Embedded template functions don't work

[ihrwein]

I tried to use the following template function, but syslog-ng didn't accept it:

template("$(format-json  --scope rfc5424  --exclude FILE_NAME --pair .SDATA=$(format-json --scope sdata))\n")

The error message was:

Error parsing affile, Error compiling template, error=$ in /home/balabit/install/syslog-ng-3.5/etc/syslog-ng.conf at line 50, column 18:

        template("$(format-json  --scope rfc5424  --exclude FILE_NAME .SDATA=$(format-json --scope sdata))\n")
                 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

syslog-ng documentation: http://www.balabit.com/support/documentation/?product=syslog-ng
mailing list: https://lists.balabit.hu/mailman/listinfo/syslog-ng

I used syslog-ng OSE 3.5.

[algernon]

I think this may be a $(format-json) bug. Because this works:

template("$(+ 1 $(+ 1 1))\n")

[bazsi]

I have a preliminary patch that fixes this issue on the 3.6/f/stricter-type-hint-parsing branch I have just pushed.

There's also a workaround. This should work:

$(format-json --scope rfc5424 --exclude FILE_NAME .SDATA=string($(format-json --scope sdata)))

@algernon the problem is that type-hinting uses the same syntax as template functions and $ was taken as a typehint, which in fact was a template function call operator. Let's discuss this IRL how this should be solved.