Winlogbeat Configuration

• Download the Winlogbeat Windows zip file from the official downloads page.

• Extract the contents of the zip file into C:\Program Files.

• Rename the winlogbeat-<version> directory to Winlogbeat.

• Open a PowerShell prompt as an Administrator (right-click the PowerShell icon and select Run As Administrator). If you are running Windows XP, you may need to download and install PowerShell.

• Run the following commands to install Winlogbeat as a Windows service:

  PS C:\Users\Administrator> cd 'C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat'
  PS C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat> .\install-service-winlogbeat.ps1
  
  Security warning
  Run only scripts that you trust. While scripts from the internet can be useful,
  this script can potentially harm your computer. If you trust this script, use
  the Unblock-File cmdlet to allow the script to run without this warning message.
  Do you want to run C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat\install-service-winlogbeat.ps1?
  [D] Do not run  [R] Run once  [S] Suspend  [?] Help (default is "D"): R
  
  Status   Name               DisplayName
  ------   ----               -----------
  Stopped  winlogbeat         winlogbeat
  

  

  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-winlogbeat.ps1

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

Copy the configuration file below and overwrite the contents of the Winlogbeat configuration file typically located at C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat\winlogbeat.yml

winlogbeat.event_logs:
- name: Application
ignore_older: 72h
- name: System
- name: Security

fields:
  type: wineventlog

fields_under_root: true

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

It’s a good idea to run the configuration file through a YAML validator to rule out indentation errors, clean up extra characters, and check if your YAML file is valid. Yamllint.com is a great choice.

Let's check the configuration file is syntactically correct.

PS C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat> .\winlogbeat.exe test config -c .\winlogbeat.yml -e

Ok, time to start ingesting data!

PS C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat> Start-Service winlogbeat

Winlogbeat should now be running. If you used the configuration described here, then you can view the log file at C:\ProgramData\winlogbeat\Logs\winlogbeat.

You can view the status of the service and control it from the Services management console in Windows. To launch the management console, run this command:

PS C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat> services.msc

Now you should view your data:

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.

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.

Stop the Winlogbeat service with the following command:

PS C:\Program Files\Winlogbeat> Stop-Service winlogbeat

Winlogbeat is a logging agent maintained by Elastic for the purposes of collecting Windows event logs. It is part of the beats family that makes up the Elastic Stack. Winlogbeat can read events from any event log channel using the Windows OS.

Windows log data once centralised in the ELK stack can be monitored for anomaly detection & other security-related incidents including unauthorised access and backdoor installations. These logs can also deliver metrics to Kibana allowing you to create visualisations & security reports easily.

If you need any further assistance with migrating your Winlogbeat logs to Logstash we're here to help you get started. Feel free to reach out by contacting our support team by visiting our dedicated Help Centre or via live chat & we'll be happy to assist.