In computing data logging is an expression used to describe the process of recording relevant events in a computer system.

This record can be used to restore a system to its original state or for an administrator to understand its past behavior. A log file can be used for auditing and diagnosing problems in computer systems. Furthermore, logs are of great importance to Information Technology Law .

The ability to identify the authorship of actions in the virtual environment, allowing for the accountability of the perpetrators, is only possible through the analysis of logs. Logs can also be understood as digital evidence.

System log

Many operating systems and a multitude of computer programs include some form of data logging. Some operating systems provide a data logging service called Syslog (described in RFC 3164 ), which filters and logs messages intended for logging, relieving applications of the burden of maintaining their own ad hoc logging system.

The term "log" in computing is so widely used that even the process of accessing data logs and recording the entire browsing history of the system uses, for security reasons and user , the famous Login (Log + in) or logon (Log + on), and for exiting the system, logoff (Log + off) or logout (Log + out).