Create or update a legacy index template Deprecated Generally available

POST /_template/{name}
Api key auth Basic auth Bearer auth

All methods and paths for this operation:

PUT /_template/{name}

POST /_template/{name}

Index templates define settings, mappings, and aliases that can be applied automatically to new indices. Elasticsearch applies templates to new indices based on an index pattern that matches the index name.

IMPORTANT: This documentation is about legacy index templates, which are deprecated and will be replaced by the composable templates introduced in Elasticsearch 7.8.

Composable templates always take precedence over legacy templates. If no composable template matches a new index, matching legacy templates are applied according to their order.

Index templates are only applied during index creation. Changes to index templates do not affect existing indices. Settings and mappings specified in create index API requests override any settings or mappings specified in an index template.

You can use C-style /* *\/ block comments in index templates. You can include comments anywhere in the request body, except before the opening curly bracket.

Indices matching multiple templates

Multiple index templates can potentially match an index, in this case, both the settings and mappings are merged into the final configuration of the index. The order of the merging can be controlled using the order parameter, with lower order being applied first, and higher orders overriding them. NOTE: Multiple matching templates with the same order value will result in a non-deterministic merging order.

Required authorization

  • Cluster privileges: manage_index_templates,manage
External documentation

Path parameters

  • name string Required

    The name of the template

Query parameters

  • create boolean

    If true, this request cannot replace or update existing index templates.

  • master_timeout string

    Period to wait for a connection to the master node. If no response is received before the timeout expires, the request fails and returns an error.

    Values are -1 or 0.

  • order number

    Order in which Elasticsearch applies this template if index matches multiple templates.

    Templates with lower 'order' values are merged first. Templates with higher 'order' values are merged later, overriding templates with lower values.

  • cause string

    User defined reason for creating/updating the index template

application/json

Body Required

  • aliases object

    Aliases for the index.

    Hide aliases attribute Show aliases attribute object
    • * object Additional properties
      Hide * attributes Show * attributes object
      • filter object

        Query used to limit documents the alias can access.

        External documentation
      • index_routing string

        Value used to route indexing operations to a specific shard. If specified, this overwrites the routing value for indexing operations.

      • is_hidden boolean

        If true, the alias is hidden. All indices for the alias must have the same is_hidden value.

        Default value is false.

      • is_write_index boolean

        If true, the index is the write index for the alias.

        Default value is false.

      • routing string

        Value used to route indexing and search operations to a specific shard.

      • search_routing string

        Value used to route search operations to a specific shard. If specified, this overwrites the routing value for search operations.

  • index_patterns string | array[string]

    Array of wildcard expressions used to match the names of indices during creation.

    One of:
    string-1 string array-2 array[string]
  • mappings object

    Mapping for fields in the index.

    Hide mappings attributes Show mappings attributes object
    • all_field object
      Hide all_field attributes Show all_field attributes object
      • analyzer string Required
      • enabled boolean Required
      • omit_norms boolean Required
      • search_analyzer string Required
      • similarity string Required
      • store boolean Required
      • store_term_vector_offsets boolean Required
      • store_term_vector_payloads boolean Required
      • store_term_vector_positions boolean Required
      • store_term_vectors boolean Required
    • date_detection boolean
    • dynamic string

      Values are strict, runtime, true, or false.

    • dynamic_date_formats array[string]
    • dynamic_templates array[object]
    • _field_names object
      Hide _field_names attribute Show _field_names attribute object
      • enabled boolean Required
    • index_field object
      Hide index_field attribute Show index_field attribute object
      • enabled boolean Required
    • _meta object
      Hide _meta attribute Show _meta attribute object
      • * object Additional properties
    • numeric_detection boolean
    • properties object
    • _routing object
      Hide _routing attribute Show _routing attribute object
      • required boolean Required
    • _size object
      Hide _size attribute Show _size attribute object
      • enabled boolean Required
    • _source object
      Hide _source attributes Show _source attributes object
      • compress boolean
      • compress_threshold string
      • enabled boolean
      • excludes array[string]
      • includes array[string]
      • mode string

        Supported values include:

        • disabled
        • stored
        • synthetic: Instead of storing source documents on disk exactly as you send them, Elasticsearch can reconstruct source content on the fly upon retrieval.

        Values are disabled, stored, or synthetic.

    • runtime object
      Hide runtime attribute Show runtime attribute object
      • * object Additional properties
        Hide * attributes Show * attributes object
        • fields object

          For type composite

          Hide fields attribute Show fields attribute object
          • * object Additional properties
        • fetch_fields array[object]

          For type lookup

          Hide fetch_fields attributes Show fetch_fields attributes object
          • field
          • format string
        • format string

          A custom format for date type runtime fields.

        • input_field string

          For type lookup

        • target_field string

          For type lookup

        • target_index string

          For type lookup

        • script object

          Painless script executed at query time.

          Hide script attributes Show script attributes object
          • params object

            Specifies any named parameters that are passed into the script as variables. Use parameters instead of hard-coded values to decrease compile time.

          • options object
        • type string Required

          Field type, which can be: boolean, composite, date, double, geo_point, ip,keyword, long, or lookup.

          Values are boolean, composite, date, double, geo_point, geo_shape, ip, keyword, long, or lookup.

    • enabled boolean
    • subobjects string

      Values are true or false.

    • _data_stream_timestamp object
      Hide _data_stream_timestamp attribute Show _data_stream_timestamp attribute object
      • enabled boolean Required
  • order number

    Order in which Elasticsearch applies this template if index matches multiple templates.

    Templates with lower 'order' values are merged first. Templates with higher 'order' values are merged later, overriding templates with lower values.

  • settings object

    Configuration options for the index.

    Index settings
  • version number

    Version number used to manage index templates externally. This number is not automatically generated by Elasticsearch. To unset a version, replace the template without specifying one.

Responses

  • 200 application/json
    Hide response attribute Show response attribute object
    • acknowledged boolean Required

      For a successful response, this value is always true. On failure, an exception is returned instead.
POST /_template/{name} 
PUT _template/template_1
{
  "index_patterns": [
    "te*",
    "bar*"
  ],
  "settings": {
    "number_of_shards": 1
  },
  "mappings": {
    "_source": {
      "enabled": false
    },
    "properties": {
      "host_name": {
        "type": "keyword"
      },
      "created_at": {
        "type": "date",
        "format": "EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy"
      }
    }
  }
}
resp = client.indices.put_template(
    name="template_1",
    index_patterns=[
        "te*",
        "bar*"
    ],
    settings={
        "number_of_shards": 1
    },
    mappings={
        "_source": {
            "enabled": False
        },
        "properties": {
            "host_name": {
                "type": "keyword"
            },
            "created_at": {
                "type": "date",
                "format": "EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy"
            }
        }
    },
)
const response = await client.indices.putTemplate({
  name: "template_1",
  index_patterns: ["te*", "bar*"],
  settings: {
    number_of_shards: 1,
  },
  mappings: {
    _source: {
      enabled: false,
    },
    properties: {
      host_name: {
        type: "keyword",
      },
      created_at: {
        type: "date",
        format: "EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy",
      },
    },
  },
});
response = client.indices.put_template(
  name: "template_1",
  body: {
    "index_patterns": [
      "te*",
      "bar*"
    ],
    "settings": {
      "number_of_shards": 1
    },
    "mappings": {
      "_source": {
        "enabled": false
      },
      "properties": {
        "host_name": {
          "type": "keyword"
        },
        "created_at": {
          "type": "date",
          "format": "EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy"
        }
      }
    }
  }
)
$resp = $client->indices()->putTemplate([
    "name" => "template_1",
    "body" => [
        "index_patterns" => array(
            "te*",
            "bar*",
        ),
        "settings" => [
            "number_of_shards" => 1,
        ],
        "mappings" => [
            "_source" => [
                "enabled" => false,
            ],
            "properties" => [
                "host_name" => [
                    "type" => "keyword",
                ],
                "created_at" => [
                    "type" => "date",
                    "format" => "EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy",
                ],
            ],
        ],
    ],
]);
curl -X PUT -H "Authorization: ApiKey $ELASTIC_API_KEY" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"index_patterns":["te*","bar*"],"settings":{"number_of_shards":1},"mappings":{"_source":{"enabled":false},"properties":{"host_name":{"type":"keyword"},"created_at":{"type":"date","format":"EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy"}}}}' "$ELASTICSEARCH_URL/_template/template_1"
Request examples 
{
  "index_patterns": [
    "te*",
    "bar*"
  ],
  "settings": {
    "number_of_shards": 1
  },
  "mappings": {
    "_source": {
      "enabled": false
    },
    "properties": {
      "host_name": {
        "type": "keyword"
      },
      "created_at": {
        "type": "date",
        "format": "EEE MMM dd HH:mm:ss Z yyyy"
      }
    }
  }
}
You can include index aliases in an index template. During index creation, the `{index}` placeholder in the alias name will be replaced with the actual index name that the template gets applied to. 
{
  "index_patterns": [
    "te*"
  ],
  "settings": {
    "number_of_shards": 1
  },
  "aliases": {
    "alias1": {},
    "alias2": {
      "filter": {
        "term": {
          "user.id": "kimchy"
        }
      },
      "routing": "shard-1"
    },
    "{index}-alias": {}
  }
}