Console
    Start free

    Collect Windows Event logs (XML format)

    Supported in:

    This document explains how to ingest Windows Event logs in XML format to Google Security Operations using the Bindplane agent.

    Windows Event Log (XML format) contains security, system, and application events generated by the Windows operating system. The Bindplane agent collects exported Windows Event log files directly from the local file system.

    Before you begin

    Make sure you have the following prerequisites:

    • A Google SecOps instance
    • Windows Server 2016 or later with observiq-otel-collector service support
    • If running behind a proxy, ensure firewall ports are open per the Bindplane agent requirements
    • Administrator access to the Windows hosts generating event logs

    Get Google SecOps ingestion authentication file

    1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
    2. Go to SIEM Settings > Collection Agents.

    3. Download the Ingestion Authentication File. Save the file securely on the system where Bindplane will be installed.

    Get Google SecOps customer ID

    1. Sign in to the Google SecOps console.
    2. Go to SIEM Settings > Profile.

    3. Copy and save the Customer IDfrom the Organization Detailssection.

    Install the Bindplane agent

    Install the Bindplane agent on your Windows operating system according to the following instructions.

    Windows installation

    1. Open Command Promptor PowerShellas an administrator.

    2. Run the following command:

        msiexec 
  
 / 
 i 
  
 "https://github.com/observIQ/bindplane-agent/releases/latest/download/observiq-otel-collector.msi" 
  
 / 
 quiet

    3. Wait for the installation to complete.

    4. Verify the installation by running:

       sc query observiq-otel-collector

      The service should show as RUNNING.

    Additional installation resources

    For additional installation options and troubleshooting, see Bindplane agent installation guide .

    Configure Bindplane agent to ingest logs and send to Google SecOps

    Locate the configuration file

    • Windows:

       notepad "C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\config.yaml"

    Edit the configuration file

    • Replace the entire contents of config.yaml with the following configuration:

        receivers 
 : 
  
 filelog 
 : 
  
 include 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 C:\Logs\winevtlog\*.evtx 
  
 start_at 
 : 
  
 beginning 
 exporters 
 : 
  
 chronicle/winevtlog_xml 
 : 
  
 compression 
 : 
  
 gzip 
  
 creds_file_path 
 : 
  
 'C:\Program 
  
 Files\observIQ 
  
 OpenTelemetry 
  
 Collector\ingestion-auth.json' 
  
 customer_id 
 : 
  
 '<customer_id>' 
  
 endpoint 
 : 
  
 malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com 
  
 log_type 
 : 
  
 WINEVTLOG_XML 
  
 raw_log_field 
 : 
  
 body 
  
 ingestion_labels 
 : 
  
 env 
 : 
  
 production 
 service 
 : 
  
 pipelines 
 : 
  
 logs/winevtlog_xml_to_chronicle 
 : 
  
 receivers 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 filelog 
  
 exporters 
 : 
  
 - 
  
 chronicle/winevtlog_xml

    Configuration parameters

    Replace the following placeholders:

    • Receiver configuration:

      • filelog : The receiver type for collecting log files from disk
      • include : List of file paths to monitor. Set this to the location where you export Windows Event logs (for example, C:\Logs\winevtlog\*.evtx )
      • start_at : Set to beginning to read existing logs or end to only read new entries

    • Exporter configuration:

      • winevtlog_xml : Descriptive name for the exporter
      • creds_file_path : Full path to ingestion authentication file:
        • Windows: C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\ingestion-auth.json
      • <customer_id> : Customer ID from the previous step
      • endpoint : Regional endpoint URL:
        • US: malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        • Europe: europe-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        • Asia: asia-southeast1-malachiteingestion-pa.googleapis.com
        • See Regional Endpoints for complete list
      • WINEVTLOG_XML : Log type exactly as it appears in Chronicle
      • ingestion_labels : Optional labels in YAML format (for example, env: production )

    • Pipeline configuration:

      • winevtlog_xml_to_chronicle : Descriptive name for the pipeline

    Save the configuration file

    • After editing, save the file:

      Windows: Click File > Save

    Restart the Bindplane agent to apply the changes

    • To restart the Bindplane agent in Windows, choose one of the following options:

      • Command Prompt or PowerShell as administrator:

         net stop observiq-otel-collector && net start observiq-otel-collector

      • Services console

        1. Press Win+R, type services.msc , and press Enter.
        2. Locate observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector .
        3. Right-click and select Restart .

        4. Verify the service is running:

           sc  
query  
observiq-otel-collector

        5. Check logs for errors:

            type 
  
 "C:\Program Files\observIQ OpenTelemetry Collector\log\collector.log"

    Configure Windows Event log export

    Windows Event logs are stored in channels such as Security, System, and Application. You need to export these logs to files on disk so the Bindplane agent can collect them.

    1. Create a directory to store the exported log files:

       mkdir C:\Logs\winevtlog

    2. Export Windows Event logs using wevtutil . You can export any combination of event log channels:

       wevtutil epl "Security" C:\Logs\winevtlog\security.evtx 

       wevtutil epl "System" C:\Logs\winevtlog\system.evtx 

       wevtutil epl "Application" C:\Logs\winevtlog\application.evtx

    3. (Optional) Schedule regular exports using Windows Task Scheduler:

        $action 
 = 
 New-ScheduledTaskAction 
 -Execute 
 "wevtutil" 
 -Argument 
 'epl "Security" C:\Logs\winevtlog\security.evtx /ow:true' 
 $trigger 
 = 
 New-ScheduledTaskTrigger 
 -RepetitionInterval 
 ( 
 New-TimeSpan 
 -Hours 
 1 
 ) 
 -Once 
 -At 
 ( 
 Get-Date 
 ) 
 Register-ScheduledTask 
 -Action 
 $action 
 -Trigger 
 $trigger 
 -TaskName 
 "ExportWinEvtLogs" 
 -Description 
 "Export Windows Event logs for Bindplane agent"

    4. Verify that the exported log files are being created at `C:\Logs\winevtlog`.

    5. Ensure the Bindplane agent include path in config.yaml matches the export directory.

    UDM mapping table

    Log Field UDM Mapping Logic
    EventID
    		 metadata.product_event_type Value copied directly
    RecordNumber
    		 metadata.product_log_id Value copied directly
    Message, Description, msg
    		 metadata.description Value copied directly
    		metadata.event_type Set dynamically based on event content (for example, NETWORK_CONNECTION, STATUS_UPDATE, NETWORK_DNS, GENERIC_EVENT)
    		metadata.product_name Set to "Windows"
    		metadata.vendor_name Set to "Microsoft"
    ModuleVersion, ProductVersion
    		 metadata.product_version Value copied directly
    ProviderGuid
    		 metadata.product_deployment_id Value copied directly
    Computer, Host, Workstation, WorkstationName
    		 principal.asset.hostname Value copied directly
    IpAddress, SourceAddress, client_ip
    		 principal.asset.ip Value copied directly
    Computer, Host, Workstation, WorkstationName
    		 principal.hostname Value copied directly
    IpAddress, SourceAddress, client_ip
    		 principal.ip Value copied directly
    SourcePort, LocalPort, Client_port
    		 principal.port Value copied directly, converted to integer
    SubjectUserName, AccountName
    		 principal.user.userid Value copied directly
    SubjectUserSid
    		 principal.user.windows_sid Value copied directly
    AccountDomain, SubjectDomainName, Domain
    		 principal.administrative_domain Value copied directly
    Source, SourceName, EventSourceName
    		 principal.application Value copied directly
    ProviderGuid
    		 principal.asset_id Prefixed with "Provider_GUID:"
    SubjectLogonId
    		 principal.labels Added as label with key "SubjectLogonId"
    TargetUserName
    		 target.user.userid Value copied directly
    TargetUserSid
    		 target.user.windows_sid Value copied directly
    TargetDomainName
    		 target.hostname Value copied directly
    DestAddress, Destination
    		 target.ip Value copied directly
    NewProcessName, ProcessName, ObjectName
    		 target.process.file.full_path Value copied directly
    NewProcessId, ProcessId, TargetProcessId
    		 target.process.pid Value copied directly
    HostApplication, ServiceName
    		 target.process.command_line Value copied directly
    MD5
    		 target.process.file.md5 Value copied directly
    SHA1
    		 target.process.file.sha1 Value copied directly
    SHA256
    		 target.process.file.sha256 Value copied directly
    ObjectName, TargetObject
    		 target.registry.registry_value_name Value copied directly (for registry events)
    Details
    		 target.registry.registry_value_data Value copied directly (for registry events)
    ObjectType, Task
    		 target.resource.type Value copied directly
    ObjectName, RuleName
    		 target.resource.name Value copied directly
    TargetSid, ObjectGUID
    		 target.resource.id Value copied directly
    ObjectClass
    		 target.resource.resource_subtype Value copied directly
    LogonType
    		 extensions.auth.auth_details Prefixed with "Logon Type:"
    		extensions.auth.type Set based on logon type (MACHINE, SSO, AUTHTYPE_UNSPECIFIED)
    HTTPMethod
    		 network.http.method Value copied directly
    StatusCode
    		 network.http.response_code Value copied directly, converted to integer
    UserAgent
    		 network.http.user_agent Value copied directly
    		network.application_protocol Set to "DNS" for DNS events
    		network.direction Set to INBOUND or OUTBOUND based on event context
    		network.ip_protocol Set based on protocol (TCP, UDP, ICMP)
    Channel
    		 additional.fields Added as label with key "Channel"
    ActivityID
    		 additional.fields Added as label with key "ActivityID"
    LogonType
    		 additional.fields Added as label with key "LogonType"
    Level
    		 additional.fields Added as label with key "level"
    SourceModuleType
    		 observer.application Value copied directly

    Need more help? Get answers from Community members and Google SecOps professionals.

    Create a Mobile Website
    View Site in Mobile | Classic
    Share by: