Router Host Log Access

Getting logs from the router

Purpose

A known bug in the fluent-bit OpenWRT package (openwrt/packages#28892) prevents logs from being forwarded to Loki. Until the package is updated, router logs are not available in Grafana and must be read directly on the router host.

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Prerequisites Checklist

• SSH private key available
• Network access to host-router

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Step 1: Connect to the router host

ssh -i <ssh private key> root@host-router

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Step 2: Read the logs

OpenWRT uses logread to read from the in-memory syslog ring buffer.

Dump all current logs:

logread

Follow logs in real time:

logread -f

Filter by keyword (e.g. a service name or error string):

logread | grep dnsmasq

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Troubleshooting

SSH connection refused or permission denied

Confirm you are using the correct key and that your machine has network access to host-router. If the connection still fails, check that the router host is reachable and the root user is authorized.

logread output is empty

The syslog ring buffer is in-memory and resets on reboot. If the router was recently restarted, earlier log entries will not be available.