Edge Delta Parse Timestamp Processor

The Edge Delta parse timestamp processor parses the timestamps from another field.

5 minute read

Overview

There will be a slight difference between the timestamp in a data item body, which is the event time vs the root timestamp field, which is the moment the Edge Delta agent ingested it. See Manage Log Timestamps. You can choose to overwrite the timestamp field using the timestamp in the body, taking into account various timestamp formats. You may need to parse the body first to isolate the timestamp in an attribute.

Use this in Pipeline Quickstart: Use the Log Timestamp.

Configuration

In this example, the timestamp 1745307901318 has been changed to 1745307900489, which is 2025-04-22T07:45:00.489664Z.

YAML version:

- name: Multi Processor
  type: sequence
  processors:
  - type: ottl_transform
    metadata: '{"id":"atZl1qvLfkBt-aILGqio_","type":"parse-json","name":"Parse JSON"}'
    statements: |-
      merge_maps(attributes, ParseJSON(body), "upsert") where IsMap(attributes)
      set(attributes, ParseJSON(body)) where not IsMap(attributes)      
  - type: ottl_transform
    metadata: '{"id":"8ywWLkADWPtLOJ2cnpBEU","type":"parse-timestamp","name":"Parse
      Timestamp"}'
    statements: set(timestamp, UnixMilli(Time(attributes["timestamp"], "2006-01-02T15:04:05Z07:00")))

Options

Select a telemetry type

You can specify, log, metric, trace or all. It is specified using the interface, which generates a YAML list item for you under the data_types parameter. This defines the data item types against which the processor must operate. If data_types is not specified, the default value is all. It is optional.

It is defined in YAML as follows:

- name: multiprocessor
  type: sequence
  processors:
  - type: <processor type>
    data_types:
    - log

condition

The condition parameter contains a conditional phrase of an OTTL statement. It restricts operation of the processor to only data items where the condition is met. Those data items that do not match the condition are passed without processing. You configure it in the interface and an OTTL condition is generated. It is optional. You can select one of the following operators:

Operator	Name	Description	Example
`==`	Equal to	Returns `true` if both values are exactly the same	`attributes["status"] == "OK"`
`!=`	Not equal to	Returns `true` if the values are not the same	`attributes["level"] != "debug"`
`>`	Greater than	Returns `true` if the left value is greater than the right	`attributes["duration_ms"] > 1000`
`>=`	Greater than or equal	Returns `true` if the left value is greater than or equal to the right	`attributes["score"] >= 90`
`<`	Less than	Returns `true` if the left value is less than the right	`attributes["load"] < 0.75`
`<=`	Less than or equal	Returns `true` if the left value is less than or equal to the right	`attributes["retries"] <= 3`
`matches`	Regex match	Returns `true` if the string matches a regular expression	`isMatch(attributes["name"], ".*\\.name$"`

It is defined in YAML as follows:

- name: _multiprocessor
  type: sequence
  processors:
  - type: <processor type>
    condition: attributes["request"]["path"] == "/json/view"

Parse from

Specify the field containing the timestamp.

Format

Specify the format that the timestamp is currently in. The options show examples so you can match the format. If your format is not listed you can use a golang time configuration. To do this, select Custom as the format. Then enter the following golang reference date in the Custom format field, but format it according to your input timestamp: Mon Jan 2 15:04:05 -0700 MST 2006:

1 represents the month (January)
2 represents the day of the month
3 represents the hour in 12-hour format (3 PM)
4 represents the minute
5 represents the second
6 represents the year (2006)
-0700 represents the time zone offset
MST represents the time zone abbreviation

For example, if your format is Time_2013|10|15~05_52_12, you enter Time_2006|01|02~15_04_05 in the Custom format field. The unique values in the reference datetime enable the processor to map the input format.

Final

Determines whether successfully processed data items should continue through the remaining processors in the same processor stack. If final is set to true, data items output by this processor are not passed to subsequent processors within the node—they are instead emitted to downstream nodes in the pipeline (e.g., a destination). Failed items are always passed to the next processor, regardless of this setting.

The UI provides a slider to configure this setting. The default is false. It is defined in YAML as follows:

- name: multiprocessor
  type: sequence
  processors:
    - type: <processor type>
    final: true

Keep original telemetry item

Controls whether the original, unmodified telemetry item is preserved after processing. If keep_item is set to true, the processor emits both:

The original telemetry item (e.g., a log), and
Any new item generated by the processor (e.g., a metric extracted from the log)

Both items are passed to the next processor in the stack unless final is also set.

Interaction with final

If final: true is enabled, any successfully processed data items, whether original, newly created, or both, exit the processor stack or node immediately. No subsequent processors within the same node are evaluated, although downstream processing elsewhere in the pipeline continues. This means:

If keep_item: true and final: true, both the original and processed items bypass the remaining processors in the current node and are forwarded to downstream nodes (such as destinations).
If keep_item: false and final: true, only the processed item continues beyond this processor, skipping subsequent processors in the stack, and the original item is discarded.

Note: If the data item fails to be processed, final has no effect, the item continues through the remaining processors in the node regardless of the keep_item setting.

The app provides a slider to configure keep_item. The default is false.

- name: ed_gateway_output_a3fa_multiprocessor
  type: sequence
  processors:
    - type: <processor_type>
      keep_item: true
      final: true