Sources

Sources (/sources) defines source connectors: they ingest data from external systems, normalize it into PADAS events, and publish to a stream. Pipelines and tasks consume those streams; sinks handle outbound delivery on the other side of a pipeline.

What is a source connector?

Concept	Description
Role	Ingress connector: receives data from outside PADAS.
Behavior	Converts input into events and writes them to an output stream.
Reuse	Stored as a registry object; referenced by connector id and by stream id from tasks and pipelines.
Class	Connector class (for example syslog, http, kafka) selects protocol, defaults, and which runtime configuration fields appear.

Sources list

Open Sources. Use Create to add a connector; row Actions support view, edit, clone, and delete. Filters sit under column headers; the footer shows counts and paging.

Create → Create a source connector.

The Sources list.

On these Configurations screens the layout is the same: Search and Create in the toolbar, Download / Upload for registry JSON (a full bundle can be imported from any tab), then a grid with filters on the row under the headers.

Each row has View (read-only), Edit, Clone, and Delete. Select multiple rows when you need bulk delete. Created and Updated time may show as narrow strips; use the control at the side of the table to expand or collapse those columns.

Column	Description
ID	Connector id in the registry and API.
Name	Human-readable source name.
Class	Connector class (for example syslog, http).
Stream	Output stream this source publishes to.
Enabled	Whether the connector is allowed to run when deployed.
Created Time / Updated Time	Audit timestamps.
Actions	View, Edit, Clone, Delete.

Create a source connector

1. Choose a unique Source Name (drives the registry id).
2. Select Class — pick the ingestion type; this controls the rest of the form.
3. Set stream behavior with Auto Create Stream (see Stream behavior).
4. Complete Config — networking, authentication, parsing, and class-specific options (see Configuration model).
5. Set Enabled if the connector should run once deployed.
6. Save. Reference the resulting stream (and connector id) from tasks and pipelines when you build the workflow.

The Create Source form.

Modal actions: Create Source and Cancel.

Stream behavior

Auto Create Stream controls how the output stream is chosen:

Toggle	Behavior
Enabled	PADAS creates a stream automatically, typically derived from the connector name. That stream becomes the connector’s output stream and appears in the Stream column after save.
Disabled	You must select an existing stream from the registry. The connector publishes only to that stream id.

Keep stream naming consistent with how tasks wire source_stream and how pipelines align connectors, or events will not reach the intended processing path (Streams).

Connector classes

Each connector class implements a different ingestion path (protocol, client libraries, auth). The class determines which configuration blocks appear in the UI and how the runtime opens listeners or polls endpoints.

Class	Role	Documentation
file	File tail or batch read	File connector
http	REST polling or push (JSON)	HTTP connector
kafka	Kafka consumer	Kafka connector
padas	PADAS TCP (MessagePack)	PADAS connector
splunk	Splunk-oriented ingest	Splunk connector
syslog	UDP/TCP syslog (RFC 3164 / 5424)	Syslog connector

See Connector classes for the full matrix (sources and sinks).

Configuration model

Config holds runtime-oriented settings: hosts, ports, TLS, credentials, batching, and class-specific parsers. Exact fields vary by connector class—use the class page linked above for authoritative keys and examples.

Stored field	UI	Notes
id	Derived from Source Name	Spaces typically become underscores.
name	Source Name	Required; unique among sources.
class	Class	Required; pick from supported source classes.
auto_create_stream	Auto Create Stream	See Stream behavior.
stream	Stream picker or auto result	Target output stream id.
config	Config sections in the modal	Class-specific and common blocks.
enabled	Enabled	Master toggle for this connector.
description	Optional description	When exposed in the UI.

Advanced Settings — Additional runtime controls (for example capacity, buffering, or deployment-specific knobs) may appear when your role and deployment model allow; they complement the modal Config and are edited from advanced management screens when available.

Runtime considerations

• A source definition in Configurations is not live ingestion by itself; the connector runs after it is deployed to a Core and the runtime starts it.
• Disabled connectors do not ingest traffic even if deployed.
• Connectors publish events into their output stream; tasks and pipelines consume those streams downstream.
• Do not delete a source connector while a pipeline or task still depends on its connector id or output stream.

Related pages

• Sinks — outbound connectors
• Pipelines and Tasks — how streams are consumed
• Streams — stream ids and wiring
• Architecture — Data plane — how ingress fits in a Core instance