SPLK-1001 Practice Question: Creating Reports, Dashboards and Visualizations
When creating a dashboard panel that displays a line chart of CPU usage over time, which visualization option should be used to show multiple series (each CPU core) with different colors?
⚠ Common exam trap
Splunk often tests the confusion between 'Overlay' and 'Stacking', where candidates mistakenly choose 'Stacking' thinking it will show multiple series, but it actually aggregates them into a single cumulative area, losing individual core visibility.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Overlay
The 'Overlay' visualization option in Splunk allows you to display multiple data series (e.g., each CPU core) as separate lines on the same chart, each with a distinct color. This is essential for comparing CPU usage across cores over time without merging or stacking the values, which would obscure individual core behavior.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Overlay
Why this is correct
Overlay enables multiple series with distinct colors.
- ✗
Line mode
Why it's wrong here
Line mode controls line style (normal, stepped), not color per series.
- ✗
Stacking
Why it's wrong here
Stacking is used for bar charts, not line color separation.
- ✗
Markers
Why it's wrong here
Markers add data point symbols, not series color differentiation.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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