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Real-Time Log Viewer

A simple, dependency-light solution for monitoring server logs in real-time directly through a web browser. It uses Node.js and WebSockets to mimic the functionality of tail -f without requiring external client tools.

Project Structure

root/
├── index.html 
├── server.js
├── test.log
└── README.md

Requirements

  • Node.js (v14 or later recommended)
  • The ws package (WebSocket library).

Installation

Install the required WebSocket package:

npm install ws

Usage

1. Start the Server

Run the main backend file:

node server.js

2. View Real-Time Logs

Open the web browser and navigate to:

http://localhost:8080

How It Works

  1. Client Connects: The browser loads index.html and initiates a WebSocket connection to the server.
  2. Initial Data: server.js reads the last 15 lines of test.log and sends them to the client.
  3. File Watcher: The fs.watch module monitors test.log for changes.
  4. Live Stream: When data is appended, the server reads only the new content and broadcasts it to all clients via the WebSocket connection.

Configuration

All configuration constants are located at the top of server.js:

Constant Default Value Description
PORT 8080 The port for the HTTP and WebSocket server.
LOG_FILE_PATH ./test.log The path to the log file to monitor.
INITIAL_LINES 15 The number of log lines to show on initial client connect.

Disabling the Mock Log Generator

To monitor a real log file instead of the mock one, comment out the setInterval call near the end of server.js:

// Comment out this line to disable the mock generator:
// setInterval(() => { ... }, LOG_GENERATION_INTERVAL);

Notes

  • Attempting to open index.html directly (using file://) will not work, as WebSockets require a running HTTP server context.
  • The target log file (test.log by default) is created automatically if it doesn't exist.