/var/adm is for system admin log files especially kernel messages and accounting info /var/log is for daemon logfiles Back in the day when 100 MB was a large disk it was common to separate critical portions of the file system so that running out of user writable space would not crash the system. The kernel gets really upset if it can't write to /var/adm/messages or other files in the /var/adm area that record user logins, etc. There would be no benefit to merging them and potential downside in production shops that have been running for a long time. This matters in shops with 100's of systems writing syslog entries to a central server with scripts that check the health of the systems. Back in the day of the workstation wars it was *really* interesting since every vendor had slightly different conventions for what went where. Large shops with 6+ flavors of Unix running often had in-house conventions just to keep the admins from going crazy. Old editions of Unix admin guides can fill in some of the details. There are a lot of features which only make sense in large installations. Usenet admin list archives from 20-30 years ago will give you more details than you would ever want. Have Fun! Reg -------------------------------------------- On Mon, 12/7/15, Josef 'Jeff' Sipek <[email protected]> wrote: Subject: [discuss] History behind /var/{adm,log}? To: [email protected] Date: Monday, December 7, 2015, 3:36 PM Hello, Does anyone know what the difference is between /var/adm and /var/log? filesystem(5) says: /var/adm System logging and accounting files. /var/log System log files. But that doesn't say *why* they are separate? What's the history here? Would it make sense to combine them (and provide a compat symlink)? /var/adm threw me off when I first switched to OI. Thanks, Jeff. -- Defenestration n. (formal or joc.): The act of removing Windows from your computer in disgust, usually followed by the installation of Linux or some other Unix-like operating system.
------------------------------------------- illumos-discuss Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/182180/=now RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/182180/21175430-2e6923be Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=21175430&id_secret=21175430-6a77cda4 Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
