========================================================================= If you want to run logstash-forwarder, add to /etc/rc.conf logstash_forwarder_enable="YES" Do not forget to edit your configuration file: Default: ${PREFIX}/etc/logstash-forwarder.conf Key points You'll need an SSL CA to verify the server (host) with. You can specify custom fields for each set of paths in the config file. Any number of these may be specified. I use them to set fields like type and other custom attributes relevant to each log. Generating an ssl certificate Logstash supports all certificates, including self-signed certificates. To generate a certificate, you can run the following command: $ openssl req -x509 -batch -nodes -newkey rsa:2048 -keyout \ logstash-forwarder.key -out logstash-forwarder.crt -days 365 This will generate a key at logstash-forwarder.key and the 1-year valid certificate at logstash-forwarder.crt. Both the server that is running logstash-forwarder as well as the logstash instances receiving logs will require these files on disk to verify the authenticity of messages. PROTECT YOUR KEYS! =========================================================================