# Log floods: error salvaging message / handle is invalid
**URL:** https://discuss.elastic.co/t/log-floods-error-salvaging-message-handle-is-invalid/319974
**Category:** Beats
**Tags:** winlogbeat
**Created:** [November 28, 2022, 7:42pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/log-floods-error-salvaging-message-handle-is-invalid/319974 "2022-11-28T19:42:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@psears](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/psears)
#### Post date: [November 28, 2022, 7:42pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/log-floods-error-salvaging-message-handle-is-invalid/319974/1 "2022-11-28T19:42:00Z")
Winlogbeat 8.4.3, set to log about itself to eventlog
```auto
logging.level: info
logging.selectors: ["*"]
logging.to_eventlog: true
logging.metrics.period: 5m
```
Every now and then on startup, winlogbeat will go nuts on a host and send ~250k errors a minute about itself until it is manually restarted. It seems to mostly occur on Monday mornings when the host has been off (or sleeping) for a couple of days.
Sample Error (they are all identical but for the timestamp):
```auto
{"log.level":"error","@timestamp":"2022-11-28T10:42:44.060-0500","log.origin":
{"file.name":"eventlog/wineventlog.go","file.line":335},"message":"WinEventLog[Application]
error salvaging message: failed in EvtFormatMessage: The handle is invalid.","ecs.version":"1.6.0"}
```
It's only happening on a few hosts but the log volume is significant. We'd like to get a handle on what's going on - more than a handful of these would quickly overwhelm us.
I haven't found any information in my searching, thanks in advance for any advice.
---
### Author:  [@psears](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/psears)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2022, 2:00pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/log-floods-error-salvaging-message-handle-is-invalid/319974/2 "2022-12-05T14:00:34Z")
Replying to myself to keep this alive a little longer.
---
### Author:  [@psears](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/psears)
#### Post date: [December 21, 2022, 8:03pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/log-floods-error-salvaging-message-handle-is-invalid/319974/3 "2022-12-21T20:03:04Z")
This is still happening at least once a week.
---
### Author:  [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)
#### Post date: [January 18, 2023, 10:03pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/log-floods-error-salvaging-message-handle-is-invalid/319974/4 "2023-01-18T22:03:31Z")
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