# Filebeat Autogenerating Index Name When I Specified: sample-%
**URL:** https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038
**Category:** Beats
**Tags:** filebeat
**Created:** [February 12, 2020, 4:04pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038 "2020-02-12T16:04:50Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@daz1761](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/daz1761)
#### Post date: [February 12, 2020, 4:04pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038/1 "2020-02-12T16:04:51Z")
I have specified the `index` in my `filebeat.yml` as `sample-%{+YYY.MM.dd} but when I check my indices via `/\_cat/indices?v`my`index`looks like a some form of autogenerated name like:`filebeat-7.5.2-2020.02.12-000001`
```
# setup filebeat to send output to elasticsearch
output.elasticsearch:
hosts: ["elasticsearch:9200"]
index: "sample-%{+YYYY.MM.dd}"
setup.template.name: "sample"
setup.template.pattern: "sample-*"
```
Can someone please explain to me why this is happening. I would preferably have a predefined `index` name as opposed to the one above.
---
### Author:  [@faec](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/faec)
#### Post date: [February 14, 2020, 6:36pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038/2 "2020-02-14T18:36:16Z")
This is probably caused by ILM ([index lifecycle management](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/beats/filebeat/current/ilm.html)), which overrides the output-level index settings. If you don't want Filebeat to manage your indices, you should include `setup.ilm.enabled: false`. If you want to keep using ILM but change the name, you probably want to set `setup.ilm.rollover_alias` (see the previous link for details).
As a general warning, though, it's usually best to start the index name with `filebeat` even if you customize it (e.g. `filebeat-sample` would be fine) because a lot of the automatic settings expect it.
---
### Author:  [@daz1761](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/daz1761)
#### Post date: [February 14, 2020, 7:20pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038/3 "2020-02-14T19:20:49Z")
Thank you. Is that in the Filebeat.yml or the configuration? I’m using the containerised ELK in my case.
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### Author:  [@faec](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/faec)
#### Post date: [February 14, 2020, 7:46pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038/4 "2020-02-14T19:46:29Z")
The ILM settings should be in `filebeat.yml`, yes.
---
### Author:  [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)
#### Post date: [March 13, 2020, 7:46pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/filebeat-autogenerating-index-name-when-i-specified-sample/219038/5 "2020-03-13T19:46:45Z")
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