---
title: Using ECS
description: ECS fields follow a series of guidelines, to ensure a consistent and predictable feel, across various use cases. If you're new to ECS and would like an...
url: https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/3016/reference/ecs/ecs-using-ecs
products:
  - Elastic Common Schema (ECS)
applies_to:
  - Elastic Cloud Serverless: Generally available
  - Elastic Stack: Generally available
---

# Using ECS
ECS fields follow a series of guidelines, to ensure a consistent and predictable feel, across various use cases.
If you're new to ECS and would like an introduction on implementing and using the schema, check out the [Getting started](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/3016/reference/ecs/ecs-getting-started) guide.
Whether you're trying to recall a field name, implementing a solution that follows ECS, or proposing a change to the schema, the [Guidelines and best practices](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/3016/reference/ecs/ecs-guidelines) section will help get you there.
[Design principles](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/3016/reference/ecs/ecs-principles-design) are a set of considerations used to help guide the ECS project.
If you're wondering how to best capture event details that don't map to existing ECS fields, head over to [Custom fields](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/3016/reference/ecs/ecs-custom-fields-in-ecs).