SimpleActivityLogger Change History

Listed in chronological order, oldest to newest.

To download an old version, click on its version number.

v1.x

v1.x is compatible with Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003.
It makes use of a Winlogon Notification Package to record the events it logs, which is very reliable. However, the technology was discontinued by Microsoft from Windows Vista onwards.

v1.0 (16-Jun-05)

  • Initial release

v1.1 (30-Dec-05)

  • Fixed a bug on initial installation where the default logging options were all wrong.
  • Fixed a bug whereby the header line was sometimes not written daily.
  • A few minor formatting and cosmetic bugs fixed.

v1.2.1 (16-May-08)

  • Added a viewer application to replace the “Controller” of previous versions.
  • Moved the controller functionality into the Settings dialog.
  • Fixed various minor bugs.

v1.3.0 (06-Jul-08)

  • Fixed a major defect in the installer that caused SimpleActivityLogger v1.2.x to be completely non-functional due to certain registry entries not being created.

v1.3.1 (25-Jul-12)

  • Installer now checks the version of Windows you are running and verifies that SimpleActivityLogger will work with it. This version only works with Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003.
  • Fixed a minor bug where the log filename could sometimes be blank
  • Various documentation updates and improvements.

v1.4.0 (04-Aug-12)

  • Added User event / comment function, accessed via the GUI, which allows you to append manual entries to the log

v1.5.0 (29-Jul-13)

  • Timestamps are now formatted using the system Locale rather than a fixed UK-style date format
  • Back-ported various fixes and improvements made during the development of v2.x
  • Clarified in the documentation as to why v1.x only works with Windows 2000, XP and Server 2003.

v1.x is now discontinued.

v2.x

v2.x is compatible with Windows XP onwards, and Windows Server 2003 onwards, and makes use of the Windows System Event Notification Service (SENS).

v2.0.0 (29-Jul-13)

  • Completely rewrote to use a Windows System Event Notification Service (SENS) subscriber rather than a Windows Notification Package, in order to work with Windows Vista onwards.
  • Removed the ability to specify the location and name of the log file. Under Win7 there are so few places you can log to that it was necessary to define one and have the installer create the folder and set the correct privileges on it.
  • Added the ability to display the user as either just the username or as ‘Domain\Username’.
  • Timestamps are now formatted using the system Locale rather than a fixed UK-style date format
  • Is now able to be used with Standard User / Limited User accounts (ie. no longer needs the user to be an Administrator).

v2.1.0 (03-Jan-17)

  • Fast User Switching can now be logged.
  • Timestamps are now formatted using the Short Date and Long Time formatters that are specified in the Regional settings in Windows.
  • For even greater flexibility on formatting timestamps, you can override this and provide a custom formatting string instead.
  • It is now possible to suppress the header line that separates days.

v2.1.1 (18-Jan-17)

  • Fixed a bug where tooltips were not being displayed.
  • Tooltips can now be enabled or disabled via a menu setting.
  • Fixed a bug where the AutoRefresh menu setting was not being persisted.

v2.2.0 (15-May-17)

  • Can now display the user’s Full Name (if set) instead of the username.
  • A “settings changed” log message is now appended to the log the moment the Apply button is clicked in the Settings dialog, rather than when the dialog is closed.
  • Fixed an issue that prevented SimpleActivityLogger v2.1.x from running under Windows XP.
  • Tweaked the service load order so that the SimpleActivityLogger service loads much sooner, and so captures the initial logon event (Note: Not Windows XP)
  • The installer now displays the version number, and also has various other minor improvements.

v2.3.0 (22-Jan-19)

  • Can now log the powering off and powering on of the primary monitor (requires Windows Vista or later).
  • Updated the application icon.

v2.3.1 (31-Mar-21)

  • Can now log system startup.
  • Fixed a defect where the service dependencies weren't getting registered with the Windows Service Control Manager (SCM) meaning that there was a race condition between the SAL logging service starting and the Windows System Event Notification Service (SENS) starting. In exceptionally rare circumstances, this caused SAL to report an ‘out of memory’ error with SENS.
  • The viewer now checks that the SAL logging service is running and notifies the user if it is not.
  • Minor improvements to the installer.

v3.x

v3.x is compatible with Windows Vista onwards, and Windows Server 2008 onwards.
Unlike previous versions, it logs to the Windows Event Log rather than to a text file,

v3.0.0 (02-Apr-20)

Logging service

  • A complete rewrite to use the Windows Event Log for logging events, rather than a text file.
  • Logging of System Startup, Suspend, and Restore, in addition to the existing Shutdown event.
  • Logging of Power events.
  • Logging of User Presence events and “Away Mode”.
  • Logging of activity by SimpleMonitorOff.
  • Errors and warnings encountered by the SimpleActivityLogger service are now logged to the ‘Application’ area of the Windows Event Log.
  • All events are now logged, regardless of the viewer settings (which are now a filter).
  • The Windows System Event Notification Service (SENS) is now only used to detect Screensaver Start & Stop, and Session Reconnect. Everything else now uses more modern technologies.

Viewer application

  • Updated look and feel to align with current versions of Windows, making use of the Microsoft Fluid UI and a Ribbon bar.
  • On startup, the application now checks that the service is running.
  • The About box has had an overhaul, and now displays the version of the application and the service, and also the status of the service.
  • Proper HtmlHelp throughout.
  • You can now check if there is an update available, either automatically upon startup or manually.
  • All settings are now stored in the registry rather than in the settings.ini file, and are stored on a per-user basis.