Selecting output destinations for kernel messages

Methods, apparatus and computer program products implement embodiments of the present invention that include receiving a request to generate a system message comprising a text string and identifying a name of a source code file storing a function call that conveyed the request. An example of the function call is the PRINTK function in Linux™ based systems. Based on the identified name and the text string, a computed destination is determined for the system message. In some embodiments, a path for a directory storing the source code file is identified, and the computed destination includes the path. In additional embodiments the destination is determined by calculating a message checksum and identifying, in a configuration table, an entry having a key equal to the message checksum, and wherein the destination is retrieved from the identified entry. Finally, the text string is conveyed to the computed destination.