Getting Data In

Single events are combined into multi-line events

frankejj
Explorer

Hello,

I have a log file that is being indexed and many of the lines show up combined into multi-line events however there seems to be no logic behind the combining. Each line has a timestamp yet they are being combined regardless. I have no props.conf in this config - therefore I assume default line merging is in effect.

Example log data:

08:26:53,465 WARN [com.sap.ca.alfresco.base.repo.importer.SapImporterBootstrap] Skiping bootstrap

08:26:53,561 WARN [com.sap.ca.alfresco.base.repo.importer.SapImporterBootstrap] Skiping bootstrap

08:26:53,699 WARN [com.sap.ca.alfresco.base.repo.importer.SapImporterBootstrap] Skiping bootstrap

08:26:53,765 WARN [com.sap.ca.alfresco.base.repo.importer.SapImporterBootstrap] Skiping bootstrap

08:26:59,234 WARN [org.alfresco.repo.cache.TransactionalCache.org.alfresco.cache.avmNodeTransactionalCache] Transactional update cache 'org.alfresco.cache.avmNodeTransactionalCache' is full (5000).

08:27:05,532 WARN [org.alfresco.repo.cache.TransactionalCache.org.alfresco.cache.contentDataTransactionalCache] Transactional update cache 'org.alfresco.cache.contentDataTransactionalCache' is full (1000).

08:27:23,223 WARN [com.sap.ca.alfresco.base.repo.importer.SapImporterBootstrap] Skiping bootstrap

08:27:23,961 WARN [com.sap.ca.alfresco.base.repo.importer.SapImporterBootstrap] Skiping bootstrap

08:27:23,962 INFO [org.alfresco.repo.management.subsystems.ChildApplicationContextFactory] Starting 'OOoDirect' subsystem, ID: [OOoDirect, default]

08:27:23,988 INFO [org.alfresco.config.FixedPropertyPlaceholderConfigurer] Loading properties file from class path resource [alfresco/version.properties]

Result

The result is some of the lines are combined to multi-line and some are not but I cannot distinguish what is causing the combining/breaking.

Question

Is it possible to configure a regex to recognize the timestamp on the new line and then use props.conf to further configure the line breaking?

Thanks,
John

Tags (1)
0 Karma
1 Solution

mw
Splunk Employee
Splunk Employee

Probably an issue with the timestamps. See if this helps:

# props.conf
[my_sourcetype]
SHOULD_LINEMERGE = false
TIME_FORMAT = %H:%M:%S,%n

View solution in original post

0 Karma

frankejj
Explorer

Thanks! Setting the time format did the trick. I did not change line merge to false because there are also many multi-line entries in these logs.

0 Karma

mw
Splunk Employee
Splunk Employee

Probably an issue with the timestamps. See if this helps:

# props.conf
[my_sourcetype]
SHOULD_LINEMERGE = false
TIME_FORMAT = %H:%M:%S,%n
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!

Observability Simplified: Combining User Experience, Application Performance & ...

Tech Talk Observability Simplified: Combining User Experience, Application Performance & Network ...

Event Series May & June: From Network Visibility to Service Intelligence

Unifying the Network: Moving from Alert Noise to Service Intelligence with Splunk ITSI In today’s hybrid ...

Global Splunk User Group Events: May + June 2026

Your Splunk Community Awaits: Discover Upcoming User Group Events Worldwide    Staying ahead in the fast-paced ...