AOMEI Cyber Backup
What Are vCenter 8 Event Logs | How to Check and Export Them
In vCenter 8, the event log architecture has been redesigned to allow for more efficient data collection and analysis including improvements to logging performance, scalability, and security. Here, we are going to walk through it.
By Zelia / Updated on April 28, 2023
What are vCenter 8 event logs
vCenter 8 is a software suite that provides centralized management for VMware vSphere environments. It generates various event logs to keep track of important activities and issues in the environment.
vCenter 8 event logs are a type of log file that provides a detailed record of activities and events that occur within the vCenter Server environment. These logs contain information on user activities, system errors, warnings, and other events related to the management of virtual machines and hosts.
The vCenter 8 event logs are a critical tool for troubleshooting issues and identifying potential problems in a virtual environment. By analyzing these logs, IT professionals can gain insight into issues that may be affecting performance or stability, as well as identify areas for optimization and improvement.
Overall, vCenter 8 event logs are an essential component of any virtual environment management strategy.
The components of vCenter 8 event logs
vCenter 8 event logs include several different log files, each recording different types of events and warnings. The following are common vCenter 8 event logs:
1. vpxd.log: The main vCenter Server log file records events and warnings related to vCenter Server, such as administrative operations, virtual machine startup and shutdown, resource allocation and upgrade operations, and so on.
2. authd.log: This log file records events and warnings related to vCenter Server authentication.
3. vpxd-profiler.log: This log file records the performance statistics of vCenter Server, which can help administrators diagnose performance problems.
4. vpxd-inventory.log: This log file records detailed information about all virtual machines and hosts in vCenter Server, including configuration and performance statistics.
Administrators can view and analyze vCenter 8 event logs using the vSphere client or by accessing vCenter Server via SSH. These log files provide detailed information about events and warnings that occur in the virtualized environment and can help administrators monitor the health of the virtualized environment and diagnose and resolve problems.
How to export event logs for backup and archival purposes
If you want to export vCenter 8 event logs, here are two methods to export them:
Method 1: Export as CSV
1. Open Event Viewer, and navigate to Windows Logs.
2. In Actions, select Filter Current Log, and a window like the following will appear.
3. In Logged, you can specify the logged event and Event level.
*When you choose Custom range, you can select different time period. And you can also filter the fields from Event level according to your need:
4. Go back to Actions, select Save Filtered Log File As… and choose the location. Then in Save as Type, click CSV.
Method 2: Export EVTX with display information
1. Open Event Viewer. In Windows Logs, select the type of logs as you want.
2. Navigate to Actions >> Save All Event As…, and choose the destination to save the files. Then in Save as type, choose .evtx to save.
3. In Display Information, click Display information for these languages: and tick English (United States).
Note: Please make sure that you export the .evtx file with the display information, or the .evtx file will not capture everything.
4. The Local Meta Data will appear in your destination directory, and add it to a compressed file and attach it to the support case.
How to check vCenter 8 logs location
If you have deployed the log browser, you can view, search, and export your vCenter server/ESXi logs at a time by using it. And here are two methods to check the VMware vCenter logs:
Method 1. Log browser for a specific host or vCenter server
1. Navigate to your host or vCenter Server, and click Monitor >> Log Browser.
Note: If there are no logs of your host or vCenter Server are available, please click Retrieve Now and Refresh newer logs.
2. Select the type of logs according to your need. Then the logs you choose will display in the log browser.
Method 2. Browse log files from different objects
1. In the vSphere Web Client home, click Log Browser >> View, and select ESXi host/vCenter Server to check the logs.
2. Navigate to Actions >> New Browser Window and choose others to view the logs. There are multiple options in the log browser as the following:
- Search Log Files
- Filter Log Files
- Create Advanced Log Filters
- Adjust Log Times
- Export Logs from the Log Browser
- Manage Logs Using the Log Browser
Backup of virtual machines recorded by vCenter 8 event logs
vCenter 8 event logs exist to help you diagnose and document a variety of issues in your virtualized environment. But no one wants trouble to happen.
Thus, to avoid similar situations from happening again, it is better that you take certain precautions, such as backing up your log files regularly, setting up event alerts and notifications, creating event filters and keyword searches to save time and effort, and so on.
So here is AOMEI Cyber Backup, a VMware backup software that allows you to back up multiple running virtual machines, either managed by vCenter Server or on a separate ESXi host. The main thing is that it automatically does regular backups for you, so you don't have to do it every day. And if there is an error in the backup, it will email inform you.
The steps are so simple that it will not take no longer than 10 minutes to download AOMEI Cyber Backup and add VMs from VMware vCenter or ESXi host in the centralized web console.
Agentless Image Backup: Create independent and image-based backup for VMware ESXi and Hyper-V VMs.
Support Free ESXi: Support both paid and free versions of VMware ESXi.
Various Backup Methods: Besides full backup, you can perform incremental or differential VM backup to capture only changed data and save storage space.
Automated Hot Backup: Auto backup running VMs and notify via email.
Restore from Any Point: Restore a whole VM to usable state from any history backup version.
And here are the steps on how to quickly back up virtual machines managed by vCenter after installing:
Step 1. Access to AOMEI Cyber Backup web client, select Source Device, click VMware >> +Add VMware Device. Then Add vCenter or Standalone ESXi to add a host. And then click … to Bind Device.
Step 2. Create Backup Task: Navigate to Backup Task and Create New Task. Then select VMware ESXi Backup for Backup Type. After that, set the Task Name, Device, Target, Schedule and Cleanup according to your need.
Step 3. Click Start Backup and choose Add the schedule and start backup now or Add the schedule only.
Step 4. When your backups are completed, it’s easy to restore your virtual machines to another place when a disaster strikes. Navigate to Start Restore, you can change restore location here to create a new VM or another datastore/host.
Conclusion
vCenter 8 event logs are an important feature of vCenter 8, as they provide users with a detailed record of system events and activities. These logs can be used for troubleshooting, auditing, and compliance purposes.
This article covers how to check its location and how to export vCenter 8 event logs for backup. Overall, vCenter 8 event logs offer you a powerful tool for managing their virtualized infrastructure and maintaining system reliability.
