With CloudWatch Logs, you can monitor your systems and applications in near real-time using your existing log files. Also, you can store and access your logs in CloudWatch for as long as you need in highly durable, low-cost storage.

To learn more about monitoring your JSON-formatted log events, see the Filter and Pattern Syntax for CloudWatch Logs. To get started with CloudWatch Logs, install the CloudWatch Logs agent for Amazon Linux, CentOS, Redhat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and Ubuntu. You can also use the Amazon EC2Config Service to start monitoring logs on Microsoft Windows. The agent can be installed in minutes using Chef, Amazon EC2 User Data or the command-line. Both the agent and EC2Config Service are offered at no additional charge.