The ^@ isn't really 'funny', per se; it's a representation of Ctrl-@ which in turn is actually the null character. Hence I suspect syslog-ng is safely mangling a null somewhere into a readable representation before writing it to the log file. Quite whose fault this is, is another matter. Ted. ************************************************************************************************ This E-mail message, including any attachments, is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed, and may contain confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient, any review, retransmission, disclosure, copying, modification or other use of this E-mail message or attachments is strictly forbidden. If you have received this E-mail message in error, please contact the author and delete the message and any attachments from your computer. You are also advised that the views and opinions expressed in this E-mail message and any attachments are the author's own, and may not reflect the views and opinions of FLEXTECH Television Limited. ************************************************************************************************