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Filebeat Configuration

A log shipper designed for files.

Filebeat is an open source shipping agent that lets you ship logs from local files to one or more destinations, including Logstash.

Send Your DataLogsShippersFilebeat Configuration Guide

Follow this step by step guide to get 'logs' from your system to Logit.io:

Step 1 - Install Filebeat

To get started you will need to install filebeat. To do this you have two main options:

To successfully install filebeat and set up the required Windows service you will need to have administrator access.

If you have chosen to download the zip file:

  • Extract the contents of the zip file into C:\Program Files.
  • Rename the extracted folder to filebeat
  • Open a PowerShell prompt as an Administrator (right-click the PowerShell icon and select Run As Administrator).
  • From the PowerShell prompt, run the following commands to install filebeat as a Windows service:
cd 'C:\Program Files\filebeat'
.\install-service-filebeat.ps1

If script execution is disabled on your system, you need to set the execution policy for the current session to allow the script to run. For example:

PowerShell.exe -ExecutionPolicy UnRestricted -File .\install-service-filebeat.ps1

For more information about Powershell execution policies see here

If you have chosen to download the filebeat .msi file:

  • double-click on it and the relevant files will be downloaded.

At the end of the installation process you'll be given the option to open the folder where filebeat has been installed.

  • Open a PowerShell prompt as an Administrator (right-click the PowerShell icon and select Run As Administrator).
  • From the PowerShell prompt, change directory to the location where filebeat was installed and run the following command to install filebeat as a Windows service:
.\install-service-filebeat.ps1

If script execution is disabled on your system, you need to set the execution policy for the current session to allow the script to run. For example:

PowerShell.exe -ExecutionPolicy UnRestricted -File .\install-service-filebeat.ps1

For more information about Powershell execution policies see here

To get started you will need to install filebeat. To do this you have two main options:

  • Choose the AMD / Intel file (x86_64) or
  • Choose the ARM file (arm64)

You can tell if you have a Linux PC with an AMD / Intel CPU (kernel) architecture by opening a terminal and running the uname -m command. If it displays x86_64 you have AMD / Intel architecture.

To successfully install filebeat you will need to have root access.

If you have an x86_64 system download and extract the contents of the file using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-linux-x86_64.tar.gz
tar xzvf filebeat-8.12.2-linux-x86_64.tar.gz

If you have an arm64 system download and extract the contents of the file using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-linux-arm64.tar.gz
tar xzvf filebeat-8.12.2-linux-arm64.tar.gz

To get started you will need to install filebeat. To do this you have two main options:

  • Choose the AMD / Intel file (x86_64) or
  • Choose the ARM file (aarch64)

You can tell if you have a Mac with an ARM CPU architecture by opening the Terminal application and running the arch command. If it displays arm64 you have ARM architecture.

To successfully install filebeat you will need to have root access.

If you have an x86_64 system download and extract the contents of the file using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-darwin-x86_64.tar.gz
tar xzvf filebeat-8.12.2-darwin-x86_64.tar.gz

If you have an aarch64 system download and extract the contents of the file using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-darwin-aarch64.tar.gz
tar xzvf filebeat-8.12.2-darwin-aarch64.tar.gz

To get started you will need to install filebeat. To do this you have two main options:

  • Choose the AMD / Intel file (x86_64) or
  • Choose the ARM file (aarch64)

You can tell if you have a PC with an ARM CPU architecture by opening the Terminal application and running the arch command. If it displays arm64 you have ARM architecture.

To successfully install filebeat you will need to have root access.

If you have an x86_64 system download and install filebeat using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i filebeat-8.12.2-amd64.deb

If you have an aarch64 system download and install filebeat using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-arm64.deb
sudo dpkg -i filebeat-8.12.2-arm64.deb

To get started you will need to install filebeat. To do this you have two main options:

  • Choose the AMD / Intel file (x86_64) or
  • Choose the ARM file (aarch64)

You can tell if you have a PC with an ARM CPU architecture by opening the Terminal application and running the arch command. If it displays arm64 you have ARM architecture.

To successfully install filebeat you will need to have root access.

If you have an x86_64 system download and install filebeat using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-x86_64.rpm
sudo rpm -vi filebeat-8.12.2-x86_64.rpm

If you have an aarch64 system download and install filebeat using the following commands:

curl -L -O https://artifacts.elastic.co/downloads/beats/filebeat/filebeat-8.12.2-aarch64.rpm
sudo rpm -vi filebeat-8.12.2-aarch64.rpm

Step 2 - Update your configuration file

The configuration file below is pre-configured to send data to your Logit.io Stack via Logstash.

Note: Please make sure the 'paths' field in the Filebeat inputs section and the 'hosts' field in the Logstash outputs section are correctly populated. If you are logged into your Logit.io account the 'hosts' field should have been pre-populated with the correct values. The 'paths' field will need to be set to the location of the logs you want to send to your Stack e.g. - /Windows/DtcInstall.log is a log file called DtcInstall.log located in C:/Windows.

Copy the configuration file below (making the above changes as necessary) and overwrite the contents of filebeat.yml (this file can be found in the location where you installed Filebeat in the previous step. If it is missing create a new file with that name and populate it with the configuration details below).

###################### Logit.io Filebeat Configuration ########################
# ============================== Filebeat inputs ==============================
filebeat.inputs:
- type: filestream
  enabled: true
  paths:
    # REQUIRED: Change the path to your logs:
    - C:\Windows\System32\winevt\Logs\*
    
  fields:
    type: logfile
               
# ============================== Filebeat modules ==============================
filebeat.config.modules:
  path: ${path.config}/modules.d/*.yml
  reload.enabled: false
  #reload.period: 10s

# ================================== Outputs ===================================
# ------------------------------ Logstash Output -------------------------------
output.logstash:
    hosts: ["your-logstash-host:your-ssl-port"]
    loadbalance: true
    ssl.enabled: true

# ================================= Processors =================================
processors:
  - add_host_metadata:
      when.not.contains.tags: forwarded
  - add_cloud_metadata: ~
  - add_docker_metadata: ~
  - add_kubernetes_metadata: ~

The configuration file below is pre-configured to send data to your Logit.io Stack via Logstash.

Note: Please make sure the 'paths' field in the Filebeat inputs section and the 'hosts' field in the Logstash outputs section are correctly populated. If you are logged into your Logit.io account the 'hosts' field should have been pre-populated with the correct values. The 'paths' field will need to be set to the location of the logs you want to send to your Stack.

Copy the configuration file below (making the above changes as necessary) and overwrite the contents of filebeat.yml (this file can be found in the location where you installed Filebeat in the previous step).

###################### Logit.io Filebeat Configuration ########################
# ============================== Filebeat inputs ==============================
filebeat.inputs:
- type: filestream
  enabled: true
  id: my_unique_id
  paths:
    # REQUIRED CHANGE TO YOUR LOGS PATH
    - /var/log/*.log
    
  fields:
    type: logfile
             
# ============================== Filebeat modules ==============================
filebeat.config.modules:
  path: ${path.config}/modules.d/*.yml
  reload.enabled: false
  #reload.period: 10s

# ================================== Outputs ===================================
# ------------------------------ Logstash Output -------------------------------
output.logstash:
    hosts: ["your-logstash-host:your-ssl-port"]
    loadbalance: true
    ssl.enabled: true

# ================================= Processors =================================
processors:
  - add_host_metadata:
      when.not.contains.tags: forwarded
  - add_cloud_metadata: ~
  - add_docker_metadata: ~
  - add_kubernetes_metadata: ~

The configuration file below is pre-configured to send data to your Logit.io Stack via Logstash.

Note: Please make sure the 'paths' field in the Filebeat inputs section and the 'hosts' field in the Logstash outputs section are correctly populated. If you are logged into your Logit.io account the 'hosts' field should have been pre-populated with the correct values. The 'paths' field will need to be set to the location of the logs you want to send to your Stack.

Copy the configuration file below (making the above changes as necessary) and overwrite the contents of filebeat.yml (this file can be found in the location where you installed Filebeat in the previous step).

###################### Logit.io Filebeat Configuration ########################
# ============================== Filebeat inputs ==============================
filebeat.inputs:
- type: filestream
  enabled: true
  id: my_unique_id
  paths:
    # REQUIRED CHANGE TO YOUR LOGS PATH
    - /var/log/*.log
    
  fields:
    type: logfile
             
# ============================== Filebeat modules ==============================
filebeat.config.modules:
  path: ${path.config}/modules.d/*.yml
  reload.enabled: false
  #reload.period: 10s

# ================================== Outputs ===================================
# ------------------------------ Logstash Output -------------------------------
output.logstash:
    hosts: ["your-logstash-host:your-ssl-port"]
    loadbalance: true
    ssl.enabled: true

# ================================= Processors =================================
processors:
  - add_host_metadata:
      when.not.contains.tags: forwarded
  - add_cloud_metadata: ~
  - add_docker_metadata: ~
  - add_kubernetes_metadata: ~

The configuration file below is pre-configured to send data to your Logit.io Stack via Logstash.

Note: Please make sure the 'paths' field in the Filebeat inputs section and the 'hosts' field in the Logstash outputs section are correctly populated. If you are logged into your Logit.io account the 'hosts' field should have been pre-populated with the correct values. The 'paths' field will need to be set to the location of the logs you want to send to your Stack.

Copy the configuration file below (making the above changes as necessary) and overwrite the contents of filebeat.yml (this file can be found in the location where you installed Filebeat in the previous step).

###################### Logit.io Filebeat Configuration ########################
# ============================== Filebeat inputs ==============================
filebeat.inputs:
- type: filestream
  enabled: true
  id: my_unique_id
  paths:
    # REQUIRED CHANGE TO YOUR LOGS PATH
    - /var/log/*.log
    
  fields:
    type: logfile
             
# ============================== Filebeat modules ==============================
filebeat.config.modules:
  path: ${path.config}/modules.d/*.yml
  reload.enabled: false
  #reload.period: 10s

# ================================== Outputs ===================================
# ------------------------------ Logstash Output -------------------------------
output.logstash:
    hosts: ["your-logstash-host:your-ssl-port"]
    loadbalance: true
    ssl.enabled: true

# ================================= Processors =================================
processors:
  - add_host_metadata:
      when.not.contains.tags: forwarded
  - add_cloud_metadata: ~
  - add_docker_metadata: ~
  - add_kubernetes_metadata: ~

The configuration file below is pre-configured to send data to your Logit.io Stack via Logstash.

Note: Please make sure the 'paths' field in the Filebeat inputs section and the 'hosts' field in the Logstash outputs section are correctly populated. If you are logged into your Logit.io account the 'hosts' field should have been pre-populated with the correct values. The 'paths' field will need to be set to the location of the logs you want to send to your Stack.

Copy the configuration file below (making the above changes as necessary) and overwrite the contents of filebeat.yml (this file can be found in the location where you installed Filebeat in the previous step).

###################### Logit.io Filebeat Configuration ########################
# ============================== Filebeat inputs ==============================
filebeat.inputs:
- type: filestream
  enabled: true
  id: my_unique_id
  paths:
    # REQUIRED CHANGE TO YOUR LOGS PATH
    - /var/log/*.log
    
  fields:
    type: logfile
             
# ============================== Filebeat modules ==============================
filebeat.config.modules:
  path: ${path.config}/modules.d/*.yml
  reload.enabled: false
  #reload.period: 10s

# ================================== Outputs ===================================
# ------------------------------ Logstash Output -------------------------------
output.logstash:
    hosts: ["your-logstash-host:your-ssl-port"]
    loadbalance: true
    ssl.enabled: true

# ================================= Processors =================================
processors:
  - add_host_metadata:
      when.not.contains.tags: forwarded
  - add_cloud_metadata: ~
  - add_docker_metadata: ~
  - add_kubernetes_metadata: ~

Step 3 - Validate configuration

.\filebeat.exe -e -c filebeat.yml
If the yml file is invalid, filebeat will print an `error loading config file` error message with details on how to correct the problem. If you have issues starting filebeat see "How To Diagnose No Data In Stack" below to troubleshoot.
sudo ./filebeat -e -c filebeat.yml --strict.perms=false

You’ll be running filebeat as root, so you need to change ownership of the configuration file and any configurations enabled in the modules.d directory, or run filebeat with --strict.perms=false as shown above. Read more about how to change ownership.

If the yml file is invalid, filebeat will print an `error loading config file` error message with details on how to correct the problem. If you have issues starting filebeat see "How To Diagnose No Data In Stack" below to troubleshoot.
sudo ./filebeat -e -c filebeat.yml --strict.perms=false

You’ll be running filebeat as root, so you need to change ownership of the configuration file and any configurations enabled in the modules.d directory, or run filebeat with --strict.perms=false as shown above. Read more about how to change ownership.

If the yml file is invalid, filebeat will print an `error loading config file` error message with details on how to correct the problem. If you have issues starting filebeat see "How To Diagnose No Data In Stack" below to troubleshoot.
sudo filebeat -e -c /etc/filebeat/filebeat.yml
If the yml file is invalid, filebeat will print an `error loading config file` error message with details on how to correct the problem. If you have issues starting filebeat see "How To Diagnose No Data In Stack" below to troubleshoot.
sudo filebeat -e -c /etc/filebeat/filebeat.yml
If the yml file is invalid, filebeat will print an `error loading config file` error message with details on how to correct the problem. If you have issues starting filebeat see "How To Diagnose No Data In Stack" below to troubleshoot.

Step 4 - Start filebeat

To start Filebeat, run in Powershell:

Start-Service filebeat

To start Filebeat, run:

sudo chown root filebeat.yml 
sudo chown root modules.d/{modulename}.yml 
sudo ./filebeat -e

You’ll be running filebeat as root, so you need to change ownership of the configuration file and any configurations enabled in the modules.d directory, or run filebeat with --strict.perms=false as shown above. Read more about how to change ownership.

To start Filebeat, run:

sudo chown root filebeat.yml 
sudo chown root modules.d/{modulename}.yml 
sudo ./filebeat -e

You’ll be running filebeat as root, so you need to change ownership of the configuration file and any configurations enabled in the modules.d directory, or run filebeat with --strict.perms=false as shown above. Read more about how to change ownership.

To start Filebeat, run:

sudo service filebeat start

To start Filebeat, run:

sudo service filebeat start

Step 5 - Check Logit.io for your logs

Data should now have been sent to your Stack.

View my data

If you don't see logs take a look at How to diagnose no data in Stack below for how to diagnose common issues.

Step 6 - How to diagnose no data in Stack

If you don't see data appearing in your Stack after following the steps, visit the Help Centre guide for steps to diagnose no data appearing in your Stack or Chat to support now.

Step 7 - Filebeat Logging Overview

Filebeat is the most popular way to send logs to ELK due to its reliability & minimal memory footprint. It is the leading Beat out of the entire collection of open-source shipping tools, including Auditbeat, Metricbeat & Heartbeat.

Filebeat's origins begin from combining key features from Logstash-Forwarder & Lumberjack & is written in Go. Within the logging pipeline, Filebeat can generate, parse, tail & forward common logs to be indexed within Elasticsearch. The harvester is often compared to Logstash but it is not a suitable replacement & instead should be used in tandem for most use cases.

Earlier versions of Filebeat suffered from a very limited scope & only allowed the user to send events to Logstash & Elasticsearch. More recent versions of the shipper have been updated to be compatible with Redis & Kafka.

A misconfigured Filebeat setup can lead to many complex logging concerns that this filebeat.yml wizard aims to solve. Just a couple of examples of these include excessively large registry files & file handlers that error frequently when encountering deleted or renamed log files. Tracking numerous pipelines using this shipper can become tedious for self hosted Elastic Stacks so you may wish to consider our Hosted ELK service as a solution to this.

If you need any further assistance with migrating your log data to ELK we're here to help you get started. Feel free to get in contact with our support team by sending us a message via live chat & we'll be happy to assist.