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What Is a LOG File?

How to open, edit, and convert LOG files

By Tim Fisher Tim Fisher Senior Vice President & Group General Manager, Tech & Sustainability Emporia State University Tim Fisher has more than 30 years' of professional technology experience. He's been writing about tech for more than two decades and serves as the VP and General Manager of Lifewire. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on October 15, 2021 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email

In This Article

Expand Jump to a Section Open a LOG File Convert a LOG File What a LOG File Looks Like More Information Still Can't Open It? A file with the LOG file extension is a Log Data file (sometimes called a logfile) used by all kinds of software and operating systems to keep track of something that has occurred, usually complete with an event detail, date, and time. It could really be used for anything that the application deems appropriate to write down. For example, antivirus software might write information to a LOG file to describe the last scan results, like the files and folders that were scanned or skipped, and which files were marked as containing malicious code. A file backup program could use a LOG file too, which could be opened later to review a previous backup job, read through any errors that were encountered, or see where the files were backed up to. A much simpler purpose for some LOG files is to merely explain the newest features that were included in the most recent update of a piece of software. These are normally called release notes or changelogs.

How to Open a LOG File

The data contained in these files are usually regular text files. You can read a LOG file with any text editor, like Windows Notepad. You might be able to open one in your web browser, too. Just drag it directly into the browser window, or use the Ctrl+O keyboard shortcut to open a dialog box to browse for the file.

How to Convert a LOG File

To change a logfile format into something like CSV, PDF, or an Excel format like XLSX, your best bet is to copy the data into a program that supports those file formats, and then save it as a new file. For example, you could open it with a text editor and then copy all the text, paste it into a spreadsheet program like Excel or OpenOffice Calc, and then save the file to CSV or XLSX. After you've saved it to the CSV format, use this online CSV to JSON converter.

What a LOG File Looks Like

This LOG file, created by EaseUS Todo Backup, is what most LOG files look like: C:\Program Files (x86)\EaseUS\Todo Backup\Agent.exe 2021-05-10 17:35:16 [M:00,T/P:1940/6300] Init Log 2021-05-10 17:35:16 [M:29,T/P:1940/6300] Ldq : Agent start install! 2021-05-10 17:35:16 [M:29,T/P:1940/6300] Ldq : Agent call CreateService! 2021-05-10 17:35:16 [M:29,T/P:1940/6300] Ldq : Agent call CreateService is success! As you can see, there's a message that the program wrote to the LOG file, and it includes the EXE file location and the exact time that each message was written. Some might not be so nicely structured, though, and could be hard to read, like this one created by a video converter tool:
[1236] 06-26 09:06:25 DEBUG [INPUT]to parse input: merge=fn:mix=sts:0:1\,fn:picture=dur:3000\,fr:29970:1000\,fn:normal=raw:ffmpeg\,sts:0\,crop:0:0:1920:1080:1920:1080:1920:1080:1\,fn:ufile:C:/Users/Jon/AppData/Local/VideoSolo Studio/VideoSolo Free Video Converter/template/img_0.png\,fn:pad=pa:8:63:48000,fn:normal=raw:ffmpeg\,sts:0:1\,probep:5000000:20000000\,crop:0:0:1280:720:1920:1080:1920:1080:1\,rotate:0:0:0\,effect:0:0:0:0:0\,aeffect:256\,fn:ufile:C:/Users/Jon/Desktop/SampleVideo_1280x720_2mb.mp4,fn:mix=sts:0:1\,fn:picture=dur:3000\,fr:29970:1000\,fn:normal=raw:ffmpeg\,sts:0\,crop:0:0:1920:1080:1920:1080:1920:1080:1\,fn:ufile:C:/Users/Jon/AppData/Local/VideoSolo Studio/VideoSolo Free Video Converter/template/img_1.png\,fn:pad=pa:8:63:48000 [1236] 06-26 09:06:25 DEBUG [INPUT:normal]Ready to open file: ufile:C:/Users/Jon/AppData/Local/VideoSolo Studio/VideoSolo Free Video Converter/template/img_0.png [1236] 06-26 09:06:25 DEBUG [OPEN]FfMediaInput start open Others might even appear to be complete gibberish since there aren't any timestamps. In cases like this one, the log is written to a file with the .LOG file extension but doesn't adhere to the standard that most LOG files abide by:
COPY main/python/prj/build.lst wntmsci12.pro/inc/python/build.lst COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/abc.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/abc.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/abc.pyc wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/abc.pyc COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/aifc.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/aifc.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/antigravity.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/antigravity.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/anydbm.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/anydbm.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/argparse.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/argparse.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/ast.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/ast.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/asynchat.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/asynchat.py COPY main/python/wntmsci12.pro/misc/build/Python-2.7.6/Lib/asyncore.py wntmsci12.pro/lib/python/asyncore.py

More Information on LOG Files

You can build your own LOG file in Windows using the built-in Notepad application, and it doesn't even need to have this file extension. Just type .LOG in the very first line and then save it as a regular TXT file. Each time you open it, the current date and time will be appended to the end of the file. You can add text under each line so that when it's closed, saved, and then reopened, the message remains and the next current date and time is available. You can see how this simple example begins to look like the much fuller LOG files shown above: .LOG 8:54 AM 2/19/2021 test message 4:17 PM 2/21/2021 With Command Prompt, you can also make a LOG file automatically through the command line while installing an MSI file.

Still Can' t Open It

If you get a permissions error or are told that you can't view the LOG file, chances are it's either still being used by the program and won't open until it's released, or that it was created temporarily and has already been deleted since the time you tried opening it. It might instead be the case that the LOG file is stored in a folder that you don't have permissions to. At this point, if your file still doesn't open like you think it should, double-check that you're reading the extension correctly. It should read ".LOG" but not .LOG1 or .LOG2. Those latter two file extensions are associated with the Windows Registry as Hive Log files, and as such are stored in binary and unreadable with a text editor. They are located in the config subfolder of the System32 folder. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire CSV File (What It Is & How to Open One) AV File (What Is It & How to Open One) What Is a DAT File? (And How to Open One) AHK File (What It Is and How to Open One) 000 File (What It Is & How to Open One) DDOC File (What It Is & How to Open One) XLR File (What It Is & How to Open One) FORGE File (What It Is & How to Open One) FH10 and FH11 Files (What They Are and How to Open Them) PSP File (What It Is & How to Open One) What Is a Text File? XAML File (What It Is & How to Open One) FNA File (What It Is and How to Open One) EDS File (What It Is and How to Open One) M File (What It Is and How to Open One) CMBL File (What It Is and How to Open One) Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies