causes:
•Logs — No log file is currently selected for Logs, or a required log file is currently empty or not available.
•Date range — No log file information exists for the selected date range based on the selected log files and level of message for Type.
•Type — The level of message selected for Type does not exist based on the selected log files and date range.
•In a multiple-machine deployment, the log files are on the master machine.
•To view log file events older than 15 days, open the log file using any application capable of opening plain text files or the macOS Console application. You can open the log file in the
macOS Console application while FileMaker Server is running. Events are logged continuously, with the most recent log entry at the bottom of the Console application window. All log files are located in the Logs folder:
•Windows: [drive]:\Program Files\FileMaker\FileMaker Server\Logs
If FileMaker Server is installed in a non-default location, the beginning portion of the default path shown above, \Program Files\FileMaker\FileMaker Server, is replaced with the path that was specified during installation. For example: \My_Path\Logs
•macOS: /Library/FileMaker Server/Logs
Related topics 
Monitoring FileMaker Server
Logging and statistics settings
Viewing server statistics
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