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Logging

What is it?​

The SQL Agent and its supporting components write log files that record service activity, configuration, and (when tracing is on) detailed diagnostic information. Use these logs to:

  • Confirm the agent started cleanly.
  • Verify the configuration the agent loaded.
  • Trace SMANetCom messages while troubleshooting.
  • Investigate intermittent failures.

Logs reside in the <Output Directory>\SQLAgent\Log\ directory. The Output Directory was set during installation.

note

For more information about file locations, refer to File Locations in the Concepts online help.

Log files​

FileContents
SQLAgent.logAgent processing information. Configuration is also written here at startup and whenever the SQL Agent detects a change to SQLAgent.ini.
SQLAgentTrace.logDetailed diagnostic messages. Only written when tracing is activated.

For details on enabling tracing and tuning log size, see Debug options in the SQLAgent.ini reference.

Log archiving​

When a log file reaches the configured maximum size, the SQL Agent archives it. Archived logs live in <Output Directory>\SQLAgent\Log\Archives\.

Archive folder layout​

A folder exists in Archives for each day the SQL Agent processes. Folders use the naming convention yyyy_mm_dd (Weekday). For example, the folder for January 11, 2008 would be 2008_01_11 (Friday).

Archive file naming​

As each log file fills up, the SQL Agent moves it into the current archive folder and renames it using the convention LogName StartTime - StopTime.log. For example, an archive file for the time range of 12:58:16 to 13:58:00 would be SMAAgent 125816 - 135800.log.

Retention​

By default, the SQL Agent retains 10 days of archived logs. Adjust this through the ArchiveDaysToKeep setting in SQLAgent.ini.

Manual files block purging

The SQL Agent does not purge an archive folder if it contains any files other than archived logs. If you copy files into an archive folder for any reason, retention will skip that folder until the extra files are removed.

FAQs​

Where do SQL Agent log files live? Log files reside in the <Output Directory>\SQLAgent\Log\ directory. The Output Directory is set during installation.

How long are archived logs kept by default? By default, the SQL Agent retains 10 days of archived logs. To change this, configure the SQLAgent.ini file.

When does the SQL Agent rotate a log file? When a log file reaches a user-configured maximum size, the SQL Agent moves it into the current archive folder and renames it using the LogName StartTime - StopTime.log convention.

Why aren't my old archive folders being purged? The SQL Agent does not purge an archive folder if any files other than archived files are present in it. Remove non-archive files from the folder so retention can run.