Event Log Information (page 2) 
From the system administrator's point of view, the event log is little more than a list of messages posted by the system or by application software. This list of messages is organized into logical groups called log files (or logs). The collection of logs is referred to generally as the event log. The system administrator's window to the event log is the Event Viewer snap-in of the Microsoft Management Console (MMC. You can open the Event Viewer by clicking Start, pointing to Programs, pointing to Administrative Tools, and then choosing the Event Viewer option. You can also access the Event Viewer by choosing Computer Management in Administrative Tools. By default, the system's event log contains three logs: Application, System, and Security. Applications can add their own custom logs to the system; however, this is not typically necessary or common. If you decide to report to your own custom log file, you tell the Event Viewer snap-in about it by selecting the Event Viewer node in the left-hand pane and choosing Open Log File from the Action menu. This produces an Open dialog box that allows you to open a log file. You must report at least one event to a custom log before viewing the log with the Event Viewer snap-in.
The event source represents the application, service, or system component that reported the event. Typically a one-to-one relationship exists between the reporting agent and event source. However, the code that is reporting the event decides which source it is reporting as, so a single application can report as multiple sources. Likewise, multiple applications can report as a single source. Windows does not restrict this reporting flexibility in any way.
The event ID is a source-defined value that identifies a certain type of event. Any event can be identified via a composite of the event's source and ID. For example, the Browser service defines event ID 8021 as "The browser was unable to retrieve a list of servers from the browser master
| About | | Event Log Information | | Event Log Management | | Links | | Windows Server Monitor Software | | Download - License/Terms | | Site Map |