Note
Access to this page requires authorization. You can try signing in or changing directories.
Access to this page requires authorization. You can try changing directories.
Applies to: 
SQL Server
Azure SQL Managed Instance
Important
On Azure SQL Managed Instance, most, but not all SQL Server Agent features are currently supported. See Azure SQL Managed Instance T-SQL differences from SQL Server or SQL Agent job limitations in SQL Managed Instance for details.
This article describes how to view the SQL Server Agent error log in SQL Server by using SQL Server Management Studio.
Log File Viewer displays log information from many different components. When Log File Viewer is open, use the Select logs pane to select the logs you want to display. Each log displays columns appropriate to that kind of log. The logs that are available depend on how Log File Viewer is opened.
Limitations
Object Explorer only displays the SQL Server Agent node if you have permission to use it.
Permissions
To perform its functions, SQL Server Agent must be configured to use the credentials of an account that is a member of the sysadmin fixed server role in SQL Server. The account must have the following Windows permissions:
- Log on as a service (
SeServiceLogonRight) - Replace a process-level token (
SeAssignPrimaryTokenPrivilege) - Bypass traverse checking (
SeChangeNotifyPrivilege) - Adjust memory quotas for a process (
SeIncreaseQuotaPrivilege)
For more information about the Windows permissions required for the SQL Server Agent service account, see Select an account for the SQL Server Agent service and Configure Windows service accounts and permissions.
Use SQL Server Management Studio
In Object Explorer, select the plus sign to expand the server that contains the SQL Server Agent error log that you want to view.
Select the plus sign to expand SQL Server Agent.
Select the plus sign to expand the Error Logs folder.
Right-click the error log you want to view and select View Agent Log.
The following options are available in the Log File Viewer -server_name dialog box:
Option Description Load Log Open a dialog box where you can specify a log file to load. Export Open a dialog box that lets you export the information that is shown in the Log file summary grid to a text file. Refresh Refresh the view of the selected logs. The Refresh button rereads the selected logs from the target server while applying any filter settings. Filter Open a dialog box that lets you specify settings that are used to filter the log file, such as Connection, Date, or other General filter criteria. Search Search the log file for specific text. Searching with wildcard characters isn't supported. Stop Stops loading the log file entries. For example, you can use this option if a remote or offline log file takes a long time to load, and you only want to view the most recent entries. Log file summary This information panel displays a summary of the log file filtering.
If the file isn't filtered, you see the following text: No filter applied
If a filter is applied to the log, you see the following text: Filter log entries where: <filter criteria>Selected row details Select a row to display more details about the selected event row at the bottom of the page. The columns can be reordered by dragging them to new locations in the grid. The columns can be resized by dragging the column separator bars in the grid header to the left or right. Double-click the column separator bars in the grid header to automatically size the column to the content width. Instance The name of the instance on which the event occurred. This name is displayed as <computer name>\<instance name>.Date Displays the date of the event. Source Displays the source feature from which the event is created, such as the name of the service ( MSSQLSERVER, for example). This value doesn't appear for all log types.Message Displays any messages associated with the event. Log Type Displays the type of log to which the event belongs. All selected logs appear in the log file summary window. Log Source Displays a description of the source log in which the event is captured. When finished, select Close.