Chapter 19. Using Logs
IN THIS CHAPTER
Understanding the security information that logs can reveal
Making sure your logs contain the right data
Locating logs on your disk
Understanding the special console and system logs
Viewing logs' contents
Figuring out what to look for in logs
As you use your Mac, Mac OS X itself and many third-party programs silently keep records about nearly everything that happens — especially errors and other unexpected behavior. All this information is stored in log files, which at first glance may appear to be hopelessly boring lists of numbers and technical minutiae. But when you're trying to figure out why some problem has occurred, logs can be your best friend. They may tell you who's been accessing your computer, which program was used when, which Internet servers have been contacted recently, and all sorts of other facts that can help you discover when and why your Mac was misused (whether by a program or a person). Needless to say, logs are useful for many other reasons too, such as tracking down crashes and misbehaving software, but in this chapter, I concentrate on exploring what logs can tell you about your Mac's security.
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