Log Monitoring with PRTG

Log monitoring is the process of collecting, analyzing, and reviewing log data generated by various systems, applications, servers, and devices within an IT infrastructure. Logs are records of events, activities, or communications that occur within these systems. Log monitoring helps organizations detect, investigate, and respond to potential issues, performance bottlenecks, and security threats.

Syslog stands for System Logging Protocol and is a standard protocol used to send system log or event messages to a specific server, called a syslog server. It is primarily used to collect various device logs from several different machines in a central location for monitoring and review. The protocol is enabled on most network equipment such as routers, switches, firewalls, and even some printers and scanners. In addition, syslog is available on Unix and Linux based systems and many web servers including Apache.

PRTG can basically monitor all kinds of logs, including:

• System logs: Generated by operating systems, these logs provide information about the hardware, software, and system processes.
• Application logs: Created by software applications to track their operation, performance, and errors.
• Security logs: Focus on monitoring security-related events, such as authentication and access.
• Event logs: Capture specific events or notifications from systems and applications.
• Network logs: Generated by network devices like routers, switches, and firewalls to track network activity.
• Access logs: Record access requests to systems, applications, or data.

With its preconfigured sensors, it can not only monitor, but also analyze specific logs like syslogs and Windows event logs in greater detail.

A log management tool is software designed to centralize, process, analyze, and manage logs generated by systems, applications, and network devices. These tools simplify log handling and provide insights for troubleshooting, performance monitoring, security, and compliance. As such, PRTG is no log management tool, but it can support log management activities with continuous monitoring and real-time alerts.

Key functions of a log management solution include:

• Log collection: Gathers logs from various sources such as servers, applications, firewalls, and cloud environments.
• Log aggregation and centralization: Consolidate and correlate logs from diverse systems into a single repository for easier access and analysis.
• Log parsing and formatting: Normalizes and parses log data into a consistent log format for uniform analysis. Extracts meaningful information like timestamps, error codes, and IP addresses.
• Log retention and storage: Store logs in a database or file system for a defined retention period.
• Log analysis: Provides tools for querying, searching, and filtering logs to identify patterns or anomalies.

In PRTG, “sensors” are the basic monitoring elements. One sensor usually monitors one measured value in your network, for example the traffic of a switch port, the CPU load of a server, or the free space on a disk drive. On average, you need about 5-10 sensors per device or one sensor per switch port.