Oracle 11g alert log location

Oracle alert log contains much useful information about your Oracle database, but do you know where is it located and how could you find it out?

1. Connect to the database with SQL*Plus or another query tool, such as SQL Developer.

2. Query the V$DIAG_INFO view as shown in "Viewing ADR Locations with the V$DIAG_INFO View".

3. To view the text-only alert log, without the XML tags, complete these steps:

   1. In the V$DIAG_INFO query results, note the path that corresponds to the Diag Trace entry, and change directory to that path.

   2. Open file alert_SID.log with a text editor.

4. To view the XML-formatted alert log, complete these steps:

   1. In the V$DIAG_INFO query results, note the path that corresponds to the Diag Alert entry, and change directory to that path.

   2. Open the file log.xml with a text editor.