What is Rsyslog?
In Ubuntu, rsyslogd is a background service responsible for system logging. It constantly monitors your operating system, kernel, and background services, taking any informational messages, warnings, or errors they produce and writing them to text files located in the /var/log/ directory (such as syslog, auth.log, and kern.log).
On an enterprise server, keeping a permanent, text-based record of every single event is critical for security audits and troubleshooting. However, on a personal desktop or a Raspberry Pi running off an SD card, rsyslogd can be a massive detriment. It constantly writes tiny chunks of text to your SSD or SD card every few seconds, which can prematurely wear out the flash memory (write amplification). Since Ubuntu already uses systemd-journald to log events in a much more efficient, binary format, you can safely disable rsyslog to extend the lifespan of your storage drive.
How to Disable Rsyslog in Ubuntu
To stop this redundant text logging, you must stop and disable the service via systemctl.
- Open your Ubuntu Terminal (shortcut:
Ctrl + Alt + T). - Stop the service immediately:
sudo systemctl stop rsyslog.service- Disable the service so it does not launch on the next boot:
sudo systemctl disable rsyslog.service- If you want to completely remove the package to ensure it is never re-enabled during an OS upgrade, run:
sudo apt-get purge rsyslogHow do I view logs now?
Even with rsyslog disabled, Ubuntu is still logging everything perfectly using journald. If you ever need to troubleshoot an error, simply open your terminal and type journalctl -xe to view the complete system log.