Dummy

{% hint style="info" %} Supported event types: logs {% endhint %}

The Dummy input plugin generates dummy events. Use this plugin for testing, debugging, benchmarking and getting started with Fluent Bit.

Configuration parameters

The plugin supports the following configuration parameters:

Key	Description	Default
`copies`	Number of messages to generate each time messages are generated.	`1`
`dummy`	Dummy JSON record.	`{"message":"dummy"}`
`fixed_timestamp`	If enabled, use a fixed timestamp. This allows the message to be pre-generated once.	`false`
`flush_on_startup`	If set to `true`, the first dummy event is generated at startup.	`false`
`interval_nsec`	Set time interval, in nanoseconds, at which every message is generated. If set, `rate` configuration is ignored.	`0`
`interval_sec`	Set time interval, in seconds, at which every message is generated. If set, `rate` configuration is ignored.	`0`
`metadata`	Dummy JSON metadata.	`{}`
`rate`	Rate at which messages are generated, expressed in how many times per second.	`1`
`samples`	Limit the number of events generated. For example, if `samples=3`, the plugin generates only three events and stops. `0` means no limit.	`0`
`start_time_nsec`	Set a dummy base timestamp, in nanoseconds. If set to `-1`, the current time is used.	`-1`
`start_time_sec`	Set a dummy base timestamp, in seconds. If set to `-1`, the current time is used.	`-1`
`test_hang_on_exit`	Test-only option that simulates a hang during shutdown for hot reload watchdog testing. Don't use this in production configurations.	`false`
`threaded`	Indicates whether to run this input in its own thread.	`false`

You can run the plugin from the command line or through the configuration file:

Run the plugin from the command line using the following command:

fluent-bit -i dummy -o stdout

which returns results like the following:

...
[0] dummy.0: [[1686451466.659962491, {}], {"message"=>"dummy"}]
[0] dummy.0: [[1686451467.659679509, {}], {"message"=>"dummy"}]
...

In your main configuration file append the following:

{% tabs %} {% tab title="fluent-bit.yaml" %}

pipeline:
  inputs:
    - name: dummy
      dummy: '{"message": "custom dummy"}'

  outputs:
    - name: stdout
      match: '*'

{% endtab %} {% tab title="fluent-bit.conf" %}

[INPUT]
  Name   dummy
  Dummy  {"message": "custom dummy"}

[OUTPUT]
  Name   stdout
  Match  *

{% endtab %} {% endtabs %}