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Summary
• Examine different log files• What you can and can’t learn from your
logs• Pros and cons of various tools
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Different types of log files
• Access• Error• Referral• Other
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Access logs
• Domain name• Date, time• Server command processed and result• URL of visitor• Bytes transmitted
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Sample access log data• rm258.fav.usu.edu [31/May/1995:09:03:23 +0600] "GET
/NEI.html HTTP/1.0" 302 396• rm258.fav.usu.edu [31/May/1995:09:03:28 +0600] "GET
/xculture/nei/nei.html HTTP/1.0" 200 2114• rm258.fav.usu.edu [31/May/1995:09:03:30 +0600] "GET
/gifs/sedlbutton.gif HTTP/1.0" 200 1336• 129.71.83.161 [31/May/1995:09:20:32 +0600] "GET /RELs.html
HTTP/1.0" 304 0• Leslie-Francis.tenet.edu [31/May/1995:09:36:06 +0600]
"GET / HTTP/1.0" 200 1867• ls973.ulib.albany.edu [31/May/1995:09:40:52 +0600] "GET
/viii1.html HTTP/1.0" 404 244
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Errors reported in your logs
• Clients that time out (or leave in frustration!)
• Scripts that don’t produce any output• Server bugs• User authentication or configuration
problems
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Sample error log data• [Thu May 30 07:25:32 1996] send timed out for
bamberg.sedl.org• [Thu May 30 07:57:41 1996] send timed out for
kenya.sedl.org• [Thu May 30 08:23:11 1996] send timed out for ppp092.kyoto-
inet.or.jp• [Thu May 30 09:15:52 1996] access to
/usr/local/www/htdocs/scimath/compass/vol03 failed for 170.211.67.51, reason: File does not exist
• [Thu May 30 09:57:56 1996] send timed out for dd10-048.compuserve.com
• [Thu May 30 10:47:25 1996] read timed out for ncia110b.ncia.net
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Referral logs
• Who links to your site?• Who downloads your pages?
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Sample referral log data• http://www.isisnet.com/ ->/change/welcome.html• http://www.ipl.org/ref/RR/EDU/Research-rr.html
->/welcome.html• http://www.tenet.edu/snp/main.html
->/policy/networks/toc.html• http://www.tenet.edu/new/main.html
->/policy/networks/toc.html• http://guide-p.infoseek.com/NS/Titles?qt=teacher+training -
>/resources/SCIMAST/announcement.html• http://www.tenet.edu/new/main.html
->/policy/networks/toc.html• http://www.tenet.edu/new/main.html
->/policy/networks/toc.html• http://www.nwrel.org/national/regional-labs.html
->/welcome.html
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Common log format
• Output by most standard servers• Needed by most third-party log analyzers• hoohoo.ncsa.uiuc.edu/docs/setup/httpd/Overview.html
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Extended/custom log formats
• Log whatever you wish in whatever order you wish
• Useful if you will read them regularly!• But can’t work with the analyzers• Now in IIS v4, NSCP v3, others.
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What you can learn from your log files
• Hits per day• Domain origins• The path people take in and around your
web• Problem areas
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HITS
• (How Idiots Track Success)• Nobody uses this word anymore• Doesn’t really measure individual users,
just access• Catching servers and proxies mess up these
statistics
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Domain origins
• Where users are coming from -- sometimes• Just because they are from ibm.net doesn’t
mean they work at IBM!• Forgotten accounts, friends and family
using the account• Hacked user names• Proxies don’t help here either
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The path people take in and around your web
• Search engines help sometimes• Which search site was the most popular
front door • Who links to you and why• Is there a pattern or a random walk?
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Problem areas to deal with
• Broken links (locally)• Broken outbound links• Time outs (sunspots?)
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What you can’t learn from your logs
• Who are these people, anyway?– No specific user names– Is it a bot or a real human?
• How long did they view a page?– Most people don’t spend much time on your
web– Where did they go visit next?
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What technologies are available?
• Built-in analyzer tools• Sites that capture user info• Secure sites with registration• Build your own from perl• Third-party tools
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Built-in tools
• WebSite, website.ora.com• IIS with Site Server,
www.microsoft.com/iis• Netscape servers, www.netscape.com• Easy to use but limited
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WebSite Professional v2
• Win NT, 95• Best web server for learning about logs, best
docs• QuickStats module for instant analysis:
– single report but nice set of information– shows today, last two days requests and unique
hosts– IP addresses of visitors, average requests/hour
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IIS Site Server
• NT Server v4 w/SP3 only• Lots of preconfigured reports• Two versions, Express and Full (customized
reports)• backoffice.microsoft.com/products/
siteserver/express/
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Netscape v3 web servers
• Various NT, Unix versions• Reports for a few variables but nothing too
extensive• Best to use a third-party tool here
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Sites that capture user info
• WebCounter, www.digits.com -- third-party hit counter
• Someone else does the programming and debugging
• But beyond your control
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Secure sites with registration
• You know your users• But many won’t register, or forget their
passwords• Requires scripting, database integration,
more maintenance
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Build your own from perl
• Needs some in-house support• Works best with Unix-based webs• Examples:
– refstats, members.aol.com/htmlguru/refstats.html
– surfreport, bienlogic.com/SurfReport/
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Third-party tools
• WebTracker, www.CQMInc.com/webtrack• WebTrends, www.webtrends.com• net.Genesis, www.netgen.com• MarketWave, www.marketwave.com• IIS Assistant, www.go-iis.com
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Third-party tools (con’t)
• Can make very pretty reports• Customizable • Make sure they support your particular log
format• Not that expensive, mostly run on Windows
