# Template options

Global modifiers applied to a template. Include SQL and JSON helpers and case sensitivity control. .. summary-end

Template options influence the whole template and are specified as parameters of the `template()` object. They are distinct from property options which apply only to individual properties.

Available options (case-insensitive):

`option.sql`

  Format string for MariaDB/MySQL. Replaces single quotes (`'`) and backslashes (`\\`) by escaped counterparts (`\\'` and `\\\\`). MySQL must run with `NO_BACKSLASH_ESCAPES` turned off.

`option.stdsql`

  Format string for standards-compliant SQL servers. Replaces single quotes by doubled quotes (`''`). Use this with MySQL when `NO_BACKSLASH_ESCAPES` is enabled.

`option.json`

  Escape data suitable for JSON.

`option.jsonf`

  Render the template as a JSON object, adding braces and commas between elements.

`option.jsonftree`

  Render as JSON like `option.jsonf` but also interpret dotted `outname` segments (for example `event.dataset.name`) as nested objects. When this option is not set, dotted names remain flat strings in the output to preserve legacy behaviour.

`option.caseSensitive`

  Treat property names as case sensitive. Normally names are converted to lowercase at definition time. Enable this if JSON (`$!*`), local (`!.`), or global (`$!`) properties contain uppercase letters.

Options `option.sql`, `option.stdsql`, `option.json`, `option.jsonf`, and `option.jsonftree` are mutually exclusive.

Either `option.sql` or `option.stdsql` must be specified when writing into a database to guard against SQL injection. The database writer checks for the presence of one of these options and refuses to run otherwise.

These options can also be useful when generating files intended for later import into a database. Do not enable them without need as they introduce extra processing overhead.

Support: rsyslog Assistant | GitHub Discussions | GitHub Issues: rsyslog source project

Contributing: Source & docs: rsyslog source project

© 2008–2025 Rainer Gerhards and others. Licensed under the Apache License 2.0.