Start/notes.ini Parameters/TRANSLOG_Path

TRANSLOG_Path

Parameter: TRANSLOG_Path
Short description: Sets the path where Domino stores its transaction log files (*.TXN, logctrl.lfh). Corresponds to the "Log path" field in the server document ("Transactional Logging" tab). HCL recommends a dedicated mirrored disk.

Profile

Parameter
TRANSLOG_Path
Component
Server
Category
Transaction log
Available since
Domino 5.x; currently documented in HCL Domino 9.0.x–14.5.1
Value format
Absolute directory path
Default
<DataDir>/LOGDIR
GUI equivalent
Server document → "Transactional Logging" → "Log path"

Description

When transaction logging is enabled via TRANSLOG_Status=1, Domino writes every database change first to a sequential log file stream under TRANSLOG_Path. There you'll find:
  • S0000000.TXN, S0000001.TXN, ... – the individual log file extents, each 64 MB in size (HCL KB0032176).
  • logctrl.lfh – the control file describing the log state (recovery point, active extents, DBIID mapping).
The path is taken from the "Log path" field in the server document into the notes.ini when logging is enabled. Server-document changes alone are not enough: Domino does write them into notes.ini, but the actual file move must be performed by the administrator.

Performance recommendation

Per HCL KB0032176 "Transactional Logging and how it operates":
  • The log files must be on a dedicated physical disk, not just on a separate partition of the same volume.
  • Recommended is a mirrored device (RAID 0 or 1) with its own controller – this provides sequential write speed and data integrity.
  • With a dedicated volume, the typical gain is 10–20% performance.
  • If translog is on the same physical disk as the NSFs, performance can drop by up to 60%, because the disk heads must seek between log and database files.

Path change (Previous_TRANSLOG_Path)

When the log directory is moved (migration to new hardware, different volume), Domino temporarily needs both paths:
TRANSLOG_Path=G:\logdir
Previous_TRANSLOG_Path=F:\logdir\
The Previous_TRANSLOG_Path parameter points to the old path so that Domino can still read any existing logs and perform recovery on the next start. After a successful server start and a full backup, the Previous_TRANSLOG_Path entry can be removed from notes.ini (HCL KB0074352, KB0075378).

Procedure for path change (HCL KB0074352)

  1. Open the server document, "Transactional Logging" tab.
  1. Set "Log path" to the new path and save.
  1. Let the change replicate to the server.
  1. Stop the Domino server.
  1. Copy the contents of the old log directory (*.TXN, logctrl.lfh) to the new volume.
  1. Remove Previous_TRANSLOG_Path from notes.ini.
  1. Start the server and take a full backup.

Examples

Windows with dedicated volume:
TRANSLOG_Status=1
TRANSLOG_Path=D:\Domino\txn
TRANSLOG_Style=0
TRANSLOG_Performance=2
Linux with dedicated volume:
TRANSLOG_Status=1
TRANSLOG_Path=/local/translog
TRANSLOG_Style=1
TRANSLOG_Performance=2

Notes

  • Dedicated physical volume mandatory – Translog on the NSF disk degrades performance massively (KB0032176).
  • Effective only after restart – Changes to TRANSLOG_Path take effect at the next server start. Caution: an incorrect path leads to recovery errors, so check the path for existence and write permissions before server start.
  • Permissions – The Domino service account needs full access to the directory. On Linux for example: chown notes:notes /local/translog and chmod 700.
  • DBIID change – Domino does not generally change the DBIID automatically on a path change; nevertheless, a full backup after the move is strongly recommended so that future incremental backups stay consistent.
  • Companion parameters – TRANSLOG_Status, TRANSLOG_Style, TRANSLOG_MaxSize, TRANSLOG_Performance, TRANSLOG_AutoFixup, TRANSLOG_UseAll, Previous_TRANSLOG_Path.

Sources (HCL Product Documentation)