- Overview of Splunk Platform : Understand Splunk’s role in analyzing machine-generated data and its applications across industries.
- Splunk Components : Explore Splunk’s architecture, including indexers, search heads, and forwarders.
- User Interface Navigation : Learn to navigate the Splunk web interface, including key menus and dashboards.
- Deployment Options : Differentiate between Splunk Enterprise and Splunk Cloud for various use cases.
Splunk Certification Training Course
Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course
The Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course with Accumentum provides an in-depth exploration of Splunk fundamentals and their application in data analysis and visualization.
Course focus: Splunk fundamentals: searching with SPL, data inputs and indexing, field extractions, reports, dashboards, alerts, lookups, data models, and Splunk best practices.
Course Overview
Search, analyze, and visualize machine-generated data with Splunk.
The Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course with Accumentum provides an in-depth exploration of Splunk fundamentals and their application in data analysis and visualization. Designed for IT professionals, analysts, and beginners with some data experience, this course focuses on leveraging Splunk’s core functionalities, including searching, analyzing, and visualizing machine-generated data using Splunk’s Search Processing Language (SPL). Participants will learn key topics such as creating reports, dashboards, and alerts, alongside practical use cases for operational intelligence.
The course also covers data input, indexing, and basic Splunk configurations, ensuring alignment with Splunk best practices. Through hands-on labs and real-world scenarios, learners will gain the skills needed to utilize Splunk effectively and prepare for the Splunk Core Certified User exam. By course completion, participants will be equipped to drive business value through data-driven insights and understand the technical and operational considerations for leveraging Splunk in diverse environments.
Course Objectives
Course objectives for the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course.
01
Gain proficiency in using Splunk’s core
Gain proficiency in using Splunk’s core features, including searching, analyzing, and visualizing machine-generated data with the Search Processing Language (SPL).
02
Learn to build reports, dashboards, and
Learn to build reports, dashboards, and alerts to transform raw data into meaningful insights for operational and business decision-making.
03
Develop skills in data input, indexing
Develop skills in data input, indexing, and basic Splunk configurations to ensure efficient data handling and alignment with best practices.
04
Acquire the knowledge and hands-on experience
Acquire the knowledge and hands-on experience needed to confidently pass the Splunk Core Certified User exam and apply Splunk in real-world scenarios.
Who Should Attend
- IT Professionals : Individuals seeking to leverage Splunk for monitoring and analyzing IT systems and infrastructure data.
- Data Analysts : Professionals aiming to transform machine-generated data into actionable insights using Splunk’s visualization and reporting tools.
- System Administrators : Those responsible for managing data environments who want to master Splunk’s core functionalities for operational intelligence.
- Aspiring Splunk Users : Beginners with some data experience looking to build foundational Splunk skills and earn the Splunk Core Certified User certification.
Prerequisites
- Basic Understanding of Data Concepts : Familiarity with data formats, such as logs or machine-generated data, and general data analysis principles.
- Fundamental IT Knowledge : Basic experience with IT systems, networks, or infrastructure to contextualize Splunk’s application in operational environments.
- No Prior Splunk Experience Required : Suitable for beginners, though some exposure to data monitoring or reporting tools is helpful.
- Access to a Computer : A system with internet access capable of running Splunk’s web interface for hands-on labs and exercises.
Pathway Map
The training course follows a ten-module Splunk fundamentals path.
The curriculum moves from an introduction to Splunk through search basics, data ingestion and indexing, fields and field extractions, reports, dashboards, alerts, lookups, data models and Pivot, and Splunk best practices and optimization.
Course Content
- Search Fundamentals : Master the basics of Splunk’s Search Processing Language (SPL) for querying data.
- Search Syntax and Commands : Use commands like search , where , and table to filter and format results.
- Time Range Selection : Apply time modifiers to focus searches on specific time periods.
- Saving Searches : Learn to save and schedule searches for recurring analysis tasks.
- Data Inputs : Configure inputs such as files, directories, and network sources to bring data into Splunk.
- Data Parsing : Understand how Splunk parses and indexes data, including timestamps and field extraction.
- Source Types : Assign and manage source types to ensure accurate data categorization.
- Indexing Best Practices : Optimize indexing processes to improve performance and storage efficiency.
- Understanding Fields : Learn how Splunk identifies and uses fields to structure data for analysis.
- Automatic Field Extraction : Explore Splunk’s default field extraction for common data formats.
- Custom Field Extraction : Create custom fields using regular expressions and delimiters.
- Field Aliases and Tags : Apply aliases and tags to enhance searchability and data organization.
- Report Creation : Build reports to summarize and analyze data using SPL commands.
- Visualization Options : Generate charts, tables, and other visualizations to represent report data.
- Scheduling Reports : Configure automated report generation and delivery for stakeholders.
- Report Permissions : Set access controls to share reports with appropriate users or teams.
- Dashboard Basics : Create interactive dashboards to display multiple visualizations and insights.
- Adding Panels : Incorporate charts, tables, and single-value visualizations into dashboards.
- Dynamic Inputs : Use dropdowns, time pickers, and text inputs to make dashboards interactive.
- Dashboard Sharing : Manage dashboard permissions and export options for collaboration.
- Alert Configuration : Set up alerts to trigger based on specific search conditions or thresholds.
- Alert Actions : Define actions like sending emails, running scripts, or logging events when alerts trigger.
- Real-Time vs. Scheduled Alerts : Understand the differences and use cases for real-time and scheduled alerts.
- Managing Alerts : Monitor and modify existing alerts to ensure relevance and accuracy.
- Lookup Basics : Understand how lookups enrich Splunk data with external information.
- Creating Lookup Tables : Build and upload lookup tables to map data fields to external datasets.
- Using Lookup Commands : Apply commands like lookup and inputlookup to integrate lookup data in searches.
- Maintaining Lookups : Update and manage lookup tables for ongoing accuracy and relevance.
- Data Model Concepts : Learn how data models provide structured frameworks for analyzing data.
- Creating Data Models : Build simple data models to organize and accelerate searches.
- Using Pivot Interface : Create reports and visualizations using the Pivot tool without writing SPL.
- Data Model Management : Understand permissions and optimization for data model usage.
- Search Optimization : Write efficient searches to minimize resource usage and improve performance.
- Data Retention Policies : Understand how to configure data retention to balance storage and accessibility.
- User Roles and Permissions : Manage user access to ensure data security and compliance.
- Troubleshooting Basics : Identify and resolve common issues with searches, data inputs, and indexing.
Course Features
Course features of the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course.
Interactive Learning
Engage with expert instructors and peers through training sessions, discussions, and practical exercises.
Comprehensive Study Materials
Access extensive resources, including e-books, video lectures, and practice exams.
Real-World Applications
Work on real-life case studies and scenarios to apply Splunk Core Certified User concepts.
Certification Preparation
Receive guidance and tips to successfully pass the Splunk Core Certified User certification exam.
Certification Exam
Prepare for the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Exam.
Splunk Core Certified User Exam Readiness
Accumentum’s training course prepares learners to search, analyze, and visualize machine-generated data and build reports, dashboards, and alerts in Splunk.
Upon completing the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course with Accumentum, you will be thoroughly prepared to take the Splunk Core Certified User exam. This credential validates your expertise in using Splunk to search, analyze, and visualize machine-generated data, demonstrating your ability to create reports, dashboards, and alerts to drive operational insights. Earning the Splunk Core Certified User certification will enhance your career prospects, positioning you for roles such as data analyst, IT operations specialist, or SOC analyst, where you can lead data-driven initiatives within a Splunk environment.
Exam Blueprint
Every topic on the Splunk Core Certified User blueprint.
Splunk's test blueprint has 8 topic areas and 40 objectives. We've copied each one below in Splunk's wording, with its weight.
1.0 Splunk Basics (5%)
- 1.1 Splunk components
- 1.2 Understand the uses of Splunk
- 1.3 Define Splunk apps
- 1.4 Customizing user settings
- 1.5 Basic navigation in Splunk
2.0 Basic Searching (22%)
- 2.1 Run basic searches
- 2.2 Set the time range of a search
- 2.3 Identify the contents of search results
- 2.4 Refine searches
- 2.5 Use the timeline
- 2.6 Work with events
- 2.7 Control a search job
- 2.8 Save search results
3.0 Using Fields in Searches (20%)
- 3.1 Understand fields
- 3.2 Use fields in searches
- 3.3 Use the fields sidebar
4.0 Search Language Fundamentals (15%)
- 4.1 Review basic search commands and general search practices
- 4.2 Examine the search pipeline
- 4.3 Specify indexes in searches
- 4.4 Use the following commands to perform searches: tables, rename, fields, dedup, and sort
5.0 Using Basic Transforming Commands (15%)
- 5.1 The top command
- 5.2 The rare command
- 5.3 The stats command
6.0 Creating Reports and Dashboards (12%)
- 6.1 Save a search as a report
- 6.2 Edit reports
- 6.3 Create reports that display statistics (tables)
- 6.4 Create reports that display visualizations (charts)
- 6.5 Create a dashboard
- 6.6 Add a report to a dashboard
- 6.7 Edit a dashboard
7.0 Creating and Using Lookups (6%)
- 7.1 Describe lookups
- 7.2 Examine a lookup file example
- 7.3 Create a lookup file and create a lookup definition
- 7.4 Configure an automatic lookup
- 7.5 Use the lookup in searches
8.0 Creating Scheduled Reports and Alerts (5%)
- 8.1 Describe scheduled reports
- 8.2 Configure scheduled reports
- 8.3 Describe alerts
- 8.4 Create alerts
- 8.5 View fired alerts
Splunk notes that these topics are general guidelines for the content likely to be included on the exam, that other related topics may also appear, and that the guidelines may change at any time without notice.
Who It Is For
Is the Core Certified User exam right for you?
Splunk calls this an optional entry point to its certification program, designed for candidates with little to no Splunk experience or prior knowledge. It names three groups: career changers, new customers and data analysts. In our classes that also means help desk and SOC staff, junior sysadmins and anyone who's just been handed a Splunk login.
Splunk lists no prerequisite certifications or courses.
Exam Format
The Core Certified User exam at a glance.
Exam details
- Level: Entry-level
- Questions: 60 multiple choice
- Length: 60 minutes, including 3 minutes to review the exam agreement
- Price: $130 USD per exam attempt, or 5 registrations for $500 USD
- Delivery: Pearson VUE, at a test center or online proctored
- Closed book: no notes, docs or Splunk Answers
- Languages: English and Japanese
Splunk doesn't publish a passing score on the track page, so we won't guess at one. During the exam you can flag questions for review, go back to earlier answers and review everything before you submit.
You have to accept the certification agreement within the 3 minute window or the session ends, so Splunk suggests reading it before exam day. With 60 questions in 57 minutes of question time, you're working at close to a question a minute.
Study Plan
How we prepare you for Splunk User.
We start with Splunk Basics. It's 5% of the exam, so we work its 5 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
Next we cover Basic Searching. It's 22% of the exam, so we work its 8 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
Then we move to Using Fields in Searches. It's 20% of the exam, so we work its 3 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
After that comes Search Language Fundamentals. It's 15% of the exam, so we work its 4 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
We follow with Using Basic Transforming Commands. It's 15% of the exam, so we work its 3 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
We follow with Creating Reports and Dashboards. It's 12% of the exam, so we work its 7 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
We follow with Creating and Using Lookups. It's 6% of the exam, so we work its 5 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
We wrap up with Creating Scheduled Reports and Alerts. It's 5% of the exam, so we work its 5 objectives in a live Splunk instance with real searches.
In the last week we run timed practice at the real pace, revisit your weakest areas and reread the blueprint line by line. Splunk also publishes sample questions in its certification exams study guide, and we use them.
Exam Policies
Retakes and recertification for Splunk User.
If you don't pass, Splunk makes you wait 7 days before a second attempt and 14 days before a third. The fourth attempt comes after 28 days, and the fifth and sixth after 56 days each. Retakes beyond the 6th attempt are considered case by case.
Every attempt, including retakes, costs the same registration fee. Scheduled exams carry a 48-hour cancellation and rescheduling policy, and missing that window forfeits the fee.
Splunk certifications run on a three-year lifecycle. You can recertify by passing a higher-level exam, or by retaking and passing your current exam within the final year of your window. There's a 90-day grace period, and after that the certification goes inactive.
Career Outlook
Where Splunk User can take you.
This certification is aimed at analysts and IT staff who search and report on machine data. BLS doesn't track Splunk roles separately, so we use the closest occupation as a reference.
Per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, computer systems analysts earned a median annual wage of $105,850 in May 2025. A median is the midpoint, so half earned more and half earned less, and your own pay will depend on location, experience and employer. Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Funding
Ways to pay for Splunk User training.
Paying on your own? Splunk User prep is eligible for PathPay, our monthly payment plan. Terms of 3, 4 and 6 months carry no added fee. 9, 12 and 18 month terms add 5%, 10% and 15%. Course access opens when your first payment clears.
Our funding page lists every other way to pay, and you can always talk with us or email info@accumentum.net before you enroll.
Frequently Asked Questions
Understand how Accumentum’s Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course supports certification readiness, course delivery, and career advancement.
Upon completing the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course with Accumentum, you will be thoroughly prepared to take the Splunk Core Certified User exam. This credential validates your expertise in using Splunk to search, analyze, and visualize machine-generated data, demonstrating your ability to create reports, dashboards, and alerts to drive operational insights. Earning the Splunk Core Certified User certification will enhance your career prospects, positioning you for roles such as data analyst, IT operations specialist, or SOC analyst, where you can lead data-driven initiatives within a Splunk environment.
IT Professionals : Individuals seeking to leverage Splunk for monitoring and analyzing IT systems and infrastructure data. Data Analysts : Professionals aiming to transform machine-generated data into actionable insights using Splunk’s visualization and reporting tools.
Basic Understanding of Data Concepts : Familiarity with data formats, such as logs or machine-generated data, and general data analysis principles. Fundamental IT Knowledge : Basic experience with IT systems, networks, or infrastructure to contextualize Splunk’s application in operational environments.
Ten modules cover Introduction to Splunk, Splunk Search Basics, Data Ingestion and Indexing, Fields and Field Extractions, Creating Reports, Building Dashboards, Alerts and Notifications, Using Lookups and Lookup Tables, Data Models and Pivot, Splunk Best Practices and Optimization.
The course contains 10 modules, each with focused lessons and practical exercises drawn from the official course content.
Work on real-life case studies and scenarios to apply Splunk Core Certified User concepts.
Access extensive resources, including e-books, video lectures, and practice exams.
Receive guidance and tips to successfully pass the Splunk Core Certified User certification exam.
Gain proficiency in using Splunk’s core features, including searching, analyzing, and visualizing machine-generated data with the Search Processing Language (SPL). Learn to build reports, dashboards, and alerts to transform raw data into meaningful insights for operational and business decision-making.
Enroll in the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course with Accumentum to advance your data analysis expertise and earn a prestigious Splunk credential. This course is your pathway to becoming a certified Splunk user, equipping you with the skills to search, analyze, and visualize data effectively. For detailed information and to secure your spot, visit Accumentum’s registration page linked below.
It has 60 multiple choice questions in 60 minutes, including 3 minutes for the exam agreement.
Splunk charges $130 USD per attempt, or $500 USD for 5 registrations.
No. Splunk exams are closed book, and any reference material is prohibited.
If you don't pass, Splunk makes you wait 7 days before a second attempt and 14 days before a third. The fourth attempt comes after 28 days, and the fifth and sixth after 56 days each. Retakes beyond the 6th attempt are considered case by case.
Splunk certifications run on a three-year lifecycle. You can recertify by passing a higher-level exam, or by retaking and passing your current exam within the final year of your window. There's a 90-day grace period, and after that the certification goes inactive.
Yes. It's eligible for PathPay. Terms of 3, 4 and 6 months add no fee, and longer terms add 5% to 15%.
Enrollment
Enroll in the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course at Accumentum.
Enroll in the Splunk Core Certified User Certification Training Course with Accumentum to advance your data analysis expertise and earn a prestigious Splunk credential. This course is your pathway to becoming a certified Splunk user, equipping you with the skills to search, analyze, and visualize data effectively. For detailed information and to secure your spot, visit Accumentum’s registration page linked below.
Turn machine data into insight with Splunk.
Prepare for the Splunk Core Certified User exam and learn to search, analyze, and visualize machine-generated data with Splunk.