Logging, audit, and data retention in Paver

Learn how Paver audit logging works, how to export conversation history for compliance, and how the 90-day data retention policy applies to your data.

IBM® Paver does not produce its own independent audit log stream. Instead, it works with two sources, the host offering's audit log and Paver's own conversation history, that together provide a complete picture of what a user did through Paver and what occurred as a result.

Audit trail#

Because Paver acts on behalf of the authenticated user using their credentials, all actions are performed as that user. The host offering's audit log or activity tracking records these events as actions performed by the user, not by Paver. Refer to the documentation for the host offering where you're using Paver for information about logging and activity tracking.

To determine exactly what a user asked Paver to do, what Paver did in response, and what occurred as a result, correlate the host offering's audit log with the user's Paver conversation history.

Security monitoring#

Monitor for security-relevant events using the audit tooling provided by your host offering or platform. Watch for the following key events:

• Actions that are taken outside expected hours or from unexpected locations
• High volumes of resource modification events from a single user
• Failed authentication attempts

Because Paver acts on behalf of the user using the user's credentials, all actions are attributed to that user. As a result, existing audit logging and security monitoring practices and tooling for the host offering operate as expected in tracking what the user did, without modification.

Conversation history#

Paver maintains a complete history of every conversation, including:

• All messages the user sent
• All actions Paver proposed and took (including the exact commands or API calls issued)
• All responses Paver returned
• Outcomes and errors

Conversation history is stored per user and is accessible only to that user. It serves as a detailed audit record of Paver activity that complements the host offering's audit log.

Retrieve conversations:

paver conversation list          # list all conversations
paver conversation show ID       # view a specific conversation

Export a conversation for audit, compliance, or offload:

paver conversation export ID   # export a single conversation as JSON

Conversation history in JSON format includes full action detail and can be retained in external systems as an audit record.

Remove conversations:

paver conversation remove ID     # remove a specific conversation
paver conversation clear         # remove all conversations

Users own and control their own conversation data. They can remove individual conversations or all of their conversations at any time. There are no administrator-level controls over another user's conversation history. This is by design, because a single user can work across multiple environments and administration domains within a single conversation.

Organizations with compliance requirements for conversation retention should instruct users to export conversations before deletion and store them in an external record-keeping system.

Logging limitations#

Paver does not currently produce its own structured audit log stream. There is no Paver-specific log of internal service events (such as when a conversation was created, when a sandbox was provisioned, or when Paver Guard evaluated an action) available for export or integration into a SIEM.

For audit purposes, the two available sources are:

• Host offering audit log: Records all API and resource actions that are performed under the user's identity.
• Paver conversation history: Records everything the user asked, every action Paver took, and all outcomes.

Together, these provide a complete picture of what a user did through Paver and what occurred as a result. Refer to the documentation for the host offering for details about logging capabilities and limitations.

Data retention#

Paver retains user data for 90 days from the date of last access. Data that has not been accessed within 90 days is automatically deleted. A user who has not used Paver for 90 days will have all their stored data deleted.

For compliance use cases that require longer retention, export conversations and store them in your own record-keeping system before the 90-day window elapses.