Configuring Vector

Vector is configured using a configuration file. This section contains a comprehensive reference of all Vector configuration options.

Example

The following is an example of a popular Vector configuration that ingests logs from a file and routes them to both Elasticsearch and AWS S3. Your configuration will differ based on your needs.

{
  "data_dir": "/var/lib/vector",
  "sources": {
    "apache_logs": {
      "type": "file",
      "include": [
        "/var/log/apache2/*.log"
      ],
      "ignore_older": 86400
    }
  },
  "transforms": {
    "apache_parser": {
      "inputs": [
        "apache_logs"
      ],
      "type": "remap",
      "source": ". = parse_apache_log(.message)"
    },
    "apache_sampler": {
      "inputs": [
        "apache_parser"
      ],
      "type": "sample",
      "rate": 50
    }
  },
  "sinks": {
    "es_cluster": {
      "inputs": [
        "apache_sampler"
      ],
      "type": "elasticsearch",
      "endpoints": ["http://79.12.221.222:9200"],
      "bulk": {
        "index": "vector-%Y-%m-%d"
      }
    },
    "s3_archives": {
      "inputs": [
        "apache_parser"
      ],
      "type": "aws_s3",
      "region": "us-east-1",
      "bucket": "my-log-archives",
      "key_prefix": "date=%Y-%m-%d",
      "compression": "gzip",
      "framing": {
        "method": "newline_delimited"
      },
      "encoding": {
        "codec": "json"
      },
      "batch": {
        "max_bytes": 10000000
      }
    }
  }
}

# Set global options
data_dir = "/var/lib/vector"

# Vector's API (disabled by default)
# Enable and try it out with the `vector top` command
[api]
enabled = false
# address = "127.0.0.1:8686"

# Ingest data by tailing one or more files
[sources.apache_logs]
type         = "file"
include      = ["/var/log/apache2/*.log"]    # supports globbing
ignore_older = 86400                         # 1 day

# Structure and parse via Vector's Remap Language
[transforms.apache_parser]
inputs = ["apache_logs"]
type   = "remap"
source = '''
. = parse_apache_log(.message)
'''

# Sample the data to save on cost
[transforms.apache_sampler]
inputs = ["apache_parser"]
type   = "sample"
rate   = 2                    # only keep 50% (1/`rate`)

# Send structured data to a short-term storage
[sinks.es_cluster]
inputs     = ["apache_sampler"]             # only take sampled data
type       = "elasticsearch"
endpoints  = ["http://79.12.221.222:9200"]  # local or external host
bulk.index = "vector-%Y-%m-%d"              # daily indices

# Send structured data to a cost-effective long-term storage
[sinks.s3_archives]
inputs          = ["apache_parser"]    # don't sample for S3
type            = "aws_s3"
region          = "us-east-1"
bucket          = "my-log-archives"
key_prefix      = "date=%Y-%m-%d"      # daily partitions, hive friendly format
compression     = "gzip"               # compress final objects
framing.method  = "newline_delimited"  # new line delimited...
encoding.codec  = "json"               # ...JSON
batch.max_bytes = 10000000             # 10mb uncompressed

data_dir: /var/lib/vector
sources:
  apache_logs:
    type: file
    include:
      - /var/log/apache2/*.log
    ignore_older: 86400
transforms:
  apache_parser:
    inputs:
      - apache_logs
    type: remap
    source: |
            . = parse_apache_log(.message)
  apache_sampler:
    inputs:
      - apache_parser
    type: sample
    rate: 50
sinks:
  es_cluster:
    inputs:
      - apache_sampler
    type: elasticsearch
    endpoints: ['http://79.12.221.222:9200']
    bulk:
      index: vector-%Y-%m-%d
  s3_archives:
    inputs:
      - apache_parser
    type: aws_s3
    region: us-east-1
    bucket: my-log-archives
    key_prefix: date=%Y-%m-%d
    compression: gzip
    framing:
      method: newline_delimited
    encoding:
      codec: json
    batch:
      max_bytes: 10000000

To use this configuration file, specify it with the --config flag when starting Vector:

vector --config /etc/vector/vector.json

vector --config /etc/vector/vector.toml

vector --config /etc/vector/vector.yaml

Reference

Components

Sources reference

Transforms reference

Sinks reference

Advanced

Global options reference

Template syntax

How it works

Environment variables

Vector interpolates environment variables within your configuration file with the following syntax:

[transforms.add_host]
type = "remap"
source = '''
# Basic usage. "$HOSTNAME" also works.
.host = "${HOSTNAME}" # or "$HOSTNAME"

# Setting a default value when not present.
.environment = "${ENV:-development}"

# Requiring an environment variable to be present.
.tenant = "${TENANT:?tenant must be supplied}"
'''

Default values

Default values can be supplied using :- or - syntax:

option = "${ENV_VAR:-default}" # default value if variable is unset or empty
option = "${ENV_VAR-default}" # default value only if variable is unset

Required variables

Environment variables that are required can be specified using :? or ? syntax:

option = "${ENV_VAR:?err}" # Vector exits with 'err' message if variable is unset or empty
option = "${ENV_VAR?err}" # Vector exits with 'err' message only if variable is unset

Escaping

You can escape environment variables by prefacing them with a $ character. For example $${HOSTNAME} or $$HOSTNAME is treated literally in the above environment variable example.

Formats

Vector supports TOML, YAML, and JSON to ensure that Vector fits into your workflow. A side benefit of supporting YAML and JSON is that they enable you to use data templating languages such as ytt, Jsonnet and Cue.

Location

The location of your Vector configuration file depends on your installation method. For most Linux-based systems, the file can be found at /etc/vector/vector.toml.

Multiple files

You can pass multiple configuration files when starting Vector:

vector --config vector1.toml --config vector2.toml

Or using a globbing syntax:

vector --config /etc/vector/*.toml

Automatic namespacing

You can also split your configuration by grouping the components by their type, one directory per component type, where the file name is used as the component id. For example:

# Send structured data to a short-term storage
inputs     = ["apache_sampler"]             # only take sampled data
type       = "elasticsearch"
endpoints  = ["http://79.12.221.222:9200"]  # local or external host
bulk.index = "vector-%Y-%m-%d"              # daily indices

# Send structured data to a cost-effective long-term storage
inputs          = ["apache_parser"]    # don't sample for S3
type            = "aws_s3"
region          = "us-east-1"
bucket          = "my-log-archives"
key_prefix      = "date=%Y-%m-%d"      # daily partitions, hive friendly format
compression     = "gzip"               # compress final objects
framing.method  = "newline_delimited"  # new line delimited...
encoding.codec  = "json"               # ...JSON
batch.max_bytes = 10000000             # 10mb uncompressed

# Ingest data by tailing one or more files
type         = "file"
include      = ["/var/log/apache2/*.log"]    # supports globbing
ignore_older = 86400                         # 1 day

# Structure and parse via Vector Remap Language
inputs = ["apache_logs"]
type   = "remap"
source = '''
. = parse_apache_log(.message)

# Sample the data to save on cost
inputs = ["apache_parser"]
type   = "sample"
rate   = 2                    # only keep 50% (1/`rate`)

# Set global options
data_dir = "/var/lib/vector"

# Vector's API (disabled by default)
# Enable and try it out with the `vector top` command
[api]
enabled = false
# address = "127.0.0.1:8686"

Vector then needs to be started using the --config-dir argument to specify the root configuration folder.

vector --config-dir /etc/vector

Wildcards in component IDs

Vector supports wildcards (*) in component IDs when building your topology. For example:

[sources.app1_logs]
type = "file"
includes = ["/var/log/app1.log"]

[sources.app2_logs]
type = "file"
includes = ["/var/log/app.log"]

[sources.system_logs]
type = "file"
includes = ["/var/log/system.log"]

[sinks.app_logs]
type = "datadog_logs"
inputs = ["app*"]

[sinks.archive]
type = "aws_s3"
inputs = ["app*", "system_logs"]

Sections

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