# Serilog.Sinks.Console [![Build status](https://ci.appveyor.com/api/projects/status/w1w3m1wyk3in1c96/branch/master?svg=true)](https://ci.appveyor.com/project/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/branch/master) [![NuGet Version](http://img.shields.io/nuget/v/Serilog.Sinks.Console.svg?style=flat)](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Serilog.Sinks.Console/) [![Documentation](https://img.shields.io/badge/docs-wiki-yellow.svg)](https://github.com/serilog/serilog/wiki) [![Join the chat at https://gitter.im/serilog/serilog](https://img.shields.io/gitter/room/serilog/serilog.svg)](https://gitter.im/serilog/serilog) [![Help](https://img.shields.io/badge/stackoverflow-serilog-orange.svg)](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/serilog) A Serilog sink that writes log events to the Windows Console or an ANSI terminal via standard output. Coloring and custom themes are supported, including ANSI 256-color themes on macOS, Linux and Windows 10. The default output is plain text; JSON formatting can be plugged in using a package such as [_Serilog.Formatting.Compact_](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-formatting-compact). ### Getting started To use the console sink, first install the [NuGet package](https://nuget.org/packages/serilog.sinks.console): ```shell dotnet add package Serilog.Sinks.Console ``` Then enable the sink using `WriteTo.Console()`: ```csharp Log.Logger = new LoggerConfiguration() .WriteTo.Console() .CreateLogger(); Log.Information("Hello, world!"); ``` Log events will be printed to `STDOUT`: ``` [12:50:51 INF] Hello, world! ``` ### Themes The sink will colorize output by default: ![Colorized Console](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/dev/assets/Screenshot.png) Themes can be specified when configuring the sink: ```csharp .WriteTo.Console(theme: AnsiConsoleTheme.Code) ``` The following built-in themes are available: * `ConsoleTheme.None` - no styling * `SystemConsoleTheme.Literate` - styled to replicate _Serilog.Sinks.Literate_, using the `System.Console` coloring modes supported on all Windows/.NET targets; **this is the default when no theme is specified** * `SystemConsoleTheme.Grayscale` - a theme using only shades of gray, white, and black * `AnsiConsoleTheme.Literate` - an ANSI 256-color version of the "literate" theme * `AnsiConsoleTheme.Grayscale` - an ANSI 256-color version of the "grayscale" theme * `AnsiConsoleTheme.Code` - an ANSI 256-color Visual Studio Code-inspired theme * `AnsiConsoleTheme.Sixteen` - an ANSI 16-color theme that works well with both light and dark backgrounds Adding a new theme is straightforward; examples can be found in the [`SystemConsoleThemes`](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/blob/dev/src/Serilog.Sinks.Console/Sinks/SystemConsole/Themes/SystemConsoleThemes.cs) and [`AnsiConsoleThemes`](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/blob/dev/src/Serilog.Sinks.Console/Sinks/SystemConsole/Themes/AnsiConsoleThemes.cs) classes. ### Output templates The format of events to the console can be modified using the `outputTemplate` configuration parameter: ```csharp .WriteTo.Console( outputTemplate: "[{Timestamp:HH:mm:ss} {Level:u3}] {Message:lj}{NewLine}{Exception}") ``` The default template, shown in the example above, uses built-in properties like `Timestamp` and `Level`. Properties from events, including those attached using [enrichers](https://github.com/serilog/serilog/wiki/Enrichment), can also appear in the output template. ### JSON output The sink can write JSON output instead of plain text. `CompactJsonFormatter` or `RenderedCompactJsonFormatter` from [Serilog.Formatting.Compact](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-formatting-compact) is recommended: ```shell dotnet add package Serilog.Formatting.Compact ``` Pass a formatter to the `Console()` configuration method: ```csharp .WriteTo.Console(new RenderedCompactJsonFormatter()) ``` Output theming is not available when custom formatters are used. ### XML `` configuration To use the console sink with the [Serilog.Settings.AppSettings](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-settings-appsettings) package, first install that package if you haven't already done so: ```shell dotnet add package Serilog.Settings.AppSettings ``` Instead of configuring the logger in code, call `ReadFrom.AppSettings()`: ```csharp var log = new LoggerConfiguration() .ReadFrom.AppSettings() .CreateLogger(); ``` In your application's `App.config` or `Web.config` file, specify the console sink assembly under the `` node: ```xml ``` To configure the console sink with a different theme and include the `SourceContext` in the output, change your `App.config`/`Web.config` to: ```xml ``` ### JSON `appsettings.json` configuration To use the console sink with _Microsoft.Extensions.Configuration_, for example with ASP.NET Core or .NET Core, use the [Serilog.Settings.Configuration](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-settings-configuration) package. First install that package if you have not already done so: ```shell dotnet add package Serilog.Settings.Configuration ``` Instead of configuring the sink directly in code, call `ReadFrom.Configuration()`: ```csharp var configuration = new ConfigurationBuilder() .AddJsonFile("appsettings.json") .Build(); var logger = new LoggerConfiguration() .ReadFrom.Configuration(configuration) .CreateLogger(); ``` In your `appsettings.json` file, under the `Serilog` node, : ```json { "Serilog": { "WriteTo": [{"Name": "Console"}] } } ``` To configure the console sink with a different theme and include the `SourceContext` in the output, change your `appsettings.json` to: ```json { "Serilog": { "WriteTo": [ { "Name": "Console", "Args": { "theme": "Serilog.Sinks.SystemConsole.Themes.AnsiConsoleTheme::Code, Serilog.Sinks.Console", "outputTemplate": "[{Timestamp:HH:mm:ss} {Level:u3}] {Message:lj} {NewLine}{Exception}" } } ] } } ``` ### Performance Console logging is synchronous and this can cause bottlenecks in some deployment scenarios. For high-volume console logging, consider using [_Serilog.Sinks.Async_](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-sinks-async) to move console writes to a background thread: ```csharp // dotnet add package serilog.sinks.async Log.Logger = new LoggerConfiguration() .WriteTo.Async(wt => wt.Console()) .CreateLogger(); ``` ### Contributing Would you like to help make the Serilog console sink even better? We keep a list of issues that are approachable for newcomers under the [up-for-grabs](https://github.com/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/issues?labels=up-for-grabs&state=open) label. Before starting work on a pull request, we suggest commenting on, or raising, an issue on the issue tracker so that we can help and coordinate efforts. For more details check out our [contributing guide](CONTRIBUTING.md). When contributing please keep in mind our [Code of Conduct](CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md). ### Detailed build status Branch | AppVeyor | Travis ------------- | ------------- |------------- dev | [![Build status](https://ci.appveyor.com/api/projects/status/w1w3m1wyk3in1c96/branch/dev?svg=true)](https://ci.appveyor.com/project/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/branch/dev) | [![Build Status](https://travis-ci.org/serilog/serilog-sinks-console.svg?branch=dev)](https://travis-ci.org/serilog/serilog-sinks-console) main | [![Build status](https://ci.appveyor.com/api/projects/status/w1w3m1wyk3in1c96/branch/main?svg=true)](https://ci.appveyor.com/project/serilog/serilog-sinks-console/branch/main) | [![Build Status](https://travis-ci.org/serilog/serilog-sinks-console.svg?branch=main)](https://travis-ci.org/serilog/serilog-sinks-console) _Copyright © Serilog Contributors - Provided under the [Apache License, Version 2.0](http://apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.html)._