Search across both clustered and non-clustered search peers

You can search across both clustered and non-clustered search peers:

1. Configure an indexer cluster search head in the standard fashion, as described in "Enable the search head".

2. Use Splunk Web or the CLI to add one or more non-clustered search peers, as described in "Add search peers to the search head" in Distributed Search.

Note the following:

• The procedure assumes that you are starting with a new Splunk Enterprise instance that you want to enable as a search head for both an indexer cluster and one or more non-clustered indexers. If the instance is already functioning as a search head in one of those two roles, you only need to enable it for the other role. For example, if the search head is already part of an indexer cluster, then you only perform step 2.
• You must specify the non-clustered search peers through either Splunk Web or the CLI. Due to authentication issues, you cannot specify the search peers by directly editing distsearch.conf. When you add a search peer with Splunk Web or the CLI, the search head prompts you for public key credentials. It has no way of obtaining those credentials when you add a search peer by directly editing distsearch.conf. For more information on public keys and distributed search, read "Add search peers to the search head" in Distributed Search.

• An indexer can be either a cluster peer, in which case, it is automatically a search peer for that cluster's search head, or a non-clustered search peer, with an entry in the search head's distsearch.conf file. It cannot be both. If you mistakenly configure an indexer as both a cluster peer and a non-clustered search peer, the search head's Distributed Search page in Splunk Web will contain two entries for the peer, and the status for one entry will read, "Peer member of cluster and distsearch.conf". To remediate, disable or delete the entry for that peer in distsearch.conf.

• This type of search is not compatible with search head pooling.