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Define start or stop parameters for a log or alert

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To define start or stop parameters for a log or alert

  • Using the Windows interface

  • Using a command line

Using the Windows interface

  1. Open Performance.

  2. Double-click Performance Logs and Alerts, and then click Counter Logs, Trace Logs, or Alerts.

  3. In the details pane, double-click the name of the log or alert.

  4. Click the Schedule tab.

  5. Under Start log, click one of the following options:

    • To start the log or alert manually, click Manually. When this option is selected, to start the log or alert, right-click the log name in the details pane, and click Start.

    • To start the log or alert at a specific time and date, click At, and then specify the time and date.

  6. Under Stop log, select one of the following options:

    • To stop the log or alert manually, click Manually. When this option is selected, to stop the log or alert, right-click the log or alert name in the details pane, and click Stop.

    • To stop the log or alert after a specified duration, click After, and then specify the number of intervals and the type of interval (days, hours, and so on).

    • To stop the log or alert at a specific time and date, click At, and then specify the time and date. (The year box accepts four characters; the others accept two characters.)

    • To stop a log when the log file becomes full, select options as follows: For counter logs and trace logs, click When the log file is full. The file will continue to accumulate data according to the file-size limit you set on the Log Files tab. When setting this option, take into consideration your available disk space and any disk quotas that are in place. An error might occur if your disk runs out of disk space due to logging.

  7. Complete the properties as appropriate for logs or alerts:

  8. For logs, under When a log file closes, select the appropriate option:

    • If you want to configure a continuous (automated) counter or trace logging, select Start a new log file.

    • If you want to run a program after the log file stops (for example, a copy command for transferring completed logs to an archive site), select Run this command. Also, type the path and file name of the command to run, or click Browse to locate the command.

    • For alerts, under When an alert scan finishes, select Start a new scan if you want to configure continuous alert scanning.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrators group, or the group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate Performance Log Users authority. If the computer is joined to a domain, members of the Domain Admins group might be able to perform this procedure. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • To open Performance, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Performance.

  • When you schedule a log to close at a specific time and date or close the log manually, the Start a new log file option is unavailable.

  • If the log is set to start at a scheduled time using Start At, the log will restart if the system reboots during the scheduled time. The scheduled time is based on the Stop settings.

  • When you select Run this command, by default, the command runs in the background.

  • To open Services, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Services.

Important

  • Note the security implications running an interactive program: When log stops, it will run the program on the desktop. If you schedule a collection to run on a system that other users have access to under an account with administrative credentials, then the program will appear on the desktop under the authentication of the administrator account, possibly when other users are logged onto the system.

  • To run an interactive program, open Services and double-click Performance Logs and Alerts. Click the Log On tab, and fill the Local System account and Allow service to interact with desktop check boxes.

  • When creating a monitoring console for export, make sure to select Use local computer counters. Otherwise, System Monitor will obtain data from the computer named in the text box, regardless of where the console file is installed.

  • For a description of a particular counter, click the name of the counter in Add counters, and then click Explain.

  • To monitor the sum of the values all of a particular counter's instances, select the _Total instance.

  • Unless you are configuring data from a log, you can select only active instances in the list box.

  • By default, counters are shown with both the instance name and an instance index. To turn off this feature, right-click the details pane, click Properties, select the General tab, and clear the Allow duplicate counter instances check box.

Using a command line

  1. Open Command Prompt.

  2. Type:

    logmanupdatecollection_name-mstartstop

Value Description

updatecollection_name

Updates the collection query named collection_name.

-mstartstop

Specifies that the logging will start and stop manually. Start specifies the time you want logging to start. Stop specifies the time you want logging to stop.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Administrators group, or the Performance Log Users group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. If the computer is joined to a domain, members of the Domain Admins group might be able to perform this procedure. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • To open a command prompt, click Start, point to All programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.

  • To view the complete syntax for this command, at a command prompt, type:

    logman /?

Information about functional differences

  • Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.

See Also

Concepts

Set parameters for a log
Logman