Does Splunk merge UDP data until it finds a timestamp by default?

In Splunk, when receiving data over UDP (User Datagram Protocol), the default behavior is indeed to merge incoming data until a timestamp is identified. This is applicable because UDP is a connectionless protocol, meaning it does not provide guarantees about message ordering or delivery. As a result, the data packets may arrive in fragments or without any clear indication of when one message begins or ends.

To handle this, Splunk's default configuration merges these packets under the expectation that a complete event will often not be recognizable until a specific timestamp is encountered. This merging allows Splunk to reconstruct events more accurately, ensuring that the incoming data is processed in a coherent manner.

Thus, the statement is true, as this behavior is designed to enhance the integrity of the data being indexed and analyzed, ensuring users can work with complete events rather than fragmented pieces that might not convey the intended information on their own.