Search for a specific string in multiple log files in Linux

This is a frequent task for system administrators, developers, or support engineers who need to troubleshoot issues or extract specific information from large sets of log files. Here’s a generic example:

# find /path/to/logs/logfile_prefix* -type f -exec grep -l "search_string" {} \;

Explanation of the generic parts:

• /path/to/logs/: Replace this with the directory where your log or text files are stored.
• logfile_prefix*: Replace this with the common prefix of the files you’re targeting (e.g., log2025.06*).
• -type f: Ensures only regular files are considered.
• grep -l "search_string": Replace "search_string" with the text or pattern you’re looking for.

Example in context: If you’re searching for the string "ERROR" in all log files starting with serverlog_2025 in /var/logs/app/, the command would be:

# find /var/logs/app/serverlog_2025* -type f -exec grep -l "ERROR" {} \;