What is the Purpose of the Security Event Log?

Written by Barry Dysert (last updated March 27, 2017)

There are several types of event logs maintained by the Windows operating system. One of these is the Security event log. Windows writes to this log when auditing is turned on. Writing to the Security log is reserved for Windows only. Other applications cannot write into this particular event log.

Like events written to other event logs, some of the important elements written to the Security log include the date and time when the event occurred, the event ID, and the event source. It's also important to note the Keywords in this log since they indicate what type of audit message the event represents (i.e., "Audit Success" or "Audit Failure"). (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. Partial display of the Security event log.

Events can be viewed by using the Event Viewer, and by default they are presented in reverse chronological order (i.e., the most recent event is on top). You can, however, sort the events by any of the event columns by clicking the column header.

 This tip (12923) applies to Windows 7, 8, and 10.

Author Bio

Barry Dysert

Barry has been a computer professional for over 35 years, working in different positions such as technical team leader, project manager, and software developer. He is currently a software engineer with an emphasis on developing custom applications under Microsoft Windows. When not working with Windows or writing Tips, Barry is an amateur writer. His first non-fiction book is titled "A Chronological Commentary of Revelation." ...

MORE FROM BARRY

Settings Compared to Control Panel

Windows 10 has moved a lot of the settings previously found in Control Panel to the Settings app. How is the settings app ...

Discover More

Configuring Automatic Windows Updates

One of the practices you should adopt to keep your system running smoothly is to keep it updated with the latest ...

Discover More

Understanding Windows SIDs

This tip presents some information about Windows SIDs (Security Identifiers) and shows you some tools that you can use to ...

Discover More
More WindowsTips

Changing How Event Log Overruns are Handled

By default, the event logs are implemented in a circular buffer, i.e., when its maximum size is reached, the oldest ...

Discover More

Adjusting the Size of an Event Log

Event logs are used to store information about what goes on, behind the scenes, on your system. Whether you want to ...

Discover More

Creating a Custom View in the Event Viewer

Creating a custom view in the Event Viewer allows you quick access to those events you're interested in watching over ...

Discover More
Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is four less than 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


Newest Tips