Best practice for logging the system

Question

What is the best practice for registering a log system?

    public void inserirLog(string Acao)
        {

        StringBuilder csql = new StringBuilder();
        csql.Append("insert into Log (Acao,data) values(");
        csql.Append(@"""" + Acao + @""",");
        csql.Append("'" + DateTime.Now + "')");
        Conexao conn= new Conexao();
        conn.ExecutarComando(csql.ToString());
        }

Today I do it that way, I mean, to every action I want log, Gero a insert in the database. This way beyond costly generates many requests to the database so I believe not to be the most viable, I was thinking to register each log in a text file, then later transmit that file, would that be a good way?

Obs:. The logs are for action record , for example: "Opened Screen X", "Logou in System", "Exited System", etc.

My system has many features, so this log would be to map what has been used by customers.

Answer 1

The best practice is not to reinvent the wheel. It is to use a tool of log that has been well thought out and tested by professionals who dedicate themselves to this. And use these ready-made tools according to the specific recommendations.

Of course, some cases are interesting to create your own systems, but you need to have a reason for that. I don’t think ready-made solutions solve all problems. But it doesn’t seem to be your case, I think you might as well use something ready that solves those questions you’re worried about.

These tools offer solutions to realize buffering, do load balancing and fault resolution, write asynchronously and allows choosing various targets to persist the log.

Before I pass some solutions I want to say that log in database has to be well thought out even, imagine that the database can be a major source of problems in certain circumstances (unless it is an Sqlite, for example), then you would need log in the problems that occurred in its log. Complicates it, right?.

Some frameworks of log known to . NET:

• Log4net - one of the best known and used based on Log4j.
• Nlog - One of the most modern and known. The only one I actually used.
• Enterprise Library - Official Microsoft solution but it doesn’t solve some things well.
• Elmah - Highly recommended for use with ASP.NET. Very simple to use because it injects what is needed.
• .NET Logging Framework - Another well recommended and has some different characteristics - I don’t know if it exists yet.
• Serilog - I don’t know but one more to investigate and see if it suits you better.

There are others that are simpler but that are little supported and several abandoned. There are also some more complete but paid solutions, rarely worthwhile.

In general these solutions only take care of the log itself, requiring you to invoke your non-intervention execution which probably require rewriting tools from Assembly using techniques guidance to aspects. See complementary response from Gypsy Morrison Mendez.

There are still some tools to analyze these logs, which helps justify the choice for a standard solution.

• Sentinel - Open Source
• Chainsaw - Open Source
• Gibraltar - Free
• Logentries- Paid
• Reflect Insight - Paid

Answer 2

Since what you want to register involves interception of actions, the correct thing is to combine some log solution ( @Maniero response) with proxy dynamic, this interception being made by the Framework Castle Dynamic Proxy. However, because it is a web application, you will have to register the triggers using a container (container) control inversion, in this case, the Castle Windsor.

In Castle Windsor’s own tutorial, in part 5 of it teaches you to do exactly what you want.

If you only want to register database searches and selections and your idea is to use the Entity Framework, use the Entityframework.Extended., which has the audit log feature.