Fixed filename in Nlog incorporating date and time

Question

I want to be able to set the target's filename to be a fixed name that includes the process's start time and date even if the configuration file is updated due to autoReload="true" being in the nlog intro.

I have tried the following but it recreates the log file when the log file is altered.

   <target
        name="file"
        xsi:type="File" 
        fileName="C:\Logs\${cached:cached=true:inner=${date:format=yyyyMMdd.HHmmss}}.${processid}.txt"
        layout="${time} ${level}: ${message}">
    </target>

Is there a way that I can get a time and date that is essentially fixed for the duration of the process no matter how many times the config file is updated and incorporate it into the filename?

Answer 1

You could pass a custom parameter to NLog, containing the process start date and time.

GlobalDiagnosticsContext.Set("ProcessStart", yourDateVariable);
logger.Debug("Hello world!");

And then use that as part of the filename.

${gdc:ProcessStart}