# Rotation and Retention on FileBeat **URL:** \ **Category:** Beats\ **Tags:** filebeat\ **Created:** [May 11, 2017, 8:27pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/rotation-and-retention-on-filebeat/85475 "2017-05-11T20:27:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FidelSanchezJr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3da27b/32.png) [@FidelSanchezJr](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/FidelSanchezJr)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 8:27pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/rotation-and-retention-on-filebeat/85475/1 "2017-05-11T20:27:23Z")
Hi, Does filebeat have a built in capability for file retention and rotation? ---
**Author:** ![andrewkroh](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/user_avatar/discuss.elastic.co/andrewkroh/32/3784_2.png) [@andrewkroh](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/andrewkroh)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2017, 8:42pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/rotation-and-retention-on-filebeat/85475/2 "2017-05-11T20:42:39Z")
Filebeat doesn't manage data retention for you. There is a tool called [Elastic Curator](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/client/curator/current/installation.html) that can [delete old indices](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/client/curator/current/ex_delete_indices.html) for you. You can configure how often Filebeat writes to a new index by customizing the [index](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/beats/filebeat/current/elasticsearch-output.html#_index) name. By default is uses a daily index pattern. This makes it simple to delete old data since you can just drop entire indices. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/elastic/original/3X/1/a/1ac57faf039f6b580b3f104ef42a2a89e41014de.png) [@system](https://discuss.elastic.co/u/system)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2017, 8:50pm UTC](https://discuss.elastic.co/t/rotation-and-retention-on-filebeat/85475/3 "2017-06-08T20:50:05Z")
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