Audit logging in Elasticsearch - Step-by-Step Execution

Concept Flow - Audit logging

Enable audit logging in elasticsearch.yml

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Elasticsearch starts with audit logging enabled

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User actions occur: login, data access, config changes

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Audit logs capture events with details

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Logs stored in specified audit log file or index

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Admin reviews logs for security and compliance

Audit logging in Elasticsearch tracks user and system actions by enabling logging in the config, capturing events, and storing them for review.

Execution Sample

Elasticsearch

xpack.security.audit.enabled: true
xpack.security.audit.outputs: [ "index", "logger" ]
xpack.security.audit.logger.events.include: [ "authentication_success", "authentication_failed" ]

This config enables audit logging, sets outputs to index and logger, and includes authentication events.

Execution Table

Step	Action	Config Setting	Event Captured	Log Output
1	Enable audit logging	xpack.security.audit.enabled: true	None yet	No logs yet
2	User login attempt	Include authentication_success	authentication_success	Logged to index and logger
3	User login failure	Include authentication_failed	authentication_failed	Logged to index and logger
4	User accesses data	Default events	access_granted	Logged if configured
5	Admin reviews logs	N/A	N/A	Logs show authentication and access events

💡 Audit logging runs continuously capturing configured events until disabled

Variable Tracker

Variable	Start	After Step 2	After Step 3	After Step 4	Final
audit_enabled	false	true	true	true	true
logged_events	[]	[authentication_success]	[authentication_success, authentication_failed]	[authentication_success, authentication_failed, access_granted]	[authentication_success, authentication_failed, access_granted]

Key Moments - 2 Insights

Why don't I see any audit logs after enabling audit logging?

Audit logging starts capturing events only after it is enabled (see Step 1). Also, only configured event types are logged (see Steps 2 and 3). If no matching events occur, no logs appear.

Are all user actions logged by default?

No, only events specified in the config (like authentication_success) are logged. Other events require explicit inclusion (see Step 4).

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution table, at which step is the first audit log entry created?

A Step 1

B Step 2

C Step 3

D Step 4

💡 Hint

Check the 'Log Output' column to see when logs first appear

According to the variable tracker, what is the value of 'audit_enabled' after Step 3?

A true

B false

C undefined

D null

💡 Hint

Look at the 'audit_enabled' row under 'After Step 3' column

If 'authentication_failed' events were not included in the config, what would happen at Step 3?

A Elasticsearch would error

B Event would be logged anyway

C Event would not be logged

D All events would be logged

💡 Hint

Refer to the 'Config Setting' and 'Event Captured' columns in the execution table

Concept Snapshot

Audit logging in Elasticsearch:
- Enable with xpack.security.audit.enabled: true
- Configure events to log (e.g., authentication_success)
- Logs output to index and/or logger
- Captures user and system actions
- Used for security and compliance review

Full Transcript

Audit logging in Elasticsearch is turned on by setting 'xpack.security.audit.enabled' to true in the configuration file. Once enabled, Elasticsearch captures specific events like successful or failed user logins, depending on which events are included in the config. These events are logged to configured outputs such as an index or logger. The logs help administrators monitor security-related actions. The execution table shows the step-by-step process from enabling audit logging, capturing events, to reviewing logs. Variables like 'audit_enabled' track whether logging is active, and 'logged_events' track which events have been recorded. Common confusions include why no logs appear immediately after enabling and which events are logged by default. The visual quiz tests understanding of when logs start, variable states, and the effect of config settings on event logging.