docs: document ES|QL Fast mode toggle for approximation (#7141)#7143
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Promote the approximation content on the ES|QL-in-Kibana page to a dedicated section anchored `approximation-fast-mode` (the target of the in-product Learn more link), leading with the Fast mode UI toggle and keeping `SET approximation` as the query-level override. Add reciprocal cross-references from the Discover ES|QL tutorial, ES|QL visualizations, and the dashboard usage page. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
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Elastic Docs Style Checker (Vale)Summary: 4 warnings, 2 suggestions found
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| File | Line | Rule | Message |
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| explore-analyze/dashboards/using.md | 33 | Elastic.QuotesPunctuation | Place punctuation inside closing quotation marks. |
| explore-analyze/discover/try-esql.md | 389 | Elastic.QuotesPunctuation | Place punctuation inside closing quotation marks. |
| explore-analyze/query-filter/languages/esql-kibana.md | 514 | Elastic.QuotesPunctuation | Place punctuation inside closing quotation marks. |
| explore-analyze/visualize/esorql.md | 25 | Elastic.QuotesPunctuation | Place punctuation inside closing quotation marks. |
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| explore-analyze/query-filter/languages/esql-kibana.md | 453 | Elastic.Ellipses | In general, don't use an ellipsis. |
| explore-analyze/query-filter/languages/esql-kibana.md | 471 | Elastic.WordChoice | Consider using 'deactivated, deselected, hidden, turned off, unavailable' instead of 'disabled', unless the term is in the UI. |
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Condense the new Fast mode section now that approximation via SET is already documented for 9.4. Clarify that turning Fast mode on doesn't force approximation (Elasticsearch falls back to exact execution when sampling wouldn't help) and correct the per-surface behavior: in Discover the button is always available but applies only to queries with exactly one STATS command, while in Dashboards it's disabled when no ES|QL visualization uses STATS. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Bold the Fast mode UI label, simplify the cross-references, and stop pinning the exact UI mechanics while the implementation is in flux. Remove the cross-reference from the ES|QL visualizations page (that page is about defining visualizations, not running them), note that small datasets run exactly, and reword the disabled state as "not available" for the dashboard case. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Re-add a cross-reference on the ES|QL visualizations page, framed for authors: a query with exactly one STATS command lets dashboard users turn on Fast mode for that visualization. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
The fallback-to-exact and estimated-results caveats are properties of ES|QL approximation, not of the Fast mode toggle: SET approximation behaves identically. Move the caveat from the Fast mode subsection up to the section intro and phrase it method-agnostically. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Approximation accuracy and speed depend on the matched data and query, not on source dataset size. Drop the "small data set" framing and tie the exact-execution fallback to sampling not helping (for example, a selective filter already narrowing the matching data). Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Tie the exact-execution fallback to "approximation wouldn't make the query faster" rather than describing approximation as just sampling. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Shorten the Fast mode and SET approximation subsection titles to a parallel "Use X" form, and switch the dashboard usage cross-reference to an auto-resolved link so its label matches the section title. Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
…7141) Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
florent-leborgne
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stratoula
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Looks great, some things that might be confusing as we dont offer them at the v1
…ing (#7141) - Split enablement into a bullet list so Fast mode carries a 9.5 applies_to - Dashboards: option is available with at least one ES|QL visualization - Drop Discover from save/share preservation (not in V1) - Reword to avoid Vale spelling/word-choice warnings Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
teresaalvarezsoler
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Jul 7, 2026
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| Fast mode is the {{kib}} UI control for {{esql}} approximation. Look for the {icon}`bolt` **Fast mode** option to turn it on. Where it applies depends on the context: |
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@florent-leborgne can we have a screenshot here so the user knows what to look for?
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Definitely going to add one, I'm just waiting that the option becomes available on one of the instances I have with nice dashboards already defined (so likely just before i merge the PR when the feature goes live)
- Explain sampling + extrapolation in the intro - Reword the "when it applies" paragraph with concrete size defaults and note that only some aggregations are approximated - Dashboards: option is disabled when there are no ES|QL visualizations Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
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July 7, 2026 16:22
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I left a few comments/suggestions, but otherwise LGTM.
Co-authored-by: Mike Birnstiehl <114418652+mdbirnstiehl@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: Mike Birnstiehl <114418652+mdbirnstiehl@users.noreply.github.com>
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Co-authored-by: Cursor <cursoragent@cursor.com>
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July 13, 2026 17:44
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Summary
This PR addresses #7141 by documenting the new Fast mode option that turns on ES|QL
STATSapproximation from the {{kib}} UI in Discover and dashboards.explore-analyze/query-filter/languages/esql-kibana.md: Promote the formerSET approximationsubsection to a dedicated section, Get faster results with approximateSTATS, anchoredapproximation-fast-mode(the exact target of the in-product Learn more link,queryESQLApproximateResults). The section covers the Fast mode UI option, a plain-language explanation of the two approximation output columns (_approximation_confidence_interval/_approximation_certified), and keepsSET approximationas the query-level override. Theapproximationbullet in theSETsettings list now points to the new section. The new content is kept concise because approximation viaSETis already documented for 9.4.explore-analyze/discover/try-esql.md: Reciprocal cross-reference near theSTATSgrouped-results section.explore-analyze/dashboards/using.md: Cross-reference in Search and filter your dashboard data, since the option sits next to the dashboard query bar.explore-analyze/visualize/esorql.md: Author-facing note explaining that a visualization whose query uses exactly oneSTATScommand can be sped up by dashboard users with Fast mode.Key behaviors documented:
SETis available in Stack 9.4; the Fast mode UI option is 9.5. The section intro scopes each enablement method accordingly.STATSaggregations on a data sample and extrapolates to estimate results for the full dataset.STATS ... BYand ~100k otherwise; a selective filter; or an unsupported aggregation such asCOUNT_DISTINCT,MIN,MAX,LAST). Approximate results are estimates, so they can vary between runs and might drop low-frequency groups._approximation_confidence_interval(<column>)(the range the exact value very likely falls within, at a 90% confidence level) and_approximation_certified(<column>)(whether that interval is reliable) for each approximated value. In Discover these show as extra columns in the results table.STATScommand.STATS; the toggle is available when the dashboard has at least one ES|QL visualization.Resolves
Closes #7141
Verify before publishing
This is early-prep documentation for a feature in technical preview (Stack 9.5, serverless). The user-facing copy follows the product-side issue (#7141). The Kibana implementation has largely merged to
main— Fast mode component (#275371), Discover switch (#275510), Lens support (#275890), and Dashboards (#276173). Availability, versioning, and persistence behaviors were confirmed in review by the implementer. Still to confirm against HEAD:_approximation_confidence_interval/_approximation_certifiedare paraphrased from the ES|QL approximation reference; the "zero-width interval = exact result" detail is drawn from adjacent sections of that page. Worth a sanity check by the ES author.SET approximationoverriding the toggle.Screenshots to add or update
explore-analyze/query-filter/languages/esql-kibana.md— new section: consider adding a screenshot of the {icon}boltFast mode option once the final UI design is settled, since the control is icon-only.