ITLogLib
is a reliable, powerful runtime library providing an easy-to-use API for flexible and dynamic output of trace, debug and log information.
ITLogLib is available in various variants for different programming languages and environments.

Unified API: The object oriented interfaces of the different ITLogLib variants are almost identical and hide all the intricacies of the powerful implementation. The API consists mainly of the class ITLogMsg as a container for log data and the class ITOutputLogChannel as logical receiver of these logmessages (in form of output channels / logchannels).

ITLogMsg: Represents a logmessage as an object, with properties and methods. ITLogMsg objects can be used as method parameters and as members of other objects.

• Structure: Each logmessage object has a loglevel (a dynamic combination of info, warning, error and alarm flags), an automatically assigned timestamp, a user-defined module and case specifier (describing the logging software module/subsystem and usecase/operation) and a logmessage text (free-form, multi-line text; max. 64KB long)

• Streaming Operators (<<): The C++ variants of ITLogLib support streaming operators to prevent unnecessary compilation errors and to saves explicit type conversions and typing. 

• Explicit output control: You can explicitly send a logmessage by calling Send() or prevent its output by calling Cancel().

Automatic Memory Management: Even the C++ API provides reference counting, preventing logging information and memory loss and providing better comfort. Logmessages will be sent implicitly at the end of their scope (unless cancelled before), even in the case of exceptions.

Multiple Logchannels: ITLogLib provides multiple logchannel support to send logmessages to different logical output channels for different purposes (e.g. a logchannel for internal developer logmessages, one for user interactions only or for statistical data).

Dynamic output filtering: The output of logmessages can be activated or deactivated selectively or completely through configuration, even at runtime. No source code must be changed or recompiled.

Structured log store: iTech Logging provides a file based storage of logmessages. Each logging application and logchannel has its own directory tree where the logfiles are organized by date, run and time, with descriptive directory and file names. This makes it possible for you to find and extract the logging information you need. You can view logfiles, move them to other directories, transfer them by FTP, e-mail, or disk, and store them in archives. 

Resource Management: For each file-based logchannel the maximum amount and size of logfiles can be configured, to delimit the disk space used for the generated logfiles after each program start. The oldes logfiles will be deleted automatically if neccessary. Additionally you can specify how many logfile sequences of previous executions of your application should be saved.

Logchannel forwarding: The logmessages going to one logchannel can be forwarded to additional output channels, by simple reconfiguration. Then – as always –  the write-out filters of the logchannels (which are also configurable) decide for each logmessage whether the logmessage should be written to the logchannel or not. The same logmessage can be written to different targets and thus in different contexts and for different purposes.

Multithreaded Architecture: ITLogLib uses output buffering and dedicated worker threads for file output, decoupling the output operations from your primary application threads.

Online Configuration: Most settings that control the output behaviour of ITLogLib can be changed at runtime - no need to restart your apps. To create and change the required configuration files (used by ITLogLib) you can use  ITConfigManager.

Performance optimizations: All logging operations are optimized for performance, e.g. modifications to a logmessage will be ignored (saving CPU time) when a logmessage is suppressed by an output filter or was already cancelled by you.

Thread-safe interface: All ITLogLib libraries are thread-safe, so you can create logmessages in different threads and send them to the same output logchannels.

Procedural interface: Beside the object oriented API ITLogLib also provides a procedural interface. Using the function QuickLog you quickly can generate log information as a single line operation. Both styles can be mixed.
(In contrast the  ITLogLib/Win32 variant provides a pure procedural API.)

Royalty-free distribution: Licensed users can ship ITLogLib with their applications free of charge.

User-friendly GUI: Presents all configuration parameters clearly arranged in form views, making use of labelled edit fields, comboboxes, directory selection and other subdialogs.

Default values: Provides default values and consistency checking for each parameter.

Online Help: Provides detailed online help for all fields, their meaning and the underlying concepts and features.

User-friendly GUI: with toolbars, multiple windows, splitter windows, context menus, drag and drop, keyboard accelerators and extensive context-sensitive online help.

Drag&Drop filtering: Filters and logmessages are organized as panes of a splitter window. Just drag a filter to the logmessage pane to apply it!

Specialized logfile open dialog: ITLogBook provides a custom file open dialog adapted to the directory and file storage structure generated by ITLogLib. So it takes you just a few moments to open the logfile you need.

Logfile merging: Logmessages stored in different logfiles (logfile sequence) can easily be merged and viewed / filtered as a whole by ITLogBook.

Loglevel filter: A loglevel filter toolbar provides easy filtering of logmessages with special loglevels or loglevel  combinations (for example warnings and errors).

Time filter: A special time filter toolbar allows to filter logmessages with special timestamp restrictions (before, after, from ... to).

Powerful support for user-defined filters: In addition to the standard filters (loglevel and time filters)  ITLogBook also provides user-defined filters:

• Base filters: Define named application-specific filters, based on the Module/Case specifier and the text of the logmessages.

• Filter references: Named filters can be referenced by other user-defined filters.

• Logical expressions: Use the logical AND, OR and NOT operators to build arbitrarily complex logical expressions.

• User-friendly graphical representation: The user-defined filters and their defining filter expressions are displayed in the filter pane in tree view form.

• Drag and drop operations: Filters can be defined, organized and activated by drag and drop.

• Filter files: Filters may be stored in files  and thus can be transported easily, e.g. to a customer computer.

• Combined filtering: User-defined filters can be applied in combination with the standard filters functions.

Filter based logmessage selection: You can quickly select (mark) logmessages based an a user-defined filters without hiding the previously visible logmessages.

Live monitoring: Monitor your application in real-time. Different windows may show execution simultaneous under different aspects, e.g. one window displaying error or warning logmessages and another window showing the input and output of your application.

Multiple views support:

• ITLogBook supports simultaneous viewing of different logfiles / logchannels in different windows.

• You also can view the same logfile in multiple windows, with different filters applied.

Detail view: A dialog which provides a formatted representation of the logmessage details, including multiline logmessage texts. For quick and comfortable tracing you can navigate between selected logmessages within this dialog.

Remote access: Provides save access to logfiles on local or remote computers.

Save analysis results: Filtered or selected (marked) logmessages can be saved to separate files, e.g. to document an analyzed error.

High performance: The loading, filtering and displaying of logmessages were optimized to allow quick analysis of large logfiles.

ITLogLib based: ITLogServer builds on ITLogLib and thus provides the same powerful filtering, configuration and output features as ITLogLib:

• Multiple Logchannels: ITLogServer provides multiple logchannel support to send logmessages to different logical output channels for different purposes (e.g. a logchannel for internal developer logmessages, one for user interactions only or for statistical data).

• Text Output: Each logchannel can be configured to write its logmessages as plain text. So the generated logfiles can be imported from MS Excel or other applications for further processing.

• HTML Output: Each logchannel can be configured to write its logmessages in HTML format. Thus your application is able to generate web pages which can be viewed over the internet or used as special runtime reports.

• XML Output: Each logchannel can be configured to write its logmessages in XML format. So for example the generated logfiles can be used in other XML applications for further processing.

• Output Templates: For each logchannel the layout for plain text, HTML and XML logfiles dynamically can be adopted to your special needs. ITLogLib uses output templates to format its generated logfiles. ITConfigManager can create text or HTML templates which can be modified easily with common text or HTML editors and attached to one or more logchannels.

• Dynamic output filtering: The output of logmessages can be activated or deactivated selectively or completely through configuration, even at runtime. No source code must be changed or recompiled.

• Structured log store: iTech Logging provides a file based storage of logmessages. Each logging application and logchannel has its own directory tree where the logfiles are organized by date, run and time, with descriptive directory and file names. This makes it possible for you to find and extract the logging information you need. You can view logfiles, move them to other directories, transfer them by FTP, e-mail, or disk, and store them in archives.

• Resource Management: For each file-based logchannel the maximum amount and size of logfiles can be configured, to delimit the disk space used for the generated logfiles after each program start. The oldes logfiles will be deleted automatically if neccessary. Additionally you can specify how many logfile sequences of previous executions of your application should be saved.

• Logchannel forwarding: The logmessages going to one logchannel can be forwarded to additional output channels, by simple reconfiguration. Then – as always –  the write-out filters of the logchannels (which are also configurable) decide for each logmessage whether the logmessage should be written to the logchannel or not. The same logmessage can be written to different targets and thus in different contexts and for different purposes.

• Online Configuration: Most settings that control the output behaviour of ITLogServer can be changed at runtime - no need to restart the server. To create and change the required configuration files (used by ITLogServer) you can use  ITConfigManager.

Multi-Run Logging: ITLogServer can collect the logging output of multiple consecutive runs of an application in the same logfile. Especially useful for short-lived applications and scripts.

Multi-Process Logging: ITLogServer can merge the logging output of clients running in different processes.

Language Independence: ITLogServer can combine the logging output of clients written in different programming languages (using different ITLogLib variants).