The Linux “tail” command is a powerful and versatile tool that is commonly used by system administrators, developers, and advanced users to view and analyze log files, troubleshoot issues, and monitor system activity. In this blog post, we’ll explore the basics of the tail command, as well as some advanced uses and tips to help you get the most out of this tool.
Understanding the Basics of the Tail Command
The tail command is used to view the last few lines of a file, and is typically used in conjunction with other commands such as “grep” to search for specific patterns or “pipe” to chain commands together. By default, the tail command will display the last 10 lines of a file, but you can specify a different number of lines by using the “-n” option followed by the number of lines you want to view. For example, the command “tail -n 20 /var/log/system.log” will display the last 20 lines of the system log file.
Using Tail for Real-time Log Monitoring
One of the most common uses of the tail command is for real-time log monitoring. This can be especially useful for troubleshooting issues or identifying patterns in system activity. For example, you can use the command “tail -f /var/log/system.log” to display new lines as they are added to the system log file in real-time. This is particularly useful when trying to track down a problem that is occurring in real-time. You can also use the command “tail -f /var/log/system.log | grep error” to only display lines containing the word “error“.
Advanced Tail Options
F: This option is useful for monitoring log files that are frequently rotated. It will wait for the end of a file that is being appended.b: This option is used to display the last N blocks of a file, where a block is a fixed number of bytes.c: This option is used to display the last N bytes of a file.
Tail Command Tips
- Use the “
-f” option for real-time log monitoring. - Use the “
-n” option to specify the number of lines to display. - Use the “
grep” command in conjunction with tail to filter the output. - Use the “
-F” option to monitor log files that are frequently rotated. - Use the “
-b” and “-c” option to specify the number of bytes to display.
Examples
# Display the last 50 lines of the file /var/log/httpd/access_log
tail -n 50 /var/log/httpd/access_log
# Monitor the file /var/log/httpd/access_log in real-time, displaying new lines as they are added
tail -f /var/log/httpd/access_log
# Display the last 20 lines of the file /var/log/httpd/access_log and filter the output to only show lines containing "itvraag.nl"
tail -n 20 /var/log/httpd/access_log | grep "itvraag.nl"
# Display the last 50 lines of the file /var/log/httpd/access_log and filter the output to only show lines that have return code 404
tail -n 50 /var/log/httpd/access_log | grep " 404 "
# Monitor the file /var/log/httpd/access_log in real-time, displaying new lines as they are added, and filter the output to only show lines containing "itvraag.nl"
tail -f /var/log/httpd/access_log | grep "itvraag.nl"
Conclusion
In summary, the tail command is a powerful and versatile tool that can be used for a variety of tasks, including real-time log monitoring, troubleshooting issues, and identifying patterns in system activity. With the options and tips discussed in this blog post, you should be well-equipped to start using the tail command like a pro. There are other commands like cat, less, more and head for viewing files and for advanced code editing and viewing you can use Vim!
Challenge
Try using the tail command to display the last 50 lines of the system log file, and then use the “grep” command to filter the output to only display lines that contain the word “error“. Let us know in the comments if you were able to successfully complete the challenge.
