elasticsearch/docs/reference/monitoring/configuring-filebeat.asciidoc

[role="xpack"]
[[configuring-filebeat]]
== Collecting {es} log data with {filebeat}

[subs="attributes"]
++++
<titleabbrev>Collecting log data with {filebeat}</titleabbrev>
++++

You can use {filebeat} to monitor the {es} log files, collect log events, and
ship them to the monitoring cluster. Your recent logs are visible on the
*Monitoring* page in {kib}.

//NOTE: The tagged regions are re-used in the Stack Overview.

. Verify that {es} is running and that the monitoring cluster is ready to
receive data from {filebeat}.
+
--
TIP: In production environments, we strongly recommend using a separate cluster 
(referred to as the _monitoring cluster_) to store the data. Using a separate 
monitoring cluster prevents production cluster outages from impacting your 
ability to access your monitoring data. It also prevents monitoring activities 
from impacting the performance of your production cluster. See
<<monitoring-production>>.

--

. Identify which logs you want to monitor. 
+
--
The {filebeat} {es} module can handle
<<audit-log-output,audit logs>>,
<<deprecation-logging,deprecation logs>>,
<<gc-logging,gc logs>>, <<logging,server logs>>, and 
<<index-modules-slowlog,slow logs>>.
For more information about the location of your {es} logs, see the
<<path-settings,path.logs>> setting.

IMPORTANT: If there are both structured (`*.json`) and unstructured (plain text)
versions of the logs, you must use the structured logs. Otherwise, they might
not appear in the appropriate context in {kib}.

--

. {filebeat-ref}/filebeat-installation-configuration.html[Install {filebeat}] on the {es}
nodes that contain logs that you want to monitor.

. Identify where to send the log data.
+
--
// tag::output-elasticsearch[]
For example, specify {es} output information for your monitoring cluster in
the {filebeat} configuration file (`filebeat.yml`):

[source,yaml]
----------------------------------
output.elasticsearch:
  # Array of hosts to connect to.
  hosts: ["http://es-mon-1:9200", "http://es-mon-2:9200"] <1>

  # Optional protocol and basic auth credentials.
  #protocol: "https"
  #username: "elastic"
  #password: "changeme"
----------------------------------
<1> In this example, the data is stored on a monitoring cluster with nodes 
`es-mon-1` and `es-mon-2`. 

If you configured the monitoring cluster to use encrypted communications, you
must access it via HTTPS. For example, use a `hosts` setting like
`https://es-mon-1:9200`.

IMPORTANT: The {es} {monitor-features} use ingest pipelines, therefore the
cluster that stores the monitoring data must have at least one 
<<ingest,ingest node>>.
 
If {es} {security-features} are enabled on the monitoring cluster, you must
provide a valid user ID and password so that {filebeat} can send metrics 
successfully. 

For more information about these configuration options, see 
{filebeat-ref}/elasticsearch-output.html[Configure the {es} output].
// end::output-elasticsearch[]
--

. Optional: Identify where to visualize the data.
+
--
// tag::setup-kibana[]
{filebeat} provides example {kib} dashboards, visualizations and searches. To
load the dashboards into the appropriate {kib} instance, specify the
`setup.kibana` information in the {filebeat} configuration file
(`filebeat.yml`) on each node:

[source,yaml]
----------------------------------
setup.kibana:
  host: "localhost:5601"
  #username: "my_kibana_user"
  #password: "YOUR_PASSWORD"
----------------------------------

TIP: In production environments, we strongly recommend using a dedicated {kib} 
instance for your monitoring cluster.

If {security-features} are enabled, you must provide a valid user ID and
password so that {filebeat} can connect to {kib}: 

.. Create a user on the monitoring cluster that has the 
<<built-in-roles,`kibana_admin` built-in role>> or equivalent
privileges.

.. Add the `username` and `password` settings to the {es} output information in 
the {filebeat} configuration file. The example shows a hard-coded password, but
you should store sensitive values in the
{filebeat-ref}/keystore.html[secrets keystore].

See {filebeat-ref}/setup-kibana-endpoint.html[Configure the {kib} endpoint].

// end::setup-kibana[]
--

. Enable the {es} module and set up the initial {filebeat} environment on each
node.
+
--
// tag::enable-es-module[]
For example:

["source","sh",subs="attributes,callouts"]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
filebeat modules enable elasticsearch
filebeat setup -e
----------------------------------------------------------------------

For more information, see  
{filebeat-ref}/filebeat-module-elasticsearch.html[{es} module]. 

// end::enable-es-module[]
--

. Configure the {es} module in {filebeat} on each node.
+
--
// tag::configure-es-module[]
If the logs that you want to monitor aren't in the default location, set the
appropriate path variables in the `modules.d/elasticsearch.yml` file. See
{filebeat-ref}/filebeat-module-elasticsearch.html#configuring-elasticsearch-module[Configure the {es} module].

IMPORTANT: If there are JSON logs, configure the `var.paths` settings to point
to them instead of the plain text logs.

// end::configure-es-module[]
--

. {filebeat-ref}/filebeat-starting.html[Start {filebeat}] on each node. 
+
--
NOTE: Depending on how you’ve installed {filebeat}, you might see errors related
to file ownership or permissions when you try to run {filebeat} modules. See
{beats-ref}/config-file-permissions.html[Config file ownership and permissions].

--

. Check whether the appropriate indices exist on the monitoring cluster.
+
--
For example, use the <<cat-indices,cat indices>> command to verify
that there are new `filebeat-*` indices. 

TIP: If you want to use the *Monitoring* UI in {kib}, there must also be 
`.monitoring-*` indices. Those indices are generated when you collect metrics
about {stack} products. For example, see <<configuring-metricbeat>>.

--

. {kibana-ref}/monitoring-data.html[View the monitoring data in {kib}].