2020-11-25-json-yaml-config-formats.md

date	2020-11-25
title	JSON and YAML config formats are now supported
description	We've added support for JSON and YAML config formats.
authors	binarylogic
pr_numbers	4856 5144
release	0.11.0
hide_on_release_notes	false
badges	type domains new feature config

To ensure Vector fits into existing workflows, like Kubernetes, we've added support for JSON and YAML config formats in addition to TOML. TOML will continue to be our default format, but users are welcome to use JSON and YAML as they see fit.

Use cases

Kubernetes

YAML is the preferred language in the K8s ecosystem, and to ensure Vector does not feel awkward in the Kubernetes platform we now support YAML for our pipeline definitions.

Data templating languages

A bonus to supporting JSON is the enablement of data templating languages like Jsonnet and Cue. For example, a Vector user has already built an unofficial Jsonnet library for Vector.

Get Started

Use Vector as you normally work, but pass it yaml or json config files:

vector --config /etc/vector/vector.json

Vector will infer the format from the extension. This is especially useful when passing multiple config files via globs:

vector --config /etc/vector/*

Additionally, we've provided format specific flags for edge cases:

vector --config-json /etc/vector/vector.json

Head over to the configuration docs for more info.