# Either error log empty or access log empty **URL:** \ **Category:** NGINX\ **Created:** [March 24, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/either-error-log-empty-or-access-log-empty/218206 "2012-03-24T01:48:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![luislavena](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/l/0ea827/32.png) [@luislavena](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/luislavena)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/either-error-log-empty-or-access-log-empty/218206/1 "2012-03-24T01:48:51Z")
hello, I have an nginx/1.0.14 installation with 3 virtual hosts. Each virtual hosts features its own error\_log and access\_log, problem is: eventhough I have similar log configuration on all virtual hosts either access.log is always empty or error.log is always empty on each virtual hosts. I better explain with facts, this is nginx configuration ( I’m just copying relevant parts please disregard any syntax error I might have introduced by doing this) : ``` server { listen 80 default_server; server_name www.HOST_A.com; error_log /var/log/nginx/HOST_A.error.log error; access_log /var/log/nginx/HOST_A.access.log; root /srv/www/HOST_A.com/public_html; } server { listen 80; server_name www.HOST_B.com; error_log /var/log/nginx/HOST_B.error.log error; access_log /var/log/nginx/HOST_B.access.log; root /srv/www/HOST_B.com/public_html; } server { listen 80; server_name www.HOST_C.com; error_log /var/log/nginx/HOST_C.error.log error; access_log /var/log/nginx/HOST_C.access.log; root /srv/www/HOST_C.com/public_html; } ``` Now, I use wget to make a request for a non existent file and get a 404 response wget http://www.HOST\_A.com/nonexistentfile.php wget http://www.HOST\_B.com/nonexistentfile.php wget http://www.HOST\_C.com/nonexistentfile.php ls command output shows that for HOST\_A only error.log gets updated, and for HOST\_B and HOST\_C only access.log gets updated (I’ve changed directory and file owner to nginx user and relaxed permissions but it didn’t worked): -rw-rw-rw- 1 nginx nginx 0 Mar 23 17:28 HOST\_A.access.log -rw-rw-rw- 1 nginx nginx 1240 Mar 23 17:52 HOST\_A.error.log -rw-rw-rw- 1 nginx nginx 817 Mar 23 17:52 HOST\_B.access.log -rw-rw-rw- 1 nginx nginx 0 Mar 23 17:28 HOST\_B.error.log -rw-rw-rw- 1 nginx nginx 817 Mar 23 17:48 HOST\_C.access.log -rw-rw-rw- 1 nginx nginx 0 Mar 23 17:28 HOST\_C.error.log As you can see: either .access.log is empty or .error.log is empty This is last line from error log of HOST\_A: 2012/03/23 17:29:12 [error] 3227#0: \*3 open() “/srv/www/HOST\_A.com/public\_html/nonexistentfile.php” failed (2: No such file or directory), client: XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX, server: www.HOST\_A.com, request: “GET /nonexistentfile.php HTTP/1.1”, host: “HOST\_A.com” and this is last line from access log of HOST\_B ( HOST\_C is identical): 201.141.61.209 - - [23/Mar/2012:17:52:42 -0600] “GET /nonexistentfile.php HTTP/1.1” 404 191 “-” “Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 5.1; rv:11.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/11.0” In short, I don’t know why only one log file per host gets updated. Using htop with “L” option I can verify that the nginx process has all log files open and yet it doesn’t write to all of them. I tried changing file and directory ownership but that didn’t worked ( I restarted nginx after those changes). I remember this wasn’t an issue when I started using nginx 1.0.11 I’d deeply appreciate any suggestions on this issue Posted at Nginx Forum: > **[either error log empty or access log empty](https://forum.nginx.org/read.php?2,224315,224315#msg-224315)** > > hello, I have an nginx/1.0.14 installation with 3 virtual hosts. Each virtual hosts features its own error\_log and access\_log, problem is: eventhough I have similar log configuration on all virtual hosts either access.log is always empty or error.log... ---
**Author:** ![zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/zhnupy)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2012, 1:46pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/either-error-log-empty-or-access-log-empty/218206/2 "2012-03-24T13:46:39Z")
On Fri, Mar 23, 2012 at 08:48:11PM -0400, zhnupy wrote: Hi there, > eventhough I have similar log configuration on all virtual hosts either > access.log is always empty or error.log is always empty on each virtual > hosts. I fail to reproduce the problem you report with the configuration you provide. > I better explain with facts, this is nginx configuration ( I’m just > copying relevant parts please disregard any syntax error I might have > introduced by doing this) : Either you’ve left out a relevant part, or there is some other difference in our test cases. nginx -V, perhaps? Can you provide a (minimal) config that shows the problem for you? > Now, I use wget to make a request for a non existent file and get a 404 > response > > wget http://www.HOST\_A.com/nonexistentfile.php > wget http://www.HOST\_B.com/nonexistentfile.php > wget http://www.HOST\_C.com/nonexistentfile.php > > ls command output shows that for HOST\_A only error.log gets updated, and > for HOST\_B and HOST\_C only access.log gets updated If nginx returns 404, access\_log should be written. For HOST\_A, have you any other access\_log defined that is used instead? If nginx tries to read a missing file, error\_log should be written. “try\_files” and “fastcgi\_pass” don’t involve nginx trying to read a file. Are you using either of those in the HOST\_B and HOST\_C configs? Or have you any other error\_log defined? > I’d deeply appreciate any suggestions on this issue More information needed; ideally a config that you confirm shows the problem. Does it fail with only one server{} block? Or with two? ## f Francis D. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) ---
**Author:** ![zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/zhnupy)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2012, 10:21pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/either-error-log-empty-or-access-log-empty/218206/3 "2012-03-25T22:21:25Z")
thanks Francis, after testing one by one it was easier to isolate my problem. I have a location definition which turns off the access log, but it doesn’t suppose to fire every time, just for specific file extensions, here is the entire server block: 52 server { 53 listen 80 default\_server; 54 server\_name www.DOMAIN\_A.com _.DOMAIN\_A.com; 55 error\_log /var/log/nginx/DOMAIN\_A.error.log debug; 56 access\_log /var/log/nginx/DOMAIN\_A.access.log; 57 58 root /srv/www/DOMAIN\_A.com/public\_html; 59 60 error\_page 404 /404.html; 61 62 location ~_ .(jpg|jpeg|gif|css|png|js|ico|html)$ { 63 # access\_log off; 64 expires max; 65 } 66 67 location ~ /.ht { 68 deny all; 69 } 70 } The desired intention of line 62 is to turn off access log only for resources with given extensions, however I found it is firing everytime. for instance, this URL: http://DOMAIN\_A/aaaa.txt is not supposed to fire that rule, but it does. As soon as I comment line 63 (and restart nginx) the access log gets updated. I have repeated this several times (adding/removing comment in line 63) with same results. I don’t see nothing wrong with that regular expression, so I’m not sure what is going on. Posted at Nginx Forum: > **[Re: either error log empty or access log empty](https://forum.nginx.org/read.php?2,224315,224360#msg-224360)** > > hello, I have an nginx/1.0.14 installation with 3 virtual hosts. Each virtual hosts features its own error\_log and access\_log, problem is: eventhough I have similar log configuration on all virtual hosts either access.log is always empty or error.log... ---
**Author:** ![zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/zhnupy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 9:26am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/either-error-log-empty-or-access-log-empty/218206/4 "2012-03-26T09:26:53Z")
a very enlightening response thank you very much Francis! Posted at Nginx Forum: > **[Re: either error log empty or access log empty](https://forum.nginx.org/read.php?2,224315,224377#msg-224377)** > > hello, I have an nginx/1.0.14 installation with 3 virtual hosts. Each virtual hosts features its own error\_log and access\_log, problem is: eventhough I have similar log configuration on all virtual hosts either access.log is always empty or error.log... ---
**Author:** ![zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@zhnupy](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/zhnupy)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2012, 12:12am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/either-error-log-empty-or-access-log-empty/218206/5 "2012-03-26T00:12:58Z")
On Sun, Mar 25, 2012 at 04:20:54PM -0400, zhnupy wrote: Hi there, > I have a location definition which turns off the access log, > but it doesn’t suppose to fire every time, just for specific file > extensions, here is the entire server block: If you look through the debug log for one request, you’ll see exactly why things happen. When you request “/notthere.php”, it uses the “null” location, and returns 404. Then your error\_page directive causes a rewrite to /404.html, which uses the “extensions” location. That is where the request finishes, so that is where it is logged. And you have access\_log off there. > for instance, this URL: http://DOMAIN\_A/aaaa.txt is not supposed to > fire that rule, but it does. It shouldn’t match that rule if it doesn’t generate a 404. All 404s will match that rule, because of your error\_page configuration. Maybe you want a separate “location = /404.html{}” block? ## f Francis D. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)