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This guide shows a safe setup for a Linux VPS, including configuration locations, report scope, date ranges, mail prerequisites, scheduler differences, and the checks that explain most missing-report problems.
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Logwatch is a customizable, pluggable log-monitoring and reporting system. It parses logs generated by services installed on the VPS, applies the filters available on that system, and produces a report for a selected period and detail level. Instead of opening several raw log files every morning, you can receive one summary covering events such as authentication activity, SSH access, web requests, mail services, or other workloads present on the machine.
Logwatch is a reporting layer, not a replacement for the logs themselves, log rotation, an intrusion-prevention system, or a mail server. Its report is only as complete as the logs, filters, permissions, and mail path available on the VPS. A useful first deployment therefore has three checkpoints: the package runs, a report is readable locally, and the VPS can deliver mail if you choose email output.
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Before you install: prerequisites and expectations
- A VPS running a Linux distribution with Logwatch available through its configured repositories.
- Administrator access through
sudoor a root shell. - Readable service logs and the distribution’s normal log-rotation setup.
- A working mail transfer agent (MTA) or relay if reports will be emailed. Installing Logwatch alone does not provide outbound mail delivery.
- A destination address that can receive the report, plus a sender address if your mail setup requires one.
Repository names and scheduler behavior vary by distribution image. The commands below use Ubuntu/Debian’s APT packaging. If your provider supplied a different distribution, use that vendor’s package manager and inspect the local Logwatch manual after installation.
Install Logwatch on Ubuntu or Debian
Refresh package metadata
Refresh package information when the image is new, when APT reports stale metadata, or when the package cannot be found:
sudo apt updateInstall the package
Install Logwatch from the configured repositories:
sudo apt install logwatchAPT resolves the package’s dependencies. If APT says that no installation candidate exists, confirm that the VPS uses a supported repository/component for its release, refresh metadata again, and check the distribution’s package documentation. Do not download an unrelated script simply to bypass repository configuration.
Confirm that the command is available
Check the installed command and read the local manual:
command -v logwatch
man logwatchThe manual is important because service names and available filters depend on the package version, installed filters, and local log formats.
Put local settings in the right configuration directory
Package-managed defaults live under /usr/share/logwatch/. Ubuntu documents the shipped main configuration at /usr/share/logwatch/default.conf/logwatch.conf. Copy that file into /etc/logwatch/conf/ before editing so future package updates do not overwrite your local choices:
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sudo editor /etc/logwatch/conf/logwatch.confThe local configuration file is /etc/logwatch/conf/logwatch.conf. The same directory can contain ignore.conf for entries you want excluded and override.conf for local overrides. Keep distribution-shipped files under /usr/share/logwatch/ unchanged; edits there are vulnerable to replacement during upgrades.
Core settings for a first deployment
A practical starting configuration is:
Output = mail
MailTo = [email protected]
MailFrom = [email protected]
Detail = Low
Service = AllReplace both addresses with values valid for your mail system. Output = mail tells Logwatch to hand the report to the local mail path. MailTo sets the recipient, and MailFrom supplies an explicit sender when your MTA or relay expects one. The VPS must already be able to deliver mail to the destination; Logwatch does not configure that capability.
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Choose output: stdout, file, or email
Use a non-mail destination while validating the parser and report scope. The Debian manual documents standard output, file, and mail output modes.
| Output mode | Example | Best use |
|---|---|---|
| Standard output | --output stdout |
Immediate terminal testing and troubleshooting |
| File | --output file --filename /tmp/logwatch.txt |
Inspecting a report without involving the MTA |
--output mail |
Routine delivery after mail service has been verified |
A successful stdout or file report proves that Logwatch can read and process the selected logs. It does not prove that an email was accepted, queued, or delivered. Treat those as separate tests.
Set report detail and service scope
Detail levels
Logwatch accepts Low, Medium, and High detail settings. Debian maps these names to numeric levels 0, 5, and 10.
| Setting | Numeric level | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| Low | 0 | Compact summary suitable for a daily first pass |
| Medium | 5 | More event information when the low-level summary is insufficient |
| High | 10 | Most verbose output and the greatest chance of a large report |
Start with Low. Increase to Medium or High only when the summary leaves out information you need to investigate. Higher detail can make daily mail harder to scan and can expose more event data than necessary.
All services versus selected services
Service = All processes every service for which an installed filter is available. That is useful for the first run because it confirms what the VPS can report. Once you understand the output, narrow it to services that actually matter on the machine, such as SSH access, authentication, a web server, mail, a database, or a game workload with a supported filter.
Ubuntu documents repeated exclusions in the configuration file:
Service = All
Service = "-http"
Service = "-eximstats"Each negative entry removes a service from an otherwise broad report. The command line can take the opposite approach and force named services:
sudo logwatch --service sshd --range yesterday --detail MediumUse the exact service names installed on your distribution. Filter names are not guaranteed to match the daemon’s package name, so consult man logwatch and inspect the installed service/filter files before assuming a name.
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Run and validate your first report
Run a manual report before relying on a nightly job:
sudo logwatch --detail Low --range todayThis command uses the current day’s logs and the low detail level, with the configured default output. For a mail-free test, explicitly choose stdout:
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sudo logwatch --output stdout --detail Low --range todayTo save a report for inspection:
sudo logwatch --output file --filename /tmp/logwatch.txt --range today
less /tmp/logwatch.txtTo send one report to a particular address without changing the main configuration, use the documented --mailto option:
sudo logwatch --mailto [email protected] --range today --detail LowRead the report and verify that the dates, services, and event counts correspond to activity you expect. If a service is absent, that can mean there were no matching events, no filter is installed for it, the service writes somewhere Logwatch does not parse, or the selected range excludes the relevant entries.
Use date ranges and archived logs correctly
The documented ranges are Today, Yesterday, and All. Range names are commonly written in lowercase on the command line, as in these examples:
sudo logwatch --range yesterday --detail Low
sudo logwatch --range all --archives --detail MediumToday is useful for an immediate check; Yesterday is usually clearer for a daily report because the day is complete; All processes the full available history. When using --range all, add --archives to include archived log files as well as current logs. Archived files must still exist and be readable after log rotation.
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Use --numeric when you want IP addresses shown without additional name lookups:
sudo logwatch --range yesterday --numericNumeric output can make reports faster to interpret during an incident and avoids relying on reverse-DNS responses.
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Configure daily email reports
Set the delivery options
Edit the local configuration and set the mail output and recipient:
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MailTo = [email protected]
MailFrom = [email protected]
Detail = Low
Service = AllSave the file, then send a one-off report. If the report does not arrive, immediately switch to stdout or file output so you can separate Logwatch parsing from mail delivery.
Verify the VPS mail path
Canonical’s Ubuntu documentation treats working mail services as a prerequisite. Confirm that the VPS has an MTA or configured relay, that outbound SMTP is permitted by the provider, and that the local mail queue and mail logs show an attempted delivery. A valid Logwatch report with no message in the queue usually indicates a mail configuration problem rather than a Logwatch filter problem.
Keep the first email small
Use Detail = Low and a focused service list while establishing delivery. Once mail arrives consistently, add services or raise the detail level one change at a time. This makes an unexpectedly large message easier to diagnose and keeps routine reports usable.
Understand unattended scheduling
Do not assume that every Linux VPS runs Logwatch on the same schedule. Oracle Linux 9 documents an installed /etc/cron.daily/0logwatch script that runs nightly and sends a report to root. A Debian- or Ubuntu-based image may use a package-provided cron entry, a systemd timer, or a different local arrangement.
Inspect the machine rather than guessing:
ls -l /etc/cron.daily/
systemctl list-timers --all | grep -i logwatch
man logwatchAlso inspect local mail logs and the package documentation for the installed distribution. The reliable handoff to unattended operation is:
- A manual report completes successfully.
- The selected output destination is confirmed.
- The mail path is tested if using email.
- A local cron job or systemd timer is identified and its execution time is known.
- The recipient address and, where applicable, the root-mail forwarding path are verified.
If your image does not provide a scheduler entry, create scheduling only after the manual command works, and use the exact command, permissions, environment, and output settings appropriate to that distribution.
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Large reports are usually caused by broad service scope, high detail, a long date range, or all three. Reduce noise in this order:
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- Change
Detail = HightoMediumorLow. - Replace
Service = Allwith the services relevant to this VPS. - Exclude unneeded services with repeated negative
Servicesettings. - Use
yesterdayfor daily reports instead of processing all history. - Reserve
--archivesand--range allfor investigations that require historical data.
Make one adjustment at a time and run the same date range again. That preserves a clear cause-and-effect relationship between a setting and the report size.
Troubleshoot common failures
APT cannot find Logwatch
Refresh package metadata with sudo apt update, verify the VPS release and enabled repository components, and retry the installation. If the image uses another distribution, use its vendor package manager and package source.
The command runs but no email arrives
- Run with
--output stdoutor--output fileto prove that report generation works. - Check that
Output = mailandMailToare in/etc/logwatch/conf/logwatch.conf. - Confirm that an MTA or relay is installed and configured.
- Inspect the mail queue and mail logs for rejection, DNS, authentication, or connection errors.
- Verify that the recipient address and sender domain are accepted by the relay.
Your configuration appears to be ignored
Confirm that you edited /etc/logwatch/conf/logwatch.conf, not only a file under /usr/share/logwatch/. Check spelling, capitalization, and duplicate settings. Run a manual command after saving the file so you can see the result immediately.
The report is too large
Lower the detail level, select only relevant services, add exclusions, or shorten the range. A report generated with --range all --archives is intentionally much broader than a daily report.
Older events are missing
Choose the correct range and add --archives when historical rotated logs are required. Check that logrotate archives still exist, are readable by the command’s execution context, and use a format supported by the installed filter.
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A service name produces no output
Service filters depend on the installed Logwatch package and local log format. Consult man logwatch, inspect the installed filter files, and verify that the service actually writes events during the selected period. Do not infer a valid filter name solely from the daemon’s name.
A repeatable operating routine
For a VPS that hosts several services, use this routine after installation:
- Run
sudo logwatch --output stdout --range today --detail Lowand read the complete report. - Confirm that expected services appear and remove irrelevant sections.
- Set
Output,MailTo, and optionalMailFromin the local configuration. - Send a one-off report and verify receipt, queue status, and mail logs.
- Identify the distribution’s cron or systemd schedule.
- After the first scheduled run, compare the received date range with the scheduler’s execution time.
- Keep the local configuration under version control or another protected backup if the VPS is managed as infrastructure.
For a game server or other latency-sensitive workload, keep Logwatch’s report scope focused and avoid treating a summary as real-time monitoring. Use the underlying service logs when you need event-by-event investigation, and use Logwatch for a repeatable periodic overview.
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