Practice Free SPLK-2002 Exam Online Questions
Question #1
Which part of the deployment plan is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters?
- A . Data source inventory.
- B . Data policy definitions.
- C . Splunk deployment topology.
- D . Education and training plans.
Correct Answer: C
C
Explanation:
According to the Splunk documentation1, the Splunk deployment topology is the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters. The deployment topology defines the number and type of Splunk components, such as forwarders, indexers, search heads, and deployers, that you need to install and configure for your distributed deployment. The deployment topology also determines the network and hardware requirements, the data flow and replication, the high availability and disaster recovery options, and the security and performance considerations for your deployment2.
The other options are false because:
Data source inventory is not the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters, as it is a preliminary step that helps you identify the types, formats, locations, and volumes of data that you want to collect and analyze with Splunk. Data source inventory is important for planning your data ingestion and retention strategies, but it does not directly affect the installation and configuration of Splunk components3.
Data policy definitions are not the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters, as they are the rules and guidelines that govern how you handle, store, and protect your data. Data policy definitions are important for ensuring data quality, security, and compliance, but they do not directly affect the installation and configuration of Splunk components4.
Education and training plans are not the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters, as they are the learning resources and programs that help you and your team acquire the skills and knowledge to use Splunk effectively. Education and training plans are important for enhancing your Splunk proficiency and productivity, but they do not directly affect the installation and configuration of Splunk components5.
C
Explanation:
According to the Splunk documentation1, the Splunk deployment topology is the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters. The deployment topology defines the number and type of Splunk components, such as forwarders, indexers, search heads, and deployers, that you need to install and configure for your distributed deployment. The deployment topology also determines the network and hardware requirements, the data flow and replication, the high availability and disaster recovery options, and the security and performance considerations for your deployment2.
The other options are false because:
Data source inventory is not the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters, as it is a preliminary step that helps you identify the types, formats, locations, and volumes of data that you want to collect and analyze with Splunk. Data source inventory is important for planning your data ingestion and retention strategies, but it does not directly affect the installation and configuration of Splunk components3.
Data policy definitions are not the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters, as they are the rules and guidelines that govern how you handle, store, and protect your data. Data policy definitions are important for ensuring data quality, security, and compliance, but they do not directly affect the installation and configuration of Splunk components4.
Education and training plans are not the part of the deployment plan that is vital prior to installing Splunk indexer clusters and search head clusters, as they are the learning resources and programs that help you and your team acquire the skills and knowledge to use Splunk effectively. Education and training plans are important for enhancing your Splunk proficiency and productivity, but they do not directly affect the installation and configuration of Splunk components5.
Question #2
What is the algorithm used to determine captaincy in a Splunk search head cluster?
- A . Raft distributed consensus.
- B . Rapt distributed consensus.
- C . Rift distributed consensus.
- D . Round-robin distribution consensus.
Correct Answer: A
A
Explanation:
The algorithm used to determine captaincy in a Splunk search head cluster is Raft distributed consensus. Raft is a consensus algorithm that is used to elect a leader among a group of nodes in a distributed system. In a Splunk search head cluster, Raft is used to elect a captain among the cluster members. The captain is the cluster member that is responsible for coordinating the search activities, replicating the configurations and apps, and pushing the knowledge bundles to the search peers. The captain is dynamically elected based on various criteria, such as CPU load, network latency, and search load. The captain can change over time, depending on the availability and performance of the cluster members. Rapt, Rift, and Round-robin are not valid algorithms for determining captaincy in a Splunk search head cluster
A
Explanation:
The algorithm used to determine captaincy in a Splunk search head cluster is Raft distributed consensus. Raft is a consensus algorithm that is used to elect a leader among a group of nodes in a distributed system. In a Splunk search head cluster, Raft is used to elect a captain among the cluster members. The captain is the cluster member that is responsible for coordinating the search activities, replicating the configurations and apps, and pushing the knowledge bundles to the search peers. The captain is dynamically elected based on various criteria, such as CPU load, network latency, and search load. The captain can change over time, depending on the availability and performance of the cluster members. Rapt, Rift, and Round-robin are not valid algorithms for determining captaincy in a Splunk search head cluster
Question #3
How does IT Service Intelligence (ITSI) impact the planning of a Splunk deployment?
- A . ITSI requires a dedicated deployment server.
- B . The amount of users using ITSI will not impact performance.
- C . ITSI in a Splunk deployment does not require additional hardware resources.
- D . Depending on the Key Performance Indicators that are being tracked, additional infrastructure may be needed.
Correct Answer: D
D
Explanation:
ITSI can impact the planning of a Splunk deployment depending on the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that are being tracked. KPIs are metrics that measure the health and performance of IT services and business processes. ITSI collects, analyzes, and displays KPI data from various data sources in Splunk. Depending on the number, frequency, and complexity of the KPIs, additional infrastructure may be needed to support the data ingestion, processing, and visualization. ITSI does not require a dedicated deployment server, nor does it affect the number of users using ITSI. ITSI in a Splunk deployment does require additional hardware resources, such as CPU, memory, and disk space, to run the ITSI components and apps
D
Explanation:
ITSI can impact the planning of a Splunk deployment depending on the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that are being tracked. KPIs are metrics that measure the health and performance of IT services and business processes. ITSI collects, analyzes, and displays KPI data from various data sources in Splunk. Depending on the number, frequency, and complexity of the KPIs, additional infrastructure may be needed to support the data ingestion, processing, and visualization. ITSI does not require a dedicated deployment server, nor does it affect the number of users using ITSI. ITSI in a Splunk deployment does require additional hardware resources, such as CPU, memory, and disk space, to run the ITSI components and apps
Question #3
How does IT Service Intelligence (ITSI) impact the planning of a Splunk deployment?
- A . ITSI requires a dedicated deployment server.
- B . The amount of users using ITSI will not impact performance.
- C . ITSI in a Splunk deployment does not require additional hardware resources.
- D . Depending on the Key Performance Indicators that are being tracked, additional infrastructure may be needed.
Correct Answer: D
D
Explanation:
ITSI can impact the planning of a Splunk deployment depending on the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that are being tracked. KPIs are metrics that measure the health and performance of IT services and business processes. ITSI collects, analyzes, and displays KPI data from various data sources in Splunk. Depending on the number, frequency, and complexity of the KPIs, additional infrastructure may be needed to support the data ingestion, processing, and visualization. ITSI does not require a dedicated deployment server, nor does it affect the number of users using ITSI. ITSI in a Splunk deployment does require additional hardware resources, such as CPU, memory, and disk space, to run the ITSI components and apps
D
Explanation:
ITSI can impact the planning of a Splunk deployment depending on the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that are being tracked. KPIs are metrics that measure the health and performance of IT services and business processes. ITSI collects, analyzes, and displays KPI data from various data sources in Splunk. Depending on the number, frequency, and complexity of the KPIs, additional infrastructure may be needed to support the data ingestion, processing, and visualization. ITSI does not require a dedicated deployment server, nor does it affect the number of users using ITSI. ITSI in a Splunk deployment does require additional hardware resources, such as CPU, memory, and disk space, to run the ITSI components and apps
Question #5
Which of the following would be the least helpful in troubleshooting contents of Splunk configuration files?
- A . crash logs
- B . search.log
- C . btool output
- D . diagnostic logs
Correct Answer: A
A
Explanation:
Splunk configuration files are files that contain settings that control various aspects of Splunk behavior, such as data inputs, outputs, indexing, searching, clustering, and so on1. Troubleshooting Splunk configuration files involves identifying and resolving issues that affect the functionality or performance of Splunk due to incorrect or conflicting configuration settings. Some of the tools and methods that can help with troubleshooting Splunk configuration files are:
search.log: This is a file that contains detailed information about the execution of a search, such as the search pipeline, the search commands, the search results, the search errors, and the search performance2. This file can help troubleshoot issues related to search configuration, such as props.conf, transforms.conf, macros.conf, and so on3.
btool output: This is a command-line tool that displays the effective configuration settings for a given Splunk component, such as inputs, outputs, indexes, props, and so on4. This tool can help troubleshoot issues related to configuration precedence, inheritance, and merging, as well as identify the source of a configuration setting5.
diagnostic logs: These are files that contain information about the Splunk system, such as the Splunk version, the operating system, the hardware, the license, the indexes, the apps, the users, the roles, the permissions, the configuration files, the log files, and the metrics6. These files can help troubleshoot issues related to Splunk installation, deployment, performance, and health7.
Option A is the correct answer because crash logs are the least helpful in troubleshooting Splunk configuration files. Crash logs are files that contain information about the Splunk process when it crashes, such as the stack trace, the memory dump, and the environment variables8. These files can help troubleshoot issues related to Splunk stability, reliability, and security, but not necessarily related to Splunk configuration9.
Reference:
1: About configuration files – Splunk Documentation
2: Use the search.log file – Splunk Documentation
3: Troubleshoot search-time field extraction – Splunk Documentation
4: Use btool to troubleshoot configurations – Splunk Documentation
5: Troubleshoot configuration issues – Splunk Documentation
6: About the diagnostic utility – Splunk Documentation
7: Use the diagnostic utility – Splunk Documentation
8: About crash logs – Splunk Documentation
9: [Troubleshoot Splunk Enterprise crashes – Splunk Documentation]
A
Explanation:
Splunk configuration files are files that contain settings that control various aspects of Splunk behavior, such as data inputs, outputs, indexing, searching, clustering, and so on1. Troubleshooting Splunk configuration files involves identifying and resolving issues that affect the functionality or performance of Splunk due to incorrect or conflicting configuration settings. Some of the tools and methods that can help with troubleshooting Splunk configuration files are:
search.log: This is a file that contains detailed information about the execution of a search, such as the search pipeline, the search commands, the search results, the search errors, and the search performance2. This file can help troubleshoot issues related to search configuration, such as props.conf, transforms.conf, macros.conf, and so on3.
btool output: This is a command-line tool that displays the effective configuration settings for a given Splunk component, such as inputs, outputs, indexes, props, and so on4. This tool can help troubleshoot issues related to configuration precedence, inheritance, and merging, as well as identify the source of a configuration setting5.
diagnostic logs: These are files that contain information about the Splunk system, such as the Splunk version, the operating system, the hardware, the license, the indexes, the apps, the users, the roles, the permissions, the configuration files, the log files, and the metrics6. These files can help troubleshoot issues related to Splunk installation, deployment, performance, and health7.
Option A is the correct answer because crash logs are the least helpful in troubleshooting Splunk configuration files. Crash logs are files that contain information about the Splunk process when it crashes, such as the stack trace, the memory dump, and the environment variables8. These files can help troubleshoot issues related to Splunk stability, reliability, and security, but not necessarily related to Splunk configuration9.
Reference:
1: About configuration files – Splunk Documentation
2: Use the search.log file – Splunk Documentation
3: Troubleshoot search-time field extraction – Splunk Documentation
4: Use btool to troubleshoot configurations – Splunk Documentation
5: Troubleshoot configuration issues – Splunk Documentation
6: About the diagnostic utility – Splunk Documentation
7: Use the diagnostic utility – Splunk Documentation
8: About crash logs – Splunk Documentation
9: [Troubleshoot Splunk Enterprise crashes – Splunk Documentation]
Question #6
An index has large text log entries with many unique terms in the raw data. Other than the raw data, which index components will take the most space?
- A . Index files (*. tsidx files).
- B . Bloom filters (bloomfilter files).
- C . Index source metadata (sources.data files).
- D . Index sourcetype metadata (SourceTypes. data files).
Correct Answer: A
A
Explanation:
Index files (. tsidx files) are the main components of an index that store the raw data and the inverted index of terms. They take the most space in an index, especially if the raw data has many unique terms that increase the size of the inverted index. Bloom filters, source metadata, and sourcetype metadata are much smaller in comparison and do not depend on the number of unique terms in the raw data.
Reference: How the indexer stores indexes
Splunk Enterprise Certified Architect Study Guide, page 17
A
Explanation:
Index files (. tsidx files) are the main components of an index that store the raw data and the inverted index of terms. They take the most space in an index, especially if the raw data has many unique terms that increase the size of the inverted index. Bloom filters, source metadata, and sourcetype metadata are much smaller in comparison and do not depend on the number of unique terms in the raw data.
Reference: How the indexer stores indexes
Splunk Enterprise Certified Architect Study Guide, page 17
Question #7
Indexing is slow and real-time search results are delayed in a Splunk environment with two indexers and one search head. There is ample CPU and memory available on the indexers.
Which of the following is most likely to improve indexing performance?
- A . Increase the maximum number of hot buckets in indexes.conf
- B . Increase the number of parallel ingestion pipelines in server.conf
- C . Decrease the maximum size of the search pipelines in limits.conf
- D . Decrease the maximum concurrent scheduled searches in limits.conf
Correct Answer: B
B
Explanation:
Increasing the number of parallel ingestion pipelines in server.conf is most likely to improve indexing performance when indexing is slow and real-time search results are delayed in a Splunk environment with two indexers and one search head. The parallel ingestion pipelines allow Splunk to process multiple data streams simultaneously, which increases the indexing throughput and reduces the indexing latency. Increasing the maximum number of hot buckets in indexes.conf will not improve indexing performance, but rather increase the disk space consumption and the bucket rolling time. Decreasing the maximum size of the search pipelines in limits.conf will not improve indexing performance, but rather reduce the search performance and the search concurrency. Decreasing the maximum concurrent scheduled searches in limits.conf will not improve indexing performance, but rather reduce the search capacity and the search availability. For more information, see Configure parallel ingestion pipelines in the Splunk documentation.
B
Explanation:
Increasing the number of parallel ingestion pipelines in server.conf is most likely to improve indexing performance when indexing is slow and real-time search results are delayed in a Splunk environment with two indexers and one search head. The parallel ingestion pipelines allow Splunk to process multiple data streams simultaneously, which increases the indexing throughput and reduces the indexing latency. Increasing the maximum number of hot buckets in indexes.conf will not improve indexing performance, but rather increase the disk space consumption and the bucket rolling time. Decreasing the maximum size of the search pipelines in limits.conf will not improve indexing performance, but rather reduce the search performance and the search concurrency. Decreasing the maximum concurrent scheduled searches in limits.conf will not improve indexing performance, but rather reduce the search capacity and the search availability. For more information, see Configure parallel ingestion pipelines in the Splunk documentation.
Question #8
A Splunk deployment is being architected and the customer will be using Splunk Enterprise Security (ES) and Splunk IT Service Intelligence (ITSI). Through data onboarding and sizing, it is determined that over 200 discrete KPIs will be tracked by ITSI and 1TB of data per day by ES.
What topology ensures a scalable and performant deployment?
- A . Two search heads, one for ITSI and one for ES.
- B . Two search head clusters, one for ITSI and one for ES.
- C . One search head cluster with both ITSI and ES installed.
- D . One search head with both ITSI and ES installed.
Correct Answer: B
B
Explanation:
The correct topology to ensure a scalable and performant deployment for the customer’s use case is two search head clusters, one for ITSI and one for ES. This configuration provides high availability, load balancing, and isolation for each Splunk app. According to the Splunk documentation1, ITSI and ES should not be installed on the same search head or search head cluster, as they have different requirements and may interfere with each other. Having two separate search head clusters allows each app to have its own dedicated resources and configuration, and avoids potential conflicts and performance issues1. The other options are not recommended, as they either have only one search head or search head cluster, which reduces the availability and scalability of the deployment, or they have both ITSI and ES installed on the same search head or search head cluster, which violates the best practices and may cause problems. Therefore, option B is the correct answer, and options A, C, and D are incorrect.
1: Splunk IT Service Intelligence and Splunk Enterprise Security compatibility
B
Explanation:
The correct topology to ensure a scalable and performant deployment for the customer’s use case is two search head clusters, one for ITSI and one for ES. This configuration provides high availability, load balancing, and isolation for each Splunk app. According to the Splunk documentation1, ITSI and ES should not be installed on the same search head or search head cluster, as they have different requirements and may interfere with each other. Having two separate search head clusters allows each app to have its own dedicated resources and configuration, and avoids potential conflicts and performance issues1. The other options are not recommended, as they either have only one search head or search head cluster, which reduces the availability and scalability of the deployment, or they have both ITSI and ES installed on the same search head or search head cluster, which violates the best practices and may cause problems. Therefore, option B is the correct answer, and options A, C, and D are incorrect.
1: Splunk IT Service Intelligence and Splunk Enterprise Security compatibility
Question #9
When planning user management for a new Splunk deployment, which task can be disregarded?
- A . Identify users authenticating with Splunk native authentication.
- B . Identify users authenticating with Splunk using LDAP or SAML.
- C . Determine the number of users present in Splunk log events.
- D . Determine the capabilities users need within the Splunk environment.
Correct Answer: C
C
Explanation:
According to the Splunk Enterprise User Authentication and Authorization Guide, effective user management during deployment planning involves identifying how users will authenticate (native, LDAP, or SAML) and defining what roles and capabilities they will need to perform their tasks.
However, counting or analyzing the number of users who appear in Splunk log events (Option C) is not part of user management planning. This metric relates to audit and monitoring, not access provisioning or role assignment.
A proper user management plan should address:
Authentication method selection (native, LDAP, or SAML).
User mapping and provisioning workflows from existing identity stores.
Role-based access control (RBAC) ― assigning users appropriate permissions via Splunk roles and capabilities.
Administrative governance ― ensuring access policies align with compliance requirements.
Determining the number of users visible in log events provides no operational value when planning Splunk authentication or authorization architecture. Therefore, this task can be safely disregarded during initial planning.
Reference (Splunk Enterprise Documentation):
• User Authentication and Authorization in Splunk Enterprise
• Configuring LDAP and SAML Authentication
• Managing Users, Roles, and Capabilities
• Splunk Deployment Planning Manual C Security and Access Control Planning
C
Explanation:
According to the Splunk Enterprise User Authentication and Authorization Guide, effective user management during deployment planning involves identifying how users will authenticate (native, LDAP, or SAML) and defining what roles and capabilities they will need to perform their tasks.
However, counting or analyzing the number of users who appear in Splunk log events (Option C) is not part of user management planning. This metric relates to audit and monitoring, not access provisioning or role assignment.
A proper user management plan should address:
Authentication method selection (native, LDAP, or SAML).
User mapping and provisioning workflows from existing identity stores.
Role-based access control (RBAC) ― assigning users appropriate permissions via Splunk roles and capabilities.
Administrative governance ― ensuring access policies align with compliance requirements.
Determining the number of users visible in log events provides no operational value when planning Splunk authentication or authorization architecture. Therefore, this task can be safely disregarded during initial planning.
Reference (Splunk Enterprise Documentation):
• User Authentication and Authorization in Splunk Enterprise
• Configuring LDAP and SAML Authentication
• Managing Users, Roles, and Capabilities
• Splunk Deployment Planning Manual C Security and Access Control Planning
Question #10
A single-site indexer cluster has a replication factor of 3, and a search factor of 2.
What is true about this cluster?
- A . The cluster will ensure there are at least two copies of each bucket, and at least three copies of searchable metadata.
- B . The cluster will ensure there are at most three copies of each bucket, and at most two copies of searchable metadata.
- C . The cluster will ensure only two search heads are allowed to access the bucket at the same time.
- D . The cluster will ensure there are at least three copies of each bucket, and at least two copies of searchable metadata.
Correct Answer: D
D
Explanation:
A single-site indexer cluster is a group of Splunk Enterprise instances that index and replicate data across the cluster1. A bucket is a directory that contains indexed data, along with metadata and other information2. A replication factor is the number of copies of each bucket that the cluster maintains1. A search factor is the number of searchable copies of each bucket that the cluster maintains1. A searchable copy is a copy that contains both the raw data and the index files3. A search head is a Splunk Enterprise instance that coordinates the search activities across the peer nodes1.
Option D is the correct answer because it reflects the definitions of replication factor and search factor. The cluster will ensure that there are at least three copies of each bucket, one on each peer node, to satisfy the replication factor of 3. The cluster will also ensure that there are at least two searchable copies of each bucket, one primary and one searchable, to satisfy the search factor of 2. The primary copy is the one that the search head uses to run searches, and the searchable copy is the one that can be promoted to primary if the original primary copy becomes unavailable3.
Option A is incorrect because it confuses the replication factor and the search factor. The cluster will ensure there are at least three copies of each bucket, not two, to meet the replication factor of 3. The cluster will ensure there are at least two copies of searchable metadata, not three, to meet the search factor of 2.
Option B is incorrect because it uses the wrong terms. The cluster will ensure there are at least, not at most, three copies of each bucket, to meet the replication factor of 3. The cluster will ensure there are at least, not at most, two copies of searchable metadata, to meet the search factor of 2.
Option C is incorrect because it has nothing to do with the replication factor or the search factor. The cluster does not limit the number of search heads that can access the bucket at the same time. The search head can search across multiple clusters, and the cluster can serve multiple search heads1.
1: The basics of indexer cluster architecture – Splunk Documentation
2: About buckets C Splunk Documentation 3: Search factor – Splunk Documentation
D
Explanation:
A single-site indexer cluster is a group of Splunk Enterprise instances that index and replicate data across the cluster1. A bucket is a directory that contains indexed data, along with metadata and other information2. A replication factor is the number of copies of each bucket that the cluster maintains1. A search factor is the number of searchable copies of each bucket that the cluster maintains1. A searchable copy is a copy that contains both the raw data and the index files3. A search head is a Splunk Enterprise instance that coordinates the search activities across the peer nodes1.
Option D is the correct answer because it reflects the definitions of replication factor and search factor. The cluster will ensure that there are at least three copies of each bucket, one on each peer node, to satisfy the replication factor of 3. The cluster will also ensure that there are at least two searchable copies of each bucket, one primary and one searchable, to satisfy the search factor of 2. The primary copy is the one that the search head uses to run searches, and the searchable copy is the one that can be promoted to primary if the original primary copy becomes unavailable3.
Option A is incorrect because it confuses the replication factor and the search factor. The cluster will ensure there are at least three copies of each bucket, not two, to meet the replication factor of 3. The cluster will ensure there are at least two copies of searchable metadata, not three, to meet the search factor of 2.
Option B is incorrect because it uses the wrong terms. The cluster will ensure there are at least, not at most, three copies of each bucket, to meet the replication factor of 3. The cluster will ensure there are at least, not at most, two copies of searchable metadata, to meet the search factor of 2.
Option C is incorrect because it has nothing to do with the replication factor or the search factor. The cluster does not limit the number of search heads that can access the bucket at the same time. The search head can search across multiple clusters, and the cluster can serve multiple search heads1.
1: The basics of indexer cluster architecture – Splunk Documentation
2: About buckets C Splunk Documentation 3: Search factor – Splunk Documentation