Splunk software searches, analyzes, and visualizes machine-generated data obtained from websites, applications, sensors, and devices, among others, that comprise IT infrastructures and businesses.
Splunk was explicitly created so users can aggregate and analyze big data on a single platform. No matter how much information users get and regardless of where it came from, data can be mixed for processing and analysis.
Other interesting terms…
Read More about a “Splunk Software”
Companies have various reasons for using Splunk software. We named a few of them here.
What Are the Uses of Splunk Software?
Splunk software usage lets users get real-time insights to enhance productivity, security, profitability, and competitiveness.
Improve Productivity
Companies like Bosch use Splunk for data analytics. The software allows it to collect healthcare data from patients remotely using IoT devices. The application processes the data and reports abnormal activities to the patients and their doctors. That allows the doctors to act as soon as problems are detected, making healthcare provision more efficient, thus improving productivity.
Ensure Better Security
Organizations can increase their network security using Splunk, too. The software provides actionable intelligence on threats as soon as they are detected. It also monitors hybrid and multi-cloud environments and spots false positives, allowing users to stay safe from as many threats as possible.
Enhance Profitability
It’s no surprise that Splunk software usage can grow a company’s revenue since it can improve productivity. The data obtained from the application also helps organizations make better business decisions, giving them a chance to earn more.
Grow Competitiveness
Users can also use Splunk software to monitor the competition and beat them to new product releases, for example. And as we know by now, whoever gets first to market usually sells more.
How Does Splunk Software Work?
Using the Bosch example to explain how Splunk works, the diagram below can shed more light.
In the diagram above, Splunk collects data from wearables that monitor a patient’s health and vital signs no matter where he/she is. The information goes to Splunk, which collects, processes, and analyzes it to give actionable insights. The insights get sent to both the patient and his/her doctor. The doctor can interpret the data and provide recommendations, such as for the patient to go on a diet, for instance, to go back to normal.
If the process still seems a bit cloudy, watch this video:
What Are the Components of Splunk Architecture?
Splunk architectures comprise three main components—the forwarder, the indexer, and the search head.
Forwarder
The forwarder collects data from remote machines then forwards it to the indexer. In the diagram above, the forwarder can be the health tracker the patient wears.
Indexer
The indexer processes the data automatically. It also stores and indexes (hence the name) the information on the computer disk. In the diagram, that could be installed on a dedicated system on-premises or in the cloud.
Search Head
The search head lets users search for, analyze, and visualize the data analysis. In the diagram, the patient’s and doctor’s computers serve as search heads.
What Are the Kinds of Splunk Software?
Splunk comes in three variants—Enterprise, Cloud, and Light. The table below shows how one differs from the others.
| Splunk Enterprise | Splunk Cloud | Splunk Light | |
| Target user | Large enterprises | Midsize companies | Small businesses and home users |
| Cost | Paid (most expensive but has free trial) | Paid (less costly and has free trial) | Free |
| Functionality | All features, including gathering data from websites, applications, and connected systems, hosted on-premises | Same features as the enterprise version but hosted on the cloud | Limited features compared to the other types |
What Data Can You Get from Splunk Software?
Splunk can give users data points that answer questions, such as:
- Which product sells most in a particular country or region?
- Which customer buys most and how often?
- What time of the day and day of the week does a particular store or online portal make the most money?
- Which sales offer worked best for a particular age group?
- Who among the salespeople sold the most products?
—
Splunk, which was borne out of the need for processing, analyzing, and interpreting big data, is beneficial for all kinds of businesses.
