# Output Formats

Some output plugins have a `format` configuration parameter. Supported values vary by plugin:

| Plugin          | Supported formats                                          |
| --------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| HTTP            | `gelf`, `json`, `json_lines`, `json_stream`, `msgpack`     |
| Kafka           | `avro` (build-dependent), `gelf`, `json`, `msgpack`, `raw` |
| Standard Output | `json`, `json_lines`, `json_stream`, `msgpack`             |
| TCP/TLS         | `json`, `json_lines`, `json_stream`, `msgpack`             |
| UDP             | `json`, `json_lines`, `json_stream`, `msgpack`             |
| WebSocket       | `gelf`, `json`, `json_lines`, `json_stream`, `msgpack`     |

Some plugins, such as Kafka, support additional formats not listed here (for example, `avro` and `raw`). Always check the individual plugin documentation for the full list of supported values.

The format specifications and references to external documentation are available in this page.

## JSON formats

The most custom format options are the JSON types. The following are common variants of sending JSON encoded data over various APIs.

The following example payloads are modified for readability.

Records shown in example payloads are the three first commits of the Fluent Bit repository.

### `json`

Queued records encoded as a single JSON array of JSON encoded Fluent Bit records.

#### Example payload

```json
[
  {
    "timestamp": 1398282091.000,
    "log": "Core: initialization and 32 bit fixes.",
    "commit": "b327996bfcbc0f1f47e62c862c6f303592dfacea",
    "author": "Eduardo Silva"
  },
  {
    "timestamp": 1422350608.000,
    "log": "Initial import.",
    "commit": "49269c5ec3c74411943e362cfef85052665ae97f",
    "author": "Eduardo Silva"
  },
  {
    "timestamp": 1422418113.000,
    "log": "Doc: add reference to Apache License v2.0",
    "commit": "6e09478733e8273ec216328dfc921e622740695d",
    "author": "Eduardo Silva"
  }
]
```

### `json_stream`

*a.k.a. Concatenated JSON*

Queued JSON-encoded Fluent Bit records, with no separator between records.

#### Example `json_stream` payload

```json
{
  "timestamp": 1398282091.000,
  "log": "Core: initialization and 32 bit fixes.",
  "commit": "b327996bfcbc0f1f47e62c862c6f303592dfacea",
  "author": "Eduardo Silva"
}{
  "timestamp": 1422350608.000,
  "log": "Initial import.",
  "commit": "49269c5ec3c74411943e362cfef85052665ae97f",
  "author": "Eduardo Silva"
}{
  "timestamp": 1422418113.000,
  "log": "Doc: add reference to Apache License v2.0",
  "commit": "6e09478733e8273ec216328dfc921e622740695d",
  "author": "Eduardo Silva"
}
```

### `json_lines`

Also known as newline-delimited JSON.

Queued JSON-encoded Fluent Bit records, separated by line-breaks (`\n`).

#### Example `json_lines` payload

```json
{
  "timestamp": 1398282091.000,
  "log": "Core: initialization and 32 bit fixes.",
  "commit": "b327996bfcbc0f1f47e62c862c6f303592dfacea",
  "author": "Eduardo Silva"
}
{
  "timestamp": 1422350608.000,
  "log": "Initial import.",
  "commit": "49269c5ec3c74411943e362cfef85052665ae97f",
  "author": "Eduardo Silva"
}
{
  "timestamp": 1422418113.000,
  "log": "Doc: add reference to Apache License v2.0",
  "commit": "6e09478733e8273ec216328dfc921e622740695d",
  "author": "Eduardo Silva"
}
```

## `msgpack`

MessagePack is a binary format for serializing objects.

Refer to the official [MessagePack format specification](https://github.com/msgpack/msgpack/blob/master/spec.md).

## GELF

Graylog Extended Log Format (GELF) is a JSON based log format which is designed to avoid the shortcomings of classic plain syslog.

See the official documentation for the [GELF format](https://archivedocs.graylog.org/en/latest/pages/gelf.html).

It uses a fixed set of keys, with the addition of adding custom keys prefixed by one single underscore character.

### Example GELF payload

Here is an example payload, copied directly from the official documentation.

```json
{
  "version": "1.1",
  "host": "example.org",
  "short_message": "A short message that helps you identify what is going on",
  "full_message": "Backtrace here\n\nmore stuff",
  "timestamp": 1385053862.3072,
  "level": 1,
  "_user_id": 9001,
  "_some_info": "foo",
  "_some_env_var": "bar"
}
```


---

# 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/data-pipeline/outputs/output_formats.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.