What is Splunk Logging ? | The Ultimate Guide with Expert’s Top Picks

• In this article you will learn:
• 1.Introduction To a Splunk Logging.
• 2.Splunk `logging` with Java (with an example).
• 3.Steps to integrate Splunk with the Java project.
• 4.Use of a key-value pairs.
• 5.Use of an auth-actions.
• 6.Conclusion.

Introduction To a Splunk Logging:

Splunk is the software that enables a one to monitor, search, visualize and also to analyse a machine-generated to big-data using the web style interface.It is an advanced software that indexes and searches a log files stored on a system or like, alongside that, it is the scalable and potent software. Splunk bridges a gaps which a single simple log management software or the security information product or single event management product can manage all themselves.

Splunk `logging` with Java (with an example):

In order to look at a different possibilities of a logging examples, let us a configure Splunk on to a Java project environment and check how can leverage use of a Splunk.In order for to achieve this, there is a set of steps that are need to complete – and assuming that are everything is complete, will continue to look into the Java example and test our application with different combinations of logging with a Splunk.

Steps to integrate Splunk with the Java project:

• Add a Splunk logging to a Java project.
• Choose amongst available options and add a logging library.
• Open the TCP input on a Splunk instance to log on events to.
• Configure a logging system.
• Finally, use a SplunkCimLogEvent class to generate a log entries in presentable manner.

Considering that are able to configure a Splunk logging to the Java projects or any other programming languages that are intend to use Splunk with, will proceed with a logging examples.This topic briefs on the best possible ways as does when create an events for a Splunk Software to index.As per steps mentioned above, article in a time of its writings has chosen a Logback as its logging library and offers the necessary artifacts to get a UP and Running with the working example in Java.Considering that a Splunk Enterprise is running on a localhost and on the default port of 15000, let us now configure the TCPAppender to Logback as it doesn’t ship one on its by own.This configuration that has been provided the above, will ensure that can create with a log back library enabled logging on a Java project with the name my.splunk.logger which logs starting from a INFO messages to highest level of an ERROR messages.Now can create a own logging class by an importing com.splunk.logging.SplunkCimLogEvent and use that class to create the events for logging the necessary information at will.

Use of a key-value pairs:

• Log.debug(“orderStatus=error, errorcode=546, userId=%d, orderId=%s”, userId, orderId).
• This is one of best possible ways to add a debug details to the application log via Splunk or any other logging framework.
• For a Splunk’s usage, it is highly recommended that are log information in meaningful key and value pairs as a Splunk can put in its own set of the features like Reporting in use to offers meaningful details on analyzing a same.
• It becomes more simple for any to use a simple search (for example, orderStatus=error) to get a details all at once.
• Alongside that, if want to use a Splunk’s Reporting feature to grab a report based on order status, then it gets more easy (example, success=96%, error=3%, cancelled=1%).
• One of the best possible ways to the add key/value pairs to the logging is as shown below, same example that is considered above has been modified for a better understanding.
• logger.info(new SplunkCimLogEvent(“KeyValuePairEvent”, “keyValuePairEventID”).

Use of a stack-traces for your exceptions:

• Cases and scenarios where can expect that there can be an exceptions, can always rely on a stack trace of the exception to debug errored out scenario well.
• There is the way that you can achieve this using a Splunk to add a stack-trace related details along with a key/value pairs as shown in above example.
• But for now, will concentrate on a adding the necessary exception’s stack-trace in the logging source.

Use of an auth-actions:

Cases when need to log and check authentication-related activities, or even trace back all activities done by a specific user on the application – this comes into a perfect usage.Use a setAuthAction() method to specify a action performed on resource.

Conclusion:

In this article, have tried to demystify what a Splunk can do as standalone software and where its usages are can be.Have also tried to understand how to use a Splunk logging feature to analyse a application logs.Hope this article has provided all necessary details for to understand a concept altogether.