{
  "slug": "nvme-error-information-log",
  "term": "NVMe Error Information Log",
  "aliases": [
    "NVMe Error Information",
    "NVMe log page 01h"
  ],
  "definition": "The NVMe Error Information Log is controller-wide log page 01h containing bounded, newest-first records of command errors and other reported errors.",
  "note": "Records are 64 bytes; Identify Controller ELPE is a zero-based capacity. When full, the controller should replace the oldest record and should clear records on power cycle or Controller Level Reset. These are recommendations, not guarantees for every device. [base23-errors]\n\nThe retained 64-bit Error Count identifies entries and wraps from its maximum to 1; zero marks an invalid entry. It differs from the 128-bit lifetime health-log counter. Neither counts retained records. Status, command, namespace and transport fields establish context; the historically named LBA field carries command-set-specific error data when applicable. [base23-errors] [base23-health]\n\nnvme-cli v2.13 defaults to requesting 64 entries; respect controller capacity. Requested entries are not observed errors. [nvme-cli-error-log]\n\nA historical smartctl 7.4 monitoring request increased the counter, with a fix confirmed in March 2024. Do not generalize this to current tools or all devices. [smartctl-issue-217]\n\nsmartctl 7.5 text includes Phase Tag; JSON status_field.value shifts right once and stores phase_tag separately. Raw 0x4004 and 0x4005 become 8194 (0x2002), type 0/code 2. Do not shift normalized JSON again. The tool treats 0xffff as unavailable. [smartctl-status-75]\n\nsmartd 7.5 makes this increase critical only with a retained new device-related status; non-device-related or missing entries yield an informational message. Missing entries leave their causes unknown, not proven harmless. [smartd-policy-75]",
  "status": "shipping",
  "advantages": [],
  "limitations": [
    {
      "text": "Preserve diagnostic details before disruptive recovery when feasible, without delaying safety-critical recovery solely to collect logs.",
      "citationIds": [
        "base23-errors"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "nvme-error-information-log-entries",
    "nvme-smart-log",
    "nvme-media-data-integrity-errors",
    "nvme-persistent-event-log"
  ],
  "supersedes": [],
  "supersededBy": [],
  "firstSeen": null,
  "lastSeen": null,
  "citations": [
    {
      "id": "base23-errors",
      "title": "NVM Express Base 2.3, section 5.2.12.1.2, Figure 209 and Identify Controller ELPE: error entries and capacity",
      "url": "https://nvmexpress.org/wp-content/uploads/NVM-Express-Base-Specification-Revision-2.3-2025.08.01-Ratified.pdf",
      "accessed": "2026-10-19"
    },
    {
      "id": "base23-health",
      "title": "NVM Express Base 2.3, Figure 210: lifetime Number of Error Information Log Entries",
      "url": "https://nvmexpress.org/wp-content/uploads/NVM-Express-Base-Specification-Revision-2.3-2025.08.01-Ratified.pdf",
      "accessed": "2026-10-19"
    },
    {
      "id": "nvme-cli-error-log",
      "title": "nvme-cli v2.13: error-log request count and output formats",
      "url": "https://github.com/linux-nvme/nvme-cli/blob/v2.13/Documentation/nvme-error-log.txt",
      "accessed": "2026-10-19"
    },
    {
      "id": "smartctl-status-75",
      "title": "smartmontools 7.5, nvmeprint.cpp: raw status display, phase removal and JSON fields",
      "url": "https://github.com/smartmontools/smartmontools/blob/f276b249fdc84019403491303479485030ac7c80/smartmontools/nvmeprint.cpp#L621-L634",
      "accessed": "2026-10-19"
    },
    {
      "id": "smartd-policy-75",
      "title": "smartmontools 7.5, smartd.conf: NVMe error-log severity policy",
      "url": "https://github.com/smartmontools/smartmontools/blob/f276b249fdc84019403491303479485030ac7c80/smartmontools/smartd.conf.5.in#L732-L748",
      "accessed": "2026-10-19"
    },
    {
      "id": "smartctl-issue-217",
      "title": "smartmontools issue 217: historical self-test-log request increased error count; reporter confirmed fix in March 2024",
      "url": "https://github.com/smartmontools/smartmontools/issues/217",
      "accessed": "2026-10-19"
    }
  ],
  "updated": "2026-10-19"
}