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Wazuh Rule Not Triggering? Find the Cause After a Clean Config Check

Find why a custom Wazuh rule stays silent after a clean config check by tracing the raw event through decoding, rule matching, alerting, and dashboard delivery.
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A clean configuration check confirms that Wazuh can parse the rule; it does not confirm that an event reaches it, satisfies its conditions, or produces an alert. On Wazuh 4.14.7, trace the event through decoding, rule matching, alert generation, and delivery to find where it stops. The quickest starting point is /var/ossec/bin/wazuh-logtest with the exact raw event that should trigger the rule.

1. The event does not decode into the fields your rule expects

Wazuh processes an event through pre-decoding, decoding, and rule matching. Decoders extract fields from the incoming log; if no decoder matches, the event is ignored. A valid rule cannot match a field that is missing or has a different value in the actual event.

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On the Wazuh server, run /var/ossec/bin/wazuh-logtest and paste the raw event as it arrives, rather than a reformatted or simplified version. Review the pre-decoding and decoding output, then compare the extracted fields and values with the conditions in your rule. Wazuh describes testing decoders and rules with this utility, and its event-processing stages explain what happens when an event has no matching decoder.

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2. A prerequisite or correlation threshold is not satisfied

Rules can depend on an earlier matching rule, a group, a decoded field, or several conditions together. In Wazuh rule syntax, if_sid and if_group make a rule contingent on a prior match. Correlation rules using if_matched_sid can also require a configured frequency within a timeframe; one event alone may not meet that threshold.

Use logtest’s decoded fields and matched rule IDs to check the chain. Compare the event against every condition in the custom rule and its parent rules, then check whether a correlation rule needs additional matching events. A successful configuration check verifies syntax, not that a particular event will satisfy the runtime conditions. See Wazuh’s rule classification guidance and rule syntax reference.

3. The rule matches, but alerting is suppressed or uses an older edit

A rule match and an alert are not the same outcome. A level 0 rule does not generate an alert, and the noalert setting can suppress alert generation while allowing analysis to continue. If logtest reports the expected rule, inspect its level and settings before looking for an alert downstream.

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Apply edits to live alerting

Saved rule changes can be tested with logtest, but the running manager must be restarted for live alert generation to use those changes. Keep custom rules in /var/ossec/etc/rules/; Wazuh warns that edits made directly in the packaged ruleset directory can be overwritten during upgrades. Follow the custom rules instructions when editing and applying a rule.

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Check delivery when logtest shows an alert

If processing indicates an alert but it does not appear in the dashboard, the rule may not be the problem. Check whether alert indices exist in the indexer; if they do not, Wazuh’s dashboard troubleshooting guidance recommends testing Filebeat output. Use the Wazuh dashboard troubleshooting steps to investigate that downstream path.

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Follow the event through each processing boundary

  1. Save one exact raw event that should trigger the custom rule.
  2. On the Wazuh server, run /var/ossec/bin/wazuh-logtest with that event. Use verbose output when it helps clarify the result.
  3. Inspect pre-decoding and decoded fields. Confirm a decoder matched and that the extracted values are the ones your rule tests.
  4. Check the matched rule ID, its parent conditions, and any correlation frequency or timeframe requirements.
  5. If the rule matches but no alert appears, inspect the rule level and whether noalert suppresses it.
  6. If you edited the rule, restart the Wazuh manager so live alerting applies the change.
  7. If processing indicates an alert but the dashboard lacks it, check the indexer’s alert indices and Filebeat output.
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What the 4.14.7 release notes establish

Wazuh dated its 4.14.7 release notes 29 July 2026. The notes summarize manager changes, dependency updates, dashboard sanitization, and ruleset fixes; the listed ruleset fixes concern SCA checks, not custom-rule matching. They do not identify a custom-rule matching change in their summary. The rule and logtest guidance linked above uses Wazuh’s current documentation paths, so it should not be treated as an archived 4.14.7 manual snapshot. See the Wazuh 4.14.7 release notes for version-specific context.

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