diff --git a/include/proto/sink.h b/include/proto/sink.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ae493d4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/proto/sink.h
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+/*
+ * include/proto/sink.h
+ * This file provides declarations for event sinks management
+ *
+ * Copyright (C) 2000-2019 Willy Tarreau - w@1wt.eu
+ *
+ * This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
+ * modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public
+ * License as published by the Free Software Foundation, version 2.1
+ * exclusively.
+ *
+ * This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU
+ * Lesser General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
+ * License along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software
+ * Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA  02110-1301  USA
+ */
+
+#ifndef _PROTO_SINK_H
+#define _PROTO_SINK_H
+
+#include <common/mini-clist.h>
+#include <types/sink.h>
+
+extern struct list sink_list;
+
+struct sink *sink_find(const char *name);
+void sink_write(struct sink *sink, const struct ist msg[], size_t nmsg);
+
+#endif /* _PROTO_SINK_H */
+
+/*
+ * Local variables:
+ *  c-indent-level: 8
+ *  c-basic-offset: 8
+ * End:
+ */
diff --git a/include/types/sink.h b/include/types/sink.h
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3533314
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/types/sink.h
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+/*
+ * include/types/sink.h
+ * This file provides definitions for event sinks
+ *
+ * Copyright (C) 2000-2019 Willy Tarreau - w@1wt.eu
+ *
+ * This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
+ * modify it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public
+ * License as published by the Free Software Foundation, version 2.1
+ * exclusively.
+ *
+ * This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the GNU
+ * Lesser General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
+ * License along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software
+ * Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA  02110-1301  USA
+ */
+
+#ifndef _TYPES_SINK_H
+#define _TYPES_SINK_H
+
+#include <common/buffer.h>
+#include <common/compat.h>
+#include <common/config.h>
+#include <common/ist.h>
+
+/* A sink may be of several types. For now the following types are supported:
+ * (none yet)
+ */
+enum sink_type {
+	SINK_TYPE_NEW,      // not yet initialized
+};
+
+/* This indicates the default event format, which is the destination's
+ * preferred format, but may be overridden by the source.
+ */
+enum sink_fmt {
+	SINK_FMT_RAW,       // raw text sent as-is
+	SINK_FMT_SHORT,     // raw text prefixed with a syslog level
+	SINK_FMT_ISO,       // raw text prefixed with ISO time
+	SINK_FMT_TIMED,     // syslog level then ISO
+	SINK_FMT_RFC3164,   // regular syslog
+	SINK_FMT_RFC5424,   // extended syslog
+};
+
+/* describes the configuration and current state of an event sink */
+struct sink {
+	struct list sink_list;     // position in the sink list
+	const char *name;          // sink name
+	const char *desc;          // sink description
+	enum sink_fmt fmt;         // format expected by the sink
+	enum sink_type type;       // type of storage
+	uint8_t syslog_facility;   // used by syslog format
+	uint8_t syslog_minlvl;     // used by syslog & short formats
+	uint32_t maxlen;           // max message length (truncated above)
+	struct {
+		unsigned int dropped; // dropped events since last one.
+		__decl_hathreads(HA_RWLOCK_T lock); // used by some types
+	} ctx;
+};
+
+#endif /* _TYPES_SINK_H */
+
+/*
+ * Local variables:
+ *  c-indent-level: 8
+ *  c-basic-offset: 8
+ * End:
+ */