--- sourceDocument: Australia IT Operations Management sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/it-operations-management Release : - australia ft:locale : - en-US ft:publication_title : - Australia IT Operations Management ft:clusterId : - itom bundleId : - itom workflow : - Technology --- # Amazon CloudWatch data input configuration fields # Amazon CloudWatch data input configuration fields {#ariaid-title1} Release version: Australia Updated March 12, 2026 ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 4 minutes to read Summarize ![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) Summarized using AI This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete. ## Summary of Amazon CloudWatch data input configuration fields This guide details the configuration fields required to set up Amazon CloudWatch data inputs within ServiceNow. It explains key form fields and options for connecting CloudWatch logs to your ServiceNow instance using MID Servers or MID Server clusters. The configurations enable streaming of log data for monitoring and analytics via Health Log Analytics. Show full answer Show less ## Basic Configuration * **Name and Description:** Identify and describe the data input (Name is required). * **Execute on:** Choose between a specific MID Server or a MID Server cluster to pull logs. * **MID Server:** When selecting a specific MID Server, only those supporting basic authentication are available. Log ingestion is enabled automatically if not already active. A single MID Server supports up to 10 concurrent data inputs by default. * **MID Server Cluster:** Supports failover protection by running the data input on one MID Server at a time, moving to another if failure occurs. Each MID Server in the cluster must have log ingestion enabled. Capacity is validated based on available MID Servers with fewer than 10 data inputs running. * **Service Instance:** Bind log data to a relevant service instance; create one and set it to Operational if none exists (this is required). ## Read-Only Status Information * **Status:** Current state of the data input. * **Transport:** Protocol used for streaming logs. * **Sources Count:** Number of log sources created by this input. * **Disabled Since \& Last Log Time:** Timestamps indicating when the input stopped and last received logs. * **Error Message:** Displays streaming errors automatically if any occur. ## Query Settings * **From:** Start date/time for reading logs; required to avoid large data loads. * **Group Names:** Comma-separated list of CloudWatch log groups to search; use wildcard () to include all groups. * **Prefix:** Filter log streams by name prefix; only one prefix per input supported. * **Filter Pattern:** Apply case-sensitive filters to include or exclude specific terms within logs. ## Transport Configuration * **AWS Credentials:** Select AWS credentials from the stored list containing access keys. * **AWS Region:** Specify the AWS region where the CloudWatch cluster resides (required). ## Advanced Configuration * **Connection and Socket Timeout:** Time limits for AWS connection attempts and data transfer. * **Batch Size:** Maximum number of logs retrieved per query. * **Default Timezone:** Applied when log timestamps lack timezone data. * **Sampling Ratios:** Options to reduce log volume by dropping or receiving subsets of logs. * **Max Log Length:** Limits the size of individual log messages. * **Sleep and Polling Intervals:** Controls wait times between query attempts and polling for new logs. * **Drop if Queue is Full:** Option to discard logs if MID Server load is high (default is false). ## Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers By configuring Amazon CloudWatch data inputs with these fields, customers can efficiently stream and analyze AWS log data directly in ServiceNow. This setup supports failover reliability via MID Server clusters and flexible filtering for targeted log collection. Automatic enabling of log ingestion simplifies setup, while advanced settings allow tuning for performance and volume control. Ultimately, this enables proactive monitoring and operational insight leveraging AWS logs within the ServiceNow platform. Description of the fields on the Amazon CloudWatch data input configuration form. ## Basic configuration {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__section_ipg_25h_pvb} {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_myk_sqb_x4b__entry__2} | Field | Description | |-|-| | Name | Name of the new data input. This field is required. | | Description | Description of the data input. | | Execute on | Option to select whether to use a specific MID Server or a MID Server cluster. This field is required. | | MID | (Only when the Execute on field is set to Specific MID Server) MID Server to which log data from Amazon CloudWatch is pulled. Note: * You can select only MID Servers that support basic authentication. MID Servers that support mTLS are not listed. * The default maximum number of data inputs streaming logs to a single MID Server is 10. You can modify this number in the MID Server properties. * If log ingestion is not enabled for the selected MID Server, Health Log Analytics enables it automatically. {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__ul_m3j_fz3_nsb}This field is required. | | MID Server Cluster | (Only when Execute on is set to Specific MID Server cluster.) The MID Server cluster to which the log data is pulled. This field is required. The data input runs on a single MID Server in the cluster until that MID Server fails. The system then moves all the data input tasks to the next available MID Server in the cluster according to the configured order. Note: * Health Log Analytics supports only failover MID Server clusters. In these clusters, multiple MID Servers are grouped together for failover protection. When selecting a cluster from the data input or integration form, the MID Server clusters list displays only failover clusters. * Log ingestion must be enabled for each MID Server in the cluster. If log ingestion is not enabled for the active MID Server, Health Log Analytics enables it automatically. * The default maximum number of data inputs or integrations streaming logs to a single MID Server is 10. A cluster passes capacity validation if it contains at least one MID Server with fewer than 10 data inputs or integrations running on it. This is true even when that MID Server is down. {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__ul_htt_wdq_dwb} For more information about MID Server clusters, see [Configure a MID Server cluster](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=t_ConfigureAMIDServerCluster&version=australia&pubname=australia-servicenow-platform&ft:locale=en-US). | | Service instance | The service instance to which to bind the log data. Note: If no relevant service instance exists, [Create an service instance](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/access?context=create-it-services&version=australia&pubname=australia-servicenow-platform&ft:locale=en-US) and add CIs to it. Set the status of the new service instance to Operational.This field is required. | [ ] {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_myk_sqb_x4b} The following fields show read-only information: {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_wf3_5xs_y4b__entry__2} | Field | Description | |-|-| | Status | Status of the data input. | | Transport | Protocol used to stream the log data. This data input uses Amazon CloudWatch to stream log data to your instance. | | Sources count | The number of log sources this data input has created. | | Disabled since | The time when the data input stopped or failed. | | Last log time | The time when the last log streamed in the data input. | | Error message | The streaming error. This field is populated automatically. It displays only when a streaming error has occurred. | [ ] {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_wf3_5xs_y4b} {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_l5g_bct_y4b__entry__3} | Field | Description | Example | |-|-|-| | From | The date and time to start reading the data. Data older than this date and time is not read. Note: Setting this value to a past date might require the system to read large amounts of data, causing congestion. This field is required. | Now -1 week | | Group Name(s) | The log groups to search. If multiple log groups must be searched, specify the groups in a comma-separated list. To fetch log data from all groups, use an asterisk (\*) as a wildcard character. This field is required. | hla-cw-loggroup1,hla-cw-loggroup2 | | Prefix | Name prefix for the Amazon CloudWatch log streams to read from. The data input reads only from log streams with this name prefix. Note: Only a single log stream prefix per data item is supported. For multiple prefixes, create multiple data inputs. | hla-cw | | Filter pattern | Pattern by which to filter incoming events. Various types of filter patterns are supported. For example: * A pattern for fetching log events that contain a single term. * A pattern for fetching log events that contain multiple terms. * A pattern for fetching log events that include a term and exclude another. {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__ul_zvz_y5c_4pb} Note: Filter patterns are case sensitive. For more information, see | * Pattern for fetching log events that contain a single term, "STATUS_CODE":"STATUS_CODE" * Pattern for fetching log events that contain multiple terms, "STATUS_CODE" and "200":"STATUS_CODE 200" * Pattern for fetching log events that include a term, "STATUS_CODE," and exclude another term, "200":"STATUS_CODE" -- "200" {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__ul_o1n_nvc_4pb} | [Table 1. Query settings tab] {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_l5g_bct_y4b} {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_izc_ydt_y4b__entry__2} | Field | Description | |-|-| | AWS credentials | Field that refers to the AWS Credentials list (aws_credentials.list). The list contains the AWS access and secret access keys. | | AWS region | The AWS region where the Amazon CloudWatch cluster runs, for example, us-west-1. For a list of AWS regions, see This field is required. | [Table 2. Transport tab] {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_izc_ydt_y4b} ## Advanced configuration {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__section_lmh_f5h_pvb} {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_awy_4s3_x4b__entry__3} | Field | Description | Default value | |-|-|-| | Connection timeout | The number of milliseconds to wait before timing out the AWS connection attempt. | 1000 | | Batch size | The maximum number of logs retrieved per query. | 2500 | | Socket timeout | The number of milliseconds to wait before timing out a data transfer over an established connection. | 10000 | | Default timezone | The default timezone if the log date and time doesn't include timezone information. | GMT | | Sub sample drop ratio | The number of logs to batch together, out of which one will be discarded. This setting is used to reduce the number of fetched logs. | -1 | | Sub sample receive ratio | The number of logs to batch together, out of which all but one will be discarded. This setting is used to decrease the number of received logs. | -1 | | Max length in bytes | The maximum length of log messages, in bytes. | 32766 | | Sleep interval | The interval, in seconds, to wait before querying again after a query has returned no logs. | 60 | | Polling interval | The interval, in seconds, to wait before polling for new logs. | 0 | | Drop if queue is full | Option to discard logs if there is a load on the MID Server. | False | [Table 3. Advanced configuration form] {#hla-data-input-cloudwatch-ref__table_awy_4s3_x4b}