Splunk Search

Comparing two fields with > operator

srw46
Path Finder

Hello,

I am trying to compare two fields with a simple operator but it does not seem to perform as expected. I am simply trying to return any transaction times that are over the value of the 'threshold' field. This is what I'm trying:

time_taken>threshold

I have found another way around this by using the eval command:

eval over=time_taken-threshold | search over>0

This essentially does the same thing in a very round about way but it less than neat.

Is there something i'm missing to compare field to another field? I have scoured documention but can't find any examples of this.

Thanks in advance

Tags (2)
1 Solution

Lowell
Super Champion

I think you want to use where and not search. The where search operation lets you compare variables or even eval expressions, but search only looks for literal values. Here's an example.

  1. This search is looking for a field named "user" that contains the value of "login":

    | search user=login

  2. This search is looking for a field named "user" that contains the same value as the field named "login":

    | where user=login


So you should be able to take your example search expression:

| eval over=time_taken-threshold | search over>0

And change it to either:

| where (time_taken-threshold)>0

Or

| where time_taken>threshold

View solution in original post

Lowell
Super Champion

I think you want to use where and not search. The where search operation lets you compare variables or even eval expressions, but search only looks for literal values. Here's an example.

  1. This search is looking for a field named "user" that contains the value of "login":

    | search user=login

  2. This search is looking for a field named "user" that contains the same value as the field named "login":

    | where user=login


So you should be able to take your example search expression:

| eval over=time_taken-threshold | search over>0

And change it to either:

| where (time_taken-threshold)>0

Or

| where time_taken>threshold

srw46
Path Finder

Splendid.

Thank you again Lowell.

0 Karma
Get Updates on the Splunk Community!

App Platform's 2025 Year in Review: A Year of Innovation, Growth, and Community

As we step into 2026, it’s the perfect moment to reflect on what an extraordinary year 2025 was for the Splunk ...

Operationalizing Entity Risk Score with Enterprise Security 8.3+

Overview Enterprise Security 8.3 introduces a powerful new feature called “Entity Risk Scoring” (ERS) for ...

Unlock Database Monitoring with Splunk Observability Cloud

  In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, even minor database slowdowns can disrupt user experiences and ...