---
title: Telegraf Documentation
description: Telegraf plugin for sending metrics to Executable
url: https://docs.influxdata.com/telegraf/v1/output-plugins/exec/
estimated_tokens: 1069
product: Telegraf
version: v1
---

-   Telegraf v1.12.0+

# Executable Output Plugin

This plugin writes metrics to an external application via `stdin`. The command will be executed on each write creating a new process. Metrics are passed in one of the supported [data formats](/telegraf/v1/data_formats/output).

The executable and the individual parameters must be defined as a list. All outputs of the executable to `stderr` will be logged in the Telegraf log.

For better performance consider execd which runs continuously.

**Introduced in:** Telegraf v1.12.0 **Tags:** system **OS support:** all

## Global configuration options

Plugins support additional global and plugin configuration settings for tasks such as modifying metrics, tags, and fields, creating aliases, and configuring plugin ordering. See [CONFIGURATION.md](/telegraf/v1/configuration/#plugins) for more details.

## Configuration

```toml
# Send metrics to command as input over stdin
[[outputs.exec]]
  ## Command to ingest metrics via stdin.
  command = ["tee", "-a", "/dev/null"]

  ## Environment variables
  ## Array of "key=value" pairs to pass as environment variables
  ## e.g. "KEY=value", "USERNAME=John Doe",
  ## "LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/opt/custom/lib64:/usr/local/libs"
  # environment = []

  ## Timeout for command to complete.
  # timeout = "5s"

  ## Whether the command gets executed once per metric, or once per metric batch
  ## The serializer will also run in batch mode when this is true.
  # use_batch_format = true

  ## Data format to output.
  ## Each data format has its own unique set of configuration options, read
  ## more about them here:
  ## https://github.com/influxdata/telegraf/blob/master/docs/DATA_FORMATS_OUTPUT.md
  # data_format = "influx"
```

#### Related

-   [Configure plugins](/telegraf/v1/configure_plugins/)
-   [Executable Plugin Source](https://github.com/influxdata/telegraf/tree/v1.38.4/plugins/outputs/exec/README.md)