vRealize Log Insight 3.3 was released in March. Now that the first update for Log Insight (3.3.1) was released last week it is time to upgrade to the latest version. Log Insight 3.3 gives you some long awaited features and more IPv6 goodness. If you didn’t know already, vRealize Log Insight is a central logging tool with the power to create structured data from unstructured text/log files.

 

What’s new in Log Insight 3.3

  • New parsers: Syslog, Labeled Tab-Seperated Values (LTSV), Regex
  • Improvements to the previously released parsers
  • New interactive analytics
  • Multiple Virtual IP addresses (for the integrated load balancer)
  • Alert Webhooks (for example SocialCast and Slack)
  • 25 OSI licenses with the use of a vCenter Server (Standard Edition)
  • In-Production Cluster Checks
  • Windows Agent now supports Windows 10
  • IPv6 support for Log Insight Agents
  • Query API

Read the release notes for more indepth information about what’s new in Log Insight 3.3

One of the things that wasn’t in the release notes was the importer utility. From Steve Flanders’ blogpost:

Importer Utility

A new importer utility is available to support importing old logs and support bundles via the Log Insight ingestion API. This utility is available as an executable for Windows and Linux, supports a manifest file that is almost identical to an agent configuration file (only difference is the directory option), can ingest messages based on their timestamp (requires authentication) and supports compressed (zip/gzip/tar) as well as recursive directory imports.

For example, the utility may be called using the following parameters:

/usr/lib/loginsight-importer \
--source /tmp/vmsupport-1234.tgz \
--server loginsight.vmware.com \
--mainfest /tmp/vmsupport.ini \
--username admin \
--password \
--honor_timestamp

I think this is one of the best, if not the best, new features or functionalities in Log Insight. Now you can ‘replay’ events from your support bundles in Log Insight. When a customer sends me a log bundle I can finally analyze it in a structured way.

How to upgrade Log Insight to 3.3

You can upgrade your current version of Log Insight from a version 3 to 3.3. If you’re not at 3.0 yet, you need to upgrade to 3.0 before you can do the upgrade to 3.3.
The upgrade itself isn’t that hard. If you’re already on 3.0 you can upgrade by following this procedure.

  • Make sure that everything works as it should before you do the upgrade. Check that you have a user with permissions (Edit Admin).
  • Download the vRealize Log Insight 3.3 upgrade bundle (VMware-vRealize-Log-Insight-3.3.1-3644329.pak at the time of writing this article)
  • Take a snapshot or backup from the Log Insight virtual appliance. With PowerCLI it’s easy (check PowerShell Friday: Snapshots)

After you created the snapshot or backup (and checked if it is Ok) you can upgrade Log Insight from the GUI:

  • Log in to Log Insight
  • Go to Administration in the right upper corner
  • Go to Cluster
  • Select Upgrade from PAK and choose the file you downloaded.
  • Clicking Upgrade and the PAK is being uploaded to the appliance.
  • After reading the End User License Agreement carefully and accepting it the upgrade it started.

Click on the image below to see the process.

vRealizeLogInsight-Upgrade3.3

After the master node upgrade process is complete, you can view the remaining upgrade process.

vRealizeLogInsight-Upgrade3.3-finishedWhen the upgrade is completed an e-mail is sent to the admin e-mail address you configured.

 

Ok, Now I know how to upgrade Log Insight, but what is it?

If this is the first time you hear about Log Insight and wonder what it can do for you, go on and read “Getting Started with Log Insight” and the other articles in our vRealize Log Insight series.
For more technical information check the VMware vRealize Log Insight 3.3 Information Center