Correlating enterprise logs

["Sikha, Naresh" <Na...@schwab.com>]

Hello, LOG4J.
 
I'm attempting to correlate enterprise logs using LOG4J MDC/NDC. I've
reasoned that I need the following values in every message to correlate:
 
- Guaranteed unique session identifier (correlates many requests)
- Guaranteed unique request identifier (correlates many logs in a request)
- Guaranteed unique nested identifier (correlates many logs within a request
that make up a context such as an EJB call or Web Service call)
 
This all seems fine and well until I actually began to correlate - I
couldn't find any easy way to make the correlation happen.
 
So I would like to pose the following questions:
 
- Are there graphical tools that show the flow of logging events? Across
JVMs? Across multiple web requests?
- What are the best practices for generating "correlation friendly" logging
events?
- Is there a means in LOG4J to guarantee uniqueness of logging events across
JVMs?
 
Thanks!
 

  <http://agile.schwab.com/twiki/pub/JAFI/JafiTeamImages/logo-vertical.jpg>
Naresh Sikha
Principal Engineer, Technology Solutions
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. 
211 Main Street
SF211MN-07-347
San Francisco, CA 94105-1918
W: 415-667-1286
F: 415-667-9398
E: naresh.sikha@schwab.com
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