Collect Apache Tomcat logs

This document explains how to ingest Apache Tomcat logs to Google Security Operations using Bindplane. The parser extracts fields from JSON-formatted logs, transforming them into the Unified Data Model (UDM). It initializes default values, parses the JSON payload, handles potential JSON parsing errors, and maps various fields from the raw log into corresponding UDM fields, including metadata, principal, observer, and security result information, while also adding custom labels for environment context.

Before you begin

Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

• Google SecOps instance
• A Windows 2016 or later, or a Linux host with systemd
• If running behind a proxy, firewall ports are open
• Apache Tomcat version 9.0.70 or later
• Write access to $CATALINA_BASE/conf and $CATALINA_BASE/logs

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 on the Tomcat server to collect log files

Install the Bindplane agent on your Windows or Linux operating system according to the following instructions.

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 the installation guide.

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

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

2. Edit the config.yaml file as follows:

   receivers:
       filelog/tomcat:
       include: [ /path/to/tomcat/logs/access-log.*.json ]
       start_at: beginning
   
   exporters:
       chronicle/chronicle_w_labels:
           compression: gzip
           # Adjust the path to the credentials file you downloaded in Step 1
           creds_file_path: '/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
           log_type: 'TOMCAT'
           raw_log_field: body
           ingestion_labels:
   
   service:
       pipelines:
           logs/source0__chronicle_w_labels-0:
               receivers:
                   - filelog/tomcat
               exporters:
                   - chronicle/chronicle_w_labels
   

   • Replace the /path/to/tomcat/logs.
   • Replace <customer_id> with the actual customer ID.
   • 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
  

Configure JSON Access Logs in Tomcat

1. Open the Tomcat file at $CATALINA_BASE/conf/server.xml.

2. Locate the <Host> tag and add this inside:

   <Valve className="org.apache.catalina.valves.JsonAccessLogValve"
         directory="logs"
         prefix="access-log"
         suffix=".json"
         rotatable="true"
         maxDays="7"/>
   

3. Restart Tomcat to apply changes:

   cd /path/to/tomcat
   bin/catalina.sh stop
   bin/catalina.sh start
   

4. A new JSON log file will appear daily (for example, logs/access-log.2025-07-02.json).

UDM mapping table

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