Smartlog Improvement Plan

Overview

This document outlines a plan for enhancing the @push.rocks/smartlog module to incorporate the advanced features currently implemented in the custom EnhancedLogger wrapper. By moving these features directly into smartlog, we can eliminate the need for wrapper classes while providing a more comprehensive logging solution.

Current Limitations in Smartlog

• Limited context management (no hierarchical contexts)
• No correlation ID tracking for distributed tracing
• No built-in filtering or log level management
• No log sampling capabilities
• No middleware for HTTP request/response logging
• No timing utilities for performance tracking
• No child logger functionality with context inheritance

Proposed Enhancements

1. Context Management

• Add hierarchical context support
• Implement methods for manipulating context:
  • setContext(context, overwrite = false)
  • addToContext(key, value)
  • removeFromContext(key)

2. Correlation ID Tracking

• Add correlation ID support for distributed tracing
• Implement methods for correlation management:
  • setCorrelationId(id = null)
  • getCorrelationId()
  • clearCorrelationId()

3. Log Filtering

• Implement configurable log filtering based on:
  • Minimum log level
  • Pattern-based exclusion rules
  • Custom filtering functions

4. Log Sampling

• Add probabilistic log sampling for high-volume environments
• Support for enforcing critical logs (e.g., errors) regardless of sampling

5. Child Loggers

• Support creating child loggers with inherited context
• Allow context overrides in child loggers

6. Timing Utilities

• Add methods for timing operations:
  • logTimed(level, message, fn, context)
  • Support for both async and sync operations

7. HTTP Request Logging

• Add middleware for Express/Fastify/other HTTP frameworks
• Auto-capture request/response data
• Auto-propagate correlation IDs

8. Log Standardization

• Ensure consistent output format
• Add standard fields like timestamp, correlation ID
• Support for custom formatters

Implementation Plan

1. Core Enhancements

   • Implement context management
   • Add correlation ID tracking
   • Develop filtering and sampling capabilities

2. Extended Features

   • Build child logger functionality
   • Create timing utility methods
   • Implement HTTP middleware

3. Compatibility

   • Ensure backward compatibility
   • Provide migration guide
   • Add TypeScript declarations

4. Documentation

   • Update README with new features
   • Add examples for each feature
   • Document best practices

Migration Path

After implementing these enhancements to smartlog, the migration would involve:

1. Update to latest smartlog version
2. Replace EnhancedLogger instances with smartlog.Smartlog
3. Update configuration to use new capabilities
4. Replace middleware with smartlog's built-in solutions

Benefits

• Simplified dependency tree
• Better maintainability with single logging solution
• Improved performance with native implementation
• Enhanced type safety through TypeScript
• Standardized logging across projects