An access log is a text file containing a full report on all the files accessed by your website visitors. All of the files that were requested in one way or another will be included, so if you have a PHP script app and a visitor opens only the home page, for example, you may find plenty of files inside the log. This is because there are elements on the home page which are embedded - parts of other web pages, pics, and so on. These files will be listed in the access log, so that you can get a complete picture of the way your Internet site works. The info is in plain text format, so the logs are frequently called "raw data" as well. An access log shows the name of each and every requested file, the path to it, the date it was accessed, and also the user’s IP address, web browser and OS. More info, like the referrer site, is typically supplied too. A log file may be processed by various desktop programs for statistical purposes as an addition to the web stats created by your server.
