Use fingerprint file identity by default and migrate file state from native or path

CHANGELOG.next.asciidoc

@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ https://github.com/elastic/beats/compare/v8.8.1\...main[Check the HEAD diff]
 - Fixes filestream logging the error "filestream input with ID 'ID' already exists, this will lead to data duplication[...]" on Kubernetes when using autodiscover. {pull}41585[41585]
 - Add kafka compression support for ZSTD.
 - Filebeat fails to start if there is any input with a duplicated ID. It logs the duplicated IDs and the offending inputs configurations. {pull}41731[41731]
-
+- The Filestream input only starts to ingest a file when it is >= 1024 bytes in size. This happens because the fingerprint` is the default file identity now. To restore the previous behaviour, set `file_identity.native: ~` and `prospector.scanner.fingerprint.enabled: false` {issue}40197[40197] {pull}41762[41762]
 *Heartbeat*
 
 
@@ -368,6 +368,7 @@ https://github.com/elastic/beats/compare/v8.8.1\...main[Check the HEAD diff]
 - Add support for SSL and Proxy configurations for websoket type in streaming input. {pull}41934[41934]
 - AWS S3 input registry cleanup for untracked s3 objects. {pull}41694[41694]
 - The environment variable `BEATS_AZURE_EVENTHUB_INPUT_TRACING_ENABLED: true` enables internal logs tracer for the azure-eventhub input. {issue}41931[41931] {pull}41932[41932]
+- The Filestream input now uses the `fingerprint` file identity by default. The state from files are automatically migrated if the previous file identity was `native` (the default) or `path`. If the `file_identity` is explicitly set, there is no change in behaviour. {issue}40197[40197] {pull}41762[41762]
 - Rate limiting operability improvements in the Okta provider of the Entity Analytics input. {issue}40106[40106] {pull}41977[41977]
 - Added default values in the streaming input for websocket retries and put a cap on retry wait time to be lesser than equal to the maximum defined wait time. {pull}42012[42012]
 

filebeat/_meta/config/filebeat.global.reference.yml.tmpl

@@ -15,6 +15,8 @@
 # batch of events has been published successfully. The default value is 1s.
 #filebeat.registry.flush: 1s
 
+# The interval which to run the registry clean up
+#filebeat.registry.cleanup_interval: 5m
 
 # Starting with Filebeat 7.0, the registry uses a new directory format to store
 # Filebeat state. After you upgrade, Filebeat will automatically migrate a 6.x

filebeat/_meta/config/filebeat.inputs.reference.yml.tmpl

@@ -303,7 +303,7 @@ filebeat.inputs:
   # If enabled, instead of relying on the device ID and inode values when comparing files,
   # compare hashes of the given byte ranges in files. A file becomes an ingest target
   # when its size grows larger than offset+length (see below). Until then it's ignored.
-  #prospector.scanner.fingerprint.enabled: false
+  #prospector.scanner.fingerprint.enabled: true
 
   # If fingerprint mode is enabled, sets the offset from the beginning of the file
   # for the byte range used for computing the fingerprint value.
@@ -438,8 +438,9 @@ filebeat.inputs:
   #clean_removed: true
 
   # Method to determine if two files are the same or not. By default
-  # the Beat considers two files the same if their inode and device id are the same.
-  #file_identity.native: ~
+  # a fingerprint is generated using the first 1024 bytes of the file,
+  # if the fingerprints match, then the files are considered equal.
+  #file_identity.fingerprint: ~
 
   # Optional additional fields. These fields can be freely picked
   # to add additional information to the crawled log files for filtering

filebeat/docs/faq.asciidoc

@@ -19,6 +19,10 @@ We do not recommend reading log files from network volumes. Whenever possible, i
 send the log files directly from there. Reading files from network volumes (especially on Windows) can have unexpected side
 effects. For example, changed file identifiers may result in {beatname_uc} reading a log file from scratch again.
 
+If it is not possible to read from the host, then using the
+<<filebeat-input-filestream-file-identity-fingerprint, `fingerprint`>>
+file identity is the next best option.
+
 [[filebeat-not-collecting-lines]]
 === {beatname_uc} isn't collecting lines from a file
 
@@ -71,6 +75,13 @@ By default states are never removed from the registry file. To resolve the inode
 
 You can use <<{beatname_lc}-input-log-clean-removed,`clean_removed`>> for files that are removed from disk. Be aware that `clean_removed` cleans the file state from the registry whenever a file cannot be found during a scan. If the file shows up again later, it will be sent again from scratch.
 
+Aside from that you should also change the
+<<filebeat-input-filestream-file-identity, `file_identity`>> to
+<<filebeat-input-filestream-file-identity-fingerprint,
+`fingerprint`>>. If you were using `native` (the default) or `path`,
+the state of the files will be automatically migrated to
+`fingerprint`.
+
 include::filebeat-log-rotation.asciidoc[]
 
 [[windows-file-rotation]]

filebeat/docs/inputs/input-filestream-file-options.asciidoc

@@ -150,9 +150,9 @@ The default setting is 10s.
 [id="{beatname_lc}-input-{type}-scan-fingerprint"]
 ===== `prospector.scanner.fingerprint`
 
-Instead of relying on the device ID and inode values when comparing files, compare hashes of the given byte ranges of files.
-
-Enable this option if you're experiencing data loss or data duplication due to unstable file identifiers provided by the file system.
+Instead of relying on the device ID and inode values when comparing
+files, compare hashes of the given byte ranges of files. This is the
+default behaviour for {beatname_uc}.
 
 Following are some scenarios where this can happen:
 
@@ -542,34 +542,71 @@ indirectly set higher priorities on certain inputs by assigning a higher
 limit of harvesters.
 
 [float]
+[id="{beatname_lc}-input-{type}-file-identity"]
 ===== `file_identity`
 
 Different `file_identity` methods can be configured to suit the
 environment where you are collecting log messages.
 
-WARNING: Changing `file_identity` methods between runs may result in
-duplicated events in the output.
+IMPORTANT: Changing `file_identity` is only supported from `native` or
+`path` to `fingerprint`. On those cases {beatname_uc} will
+automatically migrate the state of the file when {type} starts.
+
+WARNING: Any unsupported change in `file_identity` methods between
+runs may result in duplicated events in the output.
+
+[id="{beatname_lc}-input-{type}-file-identity-fingerprint"]
+*`fingerprint`*:: The default behaviour of {beatname_uc} is to
+identify files based on content by hashing a specific range (0 to 1024
+bytes by default).
+
+WARNING: In order to use this file identity option, you must enable
+the <<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint
+option in the scanner>>. Once this file identity is enabled, changing
+the fingerprint configuration (offset, length, or other settings) will
+lead to a global re-ingestion of all files that match the paths
+configuration of the input.
+
+Please refer to the
+<<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint
+configuration for details>>.
+
+[source,yaml]
+----
+file_identity.fingerprint: ~
+----
 
-*`native`*:: The default behaviour of {beatname_uc} is to differentiate
-between files using their inodes and device ids.
+*`native`*:: Differentiates between files using their inodes and
+device ids.
 +
 In some cases these values can change during the lifetime of a file. 
-For example, when using the Linux link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logical_Volume_Manager_%28Linux%29[LVM] (Logical Volume Manager), device numbers are allocated dynamically at module load (refer to link:https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/logical_volume_manager_administration/lv#persistent_numbers[Persistent Device Numbers] in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux documentation). To avoid the possibility of data duplication in this case, you can set `file_identity` to `path` rather than `native`.
+For example, when using the Linux
+link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logical_Volume_Manager_%28Linux%29[LVM]
+(Logical Volume Manager), device numbers are allocated dynamically at
+module load (refer to
+link:https://access.redhat.com/documentation/en-us/red_hat_enterprise_linux/7/html/logical_volume_manager_administration/lv#persistent_numbers[Persistent
+Device Numbers] in the Red Hat Enterprise Linux documentation). To
+avoid the possibility of data duplication in this case, you can set
+`file_identity` to `fingerprint` rather than the default `native`.
++
+The states of files generated by `native` file identity can be migrated to `fingerprint`.
 
 [source,yaml]
 ----
 file_identity.native: ~
 ----
 
 *`path`*:: To identify files based on their paths use this strategy.
-
++
 WARNING: Only use this strategy if your log files are rotated to a folder
 outside of the scope of your input or not at all. Otherwise you end up
 with duplicated events.
-
++
 WARNING: This strategy does not support renaming files.
 If an input file is renamed, {beatname_uc} will read it again if the new path
 matches the settings of the input.
++
+The states of files generated by `path` file identity can be migrated to `fingerprint`.
 
 [source,yaml]
 ----
@@ -578,25 +615,14 @@ file_identity.path: ~
 
 *`inode_marker`*:: If the device id changes from time to time, you must use
 this method to distinguish files. This option is not supported on Windows.
-
++
 Set the location of the marker file the following way:
 
 [source,yaml]
 ----
 file_identity.inode_marker.path: /logs/.filebeat-marker
 ----
 
-*`fingerprint`*:: To identify files based on their content byte range.
-
-WARNING: In order to use this file identity option, you must enable the <<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint option in the scanner>>. Once this file identity is enabled, changing the fingerprint configuration (offset, length, or other settings) will lead to a global re-ingestion of all files that match the paths configuration of the input.
-
-Please refer to the <<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint configuration for details>>.
-
-[source,yaml]
-----
-file_identity.fingerprint: ~
-----
-
 [[filestream-log-rotation-support]]
 [float]
 === Log rotation
@@ -609,6 +635,7 @@ When reading from rotating files make sure the paths configuration includes
 both the active file and all rotated files.
 
 By default, {beatname_uc} is able to track files correctly in the following strategies:
+
 * create: new active file with a unique name is created on rotation
 * rename: rotated files are renamed
 

filebeat/docs/inputs/input-filestream.asciidoc

@@ -34,6 +34,11 @@ The `log` writes the complete file state.
 
 7. Stale entries can be removed from the registry, even if there is no active input.
 
+8. The default behaviour is to identify files based on their contents
+using the <<filebeat-input-filestream-file-identity-fingerprint,
+`fingerprint`>> <<filebeat-input-filestream-file-identity,
+`file_identity`>> This solves data duplication caused by inode reuse.
+
 To configure this input, specify a list of glob-based <<filestream-input-paths,`paths`>>
 that must be crawled to locate and fetch the log lines.
 
@@ -86,20 +91,32 @@ multiple input sections:
 [[filestream-file-identity]]
 ==== Reading files on network shares and cloud providers
 
-WARNING: Filebeat does not support reading from network shares and cloud providers.
+WARNING: Some file identity methods do not support reading from
+network shares and cloud providers, to avoid duplicating events, use
+the default `file_identity`: `fingerprint`.
+
+IMPORTANT: Changing `file_identity` is only supported when
+migrating from `native` or `path` to `fingerprint`.
+
+WARNING: Any unsupported change in `file_identity` methods between
+runs may result in duplicated events in the output.
 
-However, one of the limitations of these data sources can be mitigated
-if you configure Filebeat adequately.
+`fingerprint` is the default and recommended file identity because it does not
+rely on the file system/OS, it generates a hash from a portion of the
+file (the first 1024 bytes, by default) and uses that to identify the
+file. This works well with log rotation strategies that move/rename
+the file and on Windows as file identifiers might be more
+volatile. The downside is that {beatname_uc} will wait until the file
+reaches 1024 bytes before start ingesting any file.
 
-By default, {beatname_uc} identifies files based on their inodes and
-device IDs. However, on network shares and cloud providers these
-values might change during the lifetime of the file. If this happens
-{beatname_uc} thinks that file is new and resends the whole content
-of the file. To solve this problem you can configure the `file_identity` option. Possible
-values besides the default `inode_deviceid` are `path`, `inode_marker` and `fingerprint`.
+WARNING: Once this file identity is enabled, changing
+the fingerprint configuration (offset, length, etc) will lead to a
+global re-ingestion of all files that match the paths configuration of
+the input.
 
-WARNING: Changing `file_identity` methods between runs may result in
-duplicated events in the output.
+Please refer to the
+<<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint
+configuration for details>>.
 
 Selecting `path` instructs {beatname_uc} to identify files based on their
 paths. This is a quick way to avoid rereading files if inode and device ids
@@ -117,13 +134,6 @@ example oneliner generates a hidden marker file for the selected mountpoint `/lo
 Please note that you should not use this option on Windows as file identifiers might be
 more volatile.
 
-Selecting `fingerprint` instructs {beatname_uc} to identify files based on their
-content byte range.
-
-WARNING: In order to use this file identity option, one must enable the <<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint option in the scanner>>. Once this file identity is enabled, changing the fingerprint configuration (offset, length, etc) will lead to a global re-ingestion of all files that match the paths configuration of the input.
-
-Please refer to the <<{beatname_lc}-input-filestream-scan-fingerprint,fingerprint configuration for details>>.
-
 ["source","sh",subs="attributes"]
 ----
 $ lsblk -o MOUNTPOINT,UUID | grep /logs | awk '{print $2}' >> /logs/.filebeat-marker

filebeat/filebeat.reference.yml

@@ -716,7 +716,7 @@ filebeat.inputs:
   # If enabled, instead of relying on the device ID and inode values when comparing files,
   # compare hashes of the given byte ranges in files. A file becomes an ingest target
   # when its size grows larger than offset+length (see below). Until then it's ignored.
-  #prospector.scanner.fingerprint.enabled: false
+  #prospector.scanner.fingerprint.enabled: true
 
   # If fingerprint mode is enabled, sets the offset from the beginning of the file
   # for the byte range used for computing the fingerprint value.
@@ -852,7 +852,7 @@ filebeat.inputs:
 
   # Method to determine if two files are the same or not. By default
   # the Beat considers two files the same if their inode and device id are the same.
-  #file_identity.native: ~
+  #file_identity.fingerprint: ~
 
   # Optional additional fields. These fields can be freely picked
   # to add additional information to the crawled log files for filtering
@@ -1266,6 +1266,8 @@ filebeat.inputs:
 # batch of events has been published successfully. The default value is 1s.
 #filebeat.registry.flush: 1s
 
+# The interval which to run the registry clean up
+#filebeat.registry.cleanup_interval: 5m
 
 # Starting with Filebeat 7.0, the registry uses a new directory format to store
 # Filebeat state. After you upgrade, Filebeat will automatically migrate a 6.x

filebeat/input/filestream/environment_test.go

@@ -386,6 +386,7 @@
 
 // waitUntilEventCount waits until total count events arrive to the client.
 func (e *inputTestingEnvironment) waitUntilEventCount(count int) {
+	e.t.Helper()
 	msg := &strings.Builder{}
 	require.Eventuallyf(e.t, func() bool {
 		msg.Reset()
@@ -418,9 +419,9 @@
 		for _, e := range e.pipeline.GetAllEvents() {
 			flat := e.Fields.Flatten()
 			pathi, _ := flat.GetValue("log.file.path")
 			path := pathi.(string)
 			msgi, _ := flat.GetValue("message")
 			msg := msgi.(string)
 			logLines[path] = append(logLines[path], msg)
 		}
 
@@ -448,9 +449,14 @@
 // waitUntilHarvesterIsDone detects Harvester stop by checking if the last client has been closed
 // as when a Harvester stops the client is closed.
 func (e *inputTestingEnvironment) waitUntilHarvesterIsDone() {
-	for !e.pipeline.clients[len(e.pipeline.clients)-1].closed {
-		time.Sleep(10 * time.Millisecond)
-	}
+	require.Eventually(
+		e.t,
+		func() bool {
+			return e.pipeline.clients[len(e.pipeline.clients)-1].closed
+		},
+		time.Second*10,
+		time.Millisecond*10,
+		"The last connected client has not closed it's connection")
 }
 
 // requireEventsReceived requires that the list of messages has made it into the output.
@@ -462,7 +468,7 @@
 			if len(events) == checkedEventCount {
 				e.t.Fatalf("not enough expected elements")
 			}
 			message := evt.Fields["message"].(string)
 			if message == events[checkedEventCount] {
 				foundEvents[checkedEventCount] = true
 			}

filebeat/input/filestream/fswatch.go

@@ -278,7 +278,7 @@ func defaultFileScannerConfig() fileScannerConfig {
 		Symlinks:      false,
 		RecursiveGlob: true,
 		Fingerprint: fingerprintConfig{
-			Enabled: false,
+			Enabled: true,
 			Offset:  0,
 			Length:  DefaultFingerprintSize,
 		},

filebeat/input/filestream/fswatch_test.go

@@ -222,6 +222,7 @@ scanner:
 		paths := []string{filepath.Join(dir, "*.log")}
 		cfgStr := `
 scanner:
+  fingerprint.enabled: false
   check_interval: 10ms
 `
 
@@ -260,6 +261,7 @@ scanner:
 		paths := []string{filepath.Join(dir, "*.log")}
 		cfgStr := `
 scanner:
+  fingerprint.enabled: false
   check_interval: 50ms
 `
 
@@ -370,6 +372,7 @@ scanner:
 		}
 		cfgStr := `
 scanner:
+  fingerprint.enabled: false
   check_interval: 100ms
 `
 
@@ -615,6 +618,7 @@ scanner:
 			name: "returns no symlink if the original file is excluded",
 			cfgStr: `
 scanner:
+  fingerprint.enabled: false
   exclude_files: ['.*exclude.*', '.*traveler.*']
   symlinks: true
 `,
@@ -661,6 +665,7 @@ scanner:
 			name: "returns no included symlink if the original file is not included",
 			cfgStr: `
 scanner:
+  fingerprint.enabled: false
   include_files: ['.*include.*', '.*portal.*']
   symlinks: true
 `,
@@ -678,6 +683,7 @@ scanner:
 			name: "returns an included symlink if the original file is included",
 			cfgStr: `
 scanner:
+  fingerprint.enabled: false
   include_files: ['.*include.*', '.*portal.*', '.*traveler.*']
   symlinks: true
 `,

filebeat/input/filestream/identifier.go

@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ func (f fileSource) Name() string {
 // newFileIdentifier creates a new state identifier for a log input.
 func newFileIdentifier(ns *conf.Namespace, suffix string) (fileIdentifier, error) {
 	if ns == nil {
-		i, err := newINodeDeviceIdentifier(nil)
+		i, err := newFingerprintIdentifier(nil)
 		if err != nil {
 			return nil, err
 		}