Turning Off Logging in Paramiko

Pythoneo

Paramiko’s logging can be very helpful for debugging, but it can also be quite verbose and clutter your output when you’re running your code normally. This is how to control and turn off logging in Paramiko.

1. Setting the Log Level (Recommended)

The most common and effective way to manage Paramiko logging is by setting the log level of the underlying Python logging module. Paramiko uses this module, so you can control its output directly.

import logging
import paramiko

# Get the Paramiko logger
paramiko_logger = logging.getLogger('paramiko')

# Set the desired log level
paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.ERROR)  # Suppress INFO and DEBUG messages
# paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.WARNING) # Only show WARNING and ERROR messages
# paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.CRITICAL) # Only show CRITICAL messages
# paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.DEBUG)  # For very verbose debugging (default)

# Example usage (rest of your Paramiko code)
client = paramiko.SSHClient()
# ...
client.close()

Explanation:

  • logging.getLogger('paramiko'): This retrieves the specific logger used by Paramiko. This is crucial; getting a generic logger won’t affect Paramiko’s output.
  • paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.ERROR): This sets the logging threshold. Only messages of level ERROR or higher (e.g., CRITICAL) will be displayed. This effectively silences most informational and debugging messages. You can use other levels like WARNING, INFO, or DEBUG as needed.
  • Important: This must be done *before* you use Paramiko. Setting the log level after Paramiko has already logged messages won’t affect those earlier messages.
See also  How to Overcome EOFError during recv(): Handling Incomplete Data Transfers in Paramiko

2. Disabling Logging Completely

While setting the level to ERROR is often sufficient, you can completely disable logging using a null handler:

import logging
import paramiko

paramiko_logger = logging.getLogger('paramiko')
paramiko_logger.addHandler(logging.NullHandler())  # Completely disable logging

# ... rest of your Paramiko code ...

This attaches a NullHandler, which discards all log messages.

3. Customizing Log Output (Advanced)

For more control (e.g., changing the format or writing to a file), use a Formatter and FileHandler:

import logging
import paramiko

formatter = logging.Formatter('%(asctime)s - %(name)s - %(levelname)s - %(message)s')

file_handler = logging.FileHandler('paramiko.log')
file_handler.setFormatter(formatter)

paramiko_logger = logging.getLogger('paramiko')
paramiko_logger.addHandler(file_handler)
paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.INFO)

# ... rest of your Paramiko code ...

This logs messages of level INFO or higher to paramiko.log with a custom format.

See also  How to use Paramiko to collect server metrics

Which Method to Use?

  • For simply suppressing most logging, paramiko_logger.setLevel(logging.ERROR) is the easiest and usually best.
  • To completely disable all logging, use paramiko_logger.addHandler(logging.NullHandler()).
  • For customizing log format or output location, use a Formatter and FileHandler.