Clear-EventLog
Clears all entries from specified event logs on the local or remote computers.
Syntax
Clear-EventLog
[-LogName] <String[]>
[[-ComputerName] <String[]>]
[-WhatIf]
[-Confirm]
[<CommonParameters>]
Description
The Clear-EventLog
cmdlet deletes all of the entries from the specified event logs on the local
computer or on remote computers. To use Clear-EventLog
, you must be a member of the Administrators
group on the affected computer.
The cmdlets that contain the EventLog
noun (the EventLog
cmdlets) work only on classic event
logs. To get events from logs that use the Windows Event Log technology in Windows Vista and later
versions of Windows, use the Get-WinEvent
cmdlet.
Examples
Example 1: Clear specific event log types from the local computer
Clear-EventLog "Windows PowerShell"
This command clears the entries from the Windows PowerShell event log on the local computer.
Example 2: Clear specific multiple log types from the local and remote computers
Clear-EventLog -LogName ODiag, OSession -ComputerName localhost, Server02
This command clears all of the entries in the Microsoft Office Diagnostics (ODiag) and Microsoft Office Sessions (OSession) logs on the local computer and the Server02 remote computer.
Example 3: Clear all logs on the specified computers then display the event log list
Clear-EventLog -LogName application, system -confirm
This command prompts you for confirmation before deleting the entries in the specified event logs.
Example 4: Clear all logs on the specified computers then display the event log list
function clear-all-event-logs ($computerName="localhost")
{
$logs = Get-EventLog -ComputerName $computername -List | ForEach-Object {$_.Log}
$logs | ForEach-Object {Clear-EventLog -ComputerName $computername -LogName $_ }
Get-EventLog -ComputerName $computername -list
}
clear-all-event-logs -ComputerName Server01
Max(K) Retain OverflowAction Entries Log
------ ------ -------------- ------- ---
15,168 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 Application
15,168 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 DFS Replication
512 7 OverwriteOlder 0 DxStudio
20,480 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 Hardware Events
512 7 OverwriteOlder 0 Internet Explorer
20,480 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 Key Management Service
16,384 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 Microsoft Office Diagnostics
16,384 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 Microsoft Office Sessions
30,016 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 1 Security
15,168 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 2 System
15,360 0 OverwriteAsNeeded 0 Windows PowerShell
This function clears all event logs on the specified computers and then displays the resulting event log list.
Notice that a few entries were added to the System and Security logs after the logs were cleared but before they were displayed.
Parameters
-ComputerName
Specifies a remote computer. The default is the local computer.
Type the NetBIOS name, an Internet Protocol (IP) address, or a fully qualified domain name of a
remote computer. To specify the local computer, type the computer name, a dot (.
), or localhost
.
This parameter does not rely on Windows PowerShell remoting. You can use the ComputerName
parameter of Get-EventLog
even if your computer is not configured to run remote commands.
Type: | String[] |
Aliases: | Cn |
Position: | 1 |
Default value: | Local computer |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | True |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-Confirm
Prompts you for confirmation before running the cmdlet.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Aliases: | cf |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-LogName
Specifies the event logs. Enter the log name (the value of the Log property not the LogDisplayName) of one or more event logs, separated by commas. Wildcard characters are not permitted. This parameter is required.
Important
This parameter is supposed to accept values from the pipeline by property name. However, there is a bug that prevents this from working. You must pass a value using the parameter directly.
Type: | String[] |
Aliases: | LN |
Position: | 0 |
Default value: | None |
Required: | True |
Accept pipeline input: | True |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
-WhatIf
Shows what would happen if the cmdlet runs. The cmdlet is not run.
Type: | SwitchParameter |
Aliases: | wi |
Position: | Named |
Default value: | False |
Required: | False |
Accept pipeline input: | False |
Accept wildcard characters: | False |
Inputs
None
You cannot pipe objects to Clear-EventLog
.
Outputs
None
This cmdlet does not generate any output.
Notes
- To use
Clear-EventLog
on Windows Vista and later versions of Windows, start Windows PowerShell with the Run as administrator option.