Linux Recipes for Oracle DBAs

Appendix B. Server Log Files

Server log files contain informational messages about the kernel, applications, and services running on the system. These files can be very useful for troubleshooting and debugging system-level issues. DBAs often look in the system log files as a first step in diagnosing server issues. Even if you're working with competent system administrators, you can still save yourself time (and gain valuable insights to the root cause of a problem) by inspecting the log files yourself.

Most of the system log files are located in the /var/log directory. Typically there is a log file for a specific application or service. For example, the cron utility has a log file named cron (no surprise) in the /var/log directory. Depending on ...