Log files on Linux systems contain a LOT of information — more than you'll ever have time to view. ... Essential commands for Linux server management. By Sandra Henry Stocker. Jun 17, 2025 6 mins.

The thing is, Linux keeps a lot of log files. Some are useful to users, while others might not be so helpful. Many apps also install their own log files, so you can troubleshoot a single app.

With tail, you can view a Linux log file as the system writes to it in real time. So while you’re trying to troubleshoot that system, you can follow the syslog, the auth.log, faillog, kern.log ...

journalctl – Systemd logs viewer for debugging issues. 2. logwatch – Analyzes system logs and summarizes important events. 3. Graylog – Centralized log management and analysis. 4. ELK Stack ...

With Linux there are so many ways to synchronize and/or backup files over a network. For many, rsync and scp are the de facto standard. There is, of course, another option–one you’ve likely ...

The next big thing you’ll have to worry about is what programs to run on the server. There is a huge amount of free and open-source software you can host yourself, but finding it can be tricky.

A centralized syslog server was one of the first true SysAdmin tasks that I was given as a Linux Administrator way back in 1997. My boss at the time wanted to pull in log files from various appliances ...