What command would you use to see system logs in real-time?

The command to view system logs in real-time is primarily achieved using the tail -f command. In this case, tail -f /var/log/syslog will display the last few lines of the syslog file and then continuously monitor it for new entries as they are added. This makes it ideal for watching real-time system activity and troubleshooting issues as they happen.

The tail command with the -f flag ensures that the output is dynamic, updating instantly with any new log messages. This is particularly useful for administrators who need to monitor system behavior live, such as tracking application errors or system events.

Other options have different functionalities. For instance, cat /var/log/messages would display the entire contents of the messages file at once but would not provide real-time updates, making it less useful for live monitoring. The logread command is specific to systems using the syslog interface, displaying logs but not designed for real-time tracking. Lastly, journalctl is used for querying and displaying logs from the journal, and while it can show entries in a continuous way with the -f option, it is not the traditional way to monitor /var/log/syslog in real