diff --git a/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.cpp b/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.cpp
index 95fea32fa1f..14e67f21500 100644
--- a/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.cpp
@@ -36,15 +36,9 @@
 #include <list>
 
 #include "mongo/dbtests/dbtests.h"
-#include "mongo/s/config.h"
 #include "mongo/s/distlock.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_changelog.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_chunk.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_collection.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_config_version.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_database.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_mongos.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_shard.h"
 #include "mongo/util/log.h"
 
 namespace mongo {
@@ -79,7 +73,6 @@ namespace mongo {
                                        ChunkType::ConfigNS,
                                        BSON( ChunkType::ns() << 1 <<
                                              ChunkType::DEPRECATED_lastmod() << 1 )));
-        configServer.init(configSvr().toString());
     }
 
     void ConfigServerFixture::clearServer() {
@@ -90,32 +83,7 @@ namespace mongo {
         _client.dropCollection(VersionType::ConfigNS);
     }
 
-    void ConfigServerFixture::clearShards() {
-        _client.dropCollection(ShardType::ConfigNS);
-    }
-
-    void ConfigServerFixture::clearDatabases() {
-        _client.dropCollection(DatabaseType::ConfigNS);
-    }
-
-    void ConfigServerFixture::clearCollections() {
-        _client.dropCollection(CollectionType::ConfigNS);
-    }
-
-    void ConfigServerFixture::clearChunks() {
-        _client.dropCollection(ChunkType::ConfigNS);
-    }
-
-    void ConfigServerFixture::clearPings() {
-        _client.dropCollection(MongosType::ConfigNS);
-    }
-
-    void ConfigServerFixture::clearChangelog() {
-        _client.dropCollection(ChangelogType::ConfigNS);
-    }
-
     void ConfigServerFixture::dumpServer() {
-
         log() << "Dumping virtual config server to log..." << endl;
 
         list<string> collectionNames(_client.getCollectionNames("config"));
@@ -137,7 +105,6 @@ namespace mongo {
     }
 
     void ConfigServerFixture::tearDown() {
-
         clearServer();
 
         // Reset the pinger
diff --git a/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.h b/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.h
index f8a7f7838e0..25f6a9c4b94 100644
--- a/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.h
+++ b/src/mongo/dbtests/config_server_fixture.h
@@ -111,12 +111,6 @@ namespace mongo {
         void clearServer();
 
         void clearVersion();
-        void clearShards();
-        void clearDatabases();
-        void clearCollections();
-        void clearChunks();
-        void clearPings();
-        void clearChangelog();
 
         /**
          * Dumps the contents of the config server to the log.
diff --git a/src/mongo/dbtests/framework.cpp b/src/mongo/dbtests/framework.cpp
index 80a1b5f6091..4078e531609 100644
--- a/src/mongo/dbtests/framework.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/dbtests/framework.cpp
@@ -129,6 +129,7 @@ namespace mongo {
             std::vector<std::string> configHosts;
             configHosts.push_back("$dummy:10000");
 
+            configServer.init(configHosts);
             invariant(grid.initCatalogManager(configHosts));
 
             TestWatchDog twd;
diff --git a/src/mongo/dbtests/sharding.cpp b/src/mongo/dbtests/sharding.cpp
index 6784f8148bd..aaeb6492b30 100644
--- a/src/mongo/dbtests/sharding.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/dbtests/sharding.cpp
@@ -133,7 +133,6 @@ namespace ShardingTests {
                               ChunkType::ConfigNS,
                               BSON( ChunkType::ns() << 1 << // br
                                     ChunkType::DEPRECATED_lastmod() << 1 ) ));
-            configServer.init("$dummy:1000");
         }
 
         virtual ~ChunkManagerTest() {
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/SConscript b/src/mongo/s/SConscript
index 7eb496e9923..4925d9ee3de 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/SConscript
+++ b/src/mongo/s/SConscript
@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ Import("env")
 
 env.Library('base', ['mongo_version_range.cpp',
                      'type_actionlog.cpp',
-                     'type_changelog.cpp',
                      'type_chunk.cpp',
                      'type_collection.cpp',
                      'type_database.cpp',
@@ -31,10 +30,6 @@ env.CppUnitTest('mongo_version_range_test', 'mongo_version_range_test.cpp',
                          '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/bson',
                          '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/db/common'])
 
-env.CppUnitTest('type_changelog_test', 'type_changelog_test.cpp',
-                LIBDEPS=['base',
-                         '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/db/common'])
-
 env.CppUnitTest('type_chunk_test', 'type_chunk_test.cpp',
                 LIBDEPS=['base',
                          '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/db/common'])
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/catalog/SConscript b/src/mongo/s/catalog/SConscript
index 2b76d7243a3..0f5f2796754 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/catalog/SConscript
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/SConscript
@@ -6,8 +6,22 @@ env.Library(
     target='catalog_manager',
     source=[
         'catalog_manager.cpp',
+        'type_changelog.cpp',
     ],
     LIBDEPS=[
+        '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/base/base',
+        '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/bson',
+        '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/db/common',
         '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/s/batch_write_types',
     ],
 )
+
+env.CppUnitTest(
+    target='catalog_manager_test',
+    source=[
+        'type_changelog_test.cpp'
+    ],
+    LIBDEPS=[
+        '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager',
+    ]
+)
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h b/src/mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h
index b73375cf780..920a7b93179 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h
@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@ namespace mongo {
     class BatchedCommandResponse;
     class BSONObj;
     class DatabaseType;
+    class OperationContext;
     class Status;
     template<typename T> class StatusWith;
 
@@ -78,6 +79,21 @@ namespace mongo {
          */
         virtual StatusWith<DatabaseType> getDatabase(const std::string& dbName) = 0;
 
+        /**
+         * Logs a diagnostic event locally and on the config server.
+         *
+         * NOTE: This method is best effort so it should never throw.
+         *
+         * @param opCtx The operation context of the call doing the logging
+         * @param what E.g. "split", "migrate"
+         * @param ns To which collection the metadata change is being applied
+         * @param detail Additional info about the metadata change (not interpreted)
+         */
+        virtual void logChange(OperationContext* opCtx,
+                               const std::string& what,
+                               const std::string& ns,
+                               const BSONObj& detail) = 0;
+
         /**
          * Directly sends the specified command to the config server and returns the response.
          *
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/SConscript b/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/SConscript
index 20161f5ab54..eeeb6657abb 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/SConscript
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/SConscript
@@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ env.Library(
         'config_coordinator.cpp',
     ],
     LIBDEPS=[
-        '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/s/batch_write_types',
         '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager',
         '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/s/client/sharding_client',
     ]
@@ -28,4 +27,4 @@ env.CppUnitTest(
         '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/mongoscore',
         '$BUILD_DIR/mongo/mongocommon',
     ]
-)
\ No newline at end of file
+)
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.cpp b/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.cpp
index edce5f69108..7fc1733a961 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.cpp
@@ -37,8 +37,12 @@
 #include <vector>
 
 #include "mongo/client/connpool.h"
+#include "mongo/db/client.h"
+#include "mongo/db/operation_context.h"
 #include "mongo/db/server_options.h"
+#include "mongo/platform/atomic_word.h"
 #include "mongo/s/catalog/legacy/config_coordinator.h"
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.h"
 #include "mongo/s/client/dbclient_multi_command.h"
 #include "mongo/s/shard.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_database.h"
@@ -85,6 +89,9 @@ namespace {
         dassert(response->isValid(NULL));
     }
 
+    // Whether the logChange call should attempt to create the changelog collection
+    AtomicInt32 changeLogCollectionCreated(0);
+
 } // namespace
 
 
@@ -262,6 +269,56 @@ namespace {
         return DatabaseType::fromBSON(dbObj);
     }
 
+    void CatalogManagerLegacy::logChange(OperationContext* opCtx,
+                                         const string& what,
+                                         const string& ns,
+                                         const BSONObj& detail) {
+
+        // Create the change log collection and ensure that it is capped. Wrap in try/catch,
+        // because creating an existing collection throws.
+        if (changeLogCollectionCreated.load() == 0) {
+            try {
+                ScopedDbConnection conn(_configServerConnectionString, 30.0);
+                conn->createCollection(ChangelogType::ConfigNS, 1024 * 1024 * 10, true);
+                conn.done();
+
+                changeLogCollectionCreated.store(1);
+            }
+            catch (const UserException& e) {
+                // It's ok to ignore this exception
+                LOG(1) << "couldn't create changelog collection: " << e;
+            }
+        }
+
+        // Store this entry's ID so we can use on the exception code path too
+        StringBuilder changeIdBuilder;
+        changeIdBuilder << getHostNameCached() << "-" << terseCurrentTime()
+                        << "-" << OID::gen();
+
+        const string changeID = changeIdBuilder.str();
+
+        Client* const client = (opCtx ? opCtx->getClient() : currentClient.get());
+
+        // Send a copy of the message to the local log in case it doesn't manage to reach
+        // config.changelog
+        BSONObj msg = BSON(ChangelogType::changeID(changeID) <<
+                           ChangelogType::server(getHostNameCached()) <<
+                           ChangelogType::clientAddr((client ?
+                                                        client->clientAddress(true) : "")) <<
+                           ChangelogType::time(jsTime()) <<
+                           ChangelogType::what(what) <<
+                           ChangelogType::ns(ns) <<
+                           ChangelogType::details(detail));
+
+        log() << "about to log metadata event: " << msg;
+
+        Status result = insert(ChangelogType::ConfigNS, msg, NULL);
+        if (!result.isOK()) {
+            warning() << "Error encountered while logging config change with ID "
+                      << changeID << ": " << result;
+        }
+    }
+
     void CatalogManagerLegacy::writeConfigServerDirect(const BatchedCommandRequest& request,
                                                        BatchedCommandResponse* response) {
 
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.h b/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.h
index 7b8d54534c6..f3bb63854c1 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.h
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/legacy/catalog_manager_legacy.h
@@ -36,6 +36,9 @@
 
 namespace mongo {
 
+    /**
+     * Implements the catalog manager using the legacy 3-config server protocol.
+     */
     class CatalogManagerLegacy : public CatalogManager {
     public:
         CatalogManagerLegacy() = default;
@@ -53,11 +56,15 @@ namespace mongo {
 
         virtual StatusWith<DatabaseType> getDatabase(const std::string& dbName);
 
+        virtual void logChange(OperationContext* txn,
+                               const std::string& what,
+                               const std::string& ns,
+                               const BSONObj& detail);
+
         virtual void writeConfigServerDirect(const BatchedCommandRequest& request,
                                              BatchedCommandResponse* response);
 
     private:
-
         /**
          * Direct network check to see if a particular database does not already exist with the
          * same name or different case.
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/type_changelog.cpp b/src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.cpp
similarity index 98%
rename from src/mongo/s/type_changelog.cpp
rename to src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.cpp
index b4e68dba532..f73b90f72c0 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/type_changelog.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.cpp
@@ -25,7 +25,10 @@
  *    delete this exception statement from all source files in the program,
  *    then also delete it in the license file.
  */
-#include "mongo/s/type_changelog.h"
+
+#include "mongo/platform/basic.h"
+
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.h"
 
 #include "mongo/db/field_parser.h"
 #include "mongo/util/mongoutils/str.h"
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/type_changelog.h b/src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.h
similarity index 99%
rename from src/mongo/s/type_changelog.h
rename to src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.h
index 7cbe4e2addc..1124f6a16c3 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/type_changelog.h
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.h
@@ -31,7 +31,6 @@
 #include <string>
 
 #include "mongo/base/disallow_copying.h"
-#include "mongo/base/string_data.h"
 #include "mongo/db/jsobj.h"
 
 namespace mongo {
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/type_changelog_test.cpp b/src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog_test.cpp
similarity index 99%
rename from src/mongo/s/type_changelog_test.cpp
rename to src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog_test.cpp
index 4e53fffdd87..b2d45126acf 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/type_changelog_test.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog_test.cpp
@@ -26,7 +26,9 @@
  *    then also delete it in the license file.
  */
 
-#include "mongo/s/type_changelog.h"
+#include "mongo/platform/basic.h"
+
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/type_changelog.h"
 #include "mongo/unittest/unittest.h"
 #include "mongo/util/time_support.h"
 
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/chunk_manager.cpp b/src/mongo/s/chunk_manager.cpp
index 5d538025003..1bdff9c1a8e 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/chunk_manager.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/chunk_manager.cpp
@@ -673,7 +673,10 @@ namespace {
     void ChunkManager::drop() const {
         boost::lock_guard<boost::mutex> lk(_mutex);
 
-        configServer.logChange( "dropCollection.start" , _ns , BSONObj() );
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL,
+                                         "dropCollection.start",
+                                         _ns,
+                                         BSONObj());
 
         ScopedDistributedLock nsLock(configServer.getConnectionString(), _ns);
         nsLock.setLockMessage("drop");
@@ -762,7 +765,7 @@ namespace {
         }
 
         LOG(1) << "ChunkManager::drop : " << _ns << "\t DONE";
-        configServer.logChange( "dropCollection" , _ns , BSONObj() );
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL, "dropCollection", _ns, BSONObj());
     }
 
     ChunkVersion ChunkManager::getVersion(const std::string& shardName) const {
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.cpp b/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.cpp
index fc9e3b0167a..54f7257e607 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.cpp
@@ -38,11 +38,9 @@
 
 #include "mongo/client/connpool.h"
 #include "mongo/db/field_parser.h"
-#include "mongo/db/write_concern.h"
 #include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
 #include "mongo/s/cluster_write.h"
 #include "mongo/s/grid.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_changelog.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_mongos.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_shard.h"
 #include "mongo/util/log.h"
@@ -232,74 +230,6 @@ namespace mongo {
         return Status::OK();
     }
 
-    Status logConfigChange(const ConnectionString& configLoc,
-                           const string& clientHost,
-                           const string& ns,
-                           const string& description,
-                           const BSONObj& details)
-    {
-        //
-        // The code for writing to the changelog collection exists elsewhere - we duplicate here to
-        // avoid dependency issues.
-        // TODO: Merge again once config.cpp is cleaned up.
-        //
-
-        string changeID = stream() << getHostNameCached() << "-" << terseCurrentTime() << "-"
-                                   << OID::gen();
-
-        ChangelogType changelog;
-        changelog.setChangeID(changeID);
-        changelog.setServer(getHostNameCached());
-        changelog.setClientAddr(clientHost == "" ? "N/A" : clientHost);
-        changelog.setTime(jsTime());
-        changelog.setWhat(description);
-        changelog.setNS(ns);
-        changelog.setDetails(details);
-
-        log() << "about to log new metadata event: " << changelog.toBSON() << endl;
-
-        scoped_ptr<ScopedDbConnection> connPtr;
-
-        try {
-            connPtr.reset(new ScopedDbConnection(configLoc, 30));
-            ScopedDbConnection& conn = *connPtr;
-
-            // TODO: better way here
-            static bool createdCapped = false;
-            if (!createdCapped) {
-
-                try {
-                    conn->createCollection(ChangelogType::ConfigNS, 1024 * 1024 * 10, true);
-                }
-                catch (const DBException& e) {
-                    // don't care, someone else may have done this for us
-                    // if there's still a problem, caught in outer try
-                    LOG(1) << "couldn't create the changelog, continuing " << e << endl;
-                }
-
-                createdCapped = true;
-            }
-            connPtr->done();
-        }
-        catch (const DBException& e) {
-            // if we got here, it means the config change is only in the log,
-            // it didn't make it to config.changelog
-            log() << "not logging config change: " << changeID << causedBy(e) << endl;
-            return e.toStatus();
-        }
-
-        Status result = grid.catalogManager()->insert(ChangelogType::ConfigNS,
-                                                      changelog.toBSON(),
-                                                      NULL);
-        if (!result.isOK()) {
-            return Status(result.code(),
-                          str::stream() << "failed to write to changelog: "
-                                        << result.reason());
-        }
-
-        return result;
-    }
-
     // Helper function for safe cursors
     DBClientCursor* _safeCursor(auto_ptr<DBClientCursor> cursor) {
         // TODO: Make error handling more consistent, it's annoying that cursors error out by
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.h b/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.h
index 3bc5d30c72b..9302615cb60 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.h
+++ b/src/mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.h
@@ -57,17 +57,6 @@ namespace mongo {
     Status checkClusterMongoVersions(const ConnectionString& configLoc,
                                      const std::string& minMongoVersion);
 
-    /**
-     * Logs to the config.changelog collection
-     *
-     * Returns OK if loaded successfully, error Status if not.
-     */
-    Status logConfigChange(const ConnectionString& configLoc,
-                           const std::string& clientHost,
-                           const std::string& ns,
-                           const std::string& description,
-                           const BSONObj& details);
-
     //
     // Needed to normalize exception behavior of connections and cursors
     // TODO: Remove when we refactor the client connection interface to something more consistent.
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_move_primary_cmd.cpp b/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_move_primary_cmd.cpp
index 5a0c8b91de3..db7ab43780a 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_move_primary_cmd.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_move_primary_cmd.cpp
@@ -38,6 +38,8 @@
 #include "mongo/db/auth/authorization_session.h"
 #include "mongo/db/client_basic.h"
 #include "mongo/db/commands.h"
+#include "mongo/db/operation_context.h"
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
 #include "mongo/s/config.h"
 #include "mongo/s/distlock.h"
 #include "mongo/s/grid.h"
@@ -165,7 +167,7 @@ namespace {
                                                        s.toString(),
                                                        shardedColls);
 
-            configServer.logChange("movePrimary.start", dbname, moveStartDetails);
+            grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "movePrimary.start", dbname, moveStartDetails);
 
             BSONArrayBuilder barr;
             barr.append(shardedColls);
@@ -247,8 +249,8 @@ namespace {
                                                         oldPrimary,
                                                         s.toString(),
                                                         shardedColls);
-            configServer.logChange("movePrimary", dbname, moveFinishDetails);
 
+            grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "movePrimary", dbname, moveFinishDetails);
             return true;
         }
 
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_remove_shard_cmd.cpp b/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_remove_shard_cmd.cpp
index 4b7b970b79e..626aa4d5867 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_remove_shard_cmd.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/commands/cluster_remove_shard_cmd.cpp
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@
 #include "mongo/client/replica_set_monitor.h"
 #include "mongo/db/audit.h"
 #include "mongo/db/commands.h"
+#include "mongo/db/operation_context.h"
 #include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
 #include "mongo/s/client/shard_connection.h"
 #include "mongo/s/cluster_write.h"
@@ -204,10 +205,10 @@ namespace {
                 conn.done();
 
                 // Record start in changelog
-                configServer.logChange("removeShard.start",
-                                       "",
-                                       buildRemoveLogEntry(s, true));
-
+                grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn,
+                                                 "removeShard.start",
+                                                 "",
+                                                 buildRemoveLogEntry(s, true));
                 return true;
             }
 
@@ -246,8 +247,10 @@ namespace {
                 conn.done();
 
                 // Record finish in changelog
-                configServer.logChange("removeShard", "", buildRemoveLogEntry(s, false));
-
+                grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn,
+                                                 "removeShard",
+                                                 "",
+                                                 buildRemoveLogEntry(s, false));
                 return true;
             }
 
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/config.cpp b/src/mongo/s/config.cpp
index 89c6a60a362..04493ad098d 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/config.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/config.cpp
@@ -50,7 +50,6 @@
 #include "mongo/s/cluster_write.h"
 #include "mongo/s/grid.h"
 #include "mongo/s/server.h"
-#include "mongo/s/type_changelog.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_chunk.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_collection.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_database.h"
@@ -266,7 +265,10 @@ namespace mongo {
             collectionDetail.append("initShards", initialShards);
             collectionDetail.append("numChunks", (int)(initPoints->size() + 1));
 
-            configServer.logChange("shardCollection.start", ns, collectionDetail.obj());
+            grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL,
+                                             "shardCollection.start",
+                                             ns,
+                                             collectionDetail.obj());
 
             ChunkManager* cm = new ChunkManager( ns, fieldsAndOrder, unique );
             cm->createFirstChunks(configServer.getPrimary().getConnString(),
@@ -306,7 +308,8 @@ namespace mongo {
         // Record finish in changelog
         BSONObjBuilder finishDetail;
         finishDetail.append("version", manager->getVersion().toString());
-        configServer.logChange("shardCollection", ns, finishDetail.obj());
+
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL, "shardCollection", ns, finishDetail.obj());
 
         return manager;
     }
@@ -646,7 +649,7 @@ namespace mongo {
         return _load();
     }
 
-    bool DBConfig::dropDatabase( string& errmsg ) {
+    bool DBConfig::dropDatabase(string& errmsg) {
         /**
          * 1) make sure everything is up
          * 2) update config server
@@ -656,7 +659,7 @@ namespace mongo {
          */
 
         log() << "DBConfig::dropDatabase: " << _name << endl;
-        configServer.logChange( "dropDatabase.start" , _name , BSONObj() );
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL, "dropDatabase.start", _name, BSONObj());
 
         // 1
         if (!configServer.allUp(false, errmsg)) {
@@ -725,7 +728,8 @@ namespace mongo {
 
         LOG(1) << "\t dropped primary db for: " << _name << endl;
 
-        configServer.logChange( "dropDatabase" , _name , BSONObj() );
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL, "dropDatabase", _name, BSONObj());
+
         return true;
     }
 
@@ -1223,58 +1227,6 @@ namespace mongo {
         return name;
     }
 
-    /* must never throw */
-    void ConfigServer::logChange( const string& what , const string& ns , const BSONObj& detail ) {
-        string changeID;
-
-        try {
-            // get this entry's ID so we can use on the exception code path too
-            stringstream id;
-            id << getHostNameCached() << "-" << terseCurrentTime() << "-" << OID::gen();
-            changeID = id.str();
-
-            // send a copy of the message to the log in case it doesn't manage to reach config.changelog
-            Client* c = currentClient.get();
-            BSONObj msg = BSON( ChangelogType::changeID(changeID) <<
-                                ChangelogType::server(getHostNameCached()) <<
-                                ChangelogType::clientAddr((c ? c->clientAddress(true) : "N/A")) <<
-                                ChangelogType::time(jsTime()) <<
-                                ChangelogType::what(what) <<
-                                ChangelogType::ns(ns) <<
-                                ChangelogType::details(detail) );
-            log() << "about to log metadata event: " << msg << endl;
-
-            verify( _primary.ok() );
-
-            ScopedDbConnection conn(_primary.getConnString(), 30.0);
-
-            static bool createdCapped = false;
-            if ( ! createdCapped ) {
-                try {
-                    conn->createCollection( ChangelogType::ConfigNS , 1024 * 1024 * 10 , true );
-                }
-                catch ( UserException& e ) {
-                    LOG(1) << "couldn't create changelog (like race condition): " << e << endl;
-                    // don't care
-                }
-                createdCapped = true;
-            }
-
-            conn.done();
-
-            Status result = grid.catalogManager()->insert(ChangelogType::ConfigNS, msg, NULL);
-            if (!result.isOK()) {
-                log() << "Error encountered while logging config change with ID: " << changeID
-                      << result.reason();
-            }
-        }
-
-        catch ( std::exception& e ) {
-            // if we got here, it means the config change is only in the log; it didn't make it to config.changelog
-            log() << "not logging config change: " << changeID << " " << e.what() << endl;
-        }
-    }
-
     void ConfigServer::replicaSetChange(const string& setName, const string& newConnectionString) {
         // This is run in it's own thread. Exceptions escaping would result in a call to terminate.
         Client::initThread("replSetChange");
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/config.h b/src/mongo/s/config.h
index 143ffd28cc4..967594dd477 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/config.h
+++ b/src/mongo/s/config.h
@@ -237,17 +237,6 @@ namespace mongo {
 
         void reloadSettings();
 
-        /**
-         * Create a metadata change log entry in the config.changelog collection.
-         *
-         * @param what e.g. "split" , "migrate"
-         * @param ns to which collection the metadata change is being applied
-         * @param msg additional info about the metadata change
-         *
-         * This call is guaranteed never to throw.
-         */
-        void logChange( const std::string& what , const std::string& ns , const BSONObj& detail = BSONObj() );
-
         ConnectionString getConnectionString() const {
             return ConnectionString( _primary.getConnString() , ConnectionString::SYNC );
         }
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/config_upgrade.cpp b/src/mongo/s/config_upgrade.cpp
index b1efaa8bb39..c3c9f2952ae 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/config_upgrade.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/config_upgrade.cpp
@@ -34,8 +34,10 @@
 
 #include "mongo/base/init.h"
 #include "mongo/client/dbclientcursor.h"
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
 #include "mongo/s/cluster_client_internal.h"
 #include "mongo/s/distlock.h"
+#include "mongo/s/grid.h"
 #include "mongo/s/mongo_version_range.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_config_version.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_database.h"
@@ -353,8 +355,8 @@ namespace mongo {
                       const ConfigUpgradeRegistry& registry,
                       const VersionType& lastVersionInfo,
                       VersionType* upgradedVersionInfo,
-                      string* errMsg)
-    {
+                      string* errMsg) {
+
         int fromVersion = lastVersionInfo.getCurrentVersion();
 
         ConfigUpgradeRegistry::const_iterator foundIt = registry.find(fromVersion);
@@ -375,19 +377,10 @@ namespace mongo {
         log() << "starting next upgrade step from v" << fromVersion << " to v" << toVersion << endl;
 
         // Log begin to config.changelog
-        Status logStatus = logConfigChange(configLoc,
-                                           "",
-                                           VersionType::ConfigNS,
-                                           "starting upgrade of config database",
-                                           BSON("from" << fromVersion << "to" << toVersion));
-
-        if (!logStatus.isOK()) {
-
-            *errMsg = stream() << "could not write initial changelog entry for upgrade"
-                               << causedBy(logStatus);
-
-            return false;
-        }
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL,
+                                         "starting upgrade of config database",
+                                         VersionType::ConfigNS,
+                                         BSON("from" << fromVersion << "to" << toVersion));
 
         if (!upgrade.upgradeCallback(configLoc, lastVersionInfo, errMsg)) {
 
@@ -401,28 +394,16 @@ namespace mongo {
         Status verifyConfigStatus = getConfigVersion(configLoc, upgradedVersionInfo);
 
         if (!verifyConfigStatus.isOK()) {
-
             *errMsg = stream() << "failed to validate v" << fromVersion << " config version upgrade"
                                << causedBy(verifyConfigStatus);
 
             return false;
         }
 
-        // Log end to config.changelog
-        logStatus = logConfigChange(configLoc,
-                                    "",
-                                    VersionType::ConfigNS,
-                                    "finished upgrade of config database",
-                                    BSON("from" << fromVersion << "to" << toVersion));
-
-        if (!logStatus.isOK()) {
-
-            *errMsg = stream() << "could not write final changelog entry for upgrade"
-                               << causedBy(logStatus);
-
-            return false;
-        }
-
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL,
+                                         "finished upgrade of config database",
+                                         VersionType::ConfigNS,
+                                         BSON("from" << fromVersion << "to" << toVersion));
         return true;
     }
 
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/d_merge.cpp b/src/mongo/s/d_merge.cpp
index cf59ffafa11..77af1e3192c 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/d_merge.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/d_merge.cpp
@@ -28,14 +28,18 @@
 
 #define MONGO_LOG_DEFAULT_COMPONENT ::mongo::logger::LogComponent::kSharding
 
+#include "mongo/platform/basic.h"
+
 #include "mongo/base/owned_pointer_vector.h"
 #include "mongo/db/concurrency/d_concurrency.h"
 #include "mongo/db/namespace_string.h"
 #include "mongo/db/operation_context.h"
-#include "mongo/s/d_state.h"
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
+#include "mongo/s/chunk.h"
+#include "mongo/s/config.h"
 #include "mongo/s/distlock.h"
-#include "mongo/s/chunk.h"  // needed for genID
-#include "mongo/s/config.h" // needed for changelog write
+#include "mongo/s/d_state.h"
+#include "mongo/s/grid.h"
 #include "mongo/util/log.h"
 #include "mongo/util/mongoutils/str.h"
 
@@ -311,7 +315,7 @@ namespace mongo {
                                                     shardVersion,
                                                     mergeVersion );
 
-        configServer.logChange( "merge", nss.ns(), mergeLogEntry );
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "merge", nss.ns(), mergeLogEntry);
 
         return true;
     }
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/d_migrate.cpp b/src/mongo/s/d_migrate.cpp
index 72f1740ca8c..46967e8bed5 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/d_migrate.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/d_migrate.cpp
@@ -73,11 +73,13 @@
 #include "mongo/db/operation_context_impl.h"
 #include "mongo/db/write_concern.h"
 #include "mongo/logger/ramlog.h"
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
 #include "mongo/s/chunk.h"
 #include "mongo/s/chunk_version.h"
 #include "mongo/s/config.h"
 #include "mongo/s/d_state.h"
 #include "mongo/s/distlock.h"
+#include "mongo/s/grid.h"
 #include "mongo/s/shard.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_chunk.h"
 #include "mongo/util/assert_util.h"
@@ -175,7 +177,11 @@ namespace mongo {
                 if ( !_cmdErrmsg->empty() ) {
                     _b.append( "errmsg" , *_cmdErrmsg );
                 }
-                configServer.logChange( (string)"moveChunk." + _where , _ns, _b.obj() );
+
+                grid.catalogManager()->logChange(_txn,
+                                                 (string)"moveChunk." + _where,
+                                                 _ns,
+                                                 _b.obj());
             }
             catch ( const std::exception& e ) {
                 warning() << "couldn't record timing for moveChunk '" << _where << "': " << e.what() << migrateLog;
@@ -1183,7 +1189,8 @@ namespace mongo {
             BSONObj chunkInfo =
                 BSON("min" << min << "max" << max <<
                      "from" << fromShard.getName() << "to" << toShard.getName());
-            configServer.logChange("moveChunk.start", ns, chunkInfo);
+
+            grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "moveChunk.start", ns, chunkInfo);
 
             // Always refresh our metadata remotely
             ChunkVersion origShardVersion;
@@ -1719,9 +1726,11 @@ namespace mongo {
                 // 5.d
                 BSONObjBuilder commitInfo;
                 commitInfo.appendElements( chunkInfo );
-                if ( res["counts"].type() == Object )
-                    commitInfo.appendElements( res["counts"].Obj() );
-                configServer.logChange( "moveChunk.commit" , ns , commitInfo.obj() );
+                if (res["counts"].type() == Object) {
+                    commitInfo.appendElements(res["counts"].Obj());
+                }
+
+                grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "moveChunk.commit", ns, commitInfo.obj());
             }
 
             migrateFromStatus.done(txn);
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/d_split.cpp b/src/mongo/s/d_split.cpp
index 6d51cd229fa..e4816822502 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/d_split.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/d_split.cpp
@@ -50,11 +50,13 @@
 #include "mongo/db/instance.h"
 #include "mongo/db/jsobj.h"
 #include "mongo/db/query/internal_plans.h"
-#include "mongo/s/chunk.h" // for static genID only
+#include "mongo/s/catalog/catalog_manager.h"
+#include "mongo/s/chunk.h"
 #include "mongo/s/chunk_version.h"
 #include "mongo/s/config.h"
 #include "mongo/s/d_state.h"
 #include "mongo/s/distlock.h"
+#include "mongo/s/grid.h"
 #include "mongo/s/shard_key_pattern.h"
 #include "mongo/s/type_chunk.h"
 #include "mongo/util/log.h"
@@ -825,7 +827,8 @@ namespace mongo {
             if ( newChunks.size() == 2 ) {
                 appendShortVersion(logDetail.subobjStart("left"), *newChunks[0]);
                 appendShortVersion(logDetail.subobjStart("right"), *newChunks[1]);
-                configServer.logChange( "split" , ns , logDetail.obj() );
+
+                grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "split", ns, logDetail.obj());
             }
             else {
                 BSONObj beforeDetailObj = logDetail.obj();
@@ -838,7 +841,8 @@ namespace mongo {
                     chunkDetail.append( "number", i+1 );
                     chunkDetail.append( "of" , newChunksSize );
                     appendShortVersion(chunkDetail.subobjStart("chunk"), *newChunks[i]);
-                    configServer.logChange( "multi-split" , ns , chunkDetail.obj() );
+
+                    grid.catalogManager()->logChange(txn, "multi-split", ns, chunkDetail.obj());
                 }
             }
 
diff --git a/src/mongo/s/grid.cpp b/src/mongo/s/grid.cpp
index cf771d0bb9e..a7afa6e8dc7 100644
--- a/src/mongo/s/grid.cpp
+++ b/src/mongo/s/grid.cpp
@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@
 
 #include "mongo/client/connpool.h"
 #include "mongo/client/replica_set_monitor.h"
+#include "mongo/db/client.h"
 #include "mongo/db/json.h"
 #include "mongo/db/namespace_string.h"
 #include "mongo/db/write_concern.h"
@@ -479,7 +480,8 @@ namespace mongo {
         BSONObjBuilder shardDetails;
         shardDetails.append("name", *name);
         shardDetails.append("host", servers.toString());
-        configServer.logChange("addShard", "", shardDetails.obj());
+
+        grid.catalogManager()->logChange(NULL, "addShard", "", shardDetails.obj());
 
         return true;
     }