A method is disclosed, comprising: storing, in a memory of a first computing device, a log filter list that identifiers a plurality of log filters, each of the plurality of log filters being executed on a respective one of a plurality of nodes in a distributed computing system; removing a first log message from a data structure that is stored in the memory of the first computing device, the first log message being obtained by the first computing device from a first one of the plurality of log filters that is associated with a first log source; detecting whether the first log message includes a placeholder message that is generated by the first log filter while the first log source is in a paused state; and selecting the first log message for further processing, when the first log message does not include a placeholder message.