---
id: locate-deviations-time-series
title: Locate Deviations in a Time Series
description: Learn how to create charts that locate deviations in a time series and the graph outliers.
slug: /help/docs/dashboards/locate-deviations-time-series/
canonical: https://www.sumologic.com/help/docs/dashboards/locate-deviations-time-series/
---
import useBaseUrl from '@docusaurus/useBaseUrl';
An **outlier** is a data point that is outside the range of expected values. This page shows you how to locate deviations beyond thresholds in a time series.
:::note
Currently, the feature is only available for logs queries.
:::
## Graphing log queries to find outliers
You can graph log queries to determine where there are deviations from normal behavior in a time series. Locating outliers can help you understand the behavior trends of a time series. For more in-depth information, see [outlier operator](/docs/search/search-query-language/search-operators/outlier).
To graph a log query and determine outliers, do the following:
1. In Sumo Logic, go to and open a Dashboard.
1. In the upper right corner click **Add Panel** and select **Time Series** as the panel type.
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1. By default, the query builder is set for a **Logs** query.
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1. Enter your log query in the text field on the right and press **Return** to run the query. We used the following query for our example.
```sumo
(_sourceCategory=airflow-service)
| parse "in time *" as response_time
| timeslice 10m
| max(response_time) as response_time by _timeslice
| outlier response_time window=5,threshold=3,consecutive=2,direction=+-
```
1. Adjust the time interval as needed by selecting the **time display** next to the **clock icon** in the upper right corner and choosing an option from the dropdown list. We selected a 24 hour time interval for our example.
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The outlier graph appears in the window below, with the outlier series shown in the legend.
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## Customizing the graph
You can easily modify the look of the chart by changing the color palette, line type, and thickness, to name a few of the customizing options. For outlier graphs, there is a separate set of options you can choose from to modify the look of your chart.
To customize the visual appearance of the graph, do the following:
1. Go to the far right panel and click the **Display** icon, if it is not already selected.
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1. Make **Format** selections in the right panel as described in [Customizing a chart](create-dashboard-new.md).
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1. Make **Outlier Visual Settings** selections for the following:
* **Band Color**. The fill that defines the outlier region.
* **Line Type**. Boundary line of the outlier region.
* **Fill Opacity**. Denseness of the fill color in the outlier region.
* **Line Thickness**. Thickness of the line bordering the outlier region.
* **Marker Color**. Color of the marker for an outlier peak value.
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1. In the upper right corner, click **Add to Dashboard**.
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The panel appears on your dashboard.
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