How do I clear a log file that is currently in use?

I'm trying to clear a log file in use, and all the commands I've tried so far:

truncate
less
tail
filename

Don't get the job done. Deleting the file and creating a new file with the same name doesn't work either.

I heard about a config-file for the log but I have no idea where this is kept. Is there ANY way to fix this problem? This log file will get so big it'll crash my system.

1

1 Answer

Are there many methods how clear/delete log files. Some of log you can delete, some not and some you can truncate.

For linux system log (such as mail.log for example) I use this method. Steps 1 and 2 are optional, but sometines you need check older logs and backup is sometimes useful. ;-)

1. Optional: Copy log file

   cp file.log file.log.old

2. Optional: Use Gzip on copy of log

   gzip file.log.old

3. Use /dev/null for clean file

   cat /dev/null > file.log

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