Log4j 1.1.3

org.apache.log4j
Class WriterAppender

java.lang.Object
  |
  +--org.apache.log4j.AppenderSkeleton
        |
        +--org.apache.log4j.WriterAppender
All Implemented Interfaces:
Appender, OptionHandler
Direct Known Subclasses:
ConsoleAppender, FileAppender

public class WriterAppender
extends AppenderSkeleton

WriterAppender appends log events to a Writer or an OutputStream depending on the user's choice.

Since:
1.1
Author:
Ceki Gülcü

Field Summary
static String IMMEDIATE_FLUSH_OPTION
          Deprecated. We now use JavaBeans introspection to configure components. Options strings are no longer needed.
protected  boolean immediateFlush
          Immediate flush means that the underlying writer or output stream will be flushed at the end of each append operation.
protected  QuietWriter qw
          This is the quietWriter where we will write to.
 
Fields inherited from class org.apache.log4j.AppenderSkeleton
closed, errorHandler, headFilter, layout, name, tailFilter, threshold, THRESHOLD_OPTION
 
Constructor Summary
WriterAppender()
          This default constructor does nothing.
WriterAppender(Layout layout, OutputStream os)
          Instantiate a WriterAppender and set the output destination to a new OutputStreamWriter initialized with os as its OutputStream.
WriterAppender(Layout layout, Writer writer)
          Instantiate a WriterAppender and set the output destination to writer.
 
Method Summary
 void activateOptions()
          Does nothing.
 void append(LoggingEvent event)
          This method is called by the AppenderSkeleton.doAppend(org.apache.log4j.spi.LoggingEvent) method.
protected  boolean checkEntryConditions()
          This method determines if there is a sense in attempting to append.
 void close()
          Close this appender instance.
protected  void closeWriter()
          Close the underlying Writer.
 boolean getImmediateFlush()
          Returns value of the ImmediateFlush option.
 String[] getOptionStrings()
          Deprecated. We now use JavaBeans introspection to configure components. Options strings are no longer needed.
 boolean requiresLayout()
          The WriterAppender requires a layout.
protected  void reset()
          Clear internal references to the writer and other variables.
 void setErrorHandler(ErrorHandler eh)
          Set the ErrorHandler for this FileAppender and also the underlying QuietWriter if any.
 void setImmediateFlush(boolean value)
          If the ImmediateFlush option is set to true, the appender will flush at the end of each write.
 void setOption(String key, String value)
          Set option to value.
 void setWriter(Writer writer)
          Sets the Writer where the log output will go.
protected  void subAppend(LoggingEvent event)
          Actual writing occurs here.
protected  void writeFooter()
          Write a footer as produced by the embedded layout's Layout.getFooter() method.
protected  void writeHeader()
          Write a header as produced by the embedded layout's Layout.getHeader() method.
 
Methods inherited from class org.apache.log4j.AppenderSkeleton
addFilter, clearFilters, doAppend, finalize, getErrorHandler, getFilter, getFirstFilter, getLayout, getName, getThreshold, isAsSevereAsThreshold, setLayout, setName, setThreshold
 
Methods inherited from class java.lang.Object
clone, equals, getClass, hashCode, notify, notifyAll, toString, wait, wait, wait
 

Field Detail

IMMEDIATE_FLUSH_OPTION

public static final String IMMEDIATE_FLUSH_OPTION
Deprecated. We now use JavaBeans introspection to configure components. Options strings are no longer needed.

A string constant used in naming the option for immediate flushing of the output stream at the end of each append operation. Current value of this string constant is ImmediateFlush.

Note that all option keys are case sensitive.


immediateFlush

protected boolean immediateFlush
Immediate flush means that the underlying writer or output stream will be flushed at the end of each append operation. Immediate flush is slower but ensures that each append request is actually written. If immediateFlush is set to false, then there is a good chance that the last few logs events are not actually written to persistent media if and when the application crashes.

The immediateFlush variable is set to true by default.


qw

protected QuietWriter qw
This is the quietWriter where we will write to.
Constructor Detail

WriterAppender

public WriterAppender()
This default constructor does nothing.

WriterAppender

public WriterAppender(Layout layout,
                      OutputStream os)
Instantiate a WriterAppender and set the output destination to a new OutputStreamWriter initialized with os as its OutputStream.

WriterAppender

public WriterAppender(Layout layout,
                      Writer writer)
Instantiate a WriterAppender and set the output destination to writer.

The writer must have been previously opened by the user.

Method Detail

setImmediateFlush

public void setImmediateFlush(boolean value)
If the ImmediateFlush option is set to true, the appender will flush at the end of each write. This is the default behavior. If the option is set to false, then the underlying stream can defer writing to physical medium to a later time.

Avoiding the flush operation at the end of each append results in a performance gain of 10 to 20 percent. However, there is safety tradeoff involved in skipping flushing. Indeed, when flushing is skipped, then it is likely that the last few log events will not be recorded on disk when the application exits. This is a high price to pay even for a 20% performance gain.


getImmediateFlush

public boolean getImmediateFlush()
Returns value of the ImmediateFlush option.

activateOptions

public void activateOptions()
Does nothing.
Overrides:
activateOptions in class AppenderSkeleton

append

public void append(LoggingEvent event)
This method is called by the AppenderSkeleton.doAppend(org.apache.log4j.spi.LoggingEvent) method.

If the output stream exists and is writable then write a log statement to the output stream. Otherwise, write a single warning message to System.err.

The format of the output will depend on this appender's layout.

Overrides:
append in class AppenderSkeleton

checkEntryConditions

protected boolean checkEntryConditions()
This method determines if there is a sense in attempting to append.

It checks whether there is a set output target and also if there is a set layout. If these checks fail, then the boolean value false is returned.


close

public void close()
Close this appender instance. The underlying stream or writer is also closed.

Closed appenders cannot be reused.

Since:
0.8.4
See Also:
setWriter(java.io.Writer)

closeWriter

protected void closeWriter()
Close the underlying Writer.

getOptionStrings

public String[] getOptionStrings()
Deprecated. We now use JavaBeans introspection to configure components. Options strings are no longer needed.

Retuns the option names for this component.
Overrides:
getOptionStrings in class AppenderSkeleton

setErrorHandler

public void setErrorHandler(ErrorHandler eh)
Set the ErrorHandler for this FileAppender and also the underlying QuietWriter if any.
Overrides:
setErrorHandler in class AppenderSkeleton

setOption

public void setOption(String key,
                      String value)
Deprecated. Use the setter method for the option directly instead of the generic setOption method.

Description copied from interface: OptionHandler
Set option to value.

The handling of each option depends on the OptionHandler instance. Some options may become active immediately whereas other may be activated only when OptionHandler.activateOptions() is called.

Overrides:
setOption in class AppenderSkeleton

setWriter

public void setWriter(Writer writer)

Sets the Writer where the log output will go. The specified Writer must be opened by the user and be writable.

The java.io.Writer will be closed when the appender instance is closed.

WARNING: Logging to an unopened Writer will fail.

Parameters:
Writer - An already opened Writer.

subAppend

protected void subAppend(LoggingEvent event)
Actual writing occurs here.

Most subclasses of WriterAppender will need to override this method.

Since:
0.9.0

requiresLayout

public boolean requiresLayout()
The WriterAppender requires a layout. Hence, this method returns true.

reset

protected void reset()
Clear internal references to the writer and other variables. Subclasses can override this method for an alternate closing behavior.

writeFooter

protected void writeFooter()
Write a footer as produced by the embedded layout's Layout.getFooter() method.

writeHeader

protected void writeHeader()
Write a header as produced by the embedded layout's Layout.getHeader() method.

Log4j 1.1.3

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