Splunk Essentials - Second Edition

Betsy Page Sigman, Erickson Delgado

• Publisher: Packt Publishing
• Year: 2016
• eBook ISBN: 9781785882135
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Computer Science General
• Index: Computer Science

A fast-paced and practical guide to demystifying big data and transforming it into operational intelligenceAbout This Book• Want to get started with Splunk to analyze and visualize machine data? Open this book and step into the world of Splunk.• Leverage the exceptional analysis and visualization capabilities to make informed decisions for your business• This easy-to-follow, practical book can be used by anyone, even if you have never managed any data beforeWho This Book Is ForThis book will be perfect for you if you are a Software engineer or developer or System administrators or Business analyst who seek to correlate machine data with business metrics and provide intuitive real-time and statistical visualizations. Some knowledge or experience of previous versions of Splunk will be helpful but not essential.What You Will Learn• Install and configure Splunk• Gather data from different sources, isolate them by indexes, classify them into source types, and tag them with the essential fields• Be comfortable with the Search Processing Language and get to know the best practices in writing search queries• Create stunning and powerful dashboards• Be proactive by implementing alerts and scheduled reports• Use the Splunk SDK and integrate Splunk data into other applications• Implement the best practices in using Splunk.In DetailSplunk is a search, analysis, and reporting platform for machine data, which has a high adoption on the market. More and more organizations want to adopt Splunk to use their data to make informed decisions.This book is for anyone who wants to manage data with Splunk. You'll start with very basics of Splunk— installing Splunk—and then move on to searching machine data with Splunk. You will gather data from different sources, isolate them by indexes, classify them into source types, and tag them with the essential fields. After this, you will learn to create various reports, XML forms, and alerts. You will then continue using the Pivot Model to transform the data models into visualization. You will also explore visualization with D3 in Splunk. Finally you'll be provided with some real-world best practices in using Splunk.Style and approachThis fast-paced, example-rich guide will help you analyze and visualize machine data with Splunk through simple, practical instructions.

Splunk Essentials Second Edition

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Splunk Essentials Second Edition

Copyright © 2016 Packt Publishing

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.

Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the authors, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book.

Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.

First published: February 2015

Second Edition: September 2016

Production reference: 1260916

Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.

Livery Place

35 Livery Street

Birmingham B3 2PB, UK.

ISBN 978-1-78588-946-2

www.packtpub.com

Credits

Authors Betsy Page Sigman Erickson Delgado	Copy Editor Safis Editing
Reviewer Somesh Soni	Project Coordinator Suzanne Coutinho
Commissioning Editor Veena Pagare	Proofreader Safis Editing
Acquisition Editor Vinay Argekar	Indexer Rekha Nair
Content Development Editor Nikhil Borkar	Production Coordinator Aparna Bhagat
Technical Editor Madhunikita Sunil Chindarkar

About the Authors

Betsy Page Sigman is a distinguished professor at the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. She has taught courses in statistics, project management, databases, and electronic commerce for the last 17 years and has been recognized with awards for teaching and service. Before arriving at Georgetown, she worked at George Mason University, the U.S. Bureau of the Census, Decision/Making/Information, the American Enterprise Institute, and the Social Science Data Center (now Roper Center) at the University of Connecticut.

Her recent publications include a Harvard Business case study and a Harvard Business review article, articles in the Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education and Decision Line, and a case study in Educause Review Online. Additionally, she is a frequent media commentator on technological issues and big data.

A big thank you to Nikhil Borkar and Vinay Argekar and the other editors and staff at Packt Publishing for your help in every step along the way to finishing this book. Thanks also to my colleagues and students at the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. Thanks especially to Bill Garr, Rob Pongsajapan, Marie Selvanandin, and Kristin Bolling, and the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS), for exploring the exciting world of big data and Splunk together. It has been a wonderful place to learn, grow, and serve for the last 16 years.

I need to thank my brothers, Tim and Rick Page, for being there to challenge and encourage me throughout my life. Most of all, I want to thank my brilliant and wonderful husband, Chuck, my astonishing daughter and son-in-law, Page and Daniel Thies, and my three sons. Johnny, thanks for always inspiring me technologically; Richard, thanks for your sense of humor that keeps us all laughing; and James, thanks for always being there for all of us. Edward and Peter, the grandsons who light up all our lives, are too young to read this now. They were born into an extraordinary world—one that I hope and pray technology will continue to improve.

Erickson Delgado is an enterprise architect who loves to mine and analyze data. He began using Splunk in version 4.0 and has pioneered the use of the application in his current work. In the earlier parts of his career, he worked with start-up companies in the Philippines to help build their open source infrastructure. He then worked in the cruise industry as a shipboard IT manager, and he loved it. From there, he was recruited to work at the company’s headquarters as a software engineer.

He has developed applications with Python and Node.js. He is interested in Go and is rediscovering programming with C/C++. He is crazy about visualization platforms and tools. In recent years, he has engaged himself with employing DevOps in his work.

Since Erickson’s routine revolves around technical practices, he blows off steam by saltwater fishing, mountain biking, crafting robots, and touring the country. He lives in Orlando.

To my wife, Emma, thank you for the never-ending support and patience.

About the Reviewer

Somesh Soni is a Splunk consultant with over 11 years of IT experience. He has a bachelor's degree (Hons.) in computer science and has been interested in exploring and learning new technologies throughout his life. He has extensive experience in consulting, architecture, administration, and development in Splunk. He’s proficient in various programming languages and tools, including C#.NET/VB.NET, SSIS, and SQL Server.

Somesh is currently working as a Splunk Master with Randstad Technologies. His activities are focused on consulting, implementation...

Table of contents

• Splunk Essentials Second Edition