isutf8

This page explains how to use the isutf8 function in APL.

Use the isutf8 function to check whether a string is a valid UTF-8 encoded sequence. The function returns a boolean indicating whether the input conforms to UTF-8 encoding rules.

isutf8 is useful when working with data from external sources such as logs, telemetry events, or data pipelines, where encoding issues can cause downstream processing to fail or produce incorrect results. By filtering out or isolating invalid UTF-8 strings, you can ensure better data quality and avoid unexpected behavior during parsing or transformation.

For users of other query languages

If you come from other query languages, this section explains how to adjust your existing queries to achieve the same results in APL.

Splunk SPL users

Splunk doesn’t provide a built-in function to directly check if a string is valid UTF-8. Users typically rely on workarounds using field transformations or regex, which can be error-prone or incomplete. APL provides isutf8 as a simple and reliable alternative.

Splunk example

| eval valid_utf8=if(match(field, "some-regex-pattern"), true, false)

ANSI SQL users

ANSI SQL does not define a standard function to validate UTF-8 encoding in strings. Some platforms offer vendor-specific functions, but behavior varies. APL offers isutf8 as a consistent, built-in way to validate string encoding.

SQL example

SELECT * FROM logs WHERE IS_UTF8(uri) = true;

Usage

Syntax

isutf8(value)

Parameters

Name	Type	Description
value	string	The input string to validate.

Returns

A bool value:

• true if the input string is valid UTF-8.
• false otherwise.

Use case examples

Log analysis

You can use isutf8 to detect and exclude malformed UTF-8 entries in HTTP request logs that could indicate issues with upstream data encoding.

Query

['sample-http-logs']
| where not(isutf8(uri)) or not(isutf8(method))
| project _time, id, method, uri, status

Run in Playground

Output

_time	id	method	uri	status
2025-07-09T13:32:05Z	user42	GET	�/broken-path	500
2025-07-09T14:10:17Z	user99	POST	/submit-form%80	200

This query identifies records where the uri or method fields contain invalid UTF-8 characters, which may point to upstream client encoding issues or malformed requests.

List of related functions

• isimei: Checks whether a value is a valid International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number.
• isreal: Checks whether a value is a real number.
• iscc: Checks whether a value is a valid credit card (CC) number.
• isstring: Checks whether a value is a string. Use this for scalar string validation.