My VPS is generating large volumes of raw system logs and I want to turn them into something far more usable. The job covers three areas: 1. Format changes • Switch all timestamps to a consistent ISO-8601 style • Restructure each entry so fields appear in the same order across services • Expand the log level so every system activity is captured, not just errors or warnings 2. Data filtering I only need to store what matters. Create filters that keep critical events, security-related messages, and key performance metrics while discarding the routine noise. 3. Custom alerts Build a lightweight alerting layer (bash/Python plus rsyslog, journald, or a similar tool is fine) that watches the filtered stream and notifies me—email or webhook—whenever defined patterns arise: authentication failures, service crashes, spikes in resource usage, and other anomalies. Deliverables • Updated logging configuration files and any companion scripts • A brief README explaining how to adjust filters or add alert rules • One verification session where we tail the logs together and confirm the new structure, filtering, and alerts are working as intended Everything runs on a standard Linux VPS, so please stay within common packages (rsyslog, journalbeat, logrotate, etc.) unless you see a clear advantage otherwise.