diff --git a/_posts/2025-09-10-reimagining-log-analytics-for-the-modern-enterprise.md b/_posts/2025-09-10-reimagining-log-analytics-for-the-modern-enterprise.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..efe539f671 --- /dev/null +++ b/_posts/2025-09-10-reimagining-log-analytics-for-the-modern-enterprise.md @@ -0,0 +1,92 @@ +--- +layout: post +title: "Reimagining log analytics for the modern enterprise" +authors: + - jdbright +date: 2025-09-10 +categories: + - technical-post +meta_keywords: observability, log analytics, splunk +meta_description: A comprehensive exploration of OpenSearch's evolution in log analytics, highlighting its approach to addressing enterprise observability challenges through open-source innovation, cost-effectiveness, and advanced processing capabilities. +excerpt: +has_math: false +has_science_table: false +--- + +In an era of explosive data growth, organizations are facing a critical challenge: how to manage, analyze, and derive value from their logs without breaking the bank. Traditional proprietary solutions like Splunk have become increasingly expensive, leaving teams searching for a more sustainable approach to observability. + + +## The rising cost of log management + +As data volumes surge, so do the licensing fees for legacy log analytics platforms. Organizations are caught in a painful cycle of escalating costs that threaten to consume IT budgets without delivering proportional value. Enter OpenSearch---an open-source alternative that's changing the game. + + +## Piped Processing Language: The heart of modern log analysis + +For site reliability engineers (SREs) and DevOps teams, log analysis is about more than just searching and filtering. It's also about uncovering deep insights, detecting anomalies, and maintaining system reliability. [OpenSearch's Piped Processing Language (PPL)](https://github.com/opensearch-project/sql/blob/main/docs/user/ppl/index.rst) is designed to meet these sophisticated needs. + + +### Beyond basic search + +Dashboards Query Language (DQL) in OpenSearch can be restrictive. PPL expands on its capabilities by offering the following features: + +* Sequential filtering +* Advanced analytics capabilities +* More powerful data exploration with [joins, lookups, and subsearch](https://opensearch.org/blog/enhanced-log-analysis-with-opensearch-ppl-introducing-lookup-join-and-subsearch/) + + + +## A commitment to seamless migration + +We understand that switching log analytics platforms is a challenging task. That's why OpenSearch is making significant investments to: + +* Make PPL syntax more familiar. +* Add missing commands and functions. +* Simplify the migration process. + + + +### Enterprise-grade performance with Apache Calcite + +Launched in OpenSearch 3.0, [Apache Calcite](https://calcite.apache.org/) represents a breakthrough in log analytics scalability. The platform can now handle enterprise-level data volumes of up to 150 TB per day, ensuring performance doesn't compromise insight. + + +## Unifying the observability experience + +If you are an SRE or part of a DevOps team, you know how fragmented the log analytics experience can be. You query your data using **Discover** in OpenSearch Dashboards and then use **Visualize** in order to build a visualization for your dashboard or **Alerting** in order to create an alert. Different languages are used in each case, resulting in a disjointed experience. Now, with the new observability experience for [logs](https://github.com/opensearch-project/OpenSearch-Dashboards/issues/9826), you can query, build visualizations, and create alerts ([RFC](https://github.com/opensearch-project/alerting/issues/1880)) without leaving your core PPL query experience in **Discover**. No more learning multiple languages depending on where you are in OpenSearch---now there is one language across the log analytics experience. + + +## Getting started + +Implementing the new observability experience is straightforward. Simply update your configuration file with these key attributes in OpenSearch 3.x: + + +```yaml +data_source.enabled: true +workspace.enabled: true +explore.enabled: true +uiSettings: + overrides: + "theme:version": v9 + "home:useNewHomePage": true + "enhancements:enabled": true +opensearch.ignoreVersionMismatch: true +data.savedQueriesNewUI.enabled: true +``` + + + + + + + + +## The future of log analytics + +OpenSearch is committed to expanding its log analytics capabilities through several key investments: + +* Enhanced PPL functionality with new commands and functions to support advanced analytics scenarios. +* Improved visualization capabilities to help users better understand their log data. +* Integration of PPL with anomaly detection to streamline the observability workflow. + +We believe in building these features together with our community. Your insights and contributions are vital to shaping the future of log analytics in OpenSearch. Join us in this journey by exploring our [roadmap](https://github.com/orgs/opensearch-project/projects/206) and participating in discussions on the OpenSearch Observability channel in [Slack](https://opensearch.org/slack/). Let's collaborate to create the next generation of log analytics solutions.