Getting Data In

Support for logs compressed with xz?

hatchmt
Engager

The version of SUSE Linux I'm using has been compressing my logs with xz (by default) rather than gzip or bzip2. As such, when I added the log directory into splunk, there's a large gap where those files couldn't be parsed.

I can go through and unxz all of the logs and use bzip2 to compress them, and change logrotate to use bzip2 instead of xz, but I do like that xz achieves higher compression ratios than bzip2. I'm assuming that the decompression algorithms supported by splunk are hard-coded, but I thought I'd ask if it's something I can modify on my end to add support for that file type.

If not, is this something that is being considered for a future release?

juanlazarosanch
New Member

Hatchmt, were you able to read xz files? If so, what steps did you follow? Thanks!

0 Karma

ichaer_splunk
Splunk Employee
Splunk Employee

You can enable any sort of decompression setting the unarchive_cmd configuration in props.conf for your input. If you want to pick xz files by default, something like this should work:

[source::.../*.xz]
unarchive_cmd = /usr/bin/xz -cd -

If you already have a specific stanza in props.conf for that particular source, you'll need to tweak it.

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!

Why Splunk Customers Should Attend Cisco Live 2026 Las Vegas

Why Splunk Customers Should Attend Cisco Live 2026 Las Vegas     Cisco Live 2026 is almost here, and this ...

What Is the Name of the USB Key Inserted by Bob Smith? (BOTS Hint, Not the Answer)

Hello Splunkers,   So you searched, “what is the name of the usb key inserted by bob smith?”  Not gonna lie… ...

Automating Threat Operations and Threat Hunting with Recorded Future

    Automating Threat Operations and Threat Hunting with Recorded Future June 29, 2026 | Register   Is your ...