The SharePoint 2010
logging database is a major enhancement to monitoring, debugging, and
protecting the health of the farm.
By default, the database is called WSS_Logging&;. This database should be the starting point for administrators to collect and analyze information.
In this recipe, we will access the database and run a view (that already is installed) against it.
Getting ready
You must have farm-level administrative permissions
to the Central Administration site. You must have read and execute
permissions as well to the WSS_Logging database in order to open and execute views.
How to do it...
Open up SQL Server Management Studio.
When
asked for authentication, log in to the correct instance where
SharePoint is running using your windows authentication credentials. If
SQL authentication is the preferred method of connecting, use the
appropriate User ID/Password.
Navigate to the WSS_Logging database and click on the plus sign to expand it.
Under the toolbar at the top, click on the New Query button.
In the new query window, type in the following query: Select * from RequestUsage.
Click Execute. Results are populated in the window pane below the query, as seen in the following screenshot:
How it works...
In the above recipe a view called RequestUsage&;
was executed. This is an out of the box view that provides site usage
information. It provides information such as the referring URL, the
browser being used, the site ID, the web ID, the server URL, the request
type, and when it was done.
The logging database contains, but is not limited to, the following information:
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ULS logs
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NT event logs
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Performance counters
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Feature usage
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Blocking queries
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Site usage
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Timer job information
| | |
It is a place where information is aggregated from
across the farm. For instance, all ULS logs, from every SharePoint
server, are collected within this database.
There are 26 views installed by default. However, the
purpose of this database is to give administrators and developers a
place to log information based on processes. These are typically custom
processes. Views can be created to meet an organization's needs.
There's more...
The location of the logging database is not a setting
that can be done through the user interface in Central Administration.
Because of all the data that is collected in this database, it can grow
quite large. Additionally, as SharePoint-integrated applications are
created, developers can utilize this database to communicate issues.
Therefore, due to size and usage, it is a wise idea
to move the database to another physical location such as a dedicated
disk. This can be done only via PowerShell, using the following command:
Set-SPUsageApplication -DatabaseServer <DB Server Name> -DatabaseName <DB Name>
[-DatabaseUsername <User Name>] [-DatabasePassword <Password>]
More info
The ULS logs are present on every WFE. It is
important for an Administrator to know where to find these logs
manually. They are located at the following location: \Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\14\Logs.
