DO NOT REPLY [Bug 20241] New: - Add log format to log file itself

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http://nagoya.apache.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=20241

Add log format to log file itself

           Summary: Add log format to log file itself
           Product: Apache httpd-2.0
           Version: HEAD
          Platform: Other
        OS/Version: Other
            Status: NEW
          Severity: Enhancement
          Priority: Other
         Component: mod_log_config
        AssignedTo: bugs@httpd.apache.org
        ReportedBy: bugz@macrotex.net


There is currently no way to determine reliably the log format used to generate
a log file. If you use the same log format forever this is not a problem, but if
you change the log format then the old log files using the old format are
"orphaned". This is a particular problem if you are trying to write a log file
analysis tool to generate web log statitistics that will work with different
sites who have changed their log formats. 

Microsoft IIS5 has a nice solution to this (no flames!!): everytime the log file
format is changed they insert a special string in the log file itself that is,
in essence, the log format. A web log parser could then parse a log file and it
would not matter how often the log file format changed, the parser could handle it. 

What is nice about this solution is that it would be relatively easy to
implement. And to avoid breaking current web log file parsers, you could have
the inserting of the log file format into the log file optional, with it turned
off by default. This feature would be hugely useful to me, and I imagine at the
very least helpful to other log file parsers.

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