# Standard Output

The **stdout** output plugin allows to print to the standard output the data received through the *input* plugin. Their usage is very simple as follows:

## Configuration Parameters

| Key                | Description                                                                                                      | default |
| ------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------- |
| Format             | Specify the data format to be printed. Supported formats are *msgpack* and *json\_lines*.                        | msgpack |
| json\_date\_key    | Specify the name of the date field in output                                                                     | date    |
| json\_date\_format | Specify the format of the date. Supported formats are *double* and *iso8601* (eg: *2018-05-30T09:39:52.000681Z*) | double  |

### Command Line

```bash
$ bin/fluent-bit -i cpu -o stdout -v
```

We have specified to gather [CPU](/manual/1.1/input/cpu.md) usage metrics and print them out to the standard output in a human readable way:

```bash
$ bin/fluent-bit -i cpu -o stdout -v
Fluent-Bit v0.9.0
Copyright (C) Treasure Data

[2016/10/07 21:52:01] [ info] [engine] started
[0] cpu.0: [1475898721, {"cpu_p"=>0.500000, "user_p"=>0.250000, "system_p"=>0.250000, "cpu0.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu0.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu0.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_cpu"=>1.000000, "cpu3.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_system"=>1.000000}]
[1] cpu.0: [1475898722, {"cpu_p"=>0.250000, "user_p"=>0.250000, "system_p"=>0.000000, "cpu0.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu0.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu0.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_cpu"=>1.000000, "cpu1.p_user"=>1.000000, "cpu1.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_system"=>0.000000}]
[2] cpu.0: [1475898723, {"cpu_p"=>0.750000, "user_p"=>0.250000, "system_p"=>0.500000, "cpu0.p_cpu"=>2.000000, "cpu0.p_user"=>1.000000, "cpu0.p_system"=>1.000000, "cpu1.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_cpu"=>1.000000, "cpu2.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu2.p_system"=>1.000000, "cpu3.p_cpu"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_user"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_system"=>0.000000}]
[3] cpu.0: [1475898724, {"cpu_p"=>1.000000, "user_p"=>0.750000, "system_p"=>0.250000, "cpu0.p_cpu"=>1.000000, "cpu0.p_user"=>1.000000, "cpu0.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu1.p_cpu"=>2.000000, "cpu1.p_user"=>1.000000, "cpu1.p_system"=>1.000000, "cpu2.p_cpu"=>1.000000, "cpu2.p_user"=>1.000000, "cpu2.p_system"=>0.000000, "cpu3.p_cpu"=>1.000000, "cpu3.p_user"=>1.000000, "cpu3.p_system"=>0.000000}]
```

No more, no less, it just works.


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.fluentbit.io/manual/1.1/output/stdout.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.