Splunk DB Connect Setup

Prerequisites

Tool or access	Purpose	Verify
Bash and Python 3	Run bundled setup and validation helpers	bash --version && python3 --version
Required product/platform access	Inspect or configure the selected target	Complete the documented preflight
Credential files for live modes	Keep secrets out of chat	Verify paths only

Workflow Overview

┌───────────┐   ┌───────────────┐   ┌───────────────┐   ┌─────────────────┐
│ Preflight │ → │ Render/review │ → │ Apply/handoff │ → │ Validate evidence │
└───────────┘   └───────────────┘   └───────────────┘   └─────────────────┘

When to Activate

• Install or plan DB Connect, configure DBX Java and JDBC drivers, prepare identities, connections, inputs, outputs, lookups, SQL Explorer, dbxquery, dbxoutput, dbxlookup, DB Connect over Federated Search, or validate DB Connect topology.
• Preview and review the splunk db connect setup workflow before any live apply phase.
• Diagnose failed prerequisites, generated assets, configuration, or validation evidence.

Scope

Follow the documented read-only or render-first path whenever it is available. This skill does not imply permission to mutate live systems. Require explicit apply flags, protected credentials, and operator review for state changes.

Examples

Inspect the supported setup modes before selecting one:

bash skills/splunk-db-connect-setup/scripts/setup.sh --help

Expected output: usage, supported modes, and required arguments are displayed without changing the target environment.

Inspect validation modes before running completion checks:

bash skills/splunk-db-connect-setup/scripts/validate.sh --help

Expected output: offline, live, and completion options are displayed when the skill supports them; help exits without mutation.

Troubleshooting

Issue	Cause	Resolution
Preflight fails	A required tool or access path is missing	Resolve it before rendering or applying
Rendered assets are incomplete	Required non-secret inputs are absent	Complete intake and render again
Apply is blocked	Review, credentials, or explicit acceptance is missing	Use the documented handoff
Validation is incomplete	Live evidence is unavailable	Record the gap and keep completion open

Shared add-on completion gate

Whenever this workflow installs, configures, or hands off a registry-listed Splunk app or add-on, follow the shared completion gate. Package delivery alone is not success; capture JDBC input/output data evidence and shipped-view evidence, or explicit package evidence that no dashboards ship.

Use this skill for Splunk DB Connect (splunk_app_db_connect, Splunkbase app 2686) and the supported Splunk-published JDBC driver add-ons. The default path is render, preflight, and validate only. Installing packages is explicit and delegated to splunk-app-install; live DB Connect object mutation is out of scope for v1.

Safety Rules

• Never ask for database passwords, tokens, wallet passphrases, private keys, or CyberArk/Vault secrets in chat.
• Never put secrets in argv, specs, environment-variable prefixes, rendered files, or JDBC URLs.
• Use local chmod-600 secret files or external secret references only.
• Treat DBX encrypted-value prefixes as non-portable local artifacts; do not paste or render them as identity values.
• Do not deploy DB Connect through Deployment Server.
• Do not install DB Connect on universal forwarders or indexers.
• Do not self-service DB Connect installation on Splunk Cloud Classic; use IDM, a customer-managed heavy forwarder, or a Splunk Cloud support workflow.
• Treat Splunk Cloud Victoria as a Cloud search-head DB Connect target. Model customer-managed heavy forwarders as Enterprise runtime hosts paired to Cloud.
• Do not install archived JDBC add-ons unless the spec explicitly opts into archived driver handling.
• Do not use the automated install handoff for FIPS DB Connect. FIPS requires a fresh manual installation plan and PKCS12 keystore/truststore handling.

Primary Workflow

1. Copy template.example to a local working spec and fill in only non-secret values.
2. Run a read-only preflight:

bash skills/splunk-db-connect-setup/scripts/setup.sh \
  --preflight \
  --spec my-db-connect.yaml

3. Render and validate the handoff packet:

bash skills/splunk-db-connect-setup/scripts/setup.sh \
  --render \
  --validate \
  --spec my-db-connect.yaml \
  --output-dir splunk-db-connect-rendered

The install helper applies supported DBX/Splunk JDBC add-ons. Any requested archived, custom, or otherwise unsupported driver emits a manual-driver handoff and makes the install request return nonzero before any package is installed; a skipped driver is not reported as a completed install.

4. If app installation is required, use the explicit install path:

bash skills/splunk-db-connect-setup/scripts/setup.sh \
  --install-apps \
  --accept-install \
  --spec my-db-connect.yaml \
  --output-dir splunk-db-connect-rendered

5. Apply DBX objects manually or through a future version after reviewing the rendered dbx/*.preview files. This v1 skill does not mutate DB Connect identities, connections, inputs, outputs, or lookups.

Supported Topologies

• Single search head
• Distributed search with a dedicated DBX search head or heavy forwarder
• Search head cluster through the deployer
• Heavy forwarder
• Heavy forwarder HA with etcd planning
• Splunk Cloud Victoria with outbound allowlist planning
• Splunk Cloud Classic through IDM, a customer-managed heavy forwarder, or a support-managed install path

Required Runtime Checks

Rendered assets include checks for:

• DB Connect app and JDBC add-on installation
• Java 17 or 21 on Enterprise/customer-managed runtimes; Splunk-managed JRE validation for Splunk Cloud Victoria search heads
• working KV Store
• DBX file permissions
• JDBC driver placement on every DBX instance
• SHC deployer bundle workflow when search head clusters are involved
• Cloud Victoria outbound database connectivity allowlists
• Splunk Cloud custom JDBC driver app skeletons under lib/dbxdrivers
• index and optional HEC readiness
• REST, btool, SQL Explorer, dbxquery, dbxoutput, and dbxlookup validation
• DB Connect over Federated Search saved-search handoffs

Read reference.md for driver catalog details, topology notes, Cloud behavior, security controls, migration notes, and troubleshooting.