Deployment Architecture

Configured but inactive Splunk-2-Splunk Forwards

barryv
Explorer

Hello,

I am trying to install a light forwarder and I am kind of stumped.

I did the following steps:

sudo /opt/splunk/bin/splunk start
sudo /opt/splunk/bin/splunk enable app SplunkLightForwarder -auth admin
sudo /opt/splunk/bin/splunk restart
./splunk add forward-server   myserver.com:9997 -auth admin
sudo /opt/splunk/bin/splunk restart

And at the end I get:

Active Splunk-2-Splunk Forwards:
        None
Configured but inactive Splunk-2-Splunk Forwards:
        myserver.com:9997

Two issues I can think of are that my indexer is 4.1.4 while forwarder is 4.1.5 - is that a problem? Also, how do I check if splunk runs into any firewall issue?

I know the Indexer is fine, as I have another splunk forwarder working fine.

Any Ideas how I make the forwarder active? How do I debug this?

Thanks!

Tags (1)

miteshvohra
Contributor

No firewall, SearchHead, Indexer and UF all three on different Ubuntu Linux (64-bit) boxes.

0 Karma

ta_viewpointcs
Engager

This is happening to me with firewall turned OFF and forwarder version 5.03 in Windows.

0 Karma

gregcoats
Explorer

I experienced this same "Configured but inactive forwards" problem. For me, the firewall was not the issue. Splunk Support confirmed to me that there is a bug in Splunk forwarder 5.0.1. I posted the details of the successful work around solution at

http://splunk-base.splunk.com/answers/70729/

barryv
Explorer

I have solved this to be a firewall issue. Port 9997 was blocked on the forwarder. Would be nice to have some indication of this from splunk.

colares
Engager

Worked for me. ex.:
(ubuntu)
sudo ufw allow 9997

0 Karma
Got questions? Get answers!

Join the Splunk Community Slack to learn, troubleshoot, and make connections with fellow Splunk practitioners in real time!

Meet up IRL or virtually!

Join Splunk User Groups to connect and learn in-person by region or remotely by topic or industry.

Get Updates on the Splunk Community!

[Puzzles] Solve, Learn, Repeat: Matching cron expressions

This puzzle (first published here) is based on matching timestamps to cron expressions.All the timestamps ...

Design, Compete, Win: Submit Your Best Splunk Dashboards for a .conf26 Pass

Hello Splunkers,  We’re excited to kick off a Splunk Dashboard contest! We know that dashboards are a primary ...

May 2026 Splunk Expert Sessions: Security & Observability

Level Up Your Operations: May 2026 Splunk Expert Sessions Whether you are refining your security posture or ...