Collect NGINX logs

This NGINX parser handles JSON and syslog formatted logs. It extracts fields from various log formats and normalizes them into the UDM format. The parser enriches the event with metadata for server management and network activity, including user logins and HTTP requests. It also handles logic for SSH events and populates UDM fields based on extracted data.

Before you begin

Ensure that you have the following prerequisites:

• Google SecOps instance
• NGINX is running and generating logs
• Root access to NGINX host machine

Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
2. Go to SIEM Settings > Collection Agents.
3. Download the Ingestion Authentication File. Save the file securely on the system where Bindplane will be installed.

Get Google SecOps customer ID

1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
2. Go to SIEM Settings > Profile.
3. Copy and save the Customer ID from the Organization Details section.

Install the Bindplane agent

Windows installation

1. Open the Command Prompt or PowerShell as an administrator.

2. Run the following command:

   msiexec /i "https://github.com/observIQ/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/observiq-otel-collector.msi" /quiet
   

Linux installation

1. Open a terminal with root or sudo privileges.

2. Run the following command:

   sudo sh -c "$(curl -fsSlL https://github.com/observiq/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/install_unix.sh)" install_unix.sh
   

Additional installation resources

• For additional installation options, consult this installation guide.

Configure the Bindplane agent to ingest Syslog and send to Google SecOps

1. Access the configuration file:

   1. Locate the config.yaml file. Typically, it's in the /etc/bindplane-agent/ directory on Linux or in the installation directory on Windows.
   2. Open the file using a text editor (for example, nano, vi, or Notepad).

2. Edit the config.yaml file as follows:

   receivers:
       udplog:
           # Replace the port and IP address as required
           listen_address: "0.0.0.0:514"
   
   exporters:
       chronicle/chronicle_w_labels:
           compression: gzip
           # Adjust the path to the credentials file you downloaded in Step 1
           creds: '/path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json'
           # Replace with your actual customer ID from Step 2
           customer_id: <customer_id>
           endpoint: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
           # Add optional ingestion labels for better organization
           ingestion_labels:
               log_type: 'NGINX'
               raw_log_field: body
   
   service:
       pipelines:
           logs/source0__chronicle_w_labels-0:
               receivers:
                   - udplog
               exporters:
                   - chronicle/chronicle_w_labels
   

3. Replace the port and IP address as required in your infrastructure.

4. Replace <customer_id> with the actual customer ID.

5. Update /path/to/ingestion-authentication-file.json to the path where the authentication file was saved in the Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file section.

Restart the Bindplane agent to apply the changes

• To restart the Bindplane agent in Linux, run the following command:

  sudo systemctl restart bindplane-agent
  

• To restart the Bindplane agent in Windows, you can either use the Services console or enter the following command:

  net stop BindPlaneAgent && net start BindPlaneAgent
  

Identify NGINX log files location

1. Typically NGINX logs are stored in:
   • Access logs: /var/log/nginx/access.log
   • Error logs: /var/log/nginx/error.log
2. Access NGINX host using administrative credentials.

3. Run the following command and look for the path to logs on your NGINX host:

   sudo cat /etc/nginx/nginx.conf | grep log
   

Configure NGINX to forward logs to Bindplane

1. Open the NGINX configuration file (for example, /etc/nginx/nginx.conf):

   sudo vi /etc/nginx/nginx.conf
   

2. Edit the configuration, replacing <BINDPLANE_SERVER> and <BINDPLANE_PORT> with your values:

   http {
       access_log syslog:server=<BINDPLANE_SERVER>:<BINDPLANE_PORT>,facility=local7,tag=nginx_access;
       error_log syslog:server=<BINDPLANE_SERVER>:<BINDPLANE_PORT>,facility=local7,tag=nginx_error;
   }
   

3. Restart NGINX to apply the changes:

   sudo systemctl reload nginx
   

UDM Mapping Table

Changes

2022-09-10

• Created a default parser and deleted the customer-specific parser
• Initial parser release

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