Modifying the Log Level to Obtain Detailed Information

The amount of information captured in the log files varies, depending on the level setting.

Log Level Settings 

Log Level Setting	Description
None	Disables logging.
Error	Logging limited to error messages.
Warning	Error messages plus warning messages are logged.
Info	Default setting on ESX/ESXi and vCenter Server systems. Errors, warnings, plus informational messages about normal operations are logged. Acceptable for production environments.
Verbose	Can facilitate troubleshooting and debugging. Not recommended for production environments.
Trivia	Extended verbose logging. Provides complete detail, including content of all SOAP messages between client and server. Use for debugging and to facilitate client application development only. Not recommended for production environments.

For example, the hostd service running on ESX/ESXi systems has a default log level setting of info. The vCenter Server logs are controlled by settings through the vSphere Client.

Setting the Log Level on ESX/ESXi Systems

The ESX/ESXi logs are controlled by a setting in the config.xml file, located in the /etc/vmware/hostd subdirectory of an ESX/ESXi system (Example: ESX/ESXi Config.xml File Excerpt Showing Default Log Level Setting).

Example: ESX/ESXi Config.xml File Excerpt Showing Default Log Level Setting

<config>

<vmacore>

<threadPool>

<MaxFdsPerThread>2048</MaxFdsPerThread>

</threadPool>

<ssl>

<doVersionCheck> false </doVersionCheck>

</ssl>

<vmdb>

<maxConnectionCount>8</maxConnectionCount>

</vmdb>

<loadPlugins> true </loadPlugins>

</vmacore>

<workingDir> /var/log/vmware/ </workingDir>

<log>

<directory>/var/log/vmware/</directory>

<name>hostd</name>

<outputToConsole>false</outputToConsole>

<level>info</level>

</log>

,,,

</config>

 

By default, the log level setting is info. If you run into issues during development, you can set the log level to verbose, or to trivia to obtain SOAP message content to use in debugging.

The following procedure is meant for an ESX system. On ESXi, use vifs to move the config.xml file to a server from which you can edit the file.

To change the log level in config.xml for hostd on an ESX system

1	Connect to the ESX system using putty or an other secure shell.

2	Open the config.xml file located at /etc/vmware/hostd

3	Change <level>info</level> to <level>trivia</level>, and save and close the file.

4	Navigate to the init.d directory and restart the host agent.

cd /etc/init.d

./mgmt-vmware restart

After the service restarts, the new log level is in effect.

Generating Logs

If you are connected to ESX, you can use the tail command to explicitly create a log file that captures detail about actions that follow. For example, you can use the vSphere Client to create a new virtual machine and then use the content from the log as a model for how to create your own code.

To start the logging process and capture content to a file

1	Navigate to the location of the hostd.log file:

cd /var/log/vmware

2	Run the tail command, passing a filename in which to capture output:

tail -f hostd.log > yourfilenamehere

3	Use the vSphere Client to perform whatever action you are having difficulty modeling in your own code. For example, create a new virtual machine and stop the tail process with Ctrl-C when the operation completes.

The file contains the SOAP message content and other log messages sent and received by hostd during the execution.

Setting the Log Level on vCenter Server Systems

To change log-level settings on vCenter Server, you must use the vSphere Client.

To set logging level for vCenter Server using the VMware vSphere Client

1	Log in to the vSphere Client and connect to the vCenter Server instance.

2	Choose Administration and click Server Settings > Logging Options.

3	Choose Trivia from the pop-up menu and click OK.