Every minute, your routers, switches, printers, firewalls, and more are sending syslog messages regarding their activity and overall functioning. To collect—and make sense—of these messages requires the use of a syslog server. With so many syslog servers on the market, finding the right one for your IT team depends on the size of your company, so I’ve built this list of free syslog server tools and some of their paid counterparts.
- Syslog Server Freebsd
- Syslog Server Windows
- How To Setup A Syslog Server
- Syslog Server Linux
- Syslog Server Free
- Syslog servers (or syslog hosts) collect syslog data and agents send that data. For Windows Server, you need an agent, not a collector (or server). For example, Solarwinds syslog server (formerly Kiwi syslog server) is a syslog server, not a syslog agent. If you don’t have a syslog server already, then that is a good option for general use.
- Jul 10, 2013 Syslog servers (or syslog hosts) collect syslog data and agents send that data. For Windows Server, you need an agent, not a collector (or server). For example, Solarwinds syslog server (formerly Kiwi syslog server) is a syslog server, not a syslog agent. If you don’t have a syslog server already, then that is a good option for general use.
- I Syslog stands for System Logging Protocol and is a standard protocol used to send system log or event messages to a specific server, called a syslog server. It is primarily used to collect various device logs from several different machines in a central location for monitoring and review.
- Jun 18, 2018 The WhatsUp Gold’s free Syslog Server is a feature-rich tool that addresses most administrators syslog needs. The toll has enhanced export capabilities and can display logged messages in real-time, optionally filtering results to customize the display to one’s specific needs.
My favorite? When it comes to performance, SolarWinds® Kiwi Syslog® Server free and paid solutions offer robust, comprehensive management of syslog messages through real-time statistics and alerts as well as an intuitive web console. Kiwi offers a free syslog tool that’s a limited version of its commercial version. It allows you to collect, view, and archive syslog message and SNMP traps for up to five sources. And if you need to monitor more than five devices, you can easily upgrade to the commercial edition. The paid version also has a free 30-day trial, so you can test it on all your network devices to see if it’s the best syslog server for your company.
Free Syslog Server Are you a network administrator who needs a tool to easily collect, save, view or forward syslog messages from anywhere on your network? Our free Syslog Server provides you with a feature rich tool to help you manage your syslog needs, including enhanced export capabilities.
Best FREE Syslog Servers
Kiwi Syslog Server – Free Edition
The free edition of Kiwi Syslog Server from SolarWinds is, in my opinion, the best free syslog server for companies in need of monitoring messages from a few devices (the tool can handle up to five).
With this tool in hand, you’ll receive centralized management of syslog messages and SNMP traps, be empowered to view and respond to messages, and even be able to archive messages and facilitate the compliance process. The free Kiwi Syslog Server also provides real-time statistics and daily statistic summaries so IT teams can keep their finger on the pulse of all activity. As far as free syslog servers go, this is by far the most comprehensive on the market.
Syslog Server Freebsd
If you’re looking to put a little spend behind your syslog server, the paid version of SolarWinds Kiwi Syslog Server can go a long way. In my view, Kiwi Syslog Server is not only the best syslog server for Cisco devices, but also a great syslog server Windows users within my community have come to rely on.
You can set custom alerting thresholds to monitor your entire IT infrastructure, all within one intuitive console. There are even a host of built-in actions to react to syslog messages, making it easy to trigger notifications and reports, run scripts, or forward syslog messages or SNMP traps to another host. The tool boasts detailed graphs of syslog statistics over designated time periods and automatically stores and archives logs, helping keep you compliant with SOX, HIPAA, PCI DSS, and more.
Paessler PRTG Network Monitor
Like SolarWinds, Paessler offers free and paid tools to help with syslog management through its PRTG network monitoring software. The free version for Windows helps IT teams capture and monitor syslog messages via a syslog receiver sensor and view all relevant information associated with syslog messages, like IP addresses and time of the message, through a single dashboard. From a security standpoint, PRTG will alert users if the contents of a syslog message exceed your predefined threshold values and even offers a ranking system. Messages with a “0” signify an emergency, while a “7” is typically an indication of a minor issue, like a debug. The free version of this software is powerful but can only be leveraged if you have a small network. While it offers extensive capabilities, the program’s functionality has been known to falter.
EZ5 Syslog Watcher
This free syslog server helps enhance the stability and reliability of your network through its syslog collection, sorting, and analyzing capabilities. It’s a high-performing tool designed to handle a heavy load, processing thousands of messages per minute and offering alerts via email in the event of unusual activity. You can even export syslog messages and data to your database or to a variety of file types, like CSV, XML, or JSON. Overall, it’s a strong tool, especially with its $0 price tag. Just don’t expect the more comprehensive centralization and reporting compliance of paid programs.
Project/Ipswitch WhatsUp Syslog Server
Another free syslog server software, WhatsUp Gold Syslog Server is a straightforward way to manage your syslog needs. It monitors syslog messages and provides real-time views into message data as well as filters to help you sort through the approximately 6,000,000 messages it can process per hour. To help customize your experience, Syslog Server encourages users to create rules for processing, sorting, and receiving syslog message alerts. These features make it easy to stay abreast of network activity and security. Since this is a free tool, the scope of its capabilities are fairly limited, but it’s great for smaller IT teams looking for a simplified syslog message management option.
How Do Syslog Servers Work?
However, to understand syslog servers, we must have a basic understanding of syslog. Syslog, short for System Logging Process, is a universal protocol for system message logging. All network equipment, like routers, switches, printers, workstations, and firewalls, can send syslog messages. These messages keep IT teams informed of all network equipment event activity. The syslog server collects and analyzes thousands of these messages per minute and determines the appropriate course of action. Without these analytic tools, syslog messages often fall through the cracks. This can drastically inhibit your company’s productivity, as you clunk through repairs and issues, and even put sensitive information in jeopardy.
To keep your company safe and on track, I recommend equipping the IT department with a syslog server that offers:
- Consolidation – To boost efficiency, syslog servers should centralize logs from systems and network devices, so you can quickly view syslog messages and pinpoint issues in minutes, not hours.
- Real-Time Alerts – A strong syslog tool will empower you to set predefined criteria for syslog messages based on time, type of message, or source, and alert you when these criteria have been met.
- Remote Capabilities – As an IT professional, you never know when an issue will arise. Staying in tune with your network health at all times, from any location, is essential. Look for a syslog server with a web console you can view when you’re at the office, or while you’re on a business trip.
- Compliance Reporting – Log collection and retention are the mainstays of many compliance frameworks. An advanced syslog server should be equipped to schedule automated log archival and cleanup and generate syslog reports, making it easy to comply with industry standards and keep your company in good standing.
- Sorting – Trying to sift through millions of syslog messages is no easy task. Find a syslog server with advanced filtering, so you can search messages by host name, host IP address, priority, time of day, and more to quickly access the critical data you need.
Depending on the size of your business, many free tools offer robust capabilities that could be just what you’re looking for.
Finding the Syslog Server in 2020
Finding the right tool for your company can be overwhelming amidst so many options. I recommend looking for a syslog server that centralizes all network and device logs, offers advancing filtering qualities, alerts you to anomalies, and helps keep you compliant with industry standards. My personal favorite? Both the free and paid version of SolarWinds Kiwi Syslog Server offer robust, comprehensive syslog message management. Download the free 30-day trial and try it out for yourself.
Additional Resources
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Configuring Cisco Devices to Use a Syslog Server
Most Cisco devices use the syslog protocol to manage system logs and alerts. But unlike their PC and server counterparts, Cisco devices lack large internal storage space for storing these logs. To overcome this limitation, Cisco devices offer the following two options:
- Internal buffer-- The device's operating system allocates a small part of memory buffers to log the most recent messages. The buffer size is limited to few kilobytes. This option is enabled by default. However, when the device reboots, these syslog messages are lost.
- Syslog-- Use a UNIX-style SYSLOG protocol to send messages to an external device for storing. The storage size does not depend on the router's resources and is limited only by the available disk space on the external syslog server. This option is not enabled by default.
To enable syslog functionality in a Cisco network, you must configure the built-in syslog client within the Cisco devices.
Cisco devices use a severity level of warnings through emergencies to generate error messages about software or hardware malfunctions. The debugging level displays the output of debug commands. The Notice level displays interface up or down transitions and system restart messages. The informational level reloads requests and low-process stack messages.
Configuring Cisco Routers for Syslog
To configure a Cisco IOS-based router for sending syslog messages to an external syslog server, follow the steps in Table 4-11 using privileged EXEC mode.
Table 4-11. Configuring Cisco Routers for Syslog
Step | Command | Purpose |
1 | Router# configure terminal | Enters global configuration mode. |
2 | Router(config)# service timestampstypedatetime [msec] [localtime] [show-timezone] | Instructs the system to timestamp syslog messages; the options for the type keyword are debug and log. |
3 | Router(config)#logginghost | Specifies the syslog server by IP address or host name; you can specify multiple servers. |
4 | Router(config)# logging traplevel | Specifies the kind of messages, by severity level, to be sent to the syslog server. The default is informational and lower. The possible values for level are as follows: Emergency: 0 Alert: 1 Critical: 2 Error: 3 Warning: 4 Notice: 5 Informational: 6 Debug: 7 Use the debug level with caution, because it can generate a large amount of syslog traffic in a busy network. |
5 | Router(config)# logging facilityfacility-type | Specifies the facility level used by the syslog messages; the default is local7. Possible values are local0, local1, local2, local3, local4, local5, local6, and local7. |
6 | Router(config)# End | Returns to privileged EXEC mode. |
7 | Router# show logging | Displays logging configuration. |
Example 4-12 prepares a Cisco router to send syslog messages at facility local3. Also, the router will only send messages with a severity of warning or higher. The syslog server is on a machine with an IP address of 192.168.0.30.
Example 4-12. Router Configuration for Syslog
![Syslog Syslog](https://www.pcwdld.com/wp-content/uploads/Kiwi-Syslog-Server-Free-Edition.jpg)
Configuring a Cisco Switch for Syslog
To configure a Cisco CatOS-based switch for sending syslog messages to an external syslog server, use the privileged EXEC mode commands shown in Table 4-12.
Table 4-12. Configuring a Cisco Switch for Syslog
Step | Command | Purpose |
1 | Switch>(enable) set logging timestamp {enable | disable} | Configures the system to timestamp messages. |
2 | Switch>(enable) set logging serverip-address | Specifies the IP address of the syslog server; a maximum of three servers can be specified. |
3 | Switch>(enable) set logging server severityserver_severity_level | Limits messages that are logged to the syslog servers by severity level. |
4 | Switch>(enable) set logging server facilityserver_facility_parameter | Specifies the facility level that would be used in the message. The default is local7. Apart from the standard facility names listed in Table 4-1, Cisco Catalyst switches use facility names that are specific to the switch. The following facility levels generate syslog messages with fixed severity levels: 5: System, Dynamic-Trunking-Protocol, Port-Aggregation-Protocol, Management, Multilayer Switching 4: CDP, UDLD 2: Other facilities |
5 | Switch>(enable) set logging server enable | Enables the switch to send syslog messages to the syslog servers. |
6 | Switch>(enable) Show logging | Displays the logging configuration. |
Example 4-13 prepares a CatOS-based switch to send syslog messages at facility local4. Also, the switch will only send messages with a severity of warning or higher. The syslog server is on a machine with an IP address of 192.168.0.30.
Example 4-13. CatOS-Based Switch Configuration for Syslog
Configuring a Cisco PIX Firewall for Syslog
Proactive monitoring of firewall logs is an integral part of a Netadmin's duties. The firewall syslogs are useful for forensics, network troubleshooting, security evaluation, worm and virus attack mitigation, and so on. The configuration steps for enabling syslog messaging on a PIX are conceptually similar to those for IOS- or CatOS-based devices. To configure a Cisco PIX Firewall with PIX OS 4.4 and above, perform the steps shown in Table 4-13 in privileged EXEC mode.
Table 4-13. PIX Configuration for Syslog
Step | Command | Purpose |
1 | Pixfirewall# config terminal | Enters global configuration mode. |
2 | Pixfirewall(config)#logging timestamp | Specifies that each syslog message should have a timestamp value. |
3 | Pixfirewall(config)#logging host [interface connected to syslog server] ip_address [protocol/port] | Specifies a syslog server that is to receive the messages sent from the Cisco PIX Firewall. You can use multiple logging host commands to specify additional servers that would all receive the syslog messages. The protocol is UDP or TCP. However, a server can only be specified to receive either UDP or TCP, not both. A Cisco PIX Firewall only sends TCP syslog messages to the Cisco PIX Firewall syslog server. |
4 | Pixfirewall(config)#logging facilityfacility | Specifies the syslog facility number. Instead of specifying the name, the PIX uses a 2-digit number, as follows: local0 - 16 local1 - 17 local2 - 18 local3 - 19 local4 - 20 local5 - 21 local6 - 22 local7 - 23 The default is 20. |
5 | pixfirewall(config)#logging traplevel | Specifies the syslog message level as a number or string. The level that you specify means that you want that level and those values less than that level. For example, if level is 3, syslog displays 0, 1, 2, and 3 messages. Possible number and string level values are as follows: 0: Emergency; System-unusable messages 1: Alert; Take immediate action 2: Critical; critical condition 3: Error; error message 4: Warning; warning message 5: Notice; normal but significant condition 6: Informational: information message 7: Debug; debug messages and log FTP commands and WWW URLs |
6 | pixfirewall(config)#logging on | Starts sending syslog messages to all output locations. |
7 | pixfirewall(config)#no logging message <message id> | Specifies a message to be suppressed. Team solidsquad ssq solidworks 2016. |
8 | pixfirewall(config)#exit | Exits global configuration mode. |
Example 4-14 prepares the Cisco PIX Firewall to send syslog messages at facility local5 and severity debug and below to the syslog server. The Netadmin does not want the PIX to log message 111005. The syslog server has an IP address of 192.168.0.30.
Example 4-14. Configuring a Cisco PIX Firewall for Syslog
For added reliability, the Cisco PIX Firewall can be configured to send syslog messages through TCP. Please note that if the syslog server disk is full, it can close the TCP connection. This will cause a denial of service because the Cisco PIX Firewall will stop all traffic until the syslog server disk space is freed. Both Kiwi Syslogd Server and PFSS offer this feature. Kiwi Syslogd has an alert mechanism to warn the Netadmin through e-mail or pager when the disk is nearing its capacity. The setting can be established from the Syslog Daemon Setup window, as shown in Figure 4-9, for Kiwi syslog configuration.
If the PIX stops because of a disk-full condition, you must first free some disk space. Then disable syslog messaging on the PIX by using the no logging hosthost command, followed by reenabling syslog messaging using the logging hosthost command.
Example 4-15 shows the configuration steps for a Cisco PIX Firewall to send syslog messages at TCP port 1468. Display driver amd stopped responding windows 10.
Example 4-15. PIX Configuration for TCP Syslog
Syslog Server Windows
Configuring a Cisco VPN Concentrator for Syslog
How To Setup A Syslog Server
The Cisco VPN 3000 Series Concentrator provides an appliance-based solution for deploying VPN functionality across remote networks. VPN concentrators are often connected parallel to the firewalls, as shown earlier in Figure 4-1. The design simplifies the management of the network but creates security concerns. After a user has been authenticated through VPN concentrators, the user has complete access to the network. This makes a strong case for logging the messages from the VPN concentrator. To configure the Cisco VPN 3000 Series Concentrator for sending syslog messages, follow these steps:
Syslog Server Linux
- Log in to the VPN concentrator using a web browser.
- Navigate to the syslog server page by choosing Configuration > System > Events > Syslog Servers, as shown in Figure 4-12.
- On the Syslog Servers page, click the Add button (see Figure 4-12).
- Enter the IP address of the syslog server and select the facility level from the Facility drop-down menu, as shown in Figure 4-13. Save these settings and return to the Syslog Servers page by clicking the Add button. Figure 4-13 VPN Concentrator—Add Syslog Server
- To select the kind of messages that are to be sent to the syslog server, navigate to the General page by choosing Configuration > System > Events > General.
- On the General page, select an option from the Severity to Syslog drop-down menu, as shown in Figure 4-14, and click the Apply button. Figure 4-14 VPN Concentrator—General Configuration
- To save the configuration changes, click the Save Needed icon.
Syslog Server Free
As configured in this example, the VPN concentrator is now ready to send syslog messages at facility local6, severity 1–5 to server 192.168.0.30.