diff --git a/compile_commands.json b/compile_commands.json
new file mode 120000
index 000000000..6de3d79ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/compile_commands.json
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+cmake/compile_commands.json
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/patch/civetweb/0001-Increase-niceness-of-all-civetweb-threads-as-DNS-ope.patch b/patch/civetweb/0001-Increase-niceness-of-all-civetweb-threads-as-DNS-ope.patch
index fc0fa42a7..554c624ac 100644
--- a/patch/civetweb/0001-Increase-niceness-of-all-civetweb-threads-as-DNS-ope.patch
+++ b/patch/civetweb/0001-Increase-niceness-of-all-civetweb-threads-as-DNS-ope.patch
@@ -2,14 +2,13 @@ diff --git a/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c b/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb
 index da254bb4..b1e5b9a6 100644
 --- a/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
 +++ b/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
-@@ -244,6 +244,7 @@ static void DEBUG_TRACE_FUNC(const char *func,
+@@ -244,5 +244,6 @@ static void DEBUG_TRACE_FUNC(const char *func,
  
  #else
  #include "log.h"
 +#include <sys/resource.h>
  #define DEBUG_TRACE(fmt, ...)                                                  \
- 	if(debug_flags[DEBUG_WEBSERVER]) {\
- 		log_web("DEBUG: " fmt " (%s:%d)", ##__VA_ARGS__, short_path(__FILE__), __LINE__); }
+ 		log_web_debug(DEBUG_WEBSERVER, fmt " (%s:%d)", ##__VA_ARGS__, short_path(__FILE__), __LINE__);
 @@ -2890,6 +2891,9 @@ mg_set_thread_name(const char *name)
  	 */
  	(void)prctl(PR_SET_NAME, threadName, 0, 0, 0);
diff --git a/patch/civetweb/0001-Log-debug-messages-to-webserver.log-when-debug.webse.patch b/patch/civetweb/0001-Log-debug-messages-to-webserver.log-when-debug.webse.patch
index 5fd5227d3..9b16e3160 100644
--- a/patch/civetweb/0001-Log-debug-messages-to-webserver.log-when-debug.webse.patch
+++ b/patch/civetweb/0001-Log-debug-messages-to-webserver.log-when-debug.webse.patch
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ diff --git a/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c b/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb
 index 3df8eab9..9b0c6308 100644
 --- a/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
 +++ b/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
-@@ -239,9 +239,10 @@ static void DEBUG_TRACE_FUNC(const char *func,
+@@ -239,9 +239,9 @@ static void DEBUG_TRACE_FUNC(const char *func,
  #endif
  
  #else
@@ -10,8 +10,7 @@ index 3df8eab9..9b0c6308 100644
  #define DEBUG_TRACE(fmt, ...)                                                  \
 -	do {                                                                       \
 -	} while (0)
-+	if(debug_flags[DEBUG_WEBSERVER]) {\
-+		log_web("DEBUG: " fmt " (%s:%d)", ##__VA_ARGS__, short_path(__FILE__), __LINE__); }
++		log_web_debug(DEBUG_WEBSERVER, fmt " (%s:%d)", ##__VA_ARGS__, short_path(__FILE__), __LINE__);
  #endif /* DEBUG */
  #endif /* DEBUG_TRACE */
- 
+
diff --git a/src/CMakeLists.txt b/src/CMakeLists.txt
index 95118ab02..c136cb656 100644
--- a/src/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/src/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -409,6 +409,44 @@ else()
     target_compile_definitions(civetweb PRIVATE NO_SSL)
 endif()
 
+set(USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL "AUTO" CACHE STRING "Build FTL with systemd journal support (AUTO, DLOPEN, COMPILE, OFF)")
+set_property(CACHE USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL PROPERTY STRINGS AUTO DLOPEN COMPILE OFF)
+
+find_library(LIBSYSTEMD NAMES libsystemd${LIBRARY_SUFFIX} systemd)
+check_include_file("systemd/sd-journal.h" HAVE_SD_JOURNAL_H)
+find_library(LIBDL dl)
+if(USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL STREQUAL "OFF")
+    message(STATUS "Building FTL with systemd journal support: NO")
+elseif(USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL STREQUAL "COMPILE")
+    if(NOT LIBSYSTEMD OR NOT HAVE_SD_JOURNAL_H)
+        message(FATAL_ERROR "COMPILE mode requested but systemd headers/library not found")
+    endif()
+    message(STATUS "Building FTL with systemd journal support: COMPILE")
+    target_compile_definitions(core PRIVATE HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+    target_link_libraries(pihole-FTL ${LIBSYSTEMD})
+elseif(USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL STREQUAL "DLOPEN")
+    if(NOT LIBDL)
+        message(FATAL_ERROR "DLOPEN mode requested but dl library not found")
+    endif()
+    target_link_libraries(pihole-FTL ${LIBDL})
+    message(STATUS "Building FTL with systemd journal support: DLOPEN")
+    target_compile_definitions(core PRIVATE DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+elseif(USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL STREQUAL "AUTO")
+    if(LIBSYSTEMD AND HAVE_SD_JOURNAL_H)
+        message(STATUS "Building FTL with systemd journal support: AUTO → COMPILE mode")
+        target_compile_definitions(core PRIVATE HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+        target_link_libraries(pihole-FTL ${LIBSYSTEMD})
+    elseif(LIBDL)
+        target_link_libraries(pihole-FTL ${LIBDL})
+        message(STATUS "Building FTL with systemd journal support: AUTO → DLOPEN fallback")
+        target_compile_definitions(core PRIVATE DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+    else()
+        message(FATAL_ERROR "AUTO mode requested but neither LIBSYSTEMD nor LIBDL are available")
+    endif()
+else()
+    message(FATAL_ERROR "Invalid USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL: ${USE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL}")
+endif()
+
 # After finishing building the FTL binary, we append the sha256sum of the binary
 # in raw form to itself and print the checksum to the console
 add_custom_command(TARGET pihole-FTL POST_BUILD COMMENT "Appending sha256sum to pihole-FTL"
diff --git a/src/args.c b/src/args.c
index d6f517921..5df795096 100644
--- a/src/args.c
+++ b/src/args.c
@@ -80,6 +80,10 @@
 // test
 #include <sys/mman.h>
 
+#ifdef DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL
+#include <dlfcn.h>
+#endif
+
 // defined in dnsmasq.c
 extern void print_dnsmasq_version(const char *yellow, const char *green, const char *bold, const char *normal);
 
@@ -91,6 +95,7 @@ extern int sqlite3_rsync_main(int argc, char **argv);
 
 bool debug_mode = false;
 bool daemonmode = true, cli_mode = false;
+bool log_json = false, log_journal = false;
 int argc_dnsmasq = 0;
 const char** argv_dnsmasq = NULL;
 
@@ -219,6 +224,33 @@ static bool strStartsWithIgnoreCase(const char *input, const char *start)
 	return strncasecmp(input, start, strlen(start)) == 0;
 }
 
+#ifdef DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL
+static void *systemd_handle = NULL;
+sd_journal_send_t sd_journal_send = NULL;
+
+// Intentionally never dlclose() libsystemd
+// We open it once and use it until late shutdown
+// OS cleanup at exit is sufficient.
+static bool init_systemd_journal(void)
+{
+	systemd_handle = dlopen("libsystemd.so.0", RTLD_NOW | RTLD_LOCAL);
+	if (!systemd_handle)
+		return false;
+
+	dlerror();
+	sd_journal_send = (sd_journal_send_t)dlsym(systemd_handle, "sd_journal_send");
+	const char *err = dlerror();
+	if (err != NULL) {
+		dlclose(systemd_handle);
+		systemd_handle = NULL;
+		sd_journal_send = NULL;
+		return false;
+	}
+
+	return true;
+}
+#endif
+
 void parse_args(int argc, char *argv[])
 {
 	bool quiet = false;
@@ -1104,6 +1136,33 @@ void parse_args(int argc, char *argv[])
 			ok = true;
 		}
 
+		if(strcmp(argv[i], "--log-json") == 0)
+		{
+			log_json = true;
+			ok = true;
+		}
+
+		if(strcmp(argv[i], "--log-journal") == 0 && log_journal == false)
+		{
+#ifdef HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL
+			log_journal = true;
+			ok = true;
+#elif defined(DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+
+			if(!init_systemd_journal())
+			{
+				printf("Error: Failed to load libsystemd. Logging to journal is not available.\n");
+				exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
+			}
+
+			log_journal = true;
+			ok = true;
+#else
+			printf("Error: FTL was compiled without systemd support. Logging to journal is not available.\n");
+			exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
+#endif
+		}
+
 		// Regex test mode
 		if(strcmp(argv[i], "regex-test") == 0)
 		{
diff --git a/src/args.h b/src/args.h
index 43adf2f3f..f268d6c6f 100644
--- a/src/args.h
+++ b/src/args.h
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@
 void parse_args(int argc, char *argv[]);
 
 extern bool daemonmode, cli_mode;
+extern bool log_json, log_journal;
 extern int argc_dnsmasq;
 extern const char ** argv_dnsmasq;
 
@@ -56,4 +57,9 @@ void test_dnsmasq_options(int argc, const char *argv[]);
 #define COL_CYAN	"\x1b[96m" // bright foreground color
 #define CLI_OVER	"\r\x1b[K" // go back to beginning of line and erase to end of line
 
+#ifdef DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL
+typedef int (*sd_journal_send_t)(const char *format, ...);
+extern sd_journal_send_t sd_journal_send;
+#endif
+
 #endif //ARGS_H
diff --git a/src/dnsmasq/dnsmasq.c b/src/dnsmasq/dnsmasq.c
index 764664224..830b89c26 100644
--- a/src/dnsmasq/dnsmasq.c
+++ b/src/dnsmasq/dnsmasq.c
@@ -171,9 +171,14 @@ int main_dnsmasq (int argc, char **argv)
      ensure that we're not using those fds for real stuff. */
   for (i = 0; i < 3; i++)
     open("/dev/null", O_RDWR); 
+
+  /**** Pi-hole modification ****/
+  // don't close all fds, as this would close the journald socket
   
   /* Close any file descriptors we inherited apart from std{in|out|err} */
-  close_fds(max_fd, -1, -1, -1);
+  //close_fds(max_fd, -1, -1, -1); 
+  
+  /*****************************/
   
 #ifndef HAVE_LINUX_NETWORK
 #  if !(defined(IP_RECVDSTADDR) && defined(IP_RECVIF) && defined(IP_SENDSRCADDR))
@@ -728,19 +733,24 @@ int main_dnsmasq (int argc, char **argv)
   
    log_err = log_start(ent_pw, err_pipe[1]);
 
-   if (!option_bool(OPT_DEBUG)) 
-     {       
-       /* open  stdout etc to /dev/null */
-       int nullfd = open("/dev/null", O_RDWR);
-       if (nullfd != -1)
-	 {
-	   dup2(nullfd, STDOUT_FILENO);
-	   dup2(nullfd, STDERR_FILENO);
-	   dup2(nullfd, STDIN_FILENO);
-	   close(nullfd);
-	 }
-     }
+   /**** Pi-hole modification ****/
+   // We want to log to stdout/stderr, so we are preventing dnsmasq from replacing them with /dev/null
    
+   //if (!option_bool(OPT_DEBUG)) 
+   //  {       
+   //    /* open  stdout etc to /dev/null */
+   //    int nullfd = open("/dev/null", O_RDWR);
+   //    if (nullfd != -1)
+   //      {
+   //        dup2(nullfd, STDOUT_FILENO);
+   //        dup2(nullfd, STDERR_FILENO);
+   //        dup2(nullfd, STDIN_FILENO);
+   //        close(nullfd);
+   //      }
+   //  }
+
+   /******************************/
+
    /* if we are to run scripts, we need to fork a helper before dropping root. */
   daemon->helperfd = -1;
 #ifdef HAVE_SCRIPT 
diff --git a/src/dnsmasq/log.c b/src/dnsmasq/log.c
index 4d17a423b..f60e081e1 100644
--- a/src/dnsmasq/log.c
+++ b/src/dnsmasq/log.c
@@ -327,7 +327,8 @@ void my_syslog(int priority, const char *format, ...)
   va_start(ap, format);
   len = vsnprintf(buffer, MAX_MESSAGE, format, ap) + 1u; /* include zero-terminator */
   va_end(ap);
-  FTL_dnsmasq_log(buffer, len > MAX_MESSAGE ? MAX_MESSAGE : len);
+  time(&time_now);
+  FTL_dnsmasq_log(buffer, priority, len > MAX_MESSAGE ? MAX_MESSAGE : len, time_now);
   /*******************************************************************************/
 
   if (echo_stderr) 
@@ -408,8 +409,10 @@ void my_syslog(int priority, const char *format, ...)
 	  for (tmp = entries; tmp->next; tmp = tmp->next);
 	  tmp->next = entry;
 	}
-      
-      time(&time_now);
+      /************** Pi-hole modification **************/
+      // get the current time earlier, so JSON logging and logfile use the same timestamp
+      //time(&time_now);
+      /**************************************************/
       p = entry->payload;
       if (!log_to_file)
 	p += sprintf(p, "<%d>", priority | log_fac);
diff --git a/src/dnsmasq_interface.c b/src/dnsmasq_interface.c
index 15fc404cc..b49f22f5f 100644
--- a/src/dnsmasq_interface.c
+++ b/src/dnsmasq_interface.c
@@ -59,6 +59,12 @@
 // init_api_sessions()
 #include "api/api.h"
 
+#ifdef HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL
+#define SD_JOURNAL_SUPPRESS_LOCATION
+// sd_journal_send()
+#include <systemd/sd-journal.h>
+#endif
+
 // Public prototypes (defined in this file, called from other translation units)
 void FTL_dump_cache_stats(void);
 
@@ -1652,7 +1658,7 @@ static bool special_domain(const queriesData *query, const char *domain)
 	// _dns.resolver.arpa.     86400   IN      SVCB    2 dns.google. alpn="h2,h3" key7="/dns-query{?dns}"
 	//
 	// RFC 9462, Section 4 says:
-	// 
+	//
 	// If the recursive resolver that receives this query has no Designated
 	// Resolvers, it SHOULD return NODATA for queries to the "resolver.arpa"
 	// zone, to provide a consistent and accurate signal to clients that it
@@ -1902,7 +1908,7 @@ static bool FTL_check_blocking(const char *domainstr, queriesData *query, client
 	}
 
 	// when we reach this point: the query is not in FTL's cache (for this client)
-	
+
 	// Check exact whitelist for match
 	const char *blockedDomain = domainstr;
 	PERF_START(_pcb_allow);
@@ -4098,16 +4104,46 @@ static void _query_set_dnssec(queriesData *query, const enum dnssec_status dnsse
 }
 
 // Add dnsmasq log line to internal FIFO buffer (can be queried via the API)
-void FTL_dnsmasq_log(const char *payload, const int length)
+void FTL_dnsmasq_log(const char *payload, const int priority, const int length, const time_t now)
 {
 	// Lock SHM
 	lock_shm();
 
+	const char *prio = priostr(priority, DEBUG_GENERIC);
+
 	// Add to FIFO buffer
-	add_to_fifo_buffer(FIFO_DNSMASQ, payload, NULL, length);
+	add_to_fifo_buffer(FIFO_DNSMASQ, payload, prio, length);
 
 	// Unlock SHM
 	unlock_shm();
+
+	if(log_json && !daemonmode)
+	{
+		// Get and log PID of current process to avoid ambiguities when more than one
+		// pihole-FTL instance is logging to the same output
+		char idstr[42];
+		get_idstr(idstr, sizeof(idstr));
+
+		// JSON logging only for stdout
+		log_to_json(
+            		now,
+            		prio,
+            		"dnsmasq",
+            		idstr,
+            		payload
+        	);
+	}
+#if defined(HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL) || defined(DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+	if(log_journal)
+	{
+		sd_journal_send(
+			"MESSAGE=%s", payload,
+			"PRIORITY=%i", priority,
+			"COMPONENT=dnsmasq",
+			NULL
+		);
+	}
+#endif
 }
 
 static const char *check_dnsmasq_name(const char *name)
diff --git a/src/dnsmasq_interface.h b/src/dnsmasq_interface.h
index 250d67cca..725141a4b 100644
--- a/src/dnsmasq_interface.h
+++ b/src/dnsmasq_interface.h
@@ -16,6 +16,8 @@
 #include "edns0.h"
 #include "metrics.h"
 
+#include <time.h>
+
 enum protocol { TCP, UDP, INTERNAL };
 
 void FTL_hook(unsigned int flags, const char *name, const union all_addr *addr, char *arg, int id, unsigned short type, const char *file, const int line);
@@ -56,6 +58,6 @@ bool get_dnsmasq_debug(void) __attribute__ ((pure));
 // defined in src/dnsmasq/cache.c
 extern char *querystr(char *desc, unsigned short type);
 
-extern void FTL_dnsmasq_log(const char *payload, const int length);
+extern void FTL_dnsmasq_log(const char *payload, const int priority, const int length, const time_t now);
 
 #endif // DNSMASQ_INTERFACE_H
diff --git a/src/enums.h b/src/enums.h
index 9398c3985..2110d4995 100644
--- a/src/enums.h
+++ b/src/enums.h
@@ -159,7 +159,8 @@ enum debug_flag {
 	DEBUG_NETLINK,
 	DEBUG_TIMING,
 	DEBUG_PERFORMANCE,
-	DEBUG_MAX
+	DEBUG_MAX,
+	DEBUG_GENERIC // this is for getting a regular "DEBUG" string from priostr(); it is explicitly not selectable as a debug flag, only for carrying over the generic syslog level.
 } __attribute__ ((packed));
 
 enum events {
diff --git a/src/log.c b/src/log.c
index b4b298daf..e2f6dc313 100644
--- a/src/log.c
+++ b/src/log.c
@@ -28,6 +28,13 @@
 #include "database/query-table.h"
 // runGC()
 #include "gc.h"
+#include "webserver/cJSON/cJSON.h"
+
+#ifdef HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL
+#define SD_JOURNAL_SUPPRESS_LOCATION
+// sd_journal_send()
+#include <systemd/sd-journal.h>
+#endif
 
 static bool print_log = true, print_stdout = true;
 static bool ftl_log_available = true;
@@ -52,7 +59,7 @@ void init_FTL_log(const char *name)
 	if(config.files.log.ftl.v.s != NULL)
 	{
 		FILE *logfile = NULL;
-		if((logfile = fopen(config.files.log.ftl.v.s, "a+")) == NULL)
+		if((logfile = fopen(config.files.log.ftl.v.s, "a")) == NULL)
 		{
 			printf("ERROR: Opening of FTL log (%s) failed: %s\nUsing syslog instead!\n",
 			       config.files.log.ftl.v.s, strerror(errno));
@@ -123,6 +130,92 @@ void get_timestr(char timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE], const time_t timein, const bool
 	timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE - 1] = '\0';
 }
 
+void get_timestr_iso8601(char timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE], const time_t timein, const bool millis)
+{
+	struct tm tm;
+	localtime_r(&timein, &tm);
+
+	int millisec = 0;
+
+	// Optional milliseconds
+	if(millis)
+	{
+		struct timeval tv;
+		gettimeofday(&tv, NULL);
+
+		// Only use ms if the timestamps match the same second
+		if(tv.tv_sec == timein)
+			millisec = tv.tv_usec / 1000;
+	}
+
+	// Timezone offset in seconds east of UTC
+	const long tz_offset = tm.tm_gmtoff;
+
+	// UTC special case
+	if(tz_offset == 0)
+	{
+		if(millis)
+		{
+			snprintf(timestring, TIMESTR_SIZE,
+					 "%04d-%02d-%02dT%02d:%02d:%02d.%03dZ",
+					 tm.tm_year + 1900,
+					 tm.tm_mon + 1,
+					 tm.tm_mday,
+					 tm.tm_hour,
+					 tm.tm_min,
+					 tm.tm_sec,
+					 millisec);
+		}
+		else
+		{
+			snprintf(timestring, TIMESTR_SIZE,
+					 "%04d-%02d-%02dT%02d:%02d:%02dZ",
+					 tm.tm_year + 1900,
+					 tm.tm_mon + 1,
+					 tm.tm_mday,
+					 tm.tm_hour,
+					 tm.tm_min,
+					 tm.tm_sec);
+		}
+	}
+	else
+	{
+		const int tz_hours = (int)(tz_offset / 3600);
+		const int tz_minutes = (int)((labs(tz_offset) % 3600) / 60);
+
+		if(millis)
+		{
+			snprintf(timestring, TIMESTR_SIZE,
+					 "%04d-%02d-%02dT%02d:%02d:%02d.%03d%+03d:%02d",
+					 tm.tm_year + 1900,
+					 tm.tm_mon + 1,
+					 tm.tm_mday,
+					 tm.tm_hour,
+					 tm.tm_min,
+					 tm.tm_sec,
+					 millisec,
+					 tz_hours,
+					 tz_minutes);
+		}
+		else
+		{
+			snprintf(timestring, TIMESTR_SIZE,
+					 "%04d-%02d-%02dT%02d:%02d:%02d%+03d:%02d",
+					 tm.tm_year + 1900,
+					 tm.tm_mon + 1,
+					 tm.tm_mday,
+					 tm.tm_hour,
+					 tm.tm_min,
+					 tm.tm_sec,
+					 tz_hours,
+					 tz_minutes);
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Ensure null termination
+	timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE - 1] = '\0';
+}
+
 // Return the current year
 unsigned int get_year(const time_t timein)
 {
@@ -131,7 +224,53 @@ unsigned int get_year(const time_t timein)
 	return tm.tm_year + 1900;
 }
 
-static const char * __attribute__((const)) priostr(const int priority, const enum debug_flag flag)
+void log_to_json(const time_t now, const char *log_level, const char *component, const char *pid, const char *msg)
+{
+	char timestring_iso8601[TIMESTR_SIZE];
+	get_timestr_iso8601(timestring_iso8601, now, true);
+
+	cJSON *root = cJSON_CreateObject();
+	if (!root) return;
+
+	cJSON_AddStringToObject(root, "timestamp", timestring_iso8601);
+	cJSON_AddStringToObject(root, "log_level", log_level);
+	cJSON_AddStringToObject(root, "service", "pihole-FTL");
+	cJSON_AddStringToObject(root, "component", component);
+	cJSON_AddStringToObject(root, "pid", pid);
+	cJSON_AddStringToObject(root, "message", msg);
+
+	char *out = cJSON_PrintUnformatted(root);
+	cJSON_Delete(root);
+
+	if (!out) return;
+	printf("%s\n", out);
+	free(out);
+}
+
+void get_idstr(char *idstr, size_t size)
+{
+	const int pid = getpid(); // Get the process ID of the calling process
+	const int mpid = main_pid(); // Get the process ID of the main FTL process
+	const int tid = gettid(); // Get the thread ID of the calling process
+
+	// There are four cases we have to differentiate here:
+	if(pid == tid)
+		if(is_fork(mpid, pid))
+			// Fork of the main process
+			snprintf(idstr, size, "%i/F%i", pid, mpid);
+		else
+			// Main process
+			snprintf(idstr, size, "%iM", pid);
+	else
+		if(is_fork(mpid, pid))
+			// Thread of a fork of the main process
+			snprintf(idstr, size, "%i/F%i/T%i", pid, mpid, tid);
+		else
+			// Thread of the main process
+			snprintf(idstr, size, "%i/T%i", pid, tid);
+}
+
+const char * __attribute__((const)) priostr(const int priority, const enum debug_flag flag)
 {
 	switch (priority)
 	{
@@ -233,6 +372,8 @@ const char *debugstr(const enum debug_flag flag)
 			return "DEBUG_PERFORMANCE";
 		case DEBUG_MAX:
 			return "DEBUG_MAX";
+		case DEBUG_GENERIC:
+			return "DEBUG";
 		case DEBUG_NONE: // fall through
 		default:
 			return "DEBUG_ANY";
@@ -242,6 +383,7 @@ const char *debugstr(const enum debug_flag flag)
 void __attribute__ ((format (printf, 3, 4))) _FTL_log(const int priority, const enum debug_flag flag, const char *format, ...)
 {
 	char timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE];
+	const time_t now = time(NULL);
 	va_list args;
 
 	// We have been explicitly asked to not print anything to the log
@@ -249,32 +391,14 @@ void __attribute__ ((format (printf, 3, 4))) _FTL_log(const int priority, const
 		return;
 
 	// Get human-readable time
-	get_timestr(timestring, time(NULL), true, false);
+	get_timestr(timestring, now, true, false);
 
 	// Get and log PID of current process to avoid ambiguities when more than one
 	// pihole-FTL instance is logging into the same file
 	char idstr[42];
-	const int pid = getpid(); // Get the process ID of the calling process
-	const int mpid = main_pid(); // Get the process ID of the main FTL process
-	const int tid = gettid(); // Get the thread ID of the calling process
-
+	get_idstr(idstr, sizeof(idstr));
 	const char *prio = priostr(priority, flag);
 
-	// There are four cases we have to differentiate here:
-	if(pid == tid)
-		if(is_fork(mpid, pid))
-			// Fork of the main process
-			snprintf(idstr, sizeof(idstr)-1, "%i/F%i", pid, mpid);
-		else
-			// Main process
-			snprintf(idstr, sizeof(idstr)-1, "%iM", pid);
-	else
-		if(is_fork(mpid, pid))
-			// Thread of a fork of the main process
-			snprintf(idstr, sizeof(idstr)-1, "%i/F%i/T%i", pid, mpid, tid);
-		else
-			// Thread of the main process
-			snprintf(idstr, sizeof(idstr)-1, "%i/T%i", pid, tid);
 
 	// Print to stdout before writing to file
 	if((!daemonmode || cli_mode) && print_stdout)
@@ -299,10 +423,48 @@ void __attribute__ ((format (printf, 3, 4))) _FTL_log(const int priority, const
 		add_to_fifo_buffer(FIFO_FTL, buffer, prio, len > MAX_MSG_FIFO ? MAX_MSG_FIFO : len);
 
 		bool logged = false;
+
+		if(log_json && !daemonmode)
+		{
+			char json_buffer[8192];
+
+			va_start(args, format);
+			vsnprintf(json_buffer, sizeof(json_buffer), format, args);
+			va_end(args);
+			// JSON logging only for stdout
+			log_to_json(
+					now,
+					prio,
+					"FTL",
+					idstr,
+					json_buffer
+				);
+			logged = true;
+		}
+#if defined(HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL) || defined(DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+		if(log_journal)
+		{
+			char journal_buffer[8192];
+
+			va_start(args, format);
+			vsnprintf(journal_buffer, sizeof(journal_buffer), format, args);
+			va_end(args);
+
+			sd_journal_send(
+				"MESSAGE=%s", journal_buffer,
+				"PRIORITY=%i", priority,
+				"DEBUG_FLAG=%s", debugstr(flag),
+				"COMPONENT=FTL",
+				NULL
+			);
+			logged = true;
+		}
+#endif
+
 		if(ftl_log_available && config.files.log.ftl.v.s != NULL)
 		{
 			// Open log file
-			FILE *logfile = fopen(config.files.log.ftl.v.s, "a+");
+			FILE *logfile = fopen(config.files.log.ftl.v.s, "a");
 
 			// Write to log file
 			if(logfile != NULL)
@@ -339,33 +501,72 @@ void __attribute__ ((format (printf, 3, 4))) _FTL_log(const int priority, const
 	}
 }
 
-void __attribute__ ((format (printf, 1, 2))) log_web(const char *format, ...)
+void __attribute__ ((format (printf, 3, 4))) log_web(const int priority, const enum debug_flag flag, const char *format, ...)
 {
 	char timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE];
 	const time_t now = time(NULL);
 	va_list args;
 
+	// Get human-readable time
+	get_timestr(timestring, now, true, false);
+
+	// Get and log PID of current process to avoid ambiguities when more than one
+	// pihole-FTL instance is logging into the same file
+	char idstr[42];
+	get_idstr(idstr, sizeof(idstr));
+	const char *prio = priostr(priority, flag);
+
 	// Add line to FIFO buffer
 	char buffer[MAX_MSG_FIFO + 1u];
 	va_start(args, format);
 	const size_t len = vsnprintf(buffer, MAX_MSG_FIFO, format, args) + 1u; /* include zero-terminator */
 	va_end(args);
-	add_to_fifo_buffer(FIFO_WEBSERVER, buffer, NULL, len > MAX_MSG_FIFO ? MAX_MSG_FIFO : len);
+	add_to_fifo_buffer(FIFO_WEBSERVER, buffer, prio, len > MAX_MSG_FIFO ? MAX_MSG_FIFO : len);
 
-	// Get human-readable time
-	get_timestr(timestring, now, true, false);
 
-	// Get and log PID of current process to avoid ambiguities when more than one
-	// pihole-FTL instance is logging into the same file
-	const long pid = (long)getpid();
+	if(log_json && !daemonmode)
+	{
+		char json_buffer[8192];
+
+		va_start(args, format);
+		vsnprintf(json_buffer, sizeof(json_buffer), format, args);
+		va_end(args);
+
+		// JSON logging only for stdout
+		log_to_json(
+			now,
+			prio,
+			"webserver",
+			idstr,
+			json_buffer
+		);
+	}
+#if defined(HAVE_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL) || defined(DL_SYSTEMD_JOURNAL)
+		if(log_journal)
+		{
+			char journal_buffer[8192];
+
+			va_start(args, format);
+			vsnprintf(journal_buffer, sizeof(journal_buffer), format, args);
+			va_end(args);
+
+			sd_journal_send(
+				"MESSAGE=%s", journal_buffer,
+				"PRIORITY=%i", priority,
+				"DEBUG_FLAG=%s", debugstr(flag),
+				"COMPONENT=webserver",
+				NULL
+			);
+		}
+#endif
 
 	// Open web log file
-	FILE *weblog = fopen(config.files.log.webserver.v.s, "a+");
+	FILE *weblog = fopen(config.files.log.webserver.v.s, "a");
 
 	// Write to web log file
 	if(weblog != NULL)
 	{
-		fprintf(weblog, "[%s %ld] ", timestring, pid);
+		fprintf(weblog, "%s [%s] %s: ", timestring, idstr, prio);
 		va_start(args, format);
 		vfprintf(weblog, format, args);
 		va_end(args);
diff --git a/src/log.h b/src/log.h
index 9ba19659c..5bcbd03ce 100644
--- a/src/log.h
+++ b/src/log.h
@@ -52,8 +52,11 @@ const char *get_FTL_version(void);
 void log_FTL_version(bool crashreport);
 double double_time(void);
 void get_timestr(char timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE], const time_t timein, const bool millis, const bool uri_compatible);
+void get_timestr_iso8601(char timestring[TIMESTR_SIZE], const time_t timein, const bool millis);
+void log_to_json(const time_t now, const char *log_level, const char *component, const char *pid, const char *msg);
+void get_idstr(char *idstr, size_t size);
+const char *priostr(const int priority, const enum debug_flag flag)  __attribute__((const));
 const char *debugstr(const enum debug_flag flag) __attribute__((const));
-void log_web(const char *format, ...) __attribute__ ((format (printf, 1, 2)));
 const char *get_ordinal_suffix(unsigned int number) __attribute__ ((const));
 void print_FTL_version(void);
 void dnsmasq_diagnosis_warning(char *message);
@@ -74,6 +77,11 @@ void FTL_log_dnsmasq_fatal(const char *format, ...) __attribute__ ((format (prin
 void log_ctrl(bool vlog, bool vstdout);
 void FTL_log_helper(const unsigned int n, ...);
 
+#define log_web_debug(flag, format, ...) \
+	if(flag > -1 && flag < DEBUG_MAX && debug_flags[flag]) \
+		log_web(LOG_DEBUG, flag, format, ## __VA_ARGS__)
+void log_web(const int priority, const enum debug_flag flag, const char *format, ...) __attribute__ ((format (printf, 3, 4)));
+
 char *escape_string(const char *input) __attribute__ ((malloc));
 char *escape_data(const char *src_buf, size_t src_sz) __attribute__((malloc));
 
diff --git a/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c b/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
index 357d259ed..3f84462b6 100644
--- a/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
+++ b/src/webserver/civetweb/civetweb.c
@@ -246,8 +246,7 @@ static void DEBUG_TRACE_FUNC(const char *func,
 #include "log.h"
 #include <sys/resource.h>
 #define DEBUG_TRACE(fmt, ...)                                                  \
-	if(debug_flags[DEBUG_WEBSERVER]) {\
-		log_web("DEBUG: " fmt " (%s:%d)", ##__VA_ARGS__, short_path(__FILE__), __LINE__); }
+		log_web_debug(DEBUG_WEBSERVER, fmt " (%s:%d)", ##__VA_ARGS__, short_path(__FILE__), __LINE__);
 #endif /* DEBUG */
 #endif /* DEBUG_TRACE */
 
@@ -4249,12 +4248,12 @@ send_cors_header(struct mg_connection *conn)
 	    conn->dom_ctx->config[ACCESS_CONTROL_EXPOSE_HEADERS];
 	const char *cors_meth_cfg =
 	    conn->dom_ctx->config[ACCESS_CONTROL_ALLOW_METHODS];
-	const char *cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg = 
+	const char *cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg =
 		conn->dom_ctx->config[REPLACE_ASTERISK_WITH_ORIGIN];
-		
+
 	if (cors_orig_cfg && *cors_orig_cfg && origin_hdr && *origin_hdr && cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg && *cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg) {
 		int cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig = mg_strcasecmp(cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg, "yes");
-		
+
 		/* Cross-origin resource sharing (CORS), see
 		 * http://www.html5rocks.com/en/tutorials/cors/,
 		 * http://www.html5rocks.com/static/images/cors_server_flowchart.png
@@ -15158,7 +15157,7 @@ handle_request(struct mg_connection *conn)
 		}
 		return;
 	}
-	
+
 
 	/* 1.3. decode url (if config says so) */
 	if (should_decode_url(conn)) {
@@ -15244,9 +15243,9 @@ handle_request(struct mg_connection *conn)
 		const char *cors_acrm = get_header(ri->http_headers,
 		                                   ri->num_headers,
 		                                   "Access-Control-Request-Method");
-		const char *cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg = 
+		const char *cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg =
 			conn->dom_ctx->config[REPLACE_ASTERISK_WITH_ORIGIN];
-		
+
 		/* Todo: check if cors_origin is in cors_orig_cfg.
 		 * Or, let the client check this. */
 
@@ -15255,7 +15254,7 @@ handle_request(struct mg_connection *conn)
 		    && (cors_origin != NULL) && (cors_acrm != NULL)
 			&& (cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg != NULL) && (*cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg != 0)) {
 			int cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig = mg_strcasecmp(cors_repl_asterisk_with_orig_cfg, "yes");
-			
+
 			/* This is a valid CORS preflight, and the server is configured
 			 * to handle it automatically. */
 			const char *cors_acrh =
diff --git a/src/webserver/lua_web.c b/src/webserver/lua_web.c
index eb47f2e85..c5a54d7e4 100644
--- a/src/webserver/lua_web.c
+++ b/src/webserver/lua_web.c
@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ int request_handler(struct mg_connection *conn, void *cbdata)
 		if(!authorized)
 		{
 			// User is not authenticated, redirect to login page
-			log_web("Authentication required, redirecting to %s%slogin",
+			log_web(LOG_INFO, DEBUG_NONE, "Authentication required, redirecting to %s%slogin",
 			        config.webserver.paths.prefix.v.s, config.webserver.paths.webhome.v.s);
 			ftl_http_redirect(conn, 302, "%s%slogin",
 			                  config.webserver.paths.prefix.v.s,
@@ -136,7 +136,7 @@ int request_handler(struct mg_connection *conn, void *cbdata)
 		if(authorized)
 		{
 			// User is already authenticated, redirecting to index page
-			log_web("User is already authenticated, redirecting to %s%s",
+			log_web(LOG_INFO, DEBUG_NONE, "User is already authenticated, redirecting to %s%s",
 			        config.webserver.paths.prefix.v.s, config.webserver.paths.webhome.v.s);
 			ftl_http_redirect(conn, 302, "%s%s",
 			                  config.webserver.paths.prefix.v.s,
diff --git a/src/webserver/webserver.c b/src/webserver/webserver.c
index 7cd60c222..208f5047a 100644
--- a/src/webserver/webserver.c
+++ b/src/webserver/webserver.c
@@ -252,7 +252,7 @@ static int redirect_lp_handler(struct mg_connection *conn, void *input)
 
 static int log_http_message(const struct mg_connection *conn, const char *message)
 {
-	log_web("%s", message);
+	log_web(LOG_INFO, DEBUG_NONE, "%s", message);
 	return 1;
 }
 
@@ -262,7 +262,7 @@ static int log_http_access(const struct mg_connection *conn, const char *message
 	if(!config.debug.api.v.b)
 		return 1;
 
-	log_web("ACCESS: %s", message);
+	log_web(LOG_INFO, DEBUG_NONE, "ACCESS: %s", message);
 
 	return 1;
 }
@@ -288,7 +288,7 @@ void FTL_mbed_debug(void *user_param, int level, const char *file, int line, con
 		len--;
 
 	// Log the message
-	log_web("mbedTLS(%s:%d, %d): %.*s", file, line, level, (int)len, message);
+	log_web_debug(DEBUG_TLS, "mbedTLS(%s:%d, %d): %.*s", file, line, level, (int)len, message);
 }
 
 /**
@@ -598,7 +598,7 @@ void http_init(void)
 	num_threads[sizeof(num_threads) - 1] = '\0';
 
 	/* Initialize the library */
-	log_web("Initializing HTTP server on ports \"%s\"", config.webserver.port.v.s);
+	log_web(LOG_INFO, DEBUG_NONE, "Initializing HTTP server on ports \"%s\"", config.webserver.port.v.s);
 	unsigned int features = MG_FEATURES_FILES |
 	                        MG_FEATURES_IPV6 |
 	                        MG_FEATURES_CACHE;
@@ -609,7 +609,7 @@ void http_init(void)
 
 	if(mg_init_library(features) == 0)
 	{
-		log_web("Initializing HTTP library failed!");
+		log_web(LOG_ERR, DEBUG_NONE, "Initializing HTTP library failed!");
 		return;
 	}