This information might not be too interesting, but what if the log file has shown that a visitor with IP 88.54.124.178 requested the dump_database.php file on April 16th 2016 07:44 and the request was successful? In the absence of that log file, you might have never known that someone discovered and ran a secret or restricted script that you have on your website and that dumps the database. The above log shows that a visitor with an IP address 88.54.124.178 requested the main.php file on April 16th 2016 07:44 and the request was successful.

The access.log records all requests for files. Usually, the Apache HTTP Server provides two main log files – access.log and error.log. Let’s take a backend web server as an example. This kind of information can help us monitor the performance, troubleshoot and debug applications, as well as help forensic investigators unfold the chain of events that may have led to malicious activity. Log files provide us with a precise view of the behavior of a server as well as critical information like when, how, and by whom a server is being accessed. A log file records events and actions that take place during the run time of a service or application. Almost all servers, services, and applications provide some sort of logging. A log file is an extremely valuable piece of information that is provided by a server.

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