On this page
win_eventlog – Manage Windows event logs
New in version 2.4.
Synopsis
- Allows the addition, clearing and removal of local Windows event logs, and the creation and removal of sources from a given event log. Also allows the specification of settings per log and source.
 
Parameters
| Parameter | Choices/Defaults | Comments | 
|---|---|---|
| category_file
        
        path
         | 
      
        
        For one or more sources specified, the path to a custom category resource file.
         | 
     |
| maximum_size
        
        string
         | 
      
        
        The maximum size of the event log.
        
       
        Value must be between 64KB and 4GB, and divisible by 64KB.
        
       
        Size can be specified in KB, MB or GB (e.g. 128KB, 16MB, 2.5GB).
         | 
     |
| message_file
        
        path
         | 
      
        
        For one or more sources specified, the path to a custom event message resource file.
         | 
     |
| name
        
        string / required
         | 
      
        
        Name of the event log to manage.
         | 
     |
| overflow_action
        
        string
         | 
      
       
  | 
      
        
        The action for the log to take once it reaches its maximum size.
        
       
        For  
       DoNotOverwrite, all existing entries are kept and new entries are not retained.
       
        For  
       OverwriteAsNeeded, each new entry overwrites the oldest entry.
       
        For  OverwriteOlder, new log entries overwrite those older than the retention_days value.
        | 
     
| parameter_file
        
        path
         | 
      
        
        For one or more sources specified, the path to a custom parameter resource file.
         | 
     |
| retention_days
        
        integer
         | 
      
        
        The minimum number of days event entries must remain in the log.
        
       
        This option is only used when  overflow_action is OverwriteOlder.
        | 
     |
| sources
        
        list
         | 
      
        
        A list of one or more sources to ensure are present/absent in the log.
        
       
        When  category_file, message_file and/or parameter_file are specified, these values are applied across all sources.
        | 
     |
| state
        
        string
         | 
      
       
  | 
      
        
        Desired state of the log and/or sources.
        
       
        When  
       sources is populated, state is checked for sources.
       
        When  
       sources is not populated, state is checked for the specified log itself.
       
        If  state is clear, event log entries are cleared for the target log.
        | 
     
See Also
See also
- win_eventlog_entry – Write entries to Windows event logs
 - The official documentation on the win_eventlog_entry module.
 
Examples
- name: Add a new event log with two custom sources
  win_eventlog:
    name: MyNewLog
    sources:
      - NewLogSource1
      - NewLogSource2
    state: present
- name: Change the category and message resource files used for NewLogSource1
  win_eventlog:
    name: MyNewLog
    sources:
      - NewLogSource1
    category_file: C:\NewApp\CustomCategories.dll
    message_file: C:\NewApp\CustomMessages.dll
    state: present
- name: Change the maximum size and overflow action for MyNewLog
  win_eventlog:
    name: MyNewLog
    maximum_size: 16MB
    overflow_action: DoNotOverwrite
    state: present
- name: Clear event entries for MyNewLog
  win_eventlog:
    name: MyNewLog
    state: clear
- name: Remove NewLogSource2 from MyNewLog
  win_eventlog:
    name: MyNewLog
    sources:
      - NewLogSource2
    state: absent
- name: Remove MyNewLog and all remaining sources
  win_eventlog:
    name: MyNewLog
    state: absent
  Return Values
Common return values are documented here, the following are the fields unique to this module:
| Key | Returned | Description | 
|---|---|---|
| entries
        
        integer
         | 
      success | 
        
        The count of entries present in the event log.
         Sample:
        
       
        50
         | 
     
| exists
        
        boolean
         | 
      success | 
        
        Whether the event log exists or not.
         Sample:
        
       
        True
         | 
     
| maximum_size_kb
        
        integer
         | 
      success | 
        
        Maximum size of the log in KB.
         Sample:
        
       
        512
         | 
     
| name
        
        string
         | 
      always | 
        
        The name of the event log.
         Sample:
        
       
        MyNewLog
         | 
     
| overflow_action
        
        string
         | 
      success | 
        
        The action the log takes once it reaches its maximum size.
         Sample:
        
       
        OverwriteOlder
         | 
     
| retention_days
        
        integer
         | 
      success | 
        
        The minimum number of days entries are retained in the log.
         Sample:
        
       
        7
         | 
     
| sources
        
        list
         | 
      success | 
        
        A list of the current sources for the log.
         Sample:
        
       
        ['MyNewLog', 'NewLogSource1', 'NewLogSource2']
         | 
     
| sources_changed
        
        list
         | 
      always | 
        
        A list of sources changed (e.g. re/created, removed) for the log; this is empty if no sources are changed.
         Sample:
        
       
        ['NewLogSource2']
         | 
     
Status
- This module is not guaranteed to have a backwards compatible interface. [preview]
 - This module is maintained by the Ansible Community. [community]
 
Authors
- Andrew Saraceni (@andrewsaraceni)
 
Hint
If you notice any issues in this documentation you can edit this document to improve it.
© 2012–2018 Michael DeHaan
© 2018–2019 Red Hat, Inc.
Licensed under the GNU General Public License version 3.
 https://docs.ansible.com/ansible/2.8/modules/win_eventlog_module.html