The Platform Logging API and Service

Abstract

Logging is an important aspect of application development. Many logging frameworks are available for use in the Java platform, including popular choices like Apache Log4j 2 (https://logging.apache.org/log4j/2.x/) and Logback (https://logback.qos.ch/). SLF4J is commonly used as the facade of different logging implementations. Java also has its own logging implementation, the java.util.logging API, which was added in Java 1.4. Even though java.util.logging is the built-in logging solution used by the Java standard library, it’s not very popular. Most Java applications still use external logging frameworks. The JDK itself and the applications running on top of it may use different logging frameworks. If an application error is actually related to the Java standard library, even though such an error is unlikely, then two separate logging frameworks will make the error diagnostics much harder. In situations in which you are using two separate logging frameworks, you will also need to configure both logging frameworks, and their configurations are likely to have duplications.