Splunk SPLK-1002 - Splunk Core Certified Power User Exam

The fillnull command can be used to replace null values in specific fields. The correct equivalent expression for the given eval statement would involve using fillnull twice, once for field1 to replace null values with 0, and once for field2 to replace null values with "NO-VALUE".

The correct answer is B. eventtype=web_errors.

An event type is a way to categorize events based on a search. An event type assigns a label to events that match a specific search criteria. Event types can be used to filter and group events, create alerts, or generate reports1.

To search for events that have a specific event type, you need to use the eventtype field with the name of the event type as the value. The syntax for this is:

eventtype=

For example, if you want to search for events that have the event type web_errors, you can use the following syntax:

eventtype=web_errors

This will return only the events that match the search criteria defined by the web_errors event type.

The other options are not correct because they use different syntax or fields that are not related to event types. These options are:

A. tag=web_errors: This option uses the tag field, which is a way to add descriptive keywords to events based on field values. Tags are different from event types, although they can be used together. Tags can be used to filter and group events by common characteristics2.

C. eventtype “web errors”: This option uses quotation marks around the event type name, which is not valid syntax for the eventtype field. Quotation marks are used to enclose phrases or exact matches in a search3.

D. eventtype (web_errors): This option uses parentheses around the event type name, which is also not valid syntax for the eventtype field. Parentheses are used to group expressions or terms in a search3.

The fillnull command replaces null values in one or more fields with a specified value. The values option allows you to specify a comma-separated list of values to fill the null values in the corresponding fields. The fields option allows you to specify a comma-separated list of fields to apply the fillnull command to. The eval statement in the question uses the if and isnull functions to check if field1 and field2 have null values and replace them with 0 and “NO-VALUE” respectively. The equivalent expression using fillnull is to use the values option to specify 0 and “NO-VALUE” and the fields option to specify field1 and field22

1: Splunk Core Certified Power User Track, page 9. 2: Splunk Documentation, fillnull command.

The stats command is used to calculate summary statistics for your search results such as count, sum, avg, min, max and more2. The stats command supports various functions that you can use to perform calculations on your fields2. However, addtotals is not a stats function but a separate command that adds a row or column with the total of the values in each group2. Therefore, option B is correct, while options A, C and D are incorrect because they are valid stats functions.

The correct answer is C. A macro is a portion of a search that can be reused in multiple places.

A macro is a way to reuse a piece of SPL code in different searches. A macro can be any part of a search, such as an eval statement or a search term, and does not need to be a complete command. A macro can also take arguments, which are variables that can be replaced by different values when the macro is called. A macro can also contain another macro within it, which is called a nested macro1.

To create a macro, you need to define its name, definition, arguments, and description in the Settings > Advanced Search > Search Macros page in Splunk Web or in the macros.conf file. To use a macro in a search, you need to enclose the macro name in backtick characters (`) and provide values for the arguments if any1.

For example, if you have a macro named my_macro that takes one argument named object and has the following definition:

search sourcetype= object

You can use it in a search by writing:

my_macro(web)

This will expand the macro and run the following SPL code:

search sourcetype=web

The benefits of using macros are that they can simplify complex searches, reduce errors, improve readability, and promote consistency1.

The other options are not correct because they describe other types of knowledge objects in Splunk, not macros. These objects are:

A. An event type is a method of categorizing events based on a search. An event type assigns a label to events that match a specific search criteria. Event types can be used to filter and group events, create alerts, or generate reports2.

B. A field alias is a way to associate an additional (new) name with an existing field name. A field alias can be used to normalize fields from different sources that have different names but represent the same data. Field aliases can also be used to rename fields for clarity or convenience3.

D. An alert is a knowledge object that enables you to schedule searches for specific events and trigger actions when certain conditions are met. An alert can be used to monitor your data for anomalies, errors, or other patterns of interest and notify you or others when they occur4.

Normalize your data for each of these fields using a combination of field aliases, field extractions, and lookups.

https://docs.splunk.com/Documentation/CIM/4.15.0/User/UsetheCIMtonormalizedataatsearchtime

The regular expression mode of Field Extractor (FX) should be used for data with multiple, different characters separating fields or for unstructured data. The regular expression mode allows you to select a sample event and highlight the fields that you want to extract, and the field extractor generates a regular expression that matches similar events and extracts the fields from them.ReferencesSee Build field extractions with the field extractor - Splunk Documentation and Field Extractor: Select Method step - Splunk Documentation.

Field aliases are alternative names for fields in Splunk. Field aliases can be used to normalize data across different sources and sourcetypes that have different field names for the same concept. For example, you can create a field alias for src_ip that maps to clientip, source_address, or any other field name that represents the source IP address in different sourcetypes. Field aliases can also be used in lookup file definitions to map fields in your data to fields in the lookup file. For example, you can use a field alias for src_ip to map it to ip_address in a lookup file that contains geolocation information for IP addresses. Field alias names do not replace the original field name, but rather create a copy of the field with a different name. Field alias names are case sensitive when used as part of a search, meaning that src_ip and SRC_IP are different fields.

An event type is a classification of events based on a search query, which allows for a static set of search criteria. In this case, option A (index=server_48 sourcetype=BETA_881 code=220) represents a simple search without transforming commands (e.g., stats, inputlookup). Event types cannot include transforming commands such as stats or lookup.References:Splunk Documentation - Event Types