Network Event Viewer
Event Log Consolidation

Network Event Viewer enables System Administrators to consolidate event logs on the local network and from multiple sites (WANs) using Microsoft SQL Server or MySQL as the event log repository. Unlike many event log consolidation products, Network Event Viewer's database schema is open and simple to select from.

Archiving

Event log consolidation is an important and often requirement of regulatory compliance such as Sarbanes-Oxley. System administrators can configure the software to automatically archive event log entries older than a configurable number of days. Entries that meet specific date criteria are automatically removed from archive event logs. When using the file system to store consolidated logs, entries are moved to files in a sub-directory to the repository directory called Archive. When using a database to store consolidated logs, entries are moved to another table called [computer]_[event log]_archive. The table format is identical to the primary table.

No Maximum Size Limit

Unlike the Windows Event Logs which have a maximum size limit, Network Event Viewer does not impose a limit, unless otherwise configured by the user. In other words, users do not need to worry that event log entries will be overwritten as is the case with Windows Event Logs.

Supported Event Log Consolidation Formats

  • Microsoft SQL Server 2000 & 2005
  • MySQL 5.0
  • Local or Remote Files

Microsoft SQL Server Database Schema

The database schema is fairly straight forward. There are 4 tables plus a table for each event log file.

Tables

host_logContains a list of all consolidated event logs.
typeContains the 5 different event types: Information, Warning, Critical, Success Audit, and Failure Audit.
filter_action_eventContains all entries that pass assigned filter criteria during a download.
versionA version table necessary for schema updates.

Event Log Table Schema

[entry_id] [int] IDENTITY(1,1) NOT NULLThe primary key.
[type_id] [int] NOT NULLForeign key to the 'type' table.
[date] [datetime] NOT NULLThe date and time the event occurred.
[source] [varchar](256) NULLThe source of the event.
[category] [varchar](256) NULLThe event category.
[event] [int] NULLThe event ID as seen in the Windows Event Viewer.
[user] [varchar](256) NULLThe user that caused the event to occur.
[message] [varchar](4096) NULLThe event message
[data] [varbinary](2048) NULLThe event data
[ext_alert_state] [int] default 0 NOT NULLAn alert flag that states if the entry passed assigned filter criteria during a download.
[ext_flag_state] [int] default 0 NOT NULLFollow up flag set by the user from the event log viewer.
[identifier] [bigint] NULLThe event ID.
[categoryID] [int] NULLThe event category used when exporting event logs to the Windows EVT file format.
[strings] [varbinary](4096) NULLThe event replacement strings used when exporting event logs to the Windows EVT file format.
[notes] [varchar](4096) NULLUser assigned notes.
[host] [varchar](256) NULLThe host the entry is was originally sent from.

Event Log Consolidation and Monitoring Screen Shots