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mod_autorotate configuration

Description

Description Fully automated log rotation and compression
Status Apache 2 licensed
Module Identifier autorotate_module
Source File mod_autorotate.c
Compatibility Requires Apache 2.2

Summary

The autorotate module is an automated log rotation and compression module for Apache 2.2+ with the following features:

  • Support for all standard Apache log files
  • Hourly, Daily, Weekly or Monthly rotation schedule with configrable offset into the desired period
  • Configurable file naming
  • Compresison of log files, with the ability to retain a configurable number of logs uncompresses
  • Configuratble number of rotated log files to keep around

Log files defined by the following standard Apache directives can be controlled by mod_autorotate:

Module Directive
Core ErrorLog
mod_log_config CustomLog
CookieLog
TransferLog
mod_log_forensic ForensicLog
mod_rewrite RewriteLog
mod_cgi ScriptLog

Additional log files can be rotated, by either specifying the log file name, or the name of a module's directive that defines a log file.

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Configuration

Loading the module

The module can be loaded with the following Apache configuration line: LoadModule autorotate_module /usr/local/apache/libexec/mod_autorotate.so

Loading the module will also enable it for all supported log files using default rotation parameters (see below)

Configuration directives

AutorotateEnabled directive

Description Enable or disable the module
Syntax `AutorotateEnabled On
Default AutorotateEnabled On
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive can be used to disable the autorotate module whilst leaving it loaded into the server.

Example:

AutorotateEnabled Off

AutorotatePeriod directive

Description The rotation period
Syntax `AutorotateEnabled Hourly
Default AutorotateEnabled Monthly
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive can be used to alter the period of rotation. By default rotations are performed at the start of a given period:

Period Description
Hourly At the start of the hour
Daily At midnight
Weekly At midnight on Sundays
Monthly At midnight on the 1st day of the month

Local time is used for scheduling.

An offset can be specified to alter this behaviour (see AutorotateOffset)

Example:

AutorotatePeriod Weekly

AutorotateOffset directive

Description Offset from the start of period at which to rotate log files
Syntax AutorotateOffset <seconds>
Default AutorotateOffset 0
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive allows an offset from the start of the rotation period to be specified. The offset can be negative, which will cause mod_autorotate to rotate a set time before the end of the period. This is most useful when AutorotatePeriod is monthly as months have a variable length.

To rotate logs one day before the end of the month:

AutorotatePeriod Monthly
AutorotateOffset -86400

To rotate logs on Tuesdays at 1am:

AutorotatePeriod Weekly
AutorotateOffset 90000

AutorotateFormat directive

Description Format of string appended to rotated log file names
Syntax AutorotateFormat <formatstring>
Default AutorotateFormat "%Y%m%d-%H:%M:%S"
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

Allows the rotated file name format to be controlled. formatstring is a strftime(3) time format string. The date string is appended to the log file names when they are rotated.

For exampe, the default format string results in error.log being rotated to files with names such as error.log.20090503-00:00:00.

AutorotateRestartMethod directive

Description Controls how Apache is restarted after a log rotate
Syntax `AutorotateRestarMethod full
Default AutorotateRestartMethod graceful
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

Apache needs to be restarted after the log files have been rotated, in order for new files to be opened by the privileged parent process and inherited by the unprivileged child processes. This directive controls how mod_autorotate asks Apache to restart.

A full restart causes Apache to kill all of its children and will abandon any currently executing requests. A graceful restart signals all currently running children to terminate after they have finished processing the current request, and reloads the parent process which causes new children to be spawned to process new requests. The default graceful restart method will not interrups currently executing requests and is reccomended.

Example:

AutorotateRestartMethod graceful

AutorotateKeep directive

Description Controls how many rotated log files are retained
Syntax AutorotateKeep <integer>
Default AutorotateKeep 0
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive configures mod_autorotate to keep only a set number of rotated log files. Previous log files will be pruned at server startup or restart. The default setting (0) disabled the pruning of log files.

If compression is disabled and the current time is Fri 8th May 2009 17:05, then :

AutorotateRestartPeriod Hourly
AutorotateKeep 4

The errorlog files that exist at this time will be :

error.log.20090508-14:00:00
error.log.20090508-15:00:00
error.log.20090508-16:00:00
error.log.20090508-17:00:00
error.log

AutorotateCompressAfter directive

Description Controls after how many rotations a file is compressed
Syntax AutorotateCompressAfter <integer>
Default AutorotateCompressAfter 1
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive controls the compression of rotated log files. Previous log files will be rotated after the configured number of rotations has passed. The default setting (1) causes log files to be compressed as soon as they have been rotated. Values over one result in a number of uncompressed logs remaining on the file system. A value of zero disabled log compression.

If current time is Fri 8th May 2009 17:05, then :

AutorotateRestartPeriod Hourly
AutorotateKeep 4
AutorotateCompressAfter 2

The errorlog files that exist at this time will be :

error.log.20090508-14:00:00.gz
error.log.20090508-15:00:00.gz
error.log.20090508-16:00:00.gz
error.log.20090508-17:00:00
error.log

AutorotateCompressProgram directive

Description Sets a custom compression program
Syntax AutorotateCompressProgram <path>
Default AutorotateCompressProgram /usr/bin/gzip
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive enables a custom compression program. The program is called with the name of the log file that should be compresses, and should remain in the foreground until the compression has completed. It should exit with code 0 if successful, otherwise with a non-zero code. The program is expected to leave behind a log file with the supplied name plus the suffix specified by AutorotateCompressSuffix and is expected to remove the original file.

gzip and compress are examples of suitable compression programs.

Example:

AutorotateCompressProgram /usr/bin/compress
AutorotateCompressSuffix .Z

AutorotateCompressSuffix directive

Description Specifies the suffix added to files by the compression program
Syntax AutorotateCompressSuffix <string>
Default AutorotateCompressSuffix .gz
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.0 and later

This directive allows the suffix appended to log file names by the compression program to be specified. It is important for this to be correct in order for mod_autorotate to sucessfully prune older files.

AutorotateCompressNiceLevel directive

Description Start log compression processes with a specified scheduling priority
Syntax AutorotateCompressNiceLevel <int>
Default 0
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.1 and later

Apache will renice the log compression program to this level. This can be any number from -20 to 20, if Apache is running as root. It may be a number equal to or higher than Apache's nice level, is Apache is not running as root.

Example:

AutorotateCompressNiceLevel 10

AutorotateAddLogDirective directive

Description Specifies an additional Apache directive to scan the configuration for, that defines the location of a log file
Syntax AutorotateAddLogDirective <string> [int]
Default None
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.1 and later

This directive introduces a directive to scan for in the configuration, other than those exposed by the core modules. For instance, the mod_jk module exposes the JkLogFile directive.

The optional integer parameter specifies which word of the directive's value defines the name of the file. The first word is assumed if not specified.

Example:

AutorotateAddLogDirective JkLogFile

## The MyLogFile directive defines the filename in the second word
MyLogFile compact  /var/log/foo.log
AutorotateAddLogDirective MyLogFile 2

AutorotateAddLogFile directive

Description Specifies an additional log file name to rotate
Syntax AutorotateAddLogFile <string>
Default None
Context server config
Override None
Compatibility mod_autorotate version 1.1 and later

Request an additional log file to be rotated. This is intended for use where a log is written by an Apache extension, CGI script etc, where there is no configuration directive that defines its location.

Example:

  AutorotateAddLogFile logs/SM.log

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Apache 2.x log rotation module

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