Splunk SPLK-4001 - Splunk O11y Cloud Certified Metrics User Exam

The correct answer is D. Metric type.

A metric type is an optional, but highly recommended field that specifies the kind of measurement that a datapoint represents. For example, a metric type can be gauge, counter, cumulative counter, or histogram. A metric type helps Splunk Observability Cloud to interpret and display the data correctly1

To learn more about how to send metrics to Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to this documentation2.

1: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/metrics.html#Metric-types 2: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/metrics.html

The correct answer is A, C, and D. Organization metrics give insights into system usage, system limits, data ingested and token quotas. Organization metrics are included for free. A user can plot and alert on them like metrics they send to Splunk Observability Cloud.

Organization metrics are a set of metrics that Splunk Observability Cloud provides to help you measure your organization’s usage of the platform. They include metrics such as:

Ingest metrics: Measure the data you’re sending to Infrastructure Monitoring, such as the number of data points you’ve sent.

App usage metrics: Measure your use of application features, such as the number of dashboards in your organization.

Integration metrics: Measure your use of cloud services integrated with your organization, such as the number of calls to the AWS CloudWatch API.

Resource metrics: Measure your use of resources that you can specify limits for, such as the number of custom metric time series (MTS) you’ve created1

Organization metrics are not charged and do not count against any system limits. You can view them in built-in charts on the Organization Overview page or in custom charts using the Metric Finder. You can also create alerts based on organization metrics to monitor your usage and performance1

To learn more about how to use organization metrics in Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to this documentation1.

1: https://docs.splunk.com/observability/admin/org-metrics.html

The correct answer is C. Create a plot C using the formula (A/B-l) and add a scale: 100 function to express the rate of change as a percentage.

To calculate the rate of change in latency, you need to compare the current latency (plot A) with the latency a week ago (plot B). One way to do this is to use the formula (A/B-l), which gives you the ratio of the current latency to the previous latency minus one. This ratio represents how much the current latency has increased or decreased relative to the previous latency. For example, if the current latency is 200 ms and the previous latency is 100 ms, then the ratio is (200/100-l) = 1, which means the current latency is 100% higher than the previous latency1

To express the rate of change as a percentage, you need to multiply the ratio by 100. You can do this by adding a scale: 100 function to the formula. This function scales the values of the plot by a factor of 100. For example, if the ratio is 1, then the scaled value is 100%2

To create a plot C using the formula (A/B-l) and add a scale: 100 function, you need to follow these steps:

Select plot A and plot B from the Metric Finder.

Click on Add Analytics and choose Formula from the list of functions.

In the Formula window, enter (A/B-l) as the formula and click Apply.

Click on Add Analytics again and choose Scale from the list of functions.

In the Scale window, enter 100 as the factor and click Apply.

You should see a new plot C that shows the rate of change in latency as a percentage.

To learn more about how to use formulas and scale functions in Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to these documentations34.

1: https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/percentage-change.html 2: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/analytics.html#Scale 3: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/analytics.html#Formula 4: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/analytics.html#Scale

The correct answer is D. Each data marker represents the sum of API calls in the hour leading up to the data marker.

The metric demo.trans.count is a cumulative counter metric, which means that it represents the total number of API calls since the start of the measurement. A cumulative counter metric can be used to measure the rate of change or the sum of events over a time period1

The chart below shows the metric demo.trans.count with a one-hour rollup and a line chart type. A rollup is a way to aggregate data points over a specified time interval, such as one hour, to reduce the number of data points displayed on a chart. A line chart type connects the data points with a line to show the trend of the metric over time2

Each data marker on the chart represents the sum of API calls in the hour leading up to the data marker. This is because the rollup function for cumulative counter metrics is sum by default, which means that it adds up all the data points in each time interval. For example, the data marker at 10:00 AM shows the sum of API calls from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM3

To learn more about how to use metrics and charts in Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to these documentations123.

1: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/metrics.html#Metric-types 2: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/charts.html#Data-resolution-and-rollups-in-charts 3: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/charts.html#Rollup-functions-for-metric-types

The correct answer is C. Line, Area, Column.

For line, area, and column charts, you can set the individual plot visualization to change the appearance of each plot in the chart. For example, you can change the color, shape, size, or style of the lines, areas, or columns. You can also change the rollup function, data resolution, or y-axis scale for each plot1

To set the individual plot visualization for line, area, and column charts, you need to select the chart from the Metric Finder, then click on Plot Chart Options and choose Individual Plot Visualization from the list of options. You can then customize each plot according to your preferences2

To learn more about how to use individual plot visualization in Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to this documentation2.

1: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/charts.html#Individual-plot-visualization 2: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/charts.html#Set-individual-plot-visualization

According to the web search results, properties are key-value pairs that you can assign to dimensions of existing metric time series (MTS) in Splunk Observability Cloud1. Properties provide additional context and information about the metrics, such as the environment, role, or owner of the dimension. For example, you can add the property use: QA to the host dimension of your metrics to indicate that the host that is sending the data is used for QA.

To add properties to MTS, you can use either the API or the UI. The API allows you to programmatically create, update, delete, and list properties for dimensions using HTTP requests2. The UI allows you to interactively create, edit, and delete properties for dimensions using the Metric Metadata page under Settings3. Therefore, option A and D are correct.

The correct answer is D. Mean (Transformation).

According to the web search results, a mean transformation is an analytic function that returns the average value of a metric or a dimension over a specified time interval1. A mean transformation can be used to smooth a very spiky metric, such as cpu.utilization, by reducing the impact of outliers and noise. A mean transformation can also help to see if the metric is trending up or down over time, by showing the general direction of the average value. For example, to smooth the cpu.utilization metric and see if it is trending up over time, you can use the following SignalFlow code:

mean(1h, counters(“cpu.utilization”))

This will return the average value of the cpu.utilization counter metric for each metric time series (MTS) over the last hour. You can then use a chart to visualize the results and compare the mean values across different MTS.

Option A is incorrect because rate/sec is not an analytic function, but rather a rollup function that returns the rate of change of data points in the MTS reporting interval1. Rate/sec can be used to convert cumulative counter metrics into counter metrics, but it does not smooth or trend a metric. Option B is incorrect because median is not an analytic function, but rather an aggregation function that returns the middle value of a metric or a dimension over the entire time range1. Median can be used to find the typical value of a metric, but it does not smooth or trend a metric. Option C is incorrect because mean (by host) is not an analytic function, but rather an aggregation function that returns the average value of a metric or a dimension across all MTS with the same host dimension1. Mean (by host) can be used to compare the performance of different hosts, but it does not smooth or trend a metric.

Mean (Transformation) is an analytic function that allows you to smooth a very spiky metric by applying a moving average over a specified time window. This can help you see the general trend of the metric over time, without being distracted by the short-term fluctuations1

To use Mean (Transformation) on a cpu.utilization metric, you need to select the metric from the Metric Finder, then click on Add Analytics and choose Mean (Transformation) from the list of functions. You can then specify the time window for the moving average, such as 5 minutes, 15 minutes, or 1 hour. You can also group the metric by host or any other dimension to compare the smoothed values across different servers2

To learn more about how to use Mean (Transformation) and other analytic functions in Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to this documentation2.

1: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/analytics.html#Mean-Transformation  2: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/analytics.html

The required components in the configuration of a data point are:

Metric Name: A metric name is a string that identifies the type of measurement that the data point represents, such as cpu.utilization, memory.usage, or response.time. A metric name is mandatory for every data point, and it must be unique within a Splunk Observability Cloud organization1

Timestamp: A timestamp is a numerical value that indicates the time at which the data point was collected or generated. A timestamp is mandatory for every data point, and it must be in epoch time format, which is the number of seconds since January 1, 1970 UTC1

Value: A value is a numerical value that indicates the magnitude or quantity of the measurement that the data point represents. A value is mandatory for every data point, and it must be compatible with the metric type of the data point1

Therefore, the correct answer is A, C, and D.

To learn more about how to configure data points in Splunk Observability Cloud, you can refer to this documentation1.

1: https://docs.splunk.com/Observability/gdi/metrics/metrics.html#Data-points