Log File Viewer

  • Article

The Log File Viewer can display log files from a variety of components. The logs available depend on how the Log File Viewer is opened. When the Log File Viewer is open, use the Select logs pane to select the logs you wish to display.

Procedures

To view logs related to general SQL Server activity

  1. In Object Explorer, expand Management, expand SQL Server Logs, and then double-click Current*<date/time>*, displays the SQL Server, SQL Agent, and Windows Event logs.

To view logs related to jobs

  1. In Object Explorer, expand SQL Server Agent, right-click Jobs, and then click View History, displays the Job History, and the SQL Agent logs.

To view logs related to maintenance plans

  1. In Object Explorer, expand Management, right-click Maintenance Plans, and then click View History, displays the Maintenance Plans, Job History, and the SQL Agent logs.

Options

  • Load Log
    Launch a dialog box where you can specify a log file to load.
  • Export
    Launch a dialog box that allows you to export the information shown in the Log file summary grid to a text file.
  • Refresh
    Refresh the view of the selected logs. The refresh button will cause the log to be displayed with any events that have occurred since the grid was opened and with the filters applied.
  • Filter
    Launch a dialog box that allows you to specify settings used to filter the log file, such as Connection, Date, or other General filter criteria.
  • Search
    Search the log file for specific text. Searching with wildcards is not supported.
  • Log file summary
    This information panel displays a summary of the log file filtering. If the file is not filtered, you will see the following text, No filter applied. If a filter has been applied to the log, you will see the following text, Filter log entries where: <filter criteria>.
  • Date
    Displays the date of the event.
  • Source
    Displays the source of the event, such as the name of the service (MSSQLSERVER, for example). Does not appear for all log types.
  • Message
    Displays any messages associated with the event.
  • Log Type
    Displays the type of error log. All selected logs appear in the summary window, allowing you to see possible relationships between events in different logs.
  • Log Source
    Displays the file where the error log is stored.
  • <Additional columns>
    Additional columns appear if they are present in the log selected for display.
  • Selected row details
    Select a row to display additional details about the selected event row at the bottom of the page. The columns can be reordered by dragging them to new locations in the grid. The columns can be resized by dragging the column separator bars in the grid header to the left or right. Double-click the column separator bars in the grid header to automatically size the column to the content width.

Permissions

Requires membership in the securityadmin fixed server role.