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Introduction
Splunk is a robust platform to analyze machine-generated data extensively utilized in IT operations as well as security and business analytics. As companies increasingly depend on data-driven analysis and data-driven decisions, the need for Splunk specialists is growing. If you're a newbie seeking to begin your career with Splunk making yourself ready your interview for the job is vital.
In this post, we'll go over the most frequently-asked Splunk interview questions and their answers to assist you in your success.
Basic Splunk Interview Questions
1. What is Splunk?
Answer : Splunk can be described as a tool for data analysis and visualization that gathers, indexes and analyzes the data generated by machines in real-time. It assists in monitoring, searching, and analyzing massive data via an online interface.
2. What are the most important elements of Splunk?
Answer : Splunk's key elements Splunk comprise:
• Splunk Forwarder : Collects and forwards logs to an indexer.
• Splunk Indexer : Is a program that processes and stores information for a search.
• SPlunk Search Head : Provides an online interface to query information.
• Splunk deployment Server : Manages configurations for multiple instances of Splunk.
3. What are the different kinds of Splunk licenses?
Answer : Splunk has a range of kinds of licensing options, such as:
• Free License : Features are limited and have a an data cap.
• Enterprise License : Full-featured license for large companies.
• Developer License : Free to use for testing and development purposes.
• Cloud License : Hosted Splunk with scalable options.
4. Howdoes Splunk process data?
Answer : Splunk process data through three primary steps:
• Input : Collects data from a variety of sources (logs and metrics, APIs and APIs).
• Parsing : Breaks information into event and then extracts the fields.
• Indexing : Stores events to facilitate quick search and retrieval.
5. What are the different deployment modes in Splunk?
Answer : Splunk can be used in three ways:
• Standalone Mode : The entire system runs on one machine.
• Distributed mode : Components are distributed across multiple servers to allow for the sake of scalability.
• Clustered mode : Provides high availability through indexers and clustering of search heads.
Intermediate Splunk Interview Questions
6. What is a Splunk Forwarder?
Answer The Splunk Forwarder is a program that collects logs from machines that are source then forwards these logs to a Splunk Indexer. There are two kinds of Splunk Forwarders:
• Universal Forwarder (UF): Lightweight and it only transmits information.
• Heavy Forwarder (HF): Can process data prior to sending it to an indexer.
7. What exactly are Splunk indexes?
Answer: An index in Splunk is a location for storage where data is processed, and stored for search purposes. The most commonly used types of indexes are:
• Event Index : It stores events in raw form.
• Metrics Index : Stores time-series data.
• Summary Index : Storage of processed or summarized information.
8. Explain the difference between a Splunk search head andan indexer.
Answer:
• Search Head : Provides an interface for users to search for data. It does not store data but queries indexers.
• Indexer : Is a program that stores and process information. It responds to searches from search head.
9. What is Splunk's Search Processing Language (SPL )?
Answer : "SPL" (Search Processing Language) is the query language used in Splunk for analyzing and retrieving information. It's comprised of:
• Search Commands : index=main count
• Filtering Commands : Search, where, Rex
• Visualization Commands : timechart, table, chart
10. Whatis a Splunk dashboard?
Answer: A dashboard in Splunk is a set of graphs, charts, and diagrams (charts graphs, tables, charts) which display the results of Splunk searches. Dashboards allow you to keep track of trends and analyze patterns in a way that is efficient.
Advanced Splunk Interview Questions
11. What is a Splunk lookup?
Answer : The search is a function in Splunk which maps event fields to external CSV files or KV storage or scripts to enhance information during searches.
12. Define Splunk alerting and the various types of it.
Answer : Splunk alerts notify users when certain criteria are satisfied. The types of alerts are:
• Scheduled Alerts : Are scheduled to run at specific intervals.
• Real-timeAlerts : Are activated when certain circumstances occur.
• Throttle Alerts : To avoid multiple alerts in a short time.
13. What is the difference between stats and eventstats commands?
Answer:
• stats: Aggregates data and returns grouped results.
• eventstats: Computes aggregate values but retains original event data.
14. How do you optimize Splunk searches for performance?
Answer:
• Utilize index areas instead of text searches that are raw.
• Filter data before it is needed using index= as well as source=.
• limit the amount of fields by using the command fields.
• Summary indexing to pre-aggregate data.
Conclusion
Splunk is a vital tool for managing logs as well as data analytics and cybersecurity. Being a newbie, understanding the basic concepts and getting ready for these questions in the interview can help you get an SPL-related job successfully. Continue to practice SPL questions, Dashboards and indexing concepts to develop proficiency. Completing a Splunk course can help freshers build a strong foundation in Splunk concepts & practical applications for interviews.