
<p>Ask any system administrator or network expert about downtime, and they will probably tell you that it is “everything that can go wrong in a system at the exact moment when it should function optimally.”</p>



<p>Since organizations today are highly reliant on technology and digital processes, there is a lot that can happen if the system fails, especially just minutes before an important event.</p>



<p>As per the <a href="https://datacenter.uptimeinstitute.com/rs/711-RIA-145/images/AnnualOutageAnalysis2023.03092023.pdf">Annual Outages Analysis Report 2023</a>, 60% of organizations have faced some kind of outage or downtime in the past three years. For context, the <a href="https://www.pingdom.com/outages/average-cost-of-downtime-per-industry/">cost of downtime</a> is estimated to be around $9,000 per minute, with 98% of companies claiming that just an hour of downtime costs them roughly $100,000.&nbsp;</p>



<p>To combat downtime effectively, organizations rely on two <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/incident-management-kpis/">key incident management KPIs</a>: Mean Time to Repair (MTTR) and Mean Time to Detect (MTTD). While their acronyms may sound similar, their roles within the incident management life cycle are distinct.</p>



<p>MTTD is essentially the time it takes to detect an issue, while MTTR tells us how long it takes to repair it. These two metrics form the core of any <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/why-is-monitoring-your-application-important/">incident management process</a>.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MTTR-vs.-MTTD-1024x497.png" alt="MTTR vs. MTTD" class="wp-image-7547" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MTTR-vs.-MTTD-1024x497.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MTTR-vs.-MTTD-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MTTR-vs.-MTTD-768x372.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MTTR-vs.-MTTD-1536x745.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/MTTR-vs.-MTTD.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>By utilizing these metrics strategically, organizations can identify and diagnose the root cause of any outage and decrease the time it takes to repair it. To understand this in-depth, let&#8217;s explore these metrics and the critical differences between MTTR and MTTD.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-mttd">What is MTTD?</h2>



<p>Let us start by understanding the first crucial KPI, Mean Time To Detect (MTTD). MTTD signifies the average time it takes to identify an incident after it has actually occurred in your IT infrastructure. It is calculated from the time the system experiences failure or outage and the time it takes to detect or fully diagnose the issue.</p>



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<p>This metric essentially reflects the effectiveness of your monitoring and alerting systems in spotting issues before they snowball into major problems. A lower MTTD translates to faster issue detection, enabling your team to take swift action and minimize downtime.</p>



<p>To calculate MTTD, you can use the following formula:</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>MTTD = (the sum of all incident detection times) / (the total number of incidents reported in that time period)</p>
</blockquote>



<p>For example, if the total number of incidents in a month is 5, and the total time to detect the incident is 251 minutes, the MTTD will be 251/5 = 50.2. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="444" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTD-1024x444.png" alt="What is MTTD?" class="wp-image-7548" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTD-1024x444.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTD-300x130.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTD-768x333.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTD-1536x665.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTD.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>MTTD is crucial for incident detection and management and is influenced by the following factors:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Monitoring capabilities:</strong> <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-monitoring-tools/">Comprehensive monitoring tools</a> that capture a wide range of system metrics and logs are crucial for the early detection of anomalies.</li>



<li><strong>Alert configuration:</strong> Effectively configured alerts, with clear notification thresholds and appropriate channels, ensure timely awareness of potential issues.</li>



<li><strong>Data correlation:</strong> The ability to correlate data from various sources allows for a holistic view of system health and helps identify the root cause of problems faster.</li>
</ul>



<p>By using a real-time and unified observability platform like <a href="https://middleware.io">Middleware</a>, organizations can significantly reduce MTTD. This platform should centralize data collection from all your systems and applications, providing a single dashboard for monitoring systems. This helps you uncover potential threats and patterns before they can make a huge impact, even raising triggers to notify your team about suspicious activities or fluctuations.</p>



<p>Detecting incidents in time allows your incident management teams to resolve issues before they impact the business. Similarly, downtime can be detected in real-time and diagnosed faster.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-mttr">What is MTTR?</h2>



<p>Once an issue or downtime is effectively diagnosed, we come to the next crucial metric &#8211; the time it takes to repair or fix this issue. This is calculated using Mean Time to Repair (MTTR).</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="454" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTR-1024x454.png" alt="What is MTTR?" class="wp-image-7549" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTR-1024x454.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTR-300x133.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTR-768x341.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTR-1536x682.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/What-is-MTTR.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-to-reduce-mttr/">MTTR,</a> also referred to as Mean Time to Resolve or Recover,&nbsp; measures the average time it takes to diagnose and fix an incident after it&#8217;s been discovered. </p>



<p>This metric essentially reflects the efficiency of your troubleshooting and resolution processes. A lower MTTR signifies a faster recovery time, minimizing the impact of downtime on your business operations.</p>



<p>It can be calculated using the formula:</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>MTTR = Total Time to Resolve All Incidents / Number of Incidents</p>
</blockquote>



<p>Wherein,</p>



<ul>
<li><strong><em>Total Time to Resolve All Incidents</em></strong><strong>:</strong> This represents the cumulative time spent resolving all incidents within a specific timeframe (e.g., a week, month, or quarter).</li>



<li><strong><em>Number of Incidents</em></strong><strong>:</strong> Refers to the total number of incidents encountered during the chosen timeframe.</li>
</ul>



<p>The following factors influence MTTR:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Technical complexity:</strong> Intricate system issues naturally take longer to diagnose and resolve compared to simpler ones.</li>



<li><strong>Team expertise:</strong> A skilled and experienced team can pinpoint and address problems faster than a team with limited knowledge.</li>



<li><strong>Availability of resources:</strong> The readily available tools and resources streamline the troubleshooting process.</li>



<li><strong>Standardized procedures:</strong> Clearly defined incident response protocols ensure efficient collaboration and minimize wasted time.</li>
</ul>



<p>To reduce MTTR, organizations can invest in a <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/proactive-monitoring/">proactive monitoring</a> tool, which allows them to <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-infrastructure-monitoring/">monitor all their IT infrastructure</a> and identify potential threats before they escalate into significant issues.</p>



<p>If the issue cannot be diagnosed early on, the incident management teams can swing into action quickly and take appropriate steps to resolve or repair it before it makes a bigger impact.</p>



<p>By focusing on these aspects, organizations can significantly reduce MTTR and minimize the disruption caused by system outages.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mttr-vs-mttd-which-metric-matters-most">MTTR vs MTTD: Which metric matters most?</h2>



<p>In simple words, both matter! This is because both KPIs are essentially correlated. The faster your team can detect and diagnose an issue, the lower the MTTD. And by identifying issues faster with an accurate diagnosis, your teams can resolve them effectively, translating into improved MTTR.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Traditionally, reducing MTTR (Mean Time to Repair) and MTTD (Mean Time to Detect) has been a balancing act. Efforts to improve issue detection (MTTD) often relied on generating a high volume of alerts, which could overwhelm teams and slow down the resolution (MTTR) process.</p>



<p>However, Middleware&#8217;s <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/unified-experience/">innovative observability platform</a> bridges this gap by offering a robust suite of features designed to tackle both metrics simultaneously.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How to reduce MTTR and MTTD using Middleware?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>Here&#8217;s how Middleware empowers organizations to achieve a significant reduction in both MTTR and MTTD:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Unified dashboard</h3>



<p>Middleware provides a central dashboard that offers a real-time, consolidated view of all your system metrics, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">logs</a>, traces, and events. This eliminates the need to toggle between disparate tools, allowing your team to quickly identify anomalies and potential issues.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="515" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Unified-dashboard--1024x515.png" alt="Middleware Unified dashboard (mttr vs. mttd)" class="wp-image-7550" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Unified-dashboard--1024x515.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Unified-dashboard--300x151.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Unified-dashboard--768x386.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Unified-dashboard--1536x773.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Unified-dashboard-.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Logs and traces</h3>



<p>Middleware empowers users to drill down into specific metrics and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-distributed-tracing/">traces</a> associated with an identified issue. This granular visibility allows for a deeper understanding of the problem and facilitates faster troubleshooting.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="513" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Logs-and-traces-1024x513.png" alt="Middleware Logs and Traces (mttr vs. mttd)" class="wp-image-7551" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Logs-and-traces-1024x513.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Logs-and-traces-300x150.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Logs-and-traces-768x385.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Logs-and-traces-1536x770.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Logs-and-traces.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Real-time alert notifications</h3>



<p>Middleware allows for the configuration of <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-alert-fatigue/">intelligent alerts</a> that prioritize critical issues and provide context-rich notifications. This ensures your team receives actionable information, allowing them to focus on resolving the most impactful problems first.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="513" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Real-time-alert-notifications-1024x513.png" alt="Middleware Real-time alert notifications (mttr vs. mttd)" class="wp-image-7552" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Real-time-alert-notifications-1024x513.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Real-time-alert-notifications-300x150.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Real-time-alert-notifications-768x385.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Real-time-alert-notifications-1536x770.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Middleware_Real-time-alert-notifications.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Centralized knowledge base</h3>



<p>Middleware facilitates the creation and maintenance of a centralized knowledge base where past incidents and their resolutions are documented. This empowers teams to learn from previous experiences and resolve similar issues faster in the future.</p>



<p>In essence, Middleware acts as a force multiplier for your IT team. The unified dashboard and advanced data correlation features empower faster issue detection (MTTD reduction).</p>



<p>Once an issue is identified, metric and trace analysis coupled with intelligent alerts streamline resolution (MTTR reduction). This holistic approach ensures your team is prepared to tackle any challenge that arises, minimizing downtime and maximizing system uptime.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h2>



<p>Optimizing MTTR and MTTD is a continuous pursuit for any organization striving for <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-application-performance-monitoring/">optimal system performance</a>. By understanding the nuances of these metrics and implementing the right strategies, you can significantly reduce downtime and ensure a more efficient incident response process.</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/tools/">End-to-end observability tools</a> like Middleware don&#8217;t just offer a platform; they empower a proactive approach to system health. With its comprehensive observability features, Middleware equips your team to identify potential problems before they escalate into major incidents.</p>



<p>This proactive approach minimizes the impact of downtime and fosters a culture of continuous improvement within your IT operations.</p>



<p class="has-base-background-color has-background"><strong><em>Ready to unlock the power of faster issue detection and resolution? </em></strong></p>



<p class="has-base-background-color has-background">Explore how <a href="https://middleware.io/contact-us/">Middleware&#8217;s observability platform</a> can transform your incident response capabilities and ensure a seamless user experience.</p>


Confused by MTTR and MTTD? Read on to understand it better and how it can help improve your team’s incident response and minimize downtime.

MTTR vs. MTTD: What’s the difference?

Explore top 10 monitoring best practices for developers to optimize performance, ensure reliability, and comply with regulations.

10 Monitoring Best Practices Every Developer Should Know


<p>With over 40 years on the data processing market, Oracle is a leading database for online transaction processing and data warehousing. Designed for enterprise grid computing, Oracle manages information, applications and provides logical data storage using tablespaces. It is used by Wells Fargo, Samsung Electronics, Honeywell, among others.&nbsp;</p>



<p>If you are having a bad day with your Oracle database performance, this article will put an end to it. In this article, we highlight key oracle database metrics to keep a tab on for root-cause analysis and optimum performance. We also explore <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/tools/">top monitoring tools</a> that will help you simplify the monitoring exercise.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-oracle">What is Oracle?</h2>



<p>Oracle is a feature-rich relational <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/database-monitoring-software/">database management system</a> (RDBMS) known for its scalability, reliability, security features, and comprehensive toolset. It supports a rich data model that includes relational tables, views, sequences, indexes, and constraints for structuring and organizing data. </p>



<p>Oracle also supports advanced data types such as LOBs, XML, spatial data, multimedia data, and JSON data. It uses SQL as the standard language for interacting with the database, while also supporting PL/SQL, a procedural language extension to SQL that allows developers to create stored procedures, functions, and triggers within the database.</p>



<p>An Oracle instance consists of a set of memory structures and background processes and tasks such as data caching, query processing, and transaction management. In the Oracle database, there are physical data files that store the actual data, control files containing metadata about the database, and redo logs that record changes made to the database. </p>



<p>Oracle provides features like Real Application Clusters (RAC), Data Guard, and Automatic Storage Management (ASM) for achieving high availability and disaster recovery capabilities.</p>



<p>Oracle supports both vertical and horizontal scalability through features like partitioning, parallel execution, and distributed databases, allowing developers to handle growing data volumes and user loads. </p>



<p>Alongside security features such as user authentication, role-based access control, encryption, and auditing, it also provides utilities for backup and recovery, data replication, data compression, and data archival to ensure data availability, reliability, and compliance with regulatory requirements. </p>



<p>Oracle&#8217;s comprehensive toolsets for database administration and performance tuning include SQL*Plus, SQL Developer, Enterprise Manager, Data Pump, and many others to streamline database management tasks.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-is-monitoring-oracledb-important">Why is monitoring OracleDB important?</h2>



<p>Monitoring OracleDB is important for the following reasons:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-capacity-planning">Capacity planning</h3>



<p>Monitoring resource utilization trends over time enables you to anticipate future capacity requirements and help you plan accordingly. This ensures that the database has sufficient resources to handle growing data volumes and user demands.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-troubleshooting">Troubleshooting</h3>



<p>Monitoring allows you to quickly detect and fix problems with your database, such as errors, failures, and performance issues. This helps you minimize downtime and maintain the reliability of the database. It also helps you identify slow-performing queries, resource bottlenecks, and other issues that can impact the database&#8217;s performance.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cost-efficiency">Cost efficiency</h3>



<p>Effective monitoring helps you optimize resource usage, identify unused or underutilized resources, and avoid unnecessary expenditures on hardware or software. This leads to cost savings and a more efficient use of resources.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-security-and-compliance">Security and compliance</h3>



<p>Continuous monitoring of your Oracle database helps you detect unauthorized access, unusual activity, and security breaches in real-time. It also ensures that the database complies with data security regulations and internal policies.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-oracledb-metrics-you-should-be-monitoring">Key OracleDB metrics you should be monitoring</h2>



<p>The following are key OracleDB <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/devops-metrics-you-should-be-monitoring/">metrics you should be monitoring</a>. Monitoring them enables you to proactively manage your database performance, detect issues early, and optimize system efficiency.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oracledb-cpu-time">Oracledb.cpu_time</h3>



<p>This metric represents the total amount of CPU time consumed by the Oracle database. Monitoring it helps you understand the workload on the database server. High CPU time usage could indicate inefficient queries, resource contention, or a need for additional hardware resources. </p>



<p>When you keep a tab on this metric, you&#8217;ll understand how to optimize query performance, identify the root cause of bottlenecks, and ensure that the database functions efficiently.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oracledb-enqueue-deadlocks">Oracledb.enqueue_deadlocks</h3>



<p>This metric indicates the number of deadlocks that occur during enqueue operations in the Oracle database. Monitoring enqueue deadlocks helps you identify concurrency issues within the database. </p>



<p>Deadlocks lead to performance degradation and application errors. By tracking this metric, you&#8217;ll proactively address locking conflicts, optimize transaction management, and prevent application downtime.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oracledb-exchange-deadlocks">Oracledb.exchange_deadlocks</h3>



<p>This metric reflects the number of exchange deadlocks encountered in the Oracle database, especially as it relates to parallel query operations. Monitoring exchange deadlocks helps you detect and resolve parallel processing issues. </p>



<p>Exchange deadlocks impact query performance and scalability, thus, monitoring it enables you to fine-tune parallel query settings, optimize resource allocation, and ensure smooth data processing in the database.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oracledb-logical-reads">Oracledb.logical_reads</h3>



<p>This metric measures the number of data blocks read from the buffer cache during query execution. Monitoring the metric provides insight into the efficiency of data retrieval operations. </p>



<p>High numbers of logical reads indicates inefficient SQL queries, missing indexes, or database design issues. Tracking this metric enables you to optimize query performance, implement appropriate indexing strategies, and reduce I/O overhead.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oracledb-hard-parses">Oracledb.hard_parses</h3>



<p>This metric represents the number of times SQL statements are hard-parsed in the Oracle database. Hard parses are resource-intensive operations that impact database responsiveness. </p>



<p>When you monitor hard parses, you&#8217;ll easily identify poorly performing SQL statements, promote SQL plan reuse, and enhance overall system efficiency.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-oracledb-parse-calls">Oracledb.parse_calls</h3>



<p>This metric indicates the total number of parse calls made to the Oracle database. Monitoring parse calls provides insights into the workload generated by SQL statement parsing. </p>



<p>Excessive parse calls often result in CPU overhead and reduced performance. Tracking this metric enables you to optimize query caching, encourages statement reusability, and minimizes parsing-related bottlenecks.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-5-oracledb-monitoring-tools">Top 5 OracleDB monitoring tools</h2>



<p>Here are the top 5 Oracle database monitoring tools to look out for, along with their key features which will help you monitor, troubleshoot, and optimize the performance of your database:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-middleware">Middleware</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware </a>is a full-stack observability platform that offers centralized monitoring for infrastructures and applications. It provides monitoring capabilities for databases, including Oracle Database and its various components. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="527" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image-1-1024x527.png" alt="What is Oracle Monitoring - Middleware" class="wp-image-7458" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image-1-1024x527.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image-1-300x154.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image-1-768x395.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image-1-1536x791.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image-1.png 1910w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Middleware database monitoring captures performance metrics such as CPU utilization, memory usage, query execution times, resource utilization, and much more.</p>



<p>It dives deep into key metrics such as oracledb.cpu_time, oracledb.exchange_deadlocks, oracledb.enqueue_deadlocks, oracledb.hard_parses, oracledb.enqueue_locks.usage, oracledb.enqueue_resources.limit, oracledb.blocks_gets, oracledb.consistent_gets, among others. </p>



<p>With its user-friendly dashboard, Middleware provides end-to-end visibility into the performance of your Oracle database system.</p>



<p>While offering correlation of metrics for in-depth analysis, Middleware also provides a causation-to-correlation feature that spots when an issue begins and where it ends. </p>



<p>Read the Middleware Oracle integration <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/integrations/oracledb-integration">documentation</a> for more information.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-features">Features</h4>



<ul>
<li>Customizable dashboard.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Real-time monitoring of performance metrics.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Historical performance data analysis.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Alerting and notification capabilities.</li>
</ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pricing">Pricing</h4>



<p>Middleware pricing varies based on the number of infrastructure and APM hosts. It offers a <a href="https://middleware.io/pricing/">free 14-day trial</a> that allows you to monitor as many servers as you like. </p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-datadog">Datadog</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/datadog-alternative/">Datadog</a> is a comprehensive monitoring tool for infrastructure and applications. It provides health and performance metrics for databases, including Oracle, in near real-time.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="538" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-1024x538.jpg" alt="Oracle Monitoring - Datadog" class="wp-image-7459" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-1024x538.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-768x403.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p></p>



<p>Datadog enables you to visualize these metrics through its dashboard and alerts you on your Oracle database states. </p>



<p>In addition to the standard integration features, Datadog provides query-level metrics, live and historical query snapshots, wait event analysis, database load, query explain plans, and blocking query insights.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-features-1">Features</h4>



<ul>
<li>Real-time performance monitoring.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Customizable dashboards.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Automatic anomaly detection.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Integration with 200+ database tools.</li>
</ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pricing-1">Pricing</h4>



<p>Datadog offers multiple pricing plans based on the number of hosts and features required. Custom pricing is however available for large enterprises.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-relic">New Relic</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/newrelic-alternative/">New Relic</a> provides monitoring and observability for cloud-native applications and infrastructure. It offers deep insights into the health and behavior of databases, including Oracle.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="784" height="391" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-1.jpg" alt="Oracle Database Monitoring - New Relic " class="wp-image-7460" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-1.jpg 784w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-1-300x150.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/unnamed-1-768x383.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 784px) 100vw, 784px" /></figure>



<p>New Relic&#8217;s Oracle monitoring collects key performance metrics on the database instances, and you can customize your configuration to collect even more metrics, giving you detailed characterization of database performance. With its customizable dashboard, you can perform the “slice and dice” operations on your database metrics.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-features-2">Features</h4>



<ul>
<li>End-to-end performance monitoring.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Transaction monitoring and resource utilization tracking.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Anomaly detection and alerting.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Integration with Oracle monitoring plugins and extensions.</li>
</ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pricing-2">Pricing</h4>



<p>New Relic pricing varies based on the selected product and features.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-signoz">SigNoz</h3>



<p>SigNoz is an <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/kubernetes-monitoring/tools/">open-source data observability</a> and performance monitoring tool. It helps you monitor your system and databases, including Oracle, and troubleshoot problems.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="492" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Signoz-1024x492.jpeg" alt="Oracle Monitoring Tools - Signoz" class="wp-image-7461" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Signoz-1024x492.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Signoz-300x144.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Signoz-768x369.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Signoz.jpeg 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>SigNoz provides deep visibility into performance metrics and displays the data on its customizable dashboard, using graphs or flowcharts. Its metrics include availability, table sizes, cache ratios, and other key metrics.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-features-3">Features</h4>



<ul>
<li>Performance metrics visualization.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Anomaly detection.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Root cause analysis.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Community-driven development and support.</li>
</ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pricing-3">Pricing</h4>



<p>SigNoz follows an open-source model. It offers a free self-hosted version and a paid managed service option based on the volume of data and features required.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-site24x7">Site24x7</h3>



<p>Site24x7 is a <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-strategy/">cloud-based infrastructure</a> and application monitoring tool. It monitors all kinds of databases and has a specialized screen for Oracle monitoring.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="517" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/site-1024x517.png" alt="Oracle Monitoring Tools - Site24x7" class="wp-image-7462" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/site-1024x517.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/site-300x152.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/site-768x388.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/site.png 1360w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Site24x7 automatically detects all database instances within an environment and continuously monitors their performance. It also monitors the underlying system for the database and makes optimization recommendations.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-features-4">Features</h4>



<ul>
<li>Threshold-based alerting and notification.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Customizable dashboard.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Automatic database discovery.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Reporting and analytics capabilities.</li>
</ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pricing-4">Pricing</h4>



<p>Site24x7 offers free monitoring service for five servers, and a paid subscription that has a 30-day free trial.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion</h2>



<p>Database monitoring involves monitoring which ensures optimum performance and management. The right Oracle monitoring tool must combine both functions for unified and centralized observability. </p>



<p>Middleware executes these qualities effortlessly by offering root-cause analysis of database performance, and showing you who does what and when it occurred. </p>



<p><a href="https://docs.middleware.io/integrations/oracledb-integration">Try Middleware</a> today for a firsthand experience of its monitoring deftness.</p>


Explore key Oracle database metrics and top monitoring tools. Learn how to analyze data for root causes and ensure seamless operations.

What is Oracle Monitoring?

Explore the latest trends of 2024 and learn how observability tools are reshaping businesses with AI, analytics, and much more.

Top 10 Observability Trends in 2024


<p>IT downtime can be costly. And despite the best of our efforts, circumstances make it unavoidable. A minute of downtime can cost almost<a href="https://www.encomputers.com/2024/03/small-business-cost-of-downtime/#:~:text=Industry%20statistics%20for%20the%20cost%20of%20IT%20downtime,-For%20many%20years&amp;text=About%2044%25%20of%20those%20polled,or%20about%20%24100%2C000%20an%20hour."> $1670 per minute</a> or $100,000 per hour, and this will only increase if you are a large IT organization. It also translates into lost productivity, user frustration, and potential repercussions for the company.</p>



<p>While IT downtime can have a lasting impact, what makes a whole difference is how organizations react when they experience these unfavorable circumstances, particularly in terms of their Mean Time to Repair (MTTR).&nbsp;</p>



<p>MTTR allows organizations to track the average time it takes to resolve an incident. The lower this number, the more efficient your organization is at tackling such risks.</p>



<p>In this article, we will examine what MTTR is, why it is essential, and some ways to reduce MTTR within your organization.</p>



<div id="accordian" class="table-of-content">
<div class="toc-heading accordion" data-toggle="collapse" data-target="#toc">Table of Contents</div>
<div id="toc" class="collapse" data-parent="#accordian">
<div class="toc-list">&nbsp;</div>
</div>
</div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-mttr">What is MTTR?</h2>



<p>By definition, MTTR is the average time it takes to identify, diagnose, and resolve an incident that disrupts normal system function.</p>



<p>It essentially measures the efficiency of your incident response process and is defined by four ‘R’:</p>



<ul>
<li>Report: Time taken to report a particular incident.</li>



<li>Response: Time taken to respond to the incident.</li>



<li>Resolution: Time taken to completely resolve the incident.</li>



<li>Recovery: Time taken to recover from the incident. </li>
</ul>



<p>Reducing the MTTR means you have implemented disaster management processes, allowing your customers and DevOps teams to get back to order faster in case of any incident.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-is-mttr-calculated">How is MTTR calculated?</h2>



<p>MTTR is a<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/incident-management-kpis/"> crucial metric for any incident management</a> process. It is measured using a straightforward formula:</p>



<p><strong>MTTR = Total Time to Resolve All Incidents / Number of Incidents</strong></p>



<p>In this formula,</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Total Time to Resolve All Incidents:</strong> This represents the cumulative amount of time spent resolving all incidents within a specific timeframe (e.g., a week, month, or quarter).</li>



<li><strong>Number of Incidents:</strong> Refers to the total number of incidents encountered during the chosen timeframe.</li>
</ul>



<p>By calculating MTTR, you gain valuable insight into the effectiveness of your existing incident response strategies. As per most industry analyses, the ideal MTTR for most industries should be<a href="https://llumin.com/what-is-a-good-mean-time-to-repair-llu/#:~:text=In%20this%20regard%2C%20the%20MTTR,be%20less%20than%20five%20hours."> less than 5 hours</a>. </p>



<p>This is keeping all factors in mind, including the time it takes not just to resolve a particular incident but also to recover from it (which includes damages in terms of finances, lost business, customer ratings, or other indicators).</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-reduce-mttr">How to Reduce MTTR?</h2>



<p>Now, let us focus on understanding how we can reduce MTTR for your incident management. Even if the resolution time is less than 5 hours, it can still significantly impact the business. </p>



<p>But fret not, for this section equips you with a battle plan—a comprehensive strategy designed to help you reduce MTTR and achieve lightning-fast incident resolution.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-set-up-an-incident-response-plan">1. Set up an incident response plan</h3>



<p>The first step to reducing MTTR is to start with a plan. Establish a clear policy to document the basics:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Incident Classification and Escalation:</strong> Establish a transparent system for classifying incidents based on severity, allowing for swift prioritization and resource allocation.</li>



<li><strong>Communication Channels:</strong> Ensure seamless communication across all teams – from IT to DevOps – with designated communication channels and clear escalation protocols.</li>



<li><strong>Documentation &amp; Knowledge Repository</strong>: Compile a comprehensive knowledge base of past incidents, resolutions, and troubleshooting procedures. This empowers your team to leverage past experiences and expedite future resolutions.</li>
</ul>



<p>By meticulously crafting an incident response plan, you establish a unified command center and ensure a coordinated and rapid response to any disruption.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-define-roles-in-your-incident-management-command-structure">2. Define roles in your incident management command structure</h3>



<p>Even if you have a well-planned incident management system, the key is defining the roles and responsibilities of each individual. This is crucial because when an incident is reported, the right teams need to be informed to take instant action.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So once you have a plan, do not forget to assign the following:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Roles and Responsibilities:</strong> Define ownership. Every team member must understand their role and responsibilities during an incident, eliminating confusion and delays.</li>



<li><strong>Communication Channels:</strong> How should the incident be reported? Ensure seamless communication across all teams – from IT to DevOps – with designated communication channels and clear escalation protocols.</li>
</ul>



<p>This will speed up operations once an incident is detected and ensure the right teams get the required information.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-detect-diagnose-and-resolve-incidents-faster-with-aiops">3. Detect, diagnose, and resolve incidents faster with AIOps</h3>



<p>If you are still relying on the traditional methods, anomaly detection can often leave critical blind spots. To create a more<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/why-is-monitoring-your-application-important/"> proactive monitoring</a> approach, AIOPs are crucial for your incident detection and tracking processes. Using the power of AI, you can improve your overall process, including:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Proactively Detect Anomalies:</strong> AI algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data to identify subtle deviations from normal system behavior, enabling you to intercept potential incidents before they erupt into full-blown outages.</li>



<li><strong>Accelerate Root Cause Analysis:</strong> AIOps can sift through mountains of data, pinpointing the root cause of incidents with laser focus. This eliminates the time-consuming process of manual troubleshooting, allowing your team to focus on swift resolution.</li>



<li><strong>Predict and Prevent:</strong> Advanced AI can learn from past incidents and identify patterns that could lead to future disruptions. This proactive approach empowers you to prevent outages before they even occur.</li>
</ul>



<p>By integrating AIOps into your MTTR reduction strategy, you gain an invaluable advantage: the power of artificial intelligence to analyze, identify, and predict, ensuring a faster and more effective response to any digital threat.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-proactively-monitor-nbsp">4. Proactively monitor&nbsp;</h3>



<p>To measure efficiency, you need to have clear insights into your incitement management and response processes. This is why comprehensive <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-infrastructure-monitoring/">infrastructure monitoring</a> is crucial for reducing MTTR.</p>



<p>Infrastructure monitoring helps you get a clear picture of your entire IT landscape. It ensures that your systems are in perfect order and allows you to identify issues early on to resolve them quickly.</p>



<p>Establishing a culture of constant vigilance with <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/proactive-monitoring/">proactive monitoring</a> ensures early detection of issues, enabling faster intervention and a significant reduction in MTTR.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-set-reliable-alerting">5. Set reliable alerting</h3>



<p>But simply monitoring isn’t enough. You need intelligent alerting or the power of observability tools. <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/tools/">Observability tools</a> like Middleware help you configure alerts to trigger only when anomalies or deviations from normal behavior occur. This lets your team focus on critical issues and react swiftly to threats.</p>



<p>To set up a reliable alerting system, you need to:</p>



<ol>
<li>Set up a monitoring process where your entire infrastructure is constantly monitored</li>



<li>Define the metrics for normal or ideal behavior. For example, if the ideal usage of your processor is below 50%, the system will consider this normal behavior. However, if it goes beyond 85%, you can set up the system to raise alerts. This will help you take proactive actions, such as reducing unwanted resources or tasks and minimizing usage to avoid any downtime or lag in the system.</li>



<li>Configure alerts to trigger based on correlations between different data points. This helps identify the root cause of an incident faster, eliminating time spent chasing false positives.</li>



<li>Implement a tiered alerting system that prioritizes critical issues demanding immediate attention, ensuring your team focuses on the most impactful problems first.</li>
</ol>



<p>Establishing a robust alerting system that focuses on actionable insights and prioritization empowers your team to react swiftly and effectively to real threats, significantly reducing MTTR.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-automate-repeated-actions">6. Automate repeated actions</h3>



<p>Most IT and operations teams spend considerable time on mundane tasks, such as monitoring metrics or system activities. Automation is your secret weapon for liberating your team from these mundane activities.</p>



<p>This can also help to reduce MTTR using methods such as:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Automated Incident Response Actions:</strong> Configure automated responses for repetitive tasks like system restarts or service escalations. This frees up your team to focus on complex problem-solving and expedite resolution times.</li>



<li><strong>Automated Reporting and Analysis:</strong> Automate reports and incident analysis generation, providing valuable insights into trends and recurring issues. This empowers proactive problem-solving and continuous improvement of your MTTR.</li>
</ul>



<p>By strategically implementing automation, you streamline your incident response process, allowing your team to focus on high-value activities that truly improve MTTR.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-build-a-robust-change-management-strategy-nbsp">7. Build a robust change management strategy&nbsp;</h3>



<p>While often necessary, change can be a breeding ground for IT disruptions. This is where tight change management processes become your defensive wall:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Impact assessments:</strong> Before implementing any change, conduct thorough impact assessments to identify potential risks and ensure minimal disruption. This proactive approach helps prevent disruptions before they even occur.</li>



<li><strong>Version control and rollback plans:</strong> Maintain meticulous version control and develop clear rollback plans. This allows for a swift recovery in case of unforeseen complications arising from a change.</li>



<li><strong>Communication is paramount:</strong> Ensure clear and comprehensive communication regarding upcoming changes to all stakeholders, minimizing confusion and potential disruptions. You can anticipate and address potential roadblocks before they impact system stability by keeping everyone informed.</li>
</ul>



<p>By fortifying your change management processes, you proactively address potential roadblocks and minimize the likelihood of incidents, ultimately contributing to a lower MTTR.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-leveraging-middleware-to-reduce-mttr">Leveraging Middleware to reduce MTTR</h2>



<p>Implementing these seven powerful MTTR reduction strategies can significantly improve your incident response efficiency, minimize downtime, and ensure a more resilient IT infrastructure. </p>



<p>However, the ultimate goal is not just a lower MTTR but the relentless pursuit of zero downtime – a goal well within your grasp with the right tools and strategies.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="439" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Unified-Observability-Platform-Middleware-1-1024x439.png" alt="Leveraging Middleware to reduce MTTR" class="wp-image-7434" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Unified-Observability-Platform-Middleware-1-1024x439.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Unified-Observability-Platform-Middleware-1-300x129.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Unified-Observability-Platform-Middleware-1-768x329.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Unified-Observability-Platform-Middleware-1-1536x659.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Unified-Observability-Platform-Middleware-1.png 1902w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>This is exactly where<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability-tools/"> observability tools</a> like Middleware, an end-to-end full-stack observability platform, become your secret weapon. The platform is designed to provide real-time monitoring and alerting capabilities alongside advanced analytics and reporting tools. </p>



<p>Thus, you get a unified view of metrics, logs, traces, and events, helping you accelerate troubleshooting and also leverage AIOps for better infrastructure and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-application-performance-monitoring/">application performance</a>.</p>



<p>Middleware ushers in a new era of proactive IT management with its advanced capabilities and features, such as:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Performance benchmarking:</strong> Middleware allows you to establish performance baselines for your IT infrastructure. This enables you to identify areas for improvement and proactively optimize your systems to prevent future slowdowns or outages.</li>



<li><strong>Predictive analytics:</strong> The platform leverages historical data to predict potential bottlenecks and system vulnerabilities before they erupt into incidents. This allows you to address potential issues preemptively, preventing downtime altogether.</li>



<li><strong>Root cause analysis:</strong> Middleware goes beyond simply identifying the root cause of an incident. It analyzes trends and patterns across historical data, helping you identify systemic weaknesses and implement preventive measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring in the future.&nbsp;</li>



<li><strong>Data correlation</strong>: You can easily move from correlation to causation by linking metrics, logs, traces, and network data.&nbsp; Middleware facilitates this correlation, enabling users to quickly investigate alerts without switching screens. This streamlined process is instrumental in minimizing MTTR.</li>
</ul>



<p>Thus, by leveraging Middleware&#8217;s feature set and tailoring it to your specific needs, you can significantly enhance the effectiveness of each MTTR reduction strategy.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion</h2>



<p>As we conclude this article, you have been equipped with all the necessary strategies to tackle incidents and reduce MTTR, outlining the strategies that can help you achieve this goal. By implementing these strategies and leveraging Middleware&#8217;s advanced features, you can achieve significant results:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Reduced Downtime:</strong> Faster incident resolution translates to less downtime, minimizing user disruption and safeguarding business continuity.</li>



<li><strong>Improved Efficiency:</strong> Streamlined workflows and automated tasks free up your IT team to focus on high-value activities, maximizing their productivity.</li>



<li><strong>Proactive Prevention:</strong> AI-powered insights empower you to predict and prevent incidents before they occur, eliminating downtime altogether.</li>



<li><strong>Enhanced Collaboration:</strong> Unified communication and knowledge sharing across teams fosters a culture of collaboration, strengthening your overall IT resilience.</li>
</ul>



<p>The journey towards zero downtime doesn&#8217;t end here. It&#8217;s a continuous pursuit of optimization and improvement. By embracing a proactive approach and leveraging the power of Middleware, you can transform your IT infrastructure from vulnerable to resilient, ensuring a foundation for success in today&#8217;s ever-demanding digital landscape.</p>



<p>Ready to<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/best-practices-to-avoid-website-outages-on-black-friday/"> achieve zero downtime</a> and unlock the full potential of your IT infrastructure?<a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/"> Sign up</a> today to learn more about Middleware Observability Solution for your business!</p>


Cut downtime! Discover proven methods to reduce MTTR & leverage Middleware's AI-powered monitoring for faster recovery.

How to reduce MTTR?


<p>Streaming live events and managing event data only became a walk in the park when tools such as Redpanda entered the market. In fact, it was built with the sole purpose of eliminating the complexities common to Apache <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/kafka-monitoring/">Kafka</a>, improving performance, and making the architecture more safe and resilient.</p>



<p>However, the infamous Kafka alternative is not immune to anomalies. Hence, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability-vs-monitoring/">monitoring</a> Redpanda is essential for developers to detect issues early, resolve them quickly, prevent <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/best-practices-to-avoid-website-outages-on-black-friday/">downtime</a>, and improve the overall data streaming experience.&nbsp;</p>



<p>In this article, we will dive into the importance of Redpanda monitoring, highlight the key metrics to observe, and top 3 Redpanda monitoring tools for 2024.</p>



<div id="accordian" class="table-of-content">
<div class="toc-heading accordion" data-toggle="collapse" data-target="#toc">Table of Contents</div>
<div id="toc" class="collapse" data-parent="#accordian">
<div class="toc-list">&nbsp;</div>
</div>
</div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-redpanda">What is Redpanda?</h2>



<p>Redpanda is a modern event streaming platform developed using C++ and built on top of the Raft consensus algorithm. It is protocol and API-compatible with Apache Kafka, and famous for low-latency data streaming—up to 10x lower—due to its patent-pending thread-per-core architecture.</p>



<p>Redpanda has an easy-to-use interface and tools for setting up and monitoring event streaming pipelines. It is used by developers as a cost-effective drop-in replacement for Kafka, for use cases like stream processing, real-time analytics, and event-driven architectures.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-is-monitoring-redpanda-important">Why is monitoring Redpanda important?</h2>



<p>Monitoring Redpanda helps you get actionable insights that empower you to effectively manage and optimize your Redpanda cluster. </p>



<p>Here are some top reasons why monitoring Redpanda is important:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-capacity-planning">Capacity planning</h3>



<p>Monitoring helps you track resource usage, data growth, and cluster health trends. This information is valuable for capacity planning to ensure that your Redpanda cluster can scale to meet future demands.&nbsp;</p>



<p>It involves monitoring key resource metrics such as CPU utilization, memory usage, disk I/O, network traffic, and storage capacity across Redpanda nodes. Assessing the efficiency of the cluster helps you identify potential bottlenecks under different load conditions.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Capacity planning also means tracking data ingestion rates, retention policies, and storage usage patterns. This enables you to estimate how quickly your data volumes are increasing and plan storage expansion accordingly. </p>



<p>By understanding the characteristics of the workloads running on your Redpanda cluster, you can create workload models to simulate different scenarios and predict how changes in workload intensity or data volume impact resource requirements.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-performance-optimization">Performance optimization</h3>



<p>By monitoring key metrics like throughput, latency, and resource utilization, you will easily identify performance bottlenecks and optimize configurations to ensure optimal performance of your Redpanda cluster.&nbsp;</p>



<p>It begins with monitoring key metrics such as message throughput, message latency, request rates, peak traffic periods, data access patterns, disk utilization, memory usage, and cluster health indicators.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Analyzing these metrics helps you pinpoint areas of the system that are limiting <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-to-optimize-website-performance-for-the-holidays/">performance</a> and take corrective actions. Monitoring also helps in fine-tuning settings related to buffer sizes, replication factors, batch sizes, and other parameters to achieve better throughput, lower latency, and improved resource utilization.&nbsp;</p>



<p>It also makes it easy to assess whether scaling out (adding more nodes) or scaling up (increasing resources on existing nodes) is the best approach to maintain or improve performance levels.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-efficient-troubleshooting">Efficient troubleshooting</h3>



<p>Monitoring enables you to detect issues such as node failures, disk errors, or network problems promptly. With this, you&#8217;ll quickly troubleshoot and resolve issues before they impact your application. It also helps you minimize downtime and ensure the reliability of your event streaming platform.&nbsp;</p>



<p>As part of monitoring techniques, setting up alerting rules based on predefined thresholds or anomaly detection algorithms gets you notified about potential issues that require immediate attention.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Detailed analysis and correlation of these metrics helps you easily diagnose the root cause of issues and pinpoint where failures are occurring within the Redpanda cluster. Monitoring also facilitates collaborative troubleshooting which involves providing a shared understanding of the system&#8217;s state among team members.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This encourages the establishment of standardized troubleshooting playbooks based on common issues and best practices to streamline the troubleshooting process. By documenting known solutions, escalation procedures, and diagnostic steps, you&#8217;ll expedite the resolution of recurring problems and improve your system reliability.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-security-and-compliance">Security and compliance</h3>



<p>Monitoring helps in identifying security threats, unauthorized access attempts, and compliance violations within your Redpanda cluster. Redpanda supports end-to-end encryption, Kerberos authentication, Kafka-compatible ACLs, cloud IAM roles, Console SSO, and more.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Monitoring access control mechanisms within Redpanda, such as authentication, authorization, and encryption, helps you ensure that only authorized users and applications can interact with the cluster.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Data encryption mechanisms, such as SSL/TLS for data in transit and encryption-at-rest for stored data, helps you safeguard sensitive information within the Redpanda cluster. In furtherance, monitoring audit logs means tracing security incidents, compliance violations, and unauthorized activities within the cluster, helping in forensics, incident response, and compliance audits.&nbsp;</p>



<p>When you monitor security-related metrics, you&#8217;ll prevent data breaches, maintain data integrity and meet regulatory compliance.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-metrics-should-you-monitor-in-redpanda">What metrics should you monitor in Redpanda?</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-public-metrics">Public metrics</h3>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-cluster-metrics">1. Cluster metrics</h4>



<p>Cluster metrics are operational data collected from various nodes within the Redpanda cluster. They include information on resource utilization, node health, and other key parameters for optimizing the cluster&#8217;s performance.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-i-redpanda-cluster-brokers">i. Redpanda_cluster_brokers</h5>



<p>This metric indicates the total number of Redpanda brokers currently active in the cluster. Monitoring it helps you ensure the cluster&#8217;s health and detect any discrepancies in the expected broker count. You can monitor it by setting a threshold with an alert system to notify you when the threshold is surpassed.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ii-redpanda-cluster-controller-log-limit-requests-dropped">ii. Redpanda_cluster_controller_log_limit_requests_dropped</h5>



<p>This metric indicates the number of requests dropped due to hitting the log limit in the Redpanda cluster&#8217;s controller. Monitoring this metric helps you understand if there are any issues with log limits affecting request processing.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-iii-redpanda-cluster-partition-moving-from-node">iii. redpanda_cluster_partition_moving_from_node</h5>



<p>This metric tracks the partitions currently moving from one node to another within the Redpanda cluster. It helps you optimize partition movement for better cluster performance. When this gauge shows a value of non-zero, check if partition replicas are being reassigned as expected or unexpectedly. This helps identify if there are any unusual movements of partition replicas.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-infrastructure-metrics">2. Infrastructure metrics</h4>



<p>With the following metrics, you can manage your system infrastructure and optimize its margins to handle peaks in processing, storage, and I/O loads:</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-i-redpanda-cpu-busy-seconds-total">i. Redpanda_cpu_busy_seconds_total</h5>



<p>This metric measures the total CPU busy time in seconds within the Redpanda infrastructure. You can find out if the CPU is not being used by checking how much of the CPU core is active compared to its total capacity at a specific moment. This helps identify times when the CPU might be idle or not working as expected.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ii-redpanda-io-queue-total-read-ops">ii. redpanda_io_queue_total_read_ops</h5>



<p>This metric denotes the total number of read operations in the I/O queue within Redpanda infrastructure. Monitoring this metric helps you track I/O performance and detect potential read operation bottlenecks.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-iii-redpanda-memory-allocated-memory">iii. Redpanda_memory_allocated_memory</h5>



<p>This metric indicates the memory allocated in bytes within the Redpanda infrastructure. Monitoring it helps you understand memory usage patterns and optimize memory allocation for efficient cluster operations.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-iv-redpanda-memory-available-memory">iv. redpanda_memory_available_memory</h5>



<p>This metric reflects the amount of available memory within the Redpanda infrastructure. It helps you ensure sufficient memory availability for smooth cluster operation and prevent memory-related issues.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-internal-metrics">Internal metrics</h3>



<p>Internal metrics are more specific to the internal workings and components of the Redpanda cluster. They provide detailed insights into the functioning of the cluster, including low-level details such as partition offsets, schema validation records, application uptime, and other internal parameters.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-vectorized-application-uptime">1. Vectorized_application_uptime</h5>



<p>This metric tracks the uptime of the vectorized application within the Redpanda cluster in milliseconds. It provides insights into the application&#8217;s availability and reliability.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-vectorized-cluster-partition-last-stable-offset">2. Vectorized_cluster_partition_last_stable_offset</h5>



<p>This metric indicates the last stable offset for partitions within the vectorized cluster. It helps in assessing data consistency and partition stability. If this is the last record the cluster has received, it means the cluster is fully updated and ready for maintenance.</p>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-vectorized-cluster-partition-schema-id-validation-records-failed">3. Vectorized_cluster_partition_schema_id_validation_records_failed</h5>



<p>This metric monitors the number of failed schema ID validation records for partitions in the vectorized cluster. This metric helps you identify and resolve schema validation failures for data integrity and consistency.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-3-redpanda-monitoring-tools">Top 3 Redpanda Monitoring Tools</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-middleware">Middleware</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> is a full-stack cloud observability platform, offering intuitive dashboards for holistic insights and streamlined data analysis for various applications, databases, and platforms, including Redpanda. It automatically collects performance metrics from Redpanda and presents them within a centralized customizable dashboard.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="518" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-1-1024x518.png" alt="Redpanda monitoring on Middleware" class="wp-image-7384" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-1-1024x518.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-1-300x152.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-1-768x389.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-1-1536x778.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-1.png 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Middleware also offers a bespoke alert system equipped with algorithms for root cause analysis and actionable recommendations. You can configure the alerts to trigger anomaly detection and receive notifications when specific thresholds are exceeded. This proactive approach enables quick identification and resolution of issues across Redpanda clusters.</p>



<p>To monitor Redpanda with Middleware, <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/agent-installation/overview">click here.</a></p>



<p>Middleware supports all the key Redpanda metrics including but not limited to redpanda_cluster_controller_log_limit_requests_dropped, redpanda_cluster_partition_moving_from_node, redpanda_cluster_partition_node_cancelling_movements, redpanda_cluster_topics, redpanda_cpu_busy_seconds_total, redpanda_memory_allocated_memory, redpanda_rpc_request_errors_total, redpanda_schema_registry_request_errors_total, redpanda_storage_disk_free_bytes.</p>



<p>While offering correlation of metrics for in-depth analysis, Middleware also provides a causation-to-correlation feature that spots when an issue begins and where it ends. Read the Middleware <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/integrations/redpanda-integration">Redpanda integration documentation</a> for more information.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-datadog">Datadog</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/datadog-alternative/">Datadog</a> is a monitoring tool for infrastructures and applications. It integrates with several systems, servers, databases and tools, including Redpanda.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="530" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-monitoring-2-1024x530.png" alt="Redpanda monitoring on Datadog" class="wp-image-7385" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-monitoring-2-1024x530.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-monitoring-2-300x155.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-monitoring-2-768x397.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-monitoring-2.png 1206w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Datadog has Redpanda integration and provides the needed Redpanda metrics for a detailed understanding of the streaming platform&#8217;s operations. Additionally, Datadog employs anomaly detection and alerting supported by machine learning algorithms to prevent alert fatigue, allowing you to concentrate on critical insights concerning your Redpanda clusters.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-relic">New Relic</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/newrelic-alternative/">New Relic</a> provides a comprehensive monitoring of systems and applications, offering full visibility into their clusters and execution environment.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-3-1024x539.jpeg" alt="Redpanda monitoring on New Relic" class="wp-image-7386" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-3-1024x539.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-3-300x158.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-3-768x404.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Redpanda-Monitoring-3.jpeg 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>With its alerting system and query language, New Relic equips you with all the necessary tools to manage and monitor Redpanda clusters. It provides in-depth analysis for Redpanda metrics and simple visualization through its dashboard. New Relic seamlessly monitors Redpanda on major cloud providers and environments, including AWS, Azure, and Kubernetes.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-thoughts">Final thoughts</h2>



<p>Although Redpanda simplifies—and cheapens—data streaming, monitoring the tool is as important as the data you are streaming. But you can only monitor effectively by using the appropriate monitoring tool.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Middleware is your surest bet at comprehensive Redpanda monitoring. How? See for yourself and <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/?_gl=1*1gut4pw*_ga*MTIzMDgwMDYxOC4xNjkyMzM4MDIw*_ga_2KBHR7YB2G*MTcxMTkwNjk4MS4zNjcuMS4xNzExOTA3Mjc1LjAuMC4w">try Middleware now</a>.&nbsp;</p>


Discover why monitoring Redpanda is crucial for seamless event streaming. Learn key metrics and top tools for 2024.

What is Redpanda Monitoring?


<p>As a software developer, you are working on a high-traffic application that heavily relies on Redis for caching and real-time data processing.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Unfortunately, you are faced with a Redis server outage that leads to unexpected performance issues. The sudden outage not only disrupts service but also harms your users&#8217; experience. </p>



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<p>In this article, we highlight key Redis metrics to monitor that help you prevent performance issues and take proactive steps to optimize your Redis instances. We also mention monitoring solutions that help you monitor all of your key metrics from a single view.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-redis">What is Redis?</h2>



<p>Redis (Remote Dictionary Server) is an open-source, NoSQL advanced key-value data store that serves as an in-memory data structure. It is well-suited for various use cases, including database, caching, real-time analytics, message brokering, and general-purpose data storage. </p>



<p>Widely used for caching frequently accessed data, Redis reduces the load on primary <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/database-monitoring-software/">databases</a> and improves application performance.</p>



<p>Because Redis primarily stores its data in memory, it makes it incredibly fast for read and write operations. Its support for various data structures such as strings, lists, sets, and hashes, makes it flexible and efficient for data storage and manipulation. Redis is highly scalable and allows <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/vertical-vs-horizontal-scaling/">horizontal scaling</a> for more instances.</p>



<p>Redis persists data to disk, a feature that eases data recovery in the event of a server restart. It also supports publish/subscribe messaging, enabling message brokering and real-time analytics, such as <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-real-user-monitoring/">tracking user behavior </a>and managing real-time dashboards. </p>



<p>Many web applications therefore use Redis to store user sessions to quickly access and retrieve session data.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-5-redis-metrics-to-monitor">Top 5 Redis metrics to monitor</h2>



<p>Despite Redis functionalities and the ability for low latency when working on large numbers of queries, it is still prone to performance bottlenecks in a complex architecture. </p>



<p>Monitoring its key metrics is the only way to get the best out of the Redis deployment and overcome performance issues. The following are key metrics to observe:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-performance-metrics">1. Performance metrics</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-application-performance-monitoring/">Monitoring performance</a> metrics ensures that Redis operates optimally, and provides fast and reliable data access for your applications. The following are Redis performance metrics:</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-latency">a. Latency:</h4>



<p>This metric measures the time it takes for Redis to process a request. Monitoring latency ensures that Redis commands are executing within an acceptable timeframe, thereby preventing slowdowns in application performance. </p>



<p>This is because high latency often leads to delays in data retrieval and system responsiveness. To optimize latency, ensure you understand network latency, disk I/O latency, and Redis server processing time. </p>



<p>This understanding will help you fine-tune Redis configuration, data layout, and the system architecture to minimize delays in data access.</p>



<p>You can access the Redis server using the Redis command-line interface, “redis-cli”. For Redis latency, you can run the following command:</p>



<div class="code-block content-copy">
<div class="pre" id="code-blog"><pre><code>
<span> bash </span>
redis-cli --latency -h <host> -p <port> -n <db_number> -a <password>
</code>
</pre>
</div>
<a class="copy-btn" id="first-button"></a>
</div>



<p>Replace `<code>&lt;host></code>`, `<code>&lt;port></code>`, `<code>&lt;db_number></code>`, and `<code>&lt;password></code>` with your Redis server&#8217;s actual values.</p>



<p>A result like the below will be returned:</p>



<div class="code-block content-copy">
<div class="pre" id="code-blog"><pre><code>
<span> plaintext </span>
min: 0, max: 24, avg: 0.13 (1089 samples)
</code>
</pre>
</div>
<a class="copy-btn" id="first-button"></a>
</div>



<p>In this example, the result shows the minimum latency, maximum latency, average latency, and the number of samples collected. This information shows the performance of the Redis server in terms of response time. </p>



<p>But when external monitoring tools are used, you’ll capture and analyze latency metrics over time without running commands.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-cpu-usage">b. CPU usage:</h4>



<p>CPU usage represents the amount of processing power that Redis consumes. High CPU usage indicates heavy computational load or inefficient resource utilization. Monitoring CPU usage provides insight into the server&#8217;s workload and helps you identify resource constraints. </p>



<p>When you understand the CPU usage patterns, it enables effective capacity planning. Overtime monitoring of CPU usage helps you assess load trends, predict scaling needs, and implement optimizations to maximize CPU utilization.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-c-hit-rate">c. Hit rate:</h4>



<p>The hit rate measures the percentage of successful key lookups in Redis&#8217; cache, compared to overall lookups, indicating the effectiveness of caching strategies. While a high hit rate signifies efficient cache utilization, a low hit rate points to suboptimal caching, prompting a reevaluation of caching strategies and data access patterns. </p>



<p>The hit rate can be calculated using formulas based on the number of cache hits and misses, or by leveraging other Redis metrics for cache utilization and hit ratio. Monitoring and analyzing hit rates help you refine caching strategies, adjust cache sizes, and fine-tune data access patterns.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-memory-metrics">2. Memory metrics</h3>



<p>Monitoring memory metrics is crucial for maintaining optimal memory utilization, and proactive management of memory resources. The metrics are as follows:</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-memory-usage">a. Memory usage:</h4>



<p>Memory usage refers to the amount of physical memory consumed by Redis to store data and metadata. High memory usage results in out-of-memory errors, performance degradation, and even server crashes. You can monitor memory usage through Redis commands such as `MEMORY USAGE` and by examining the &#8220;used_memory&#8221; metric from the INFO command.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-memory-fragmentation-ratio">b. Memory fragmentation ratio:</h4>



<p>Memory fragmentation occurs when memory is allocated and deallocated, which results in fragmented memory blocks and inefficiencies. The memory fragmentation ratio measures the degree of fragmentation within Redis and reflects how fragmented the memory allocation has become.&nbsp;</p>



<p>High fragmentation often leads to inefficiency in memory usage, and slower responses. You can monitor the memory fragmentation ratio by calculating the ratio of memory used to memory allocated. </p>



<p>However, Redis provides limited visibility into this metric through native commands. Specialized tools such as <a href="http://middleware.io">Middleware</a> are therefore required to gain a deeper understanding of the metric.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-c-key-evictions">c. Key evictions:</h4>



<p>This metric tracks the rate at which keys are evicted from the Redis cache due to memory constraints. Key evictions occur when Redis needs to free memory and removes keys according to its configured eviction policy. Monitoring key evictions helps you understand the impact of memory limits and management on the dataset and system.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This helps you determine if the eviction policy needs adjustment or if additional memory resources are required. You can monitor key evictions by periodically querying the &#8220;evicted_keys&#8221; metric from the INFO command and assessing the eviction rate over time. </p>



<p>However, with monitoring tools, you will gain historical data on key eviction patterns and their impact on Redis performance.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-basic-activity-metrics">3. Basic activity metrics</h3>



<p>Monitoring basic activity metrics helps ensure the stability, scalability, and reliability of the Redis deployment. The following are the metrics within the basic activity metrics:</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-connected-clients">a. Connected clients:</h4>



<p>This metric monitors the number of clients connected to the Redis server. High numbers of connected clients increase the server load and may impact responsiveness. </p>



<p>You can retrieve the count of connected clients using the INFO command. By monitoring this metric, you&#8217;ll identify usage patterns, peak connection times, and client connection limit issues.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-connected-slaves">b. Connected slaves:</h4>



<p>This tracks the number of slave instances connected to the Redis master server, providing insights into replication status and issues related to the slave nodes. It also helps you understand the load on the master server. </p>



<p>Sudden drops in the number of connected slaves or inconsistencies in replication can be quickly identified through this metric. You can retrieve the count of connected slaves using the INFO command. </p>



<p>And you need to monitor changes over time to ensure that replication is functioning as expected.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-c-master-last-io-seconds-ago">c. Master_last_io_seconds_ago:</h4>



<p>This metric indicates the time elapsed since the last interaction with the master node for each connected replica. Monitoring this metric helps you assess the liveness of the master node. </p>



<p>Observing an increasing value for &#8220;<code>master_last_io_seconds_ago</code>&#8221; could indicate potential replication issues or network connectivity problems. You can access the &#8220;<code>master_last_io_seconds_ago</code>&#8221; metric through the INFO command for each connected replica and set up alerting mechanisms to identify anomalies.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-d-keyspace">d. Keyspace:</h4>



<p>The &#8220;keyspace&#8221; metric provides information about the number of keys in each defined keyspace, along with additional metadata such as expiration details. Monitoring the keyspace metric offers insights into the distribution of data across different key spaces. </p>



<p>You can retrieve information about the keyspace using the INFO command. This allows you to analyze the distribution of keys, assess expiration patterns, and plan for data sharding or partitioning.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-error-metrics">4. Error metrics</h3>



<p>Error metrics in Redis encompass a wide range of issues including command failures, connection errors, and other unexpected behavior within the Redis environment. Monitoring and understanding these metrics help you maintain system reliability and performance.&nbsp;</p>



<p>From a technical standpoint, to detect and address error metrics, you&#8217;ll need to regularly review Redis logs to identify various errors, warnings, and exceptions that may impact the system&#8217;s stability. </p>



<p>You’ll also need to leverage Redis&#8217; built-in error reporting which provides detailed error messages for various operations. This enables you to diagnose and rectify issues proactively.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-expired-evicted-keys">5. Expired/Evicted keys</h3>



<p>Keeping track of the number of expired and evicted keys helps you gauge the efficiency of the key eviction policy and assess the impact of key expiration on system performance. </p>



<p>You can monitor the number of expired keys and the frequency of expiration using Redis commands, such as `<em>TTL</em>` and `<em>PTTL</em>`, and by analyzing the expiration metadata for keys. Understanding expiration patterns allows you to properly optimize data retention and caching strategies. </p>



<p>This ensures that expired data does not linger unnecessarily in the system. </p>



<p>Evicted keys represent data removed from the Redis cache due to memory constraints and its configured eviction policy. To monitor key eviction rates and patterns, use the &#8220;evicted_keys&#8221; metric from the INFO command. External monitoring tools will however provide deeper and detailed analysis of the metric. </p>



<p>Analyzing this metric enables you to assess the impact of memory management on the dataset and adjust eviction policies as needed to maximize cache efficiency.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-redis-performance-monitoring-3-options">Redis performance monitoring: 3 options</h2>



<p>Each of the following options offers a unique approach to Redis performance monitoring, providing you with the functionalities and insights needed to optimize the performance of your Redis deployments.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-using-tools-like-middleware">1. Using tools like Middleware</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> is a full-stack cloud observability platform, offering intuitive dashboards for holistic insights and streamlined data analysis for various applications and databases, including  Redis. The platform also offers a dedicated database monitoring section where you can find detailed view and data for database performance</p>



<p><a href="https://docs.middleware.io/integrations/redis-integration">Seamlessly integrated with Redis</a>, it automatically collects performance metrics and presents them within a centralized dashboard. The customizable dashboard empowers you to tailor the visualizations to your specific needs.</p>



<p>Middleware also offers a <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">smart alert system</a> equipped with algorithms for root cause analysis. You can configure alerts to trigger anomaly detection and receive notifications when specific thresholds are exceeded. </p>



<p>This proactive approach enables swift identification and resolution of issues across Redis instances, ensuring optimal system performance.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="519" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Middleware-Redis-1-1024x519.png" alt="Redis Monitoring Tool, Middleware" class="wp-image-7363" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Middleware-Redis-1-1024x519.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Middleware-Redis-1-300x152.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Middleware-Redis-1-768x389.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Middleware-Redis-1-1536x779.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Middleware-Redis-1.png 1913w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Middleware supports all the key Redis metrics including but not limited to <em>redis.cpu.time, redis.clients.connected, redis.keys.expired, redis.keys.evicted, redis.memory.peak, redis.keyspace.hits, redis.replication.offset,</em> and <em>redis.memory.fragmentation_ratio</em>. </p>



<p>While offering correlation of metrics for in-depth analysis, Middleware also provides a causation-to-correlation feature that spots when an issue begins and where it ends.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-redis-enterprise-built-in-monitoring-capabilities">2. Redis enterprise built-in monitoring capabilities</h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="924" height="850" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Enterprise-Redis.jpeg" alt="Redis enterprise built-in monitoring tool" class="wp-image-7364" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Enterprise-Redis.jpeg 924w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Enterprise-Redis-300x276.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Enterprise-Redis-768x706.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px" /></figure>



<p>The built-in monitoring capability for Redis is the Redis Enterprise cluster management UI monitoring console. It does not require any configuration or installation efforts since it is built-in. </p>



<p>With the “minute” interval, Redis monitoring console works almost real time. Its interface represents a comprehensive dashboard that provides metrics for the cluster, its nodes, and databases, on separate screens.</p>



<p>The Redis Enterprise monitoring console also has an alert system that allows you to set alerts for each metric, and to configure these notifications to be sent by email. Note however that the Redis Enterprise monitoring console is only available for Enterprise users of Redis, and not the open-source users.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-rest-api">3. REST API</h3>



<p>Redis provides a REST API that allows users to programmatically retrieve performance metrics and operational data from the Redis server. The REST API offers a flexible and convenient way to integrate Redis monitoring with custom solutions or third-party tools.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This enables seamless incorporation of Redis telemetry and operational functionality within the broader IT ecosystem. By leveraging the REST API, you can query for specific metrics and integrate them into third-party tools. REST API is also available only for Redis Enterprise users.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion</h2>



<p>While it is a great asset to know and understand key Redis metrics to observe, it would not be worth the effort when you do not have the right monitoring tool at your disposal.&nbsp;</p>



<p>One such tool is Middleware, which offers a comprehensive solution for Redis, capturing vital metrics and providing features that aid analysis.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So, why are you waiting? <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">Sign up </a>to Middleware for free and embrace the true potential of Redis monitoring. </p>


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<p>Did you know, according to a recent <a href="https://frsecure.com/blog/incident-response-statistics-how-do-you-compare/">FRSecure</a> report, only 45% of businesses are leveraging the use of incident response plans and incident management KPIs optimally?</p>



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<p>In today&#8217;s high-stakes, cloud-centric landscape, a comprehensive understanding of these KPIs for incident management holds the key to driving efficiency and maintaining infrastructure stability.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;re among the technology leaders, enterprise decision-makers, DevOps engineers, software engineers, or investors striving to fortify your incident response and management, then this blog post is for you. We will explore the top 9 incident management KPIs to keep an eye on. </p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-a-kpi-in-incident-management"><strong>What is a KPI in incident management?</strong></h2>



<p>A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in incident management is a quantifiable measure that IT teams use to track, analyze, and measure the effectiveness of their incident response processes.</p>



<p>These KPIs are of great importance because they provide tangible data, offering insights into how efficiently an organization is handling its IT concerns. They serve as a critical feedback mechanism for continuous operational improvement, shining a spotlight on areas that need attention.</p>



<p>When we talk about incident management KPIs, we&#8217;re referring to measurements that can provide a comprehensive view of your system&#8217;s health and your team&#8217;s efficiency in addressing and resolving issues. </p>



<p>This enables teams to identify trends, make informed decisions, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/best-practices-to-avoid-website-outages-on-black-friday/">reduce system downtime</a>, and improve overall service quality.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-9-incident-management-kpis"><strong>Top 9 Incident Management KPIs</strong></h2>



<p>If you&#8217;re in the business of running a top-notch IT department, you know that mastering incident management KPIs is just as much art as it is science. From quicker resolution times to enhanced decision-making, these ten important KPIs for incident management are pivotal for optimized operations.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-incidents-over-time"><strong>Incidents Over Time&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p>When it comes to monitoring the effectiveness of your incident management process, one significant incident management KPI to keep on your radar is &#8216;Incidents Over Time.&#8217;&nbsp;</p>



<p>This KPI helps track the number of incidents recorded in a specific timeframe. To decode this further, it provides vital insights into the periodic trends and patterns, enabling you to proactively pinpoint and remediate potential problem areas.&nbsp;</p>



<p>For example: If a certain software component consistently triggers an uptick in incidents during peak use hours, your team can strategically use these insights to streamline processes, allocate resources, or even alert system users in advance.&nbsp;</p>



<p>To highlight further:&nbsp;</p>



<ul>
<li>It monitors the volume of incidents over a defined timeframe, which helps quickly identify surges or drops.</li>



<li>Shows cyclical trends and helps in forecasting future incident volumes and their patterns.</li>



<li>Assists in allocating resources optimally based on incident volumes and expected trends.</li>
</ul>



<p>The journey toward<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-to-optimize-website-performance-for-the-holidays/"> improved system health</a> is never a one-size-fits-all journey &#8211; but with the right KPIs for incident management, you&#8217;re certainly on the right path!</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mean-time-to-acknowledge-mtta"><strong>Mean Time to Acknowledge (MTTA)</strong></h3>



<p>When it comes to the incident management world, the Mean Time to Acknowledge (MTTA) scores some real points. It&#8217;s a critical key performance indicator (KPI) that signifies the average time it takes for your team to acknowledge an incident once it&#8217;s reported.</p>



<p>The sooner you acknowledge a problem, the quicker you can work on resolving it. Thus, keeping a low MTTA is necessary for any organization that offers top-tier service. </p>



<p>A well-monitored MTTA metric implies your team is prompt at recognizing incidents, leading to hastier troubleshooting.</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Why is it important?</strong><strong><br></strong>The MTTA measures an organization&#8217;s responsiveness, which is vital to effectively handle any incident.</li>



<li><strong>What does it show?</strong><br>A shorter MTTA indicates a team’s swift acknowledgment of incidents, leading to quicker resolution times.</li>



<li><strong>Example:</strong> If your team&#8217;s weekly average MTTA is 30 minutes, it means that, on average, it takes your team half an hour to acknowledge an incident after it&#8217;s been reported.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mean-time-to-detect-mttd"><strong>Mean Time to Detect (MTTD)</strong></h3>



<p>Mean Time to Detect (MTTD) is one of the critical incident management KPIs technology leaders should focus on.</p>



<p>MTTD is the average time it takes to discover an incident occurring within an <a href="https://middleware.io/product/infrastructure-monitoring/">IT infrastructure</a>. This metric is crucial as it reflects the efficiency of your monitoring system and can play a significant role in minimizing business disruption. Keep in mind that a lower MTTD typically reflects a more effective incident management process. </p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Importance: </strong>MTTD helps to evaluate the performance of your IT detection systems and crisis response. The lower the MTTD, the faster your response.</li>



<li><strong>Example: </strong>If in a month your system detected incidents at 2 hours, 1.5 hours, and 1 hour, respectively, your MTTD would be the average of these times.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mean-time-to-resolution-mttr"><strong>Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR)</strong></h3>



<p>The Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR) is a critical incident management KPI you cannot afford to ignore. It provides an average timespan within which your <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-devops/">DevOps</a> squad remedies an issue that interrupts standard workflows. It quantifies a system&#8217;s downtime and is an essential gauge of the efficiency of your response team. </p>



<p>In a nutshell, a lower MTTR is always better. <strong><em>Why?</em></strong>&nbsp;</p>



<p>Let&#8217;s consider this: imagine you run an enterprise-grade, mission-critical cloud service. An outage can wreak havoc, not only affecting your company&#8217;s productivity but even dribbling down to your customers.&nbsp;</p>



<ul>
<li>For instance, if your average MTTR stands at two hours, it suggests that users can expect a resolution within about two hours when an incident strikes.</li>



<li>However, if your team can put a leash on this incident management metric and lower the MTTR to, say, one hour, your service reliability tends to feel far less of an impact when an incident does occur.</li>
</ul>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-first-touch-resolution-rate-ftrr"><strong>First Touch Resolution Rate (FTRR)</strong></h3>



<p>First Touch Resolution Rate (FTRR) is indeed a crucial KPI in incident management. It measures the percentage of incidents resolved on the first contact without escalating to upper support levels.</p>



<p>By monitoring this metric, you gain insights into your team&#8217;s efficiency and the effectiveness of your troubleshooting guides. Understanding the underpinnings of your FTRR can help you better optimize your processes and enhance your incident management strategy.&nbsp;</p>



<ul>
<li>FTRR directly speaks to the capabilities of your ground-level support team.</li>



<li>High FTRR signifies a well-equipped, knowledgeable team that can solve issues swiftly and in one go.</li>



<li>It also indicates clear and effective troubleshooting guides that aid the first-contact resolution.</li>
</ul>



<p>For example, if your support team resolves 70 out of 100 incidents on the first touch, your FTRR would stand at an impressive 70%.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-on-call-time"><strong>On-call time</strong></h3>



<p>On-call time is one of the critical incident management KPIs that&#8217;s worth keeping an eye on. Essentially, this measures the period an IT professional or a team is actively on duty to address any potential issues. The point here is about availability and the ability to respond effectively and quickly. </p>



<ul>
<li>It reflects on resource allocation: A high on-call time may indicate an overburdened team.</li>



<li>It impacts responsiveness: Quick on-call responses can prevent major incidents or reduce their impact.</li>



<li>It helps in decision-making: Mapping on-call times against incidents can guide shift scheduling for better coverage.</li>
</ul>



<p>For instance, a company might track its DevOps team&#8217;s on-call time to see if there&#8217;s a correlation between high on-call times and the incidence of system problems. Such insights could lead to better staffing decisions and enhanced incident management protocols.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-escalation-rate"><strong>Escalation rate</strong></h3>



<p>Keeping a balanced eye on your escalation rate can truly be a game-changer in your incident management strategy. Essentially, the escalation rate refers to the frequency at which incidents require assistance from higher-level support teams or experts to achieve resolution.</p>



<p>It serves as a revealing mirror, reflecting the complexity of the issues being encountered, and indirectly showcases your front-line support teams&#8217; efficacy and technical prowess. </p>



<ul>
<li>Indicates if incidents often surpass front-line support capabilities</li>



<li>This may point to a possible need for better training or tools for lower-tier teams</li>



<li>High escalation rates can mean increased resolution times and costs</li>
</ul>



<p>For instance, if your escalation rate is steadily rising, it may be the ideal time to re-evaluate your current incident management practices and training methodologies thoroughly.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cost-per-ticket"><strong>Cost per ticket</strong></h3>



<p>In the business world, we must keep tabs on every penny spent to enhance our incident management. Enter the Cost per ticket, a critical component of incident management KPIs.</p>



<p>This metric measures the overall cost involved in resolving an individual incident or ticket. It&#8217;s calculated by dividing the total costs attached to resolving incidents by the number of tickets resolved in the given timeframe.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Let&#8217;s break it down:&nbsp;</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>What it means:</strong> Cost per ticket indicates the efficiency of your support team and the value of the resources invested in incident management.</li>



<li><strong>What it shows:</strong> Tracking this KPI can shed light on your operational efficiency and incident response budgeting. For instance, a high cost per ticket could hint at needing more staff training or, potentially, automation opportunities.</li>
</ul>



<p>For example, If your organization spent $10,000 in a month to resolve 1000 incidents, your cost per ticket would be $10. Keeping an eye on this figure! Over time, it helps in optimizing resources and budgets for your incident management process.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uptime"><strong>Uptime</strong></h3>



<p>A crucial element in your stable of incident management KPIs is uptime. By definition, uptime refers to the total time a system or application is fully operational, available, and unbroken. </p>



<p>It directly impacts companies&#8217; bottom line since more uptime means increased productivity, hence enhanced profitability. </p>



<ul>
<li>It paints an extremely accurate picture of a company&#8217;s reliability.</li>



<li>Why is it important? For technology leaders, maintaining high uptime percentages is critical to keeping the digital aspect of their businesses running seamlessly.</li>



<li>Let&#8217;s consider an example: If a SaaS (Software as a Service) platform brags of 99.999% uptime, it means the service promises to be down less than 5.26 minutes per year, excluding scheduled maintenance. </li>
</ul>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-importance-of-incident-management-metrics"><strong>Importance of incident management metrics</strong></h2>



<p>Incident management KPIs or Key Performance Indicators allow you to proactively monitor your systems, measure your team&#8217;s effectiveness, and continuously improve your processes.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Here are the key reasons why focusing on the right incident management metrics is vital:&nbsp;</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Improved system availability:</strong> By using KPIs for incident management, teams can determine system vulnerabilities, enabling proactive fixes that reduce downtime. It promotes system availability, which is paramount for delivering user satisfaction and business continuity.</li>



<li><strong>Enhanced operational efficiency:</strong> Measuring Incident management KPIs like MTTD (Mean Time to Detect), and MTTR (Mean Time to Resolution), allows for informed decision-making. This not only enhances operational efficiency but also boosts the <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/developer-productivity/">productivity of your IT team</a>.</li>



<li><strong>Cost optimization:</strong> Incident management metrics aid in identifying resource wastage and the cost per ticket. Measures can then be taken to streamline processes and reduce the total cost of operations in the long run.</li>



<li><strong>Improved quality of service:</strong> Harnessing these metrics effectively contributes to improved resolution times and service quality, elevating the overall customer experience.</li>



<li><strong>Strategic decision-making:</strong> With<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/data-driven-approach-engineering/"> real-time data and insights</a> provided by incident management metrics, leadership can make strategic decisions that align with business goals, creating a roadmap for digital transformation.</li>
</ul>



<p>In a nutshell, incident management KPIs are integral to not just maintaining high-performing IT services but continuously improving upon them.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-thoughts"><strong>Final thoughts</strong></h2>



<p>Reflection upon these top 9 incident management KPIs underscores their crucial role in fine-tuning support efforts, mitigating disruption, and enhancing overall service quality. </p>



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<p>Properly implementing and tracking these incident management metrics act as a beacon, guiding you towards an improved incident response landscape. It&#8217;s your lens to granular visibility and informed decision-making.</p>



<p>Ultimately, we achieve agility in innovation without looming threats of potential downtime, all thanks to these KPIs for incident management. Remember, consistency in observation and data-driven improvement are keys to effective incident management. And with this, you&#8217;re all set to excel in that arena!</p>


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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-a-flame-graph">What is a Flame Graph?</h2>



<p>A Flame Graph is a visual representation of software stack traces, portraying the execution flow of a program. It offers a holistic view of system performance, condensing intricate stack trace data into a comprehensible format.</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Rectangular Frames: </strong>Each frame represents a function in the software stack.</li>



<li><strong>Vertical Stacking:</strong> Frames are stacked vertically, showcasing the call hierarchy.</li>



<li><strong>Width Indicates CPU Usage: </strong>The width of each frame corresponds to the function&#8217;s CPU usage, aiding in the quick identification of resource-intensive components.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flame-chart-vs-flame-graph-what-s-the-difference">Flame chart vs flame graph: What’s the difference? </h2>



<p>Flame charts and flame graphs share similarities but differ in their visual representations and purposes:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Orientation</strong>: Flame charts typically display data horizontally, offering a chronological view of stack traces over time. On the other hand, flame graphs represent information vertically, providing a compact and intuitive visualization of the entire stack at a glance.</li>



<li><strong>Chronological vs. Hierarchical:</strong> Flame charts excel in presenting the chronological order of events, making them suitable for tracking changes over time. Flame graphs, with their vertical stacking, emphasize the hierarchical structure of function calls, facilitating a quick assessment of resource utilization.</li>



<li><strong>Compactness</strong>: Flame graphs are known for their space efficiency, presenting a condensed yet comprehensive overview of the entire call stack in a single view. This compactness aids in quickly identifying performance bottlenecks.</li>
</ul>



<p>Understanding these differences allows users to choose between flame charts and flame graphs based on their specific needs for performance analysis.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-are-flame-graphs-important">Why are Flame Graphs important?</h2>



<p>Flame graphs, visual representations of software stack <a href="https://middleware.io/product/apm/">traces</a>, serve as pivotal tools in performance analysis, offering a unique perspective on program execution.</p>



<p><strong>Holistic View of Execution Flow: </strong>Flame graphs provide developers with a bird&#8217;s-eye view of a program&#8217;s execution, showcasing the entire stack trace in a single, comprehensible visual. This holistic perspective is invaluable for understanding how different functions contribute to overall performance.</p>



<p><strong>Efficient Bottleneck Identification:</strong> The width of each frame in a flame graph directly correlates with CPU usage, allowing developers to quickly identify resource-intensive components. This efficiency in pinpointing bottlenecks accelerates the troubleshooting process and streamlines optimization efforts.</p>



<p><strong>Quick Troubleshooting: </strong>The graphical nature of flame graphs enables rapid troubleshooting and root cause analysis. Developers can visually trace the execution path, making it easier to identify problematic areas and optimize code for better performance.</p>



<p><strong>Space-Efficient Overview:</strong> Flame graphs present a compact yet comprehensive representation of the entire call stack. This space efficiency enhances usability, especially when dealing with large and intricate codebases, making it easier for developers to navigate and understand the program&#8217;s structure.</p>



<p><strong>Transcending Profiling Limitations: </strong>Flame graphs go beyond the capabilities of traditional profiling tools by offering a dynamic and condensed visualization of stack traces. This transcendence empowers developers with a more <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/apm-tools/">intuitive tool for strategic optimization</a> efforts, ultimately resulting in high-performing software applications.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>Get a holistic view of your application&#8217;s performance with Flame Graphs. <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">Get Started Free</a>.</p>
</blockquote>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-interpret-a-flame-graph">How to Interpret a Flame Graph?</h2>



<p>Interpreting a flame graph involves understanding its key elements to gain insights into a program&#8217;s performance.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The fundamental concept behind a flame graph is to visually represent a program&#8217;s function call stack as a &#8220;flame&#8221;-shaped image. Each rectangle in the graph corresponds to a function, with its width representing the proportion of resources occupied by that function and its height indicating the call depth (number of layers of recursive calls).&nbsp;</p>



<p>Analyzing flame graphs at different time points helps swiftly identify performance bottlenecks, enabling targeted optimization. A wide rectangle at the top of the stack typically signals a bottleneck that requires analysis and optimization.</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Width of Rectangles: </strong>Indicates the proportion of resources (CPU time) consumed by each function.</li>



<li><strong>Height of Rectangles:</strong> Represents the call depth, showing the number of recursive call layers.</li>



<li><strong>Position on the Graph</strong>: Top-wide rectangles may signal potential bottlenecks for analysis.</li>



<li><strong>Color Coding</strong>: Enhances readability by distinguishing different functions or categories.</li>
</ul>



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="508" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/color-coded-flame-graph-1024x508.png" alt="color coded flame graph" class="wp-image-7203" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/color-coded-flame-graph-1024x508.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/color-coded-flame-graph-300x149.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/color-coded-flame-graph-768x381.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/color-coded-flame-graph-1536x762.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/color-coded-flame-graph.png 1543w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Middleware&#8217;s color-coded Flame Graph</figcaption></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-interpreting-in-middleware-flame-graph-view"><strong>Interpreting in Middleware: Flame Graph View</strong></h3>



<ul>
<li>Hierarchical visualization where each level represents a function or method.</li>



<li>The width of graph segments corresponds to resource consumption.</li>



<li>Enables quick identification of performance hotspots and understanding of program execution flow.</li>
</ul>



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="466" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-9-1-1-1024x466.png" alt="How to Interpret a Flame Graph" class="wp-image-7202" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-9-1-1-1024x466.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-9-1-1-300x137.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-9-1-1-768x350.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-9-1-1-1536x700.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-9-1-1.png 1884w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Flame Graph view in Middleware&#8217;s APM module</figcaption></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flame-graph-types">Flame Graph Types:</h3>



<ul>
<li><strong>Flame Graph (Narrow Sense):</strong>
<ul>
<li>Root is at the bottom, and child nodes are displayed above their parent nodes.</li>



<li>Useful for visualizing the call hierarchy and understanding function relationships.</li>
</ul>
</li>



<li><strong>Icicle Graph:</strong>
<ul>
<li>Root is at the top, and child nodes are displayed below their parent nodes.</li>



<li>Provides an alternative visualization perspective while retaining the same underlying data.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Flame Graph Examples</h2>



<p>Let&#8217;s explore different types of flame graphs and their unique characteristics:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cpu">CPU</h3>



<p>A CPU flame graph is a visual representation of CPU usage, illustrating how time is distributed across various functions or code paths during program execution.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="456" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cpu-flame-graph-1024x456.png" alt="CPU Flame Graph" class="wp-image-7169" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cpu-flame-graph-1024x456.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cpu-flame-graph-300x133.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cpu-flame-graph-768x342.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cpu-flame-graph-1536x683.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cpu-flame-graph.png 1908w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">CPU usage Flame Graph view in APM module</figcaption></figure>



<p>From the left sidebar, you can select <strong>CPU usage </strong>options, which allow you to filter data based on a table or graph view. This interactive feature allows for a more detailed examination of CPU performance metrics.</p>



<ul>
<li>Developers and system administrators use CPU flame graphs to identify bottlenecks, hotspots, or inefficient code in their <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-application-performance-monitoring/">applications</a>.</li>



<li>You can compare different instances of CPU flame graphs to establish baselines, track changes, and assess the impact of optimizations over time.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-memory">Memory</h3>



<p>A Memory Flame Graph visually represents memory consumption, showcasing the allocation distribution across different functions or code paths during program execution.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="461" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-11-1-1024x461.png" alt="Memory Flame Graph in Middleware" class="wp-image-7168" style="width:620px;height:auto" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-11-1-1024x461.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-11-1-300x135.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-11-1-768x345.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-11-1-1536x691.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Unified-Observability-Platform-_-Middleware-11-1.png 1903w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Memory usage Flame Graph view in Middleware</figcaption></figure>



<ul>
<li>Optimizing memory usage can reduce resource overhead. Unnecessary memory consumption can lead to increased costs, especially in cloud environments where resources are billed based on usage.</li>



<li>Developers and system administrators utilize Memory Flame Graphs to identify memory-related issues, such as leaks or inefficient usage, facilitating the optimization of memory allocation within applications.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-off-cpu">Off-CPU</h3>



<p>An Off-CPU Flame Graph provides a visual representation of CPU idle time or waiting periods, highlighting moments when the CPU is inactive during program execution.</p>



<p>It is a valuable tool for developers and system administrators to identify and understand the reasons behind CPU stalls or waits, contributing to a comprehensive analysis of system performance.</p>



<ul>
<li>You can compare different instances of Off-CPU Flame Graphs to establish baselines, track changes, and assess the impact of optimizations on CPU idle time over time. This aids in understanding the effectiveness of performance improvements.</li>



<li>Understanding and addressing off-CPU issues contribute to effective capacity planning, preventing resource contention and optimizing resource utilization.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hot-cold">Hot/Cold</h3>



<p>A Hot/Cold Flame Graph represents the frequency or intensity of execution for different functions or code paths during program runtime. &#8220;Hot&#8221; paths are frequently executed, while &#8220;Cold&#8221; paths are less commonly traversed.</p>



<p>Developers use Hot/Cold Flame Graphs to identify critical code paths (hotspots) that contribute significantly to overall execution time, aiding in optimization efforts.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-differential">Differential</h3>



<p>A Differential Flame Graph compares two sets of profiling data, providing a visual representation of the differences between them. It is a powerful tool for understanding changes in code performance over time or after specific modifications.</p>



<p>Differential Flame Graphs support a culture of continuous improvement by providing insights into the effectiveness of changes and guiding further optimizations.</p>



<p>Developers use Differential Flame Graphs to assess how code changes, optimizations, or updates impact CPU usage, memory consumption, or other performance metrics.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-profiling-flame-graphs-vs-tracing-flame-graphs">Profiling Flame Graphs vs. Tracing Flame Graphs</h2>



<p>Profiling Flame Graphs and Tracing Flame Graphs are two distinct techniques used in performance analysis, each offering unique insights into the behavior and efficiency of software applications.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-profiling-flame-graphs">Profiling Flame Graphs</h3>



<p>Profiling Flame Graphs are typically generated using a sampling approach. The profiler periodically samples the program&#8217;s state to gather information on which functions are active at that moment.</p>



<ul>
<li>Profiling provides a more high-level and coarse-grained view of program execution. It identifies the functions that consume the most CPU time over the sampling period.</li>



<li>Profiling Flame Graphs are especially useful for identifying hotspots in the code—areas where the program spends a significant amount of time.</li>



<li>Profiling typically incurs lower overhead compared to <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-distributed-tracing/">tracing</a>, making it suitable for capturing performance data with minimal impact on the running application.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracing-flame-graphs">Tracing Flame Graphs</h3>



<p>Tracing Flame Graphs are generated by capturing detailed <strong>events </strong>during the program&#8217;s execution. Tracers record specific events, such as function calls, system calls, or memory allocations.</p>



<ul>
<li>Tracing provides a more fine-grained view of program execution, capturing detailed information about function calls, system calls, and other events.</li>



<li>Tracing Flame Graphs is powerful for gaining detailed insights into the sequence of events and interactions within the program. They are valuable for diagnosing complex issues and understanding the complete program flow.</li>



<li>Tracing typically involves more overhead compared to profiling, as it captures a more detailed set of events. This increased overhead might be a concern in performance-sensitive applications.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-considerations">Considerations</h3>



<p><strong>Data Volume</strong></p>



<ul>
<li>Profiling: Generates concise profiles based on sampled data, providing a quick overview.</li>



<li>Tracing: Captures a larger volume of detailed data, offering a comprehensive understanding of the program&#8217;s behavior.</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>Ease of Use</strong></p>



<ul>
<li>Profiling: Generally easier to set up and use, with lower impact on the application.</li>



<li>Tracing: Requires more configuration and may impact performance more significantly but offers a more detailed and comprehensive view.</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>Use Case</strong></p>



<ul>
<li>Profiling: Well-suited for identifying performance bottlenecks and hotspots.</li>



<li>Tracing: Ideal for in-depth analysis, debugging, and understanding complex interactions within the application.</li>
</ul>



<p>The choice between Profiling Flame Graphs and Tracing Flame Graphs depends on the specific goals of performance analysis, the level of detail required, and the acceptable level of impact on the running application. Often, a combination of both techniques may provide a well-rounded understanding of application performance.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-thoughts">Final Thoughts</h2>



<p>Flame graphs illuminate the path to optimized software performance, revealing critical insights into CPU usage, memory consumption, and code behavior.&nbsp;</p>



<p>As developers integrate these visualizations into their toolset, the strategic use of flame graphs becomes a cornerstone in the continuous quest for efficient and responsive applications.</p>



<p>The next steps involve a practical application, ongoing learning, and the integration of flame graphs within a holistic performance analysis strategy.</p>



<p><a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">Get started with Middleware for free</a> and start visualizing your tech stack&#8217;s performance with flame graph view. </p>


A Flame Graph is a visual representation of software stack traces, portraying the execution flow of a program. Know more about it here: 

Flame Graphs: What They Are? And How To Use It

Alert fatigue carries a significant implication in the IT sphere. In fact, 28 % of teams forget to review a critical alert because of it. Learn more about it here: 

What is Alert Fatigue? A DevOps Guide On How to Avoid It

Explore the top 10 paid and free Grafana alternatives with different features and functionalities.

Top 10 Grafana Alternatives in 2024

 In this article, learn what Helm chart is, how to deploy, validate and update it along with best practices to do it the right way: 

Helm Chart Tutorial: A Complete Guide

DevOps automation automates and integrates the processes between software development and IT teams, so they can build, test, and release software faster:

What is DevOps Automation?


<p>ClickHouse is an open-source database management system that developers query using SQL whenever they need to generate real-time analytical reports. It supports several SQL operations and storage is columnar: data is grouped and stored by column rather than by row.</p>



<p><a href="https://docs.middleware.io/integrations/clickhouse-integration">ClickHouse</a> can run queries on large volumes of data—up to petabytes! A single ClickHouse instance processes about 100 queries per second, and each INSERT query can contain at least 1,000 rows.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The above two factors are one of the reasons that made ClickHouse a household name for data warehousing and analytics.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-essential-metrics-for-clickhouse-monitoring">6 Essential Metrics for ClickHouse Monitoring</h2>



<p>ClickHouse metrics are as abundant as the sea, and attempting to track all will overwhelm you with so much information that you could lose track of the essentials. To prevent that, keenly study the metrics that matter most.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clickhouse-events-metrics">ClickHouse Events metrics</h3>



<p>ClickHouse Events metrics indicate the query workload, system operations, and other critical events within ClickHouse. They include query counts, query processing times, system errors, and other operational events:</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-total-query-count-query-count">a. Total query count (query.count)</h4>



<p>This metric, represented as <strong>ClickHouseProfileEvents_Query</strong>, measures the number of queries within the ClickHouse system, including those queued to be interpreted or potentially executed. It assesses the overall activity going on within the ClickHouse instances.&nbsp;</p>



<p>However, It does not include queries that failed to parse or were rejected due to various operational limits, such as Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) size limits, quota limits, or limits on the number of simultaneously running queries. It also does not count subqueries. However, it may include internal queries initiated by ClickHouse itself.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="501" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-from-2024-01-24-12-29-08-1-1024x501.png" alt="ClickHouse Monitoring in Middleware" class="wp-image-7002" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-from-2024-01-24-12-29-08-1-1024x501.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-from-2024-01-24-12-29-08-1-300x147.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-from-2024-01-24-12-29-08-1-768x376.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-from-2024-01-24-12-29-08-1-1536x752.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Screenshot-from-2024-01-24-12-29-08-1.png 1917w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Monitoring this metric provides insights into the workload and query execution frequency, which helps in capacity planning and optimizing query performance. It enables you to ensure that the system can handle the query load and manage the resources allocated to it.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-query-processing-threads-querythread">b. Query processing threads (queryThread)</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_QueryThread</strong> shows the number of query processing threads. That is, the number of concurrent threads dedicated to processing queries within ClickHouse. Monitoring it gives visibility into the concurrency of query processing, insight into the degree of parallelism, and helps you ensure efficient resource utilization and throughput.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-c-stopped-or-waiting-queries-querypreempted">c. Stopped or waiting queries (queryPreempted)</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_QueryPreempted</strong> displays the number of queries that are stopped and waiting due to the &#8216;priority&#8217; setting. With this metric, you&#8217;ll gain visibility into the status of queries that are being held back and waiting for available resources. It is vital for resource management and query prioritization.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clickhouse-network-metrics">ClickHouse Network Metrics</h3>



<p>Since ClickHouse uses a network to transmit information, tracking network metrics is vital in understanding ClickHouse&#8217;s performance. The following are crucial ClickHouse network metrics to fetch:</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-tcp-connections">a. TCP Connections</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_TCPConnection</strong> showcases the number of connections to the TCP server, for clients with native interface, as well as server-to-server distributed query connections. It also measures the load of your ClickHouse instance. Monitoring TCP connections metric involves tracking the number of active connections between clients or applications and the ClickHouse server at a given time.</p>



<p>Each established connection facilitates data transfer, query execution, and other communication between the client and the ClickHouse server. This metric provides insights into the overall traffic and workload being handled by the server, allowing you to optimize resources and ensure that the server can manage incoming and outgoing connections.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-http-connections">b. HTTP Connections</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_HTTPConnection</strong> reflects the number of connections to the HTTP server, and a reflection of load. It helps you track the number of active connections made to ClickHouse through the HTTP interface. The metrics are utilized to understand data ingestion, and interactions with external tools and interfaces that communicate with ClickHouse via HTTP. It helps you gauge the web interface&#8217;s usage.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-c-interserver-connections">c. Interserver Connections</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_InterserverConnection</strong> displays the number of connections from other replicas to fetch parts. The metric facilitates data replication, distributed query execution, and inter-server communication within a ClickHouse cluster. It allows you to evaluate the level of inter-server activity, optimize data transfer between nodes, query processing, and maintain the reliability of the ClickHouse cluster.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>What ever key metrics you need for monitoring ClickHouse, <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">we got you covered</a>! </p>
</blockquote>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-zookeeper-metrics">ZooKeeper metrics</h3>



<p>ClickHouse uses Apache Zookeeper to store and manage metadata. Monitoring Zookeeper metrics is therefore crucial for understanding the state of your ClickHouse instance. It discloses how your database is using ZooKeeper. Key ZooKeeper metrics to watch out for include the following:</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-zookeeper-watches">a. ZooKeeper watches</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_ZooKeeperWatch</strong> reveals the number of watches, such as event subscriptions or any changes to specific znodes, in ZooKeeper. It allows distributed components to react to changes and maintain synchronization within the cluster. This metric helps you understand the workload on ZooKeeper and ensure its scalability and responsiveness.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-zookeeper-wait">b. ZooKeeper wait</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseProfileEvents_ZooKeeperWaitMicroseconds</strong> measures the number of microseconds spent waiting for responses from ZooKeeper after creating a request, summed across all the requesting threads. It also reflects the number of operations that are currently waiting. Monitoring this metric provides crucial insights into the responsiveness of ZooKeeper.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-c-zookeeper-requests">c. ZooKeeper requests</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_ZooKeeperRequest</strong> shows the number of requests made to ZooKeeper on the fly, for operations such as reading or writing data, updating znodes, setting watches, and synchronization. Tracking the metric helps you understand the level of activity and the types of operations being performed within the <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-distributed-tracing/">distributed environment</a>. It also offers visibility into the workload and usage patterns.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-asynchronous-metrics">Asynchronous metrics</h3>



<p>This contains the historical values for system.asynchronous_metrics, which are calculated periodically in the background, for example, the amount of RAM in use. Enabled by default, the metrics are saved once per minute.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-max-active-part-count">a. Max active part count</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseMetrics_PartsActive</strong> shows the maximum number of active data parts in ClickHouse partitions, which are used by current and upcoming SELECTs. The active data part is used in a table, but if it becomes inactive, it will be flagged for deletion.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>Monitor all key ClickHouse metrics in one place. <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">Middleware</a>.</p>
</blockquote>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-data-part-metrics">Data part metrics</h3>



<p>Data Part metrics help in tracking the distribution and storage of data within ClickHouse. They include information about the sizes of data parts, the distribution of data across nodes, and other details related to the storage and organization of data within the ClickHouse database.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-row-count">a. Row count</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseProfileEvents_MergedRows</strong> is the number of rows read for background merges, and shows the number of rows before the merge. Inactive data parts are retained after a merging process. Monitoring this metric offers insights into data merging operations.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-replica-status">Replica status</h3>



<p>The Replica Status provides insights into the replication status of data across different nodes within a ClickHouse cluster. It includes information about the synchronization of data replicas, replication lag, and the health of data redundancy within the cluster.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-replica-queue-size">a. Replica queue size</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseAsyncMetrics_ReplicasMaxQueueSize</strong> shows the maximum size of the queue across replicated tables waiting to be performed. This includes the size of operations like merges, and inserting blocks of data, among others. This metric offers insights into replication workload and helps ensure data consistency.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-b-replica-queue-merges-long-gauge">b. Replica queue merges (long gauge)</h4>



<p><strong>ClickHouseAsyncMetrics_ReplicasMaxQueueMerges</strong> indicates the count of queued merges waiting to be executed. Since merges can take a significant amount of time to complete, this value might remain above zero for an extended period. It helps ensure fault tolerance and high availability within ClickHouse.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-monitoring-clickhouse-using-middleware">Monitoring ClickHouse using Middleware</h2>



<p>Middleware is an all-in-one comprehensive observability platform that seamlessly integrates with ClickHouse and eases your big data analytics projects. </p>



<p>It provides you with relevant metrics for monitoring both read and write performance over time. It enables tracking of the INSERT and SELECT query rates per ClickHouse instance, along with the number of rows written per query.</p>



<p>With Middleware, you&#8217;ll be able to monitor ClickHouse data in a visualized, end-to-end visibility through pre-built performance charts that display your metrics for swift issue resolution. It combines anomaly detection technology with a threshold-based alert system for timely notifications.</p>



<p>Middleware is the right tool for ClickHouse Monitoring because, in addition to real-time performance metrics, customized dashboards, and <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">alerting system</a>, it enables the aggregation and analysis of ClickHouse metrics for a holistic view of system activities.&nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">Get started with Middleware</a> for your ClickHouse projects.</p>


ClickHouse natively offers 1000+ metrics to monitor, so choosing the essential metrics can be a challenging task. Here are the 6 key ClickHouse metrics you should be monitoring.

ClickHouse Monitoring: 6 Key Metrics To Keep An Eye On

Mobile app monitoring ensures optimal performance. In this article, explore its importance, best practices, and how Middleware aids developers in streamlining and optimizing app performance.

Mobile App Monitoring: How To Do It Right

API monitoring is essential for developers, as it assesses API performance and reliability. Here are top 12 API monitoring tools to choose from:

Top 12 API Monitoring Tools to Try in 2024


<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-session-replay">What is Session Replay?</h2>



<p>Session replay is used to replay user interactions within a web or software application. It provides visibility into user actions, such as clicks, scrolls, and navigation throughout the page. Session replay is useful for debugging because it can provide a detailed view of the user&#8217;s session leading to an error.</p>



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<p>As a software developer, the level of insight possible via session replays is highly instrumental when debugging complex applications where traditional logging or bug reports are not enough.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-session-replay-isn-t">What Session Replay Isn’t</h2>



<p>Session replay is NOT:&nbsp;</p>



<ul>
<li>A video simulation rendered in 3D, but a reproduction of the events in video form utilizing the Document Object Model (DOM) technology.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>A live monitoring tool. You are not seeing the events in real-time but in playback.</li>
</ul>



<ul>
<li>Meant to replace other monitoring solutions but serves as a complementary feature to gain deeper insights into user behavior and application performance.</li>
</ul>



<p>Session replay also differs from screen recording, which records the entire screen activity, including non-user interactions such as system notifications or background processes. Session replay focuses on capturing the specific user actions within your application.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-session-replay-works">How Session Replay Works</h2>



<p>Session replay collects and stores data about user interaction during each session via the DOM technology. The data can be timestamps, the element or area being interacted with, and the specific action(s) performed by the user.</p>



<p>During a replay, the recorded data is rendered in a way so that you can find and fix usability issues and understand user behavior over time.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-use-session-replay-in-middleware">How to Use Session Replay in Middleware</h2>



<p>To implement session replay for your application, you must add code snippets or scripts provided by the tool to your application&#8217;s (or website’s) codebase. Once activated via the <a href="https://middleware.io/product/real-user-monitoring/">Real User Monitoring (RUM)</a> functionalities, the session replay tool can capture and record users as they interact with your application.&nbsp;</p>



<p>You can check our installation docs <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/rum/getting-started#install">here</a>.</p>



<p>Once you have added the code snippet, you can monitor all the session replays. </p>



<p>Here&#8217;s a quick loom video of how it would look like inside Middleware:</p>



<div style="position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0;"><iframe src="https://www.loom.com/embed/052558532aa546e9b8d9e35b3f603008?sid=981e9e24-ecf9-4a31-bdbe-a048e7c3ad01" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen style="position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%;"></iframe></div>



<p>You can analyze the session replays to gain insights into user behavior, identify usability issues, track bugs and errors, and troubleshoot problems. Middleware also enables you to rewind or speed up your replay as the case may warrant.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-benefits-of-session-replay">Benefits of Session Replay</h2>



<p>Session replay offers several benefits that impact the development process and user experience:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-faster-mean-time-to-resolution-mttr">Faster Mean Time to Resolution (MTTR)</h3>



<p>Session replay contributes to achieving a faster MTTR by providing a visual and detailed playback of user interactions leading up to an issue. </p>



<p>Session replay in <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> offers the ability to rewind sessions to diagnose issues more accurately, especially as it is backed by contextual, correlated data. </p>



<p>This enables you to quickly understand the context in which the problem occurred and hasten the resolution process, leading to reduced MTTR.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="490" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Data-Page-1-2-1024x490.png" alt="reduce MTTR" class="wp-image-6792" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Data-Page-1-2-1024x490.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Data-Page-1-2-300x144.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Data-Page-1-2-768x368.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Data-Page-1-2-1536x735.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Data-Page-1-2.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-faster-debugging-with-insightful-data">Faster debugging with insightful data</h3>



<p>Session replay&#8217;s detailed playback of user interactions allows you to see the exact steps that led to a bug. This insightful and contextual data of user actions in motion helps you to quickly identify the root cause of a problem and resolve it more efficiently. This saves time and effort compared to relying solely on bug reports.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-improved-user-experience">Improved user experience</h3>



<p>By analyzing user session replays, you will identify friction points, usability issues, or areas where users are struggling. This information empowers you to address pain points and implement changes that improve the overall user experience of your application.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-challenges-of-session-replay">Challenges of Session Replay</h2>



<p>Despite its benefits, session replay has its challenges. In any event, two specific challenges are associated with session replays:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tool-sprawl">Tool sprawl</h3>



<p>To get the best out of a session replay tool, it is often used in collaboration with other monitoring tools for contextual and correlated data. This usually leads to <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-tool-consolidation/">tool sprawl</a> where multiple tools are integrated and the stack eventually becomes redundant. </p>



<p>Also, managing these tools requires technical expertise, preventing non-technical teams from adopting session replay. A best practice is to choose a session replay tool that offers other monitoring capabilities.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-individual-user-sessions-is-cumbersome">Studying individual user sessions is cumbersome</h3>



<p>It is often difficult to study individual user sessions amidst humongous recorded sessions. But you can address this by using filters to focus on specific sessions that are indicative of user behavior or issues. For example, you can filter out sessions that are less than 10 seconds, and analyze them attentively.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>Tackle the conventional session replay tools issues using Middleware.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">One tool for unified observability</a>.</p>
</blockquote>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-use-cases-of-session-replays">Use Cases of Session Replays</h2>



<p>Session replays have various use cases across different industries or multiple roles within an organization:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-developers">Developers</h3>



<p>By watching recorded user sessions, developers easily understand a user&#8217;s actions up to where and when an error occurred. This helps them to diagnose problems more effectively. </p>



<p>For instance, where a user experiences a login failure, the session replay can help developers identify the root cause, which could be that the user typed special characters in their usernames.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-customer-support-agents">Customer Support Agents</h3>



<p>Visualizing user interactions helps support agents provide more accurate and efficient troubleshooting to issues reported by customers. This leads to faster resolution and improved customer satisfaction.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Assuming a customer support agent receives a complaint from a user who is unable to complete a purchase. Reviewing the session replay will help the agent discover where the user encountered the error, which could be during the checkout process. This will help the support agent to provide specific instructions to the customer to help them complete the purchase.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-product-managers">Product Managers</h3>



<p>Session replay helps product managers gain a deeper understanding of how users interact with their products. They can identify user pain points and enhance features that drive better product adoption. </p>



<p>With session replay, a product manager can identify areas where users frequently drop off. The information guides him to make data-driven decisions to improve user onboarding and retention.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-marketers">Marketers</h3>



<p>Session replays are resourceful for marketers to gain valuable information on user engagement, user flow, and conversion funnel. This enables them to optimize marketing strategies and campaigns accordingly. </p>



<p>A marketer may discover that users abandon their sales website after encountering a particular pop-up. This insight could prompt him to refine the pop-up ad design for increased engagement and conversions.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-technical-support-team">Technical Support Team</h3>



<p>By observing user interactions and system reactions, technical support teams will be able to identify and resolve problems more efficiently, reducing MTTR.</p>



<p>This could be issues that come up when users switch between tabs, as discovered in a session replay. This information will help the team to resolve the bug timeously and prevent it from impacting more users.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ui-ux-designers-and-researchers">UI/UX Designers and Researchers</h3>



<p>When UI/UX designers and researchers analyze user sessions, it helps them identify usability issues, user struggles, and patterns in user behavior. This playback helps them refine the user interface, simplify user workflows, and improve overall user experience. </p>



<p>Users may be struggling to use a new feature, which session replay discloses that the pain point was during the onboarding process. The team will be able to refine the user interface for a smoother user experience.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-qa-team">QA Team</h3>



<p>Session replays assist the QA team in testing and validating application features through session review. This helps them ensure proper functionality and identify any regressions during the testing process. </p>



<p>For example, QA teams testing website compatibility across different browsers can—via session replay—vividly experience how the site self-renders on various browsers.&nbsp;</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tips-to-choose-the-best-session-replay-tool">Tips to Choose the Best Session Replay Tool</h2>



<p>When selecting a session replay tool for your needs, consider the following factors:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-captures-data-from-all-platforms">Captures data from all platforms</h3>



<p>Ensure that the tool supports capturing user session data from various platforms, including web, Android, and iOS. This ensures comprehensive coverage and allows you to analyze user interactions across different devices and platforms.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-offers-more-than-just-session-replays">Offers more than just session replays</h3>



<p>The tool should also offer additional features like error tracking, performance metrics, and user flow analysis to gain a more holistic view of your <a href="https://middleware.io/product/apm/">application&#8217;s performance</a> and user experience. </p>



<p>For instance, <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> is an example of a tool that provides comprehensive monitoring capabilities along with session replay.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-enterprise-grade-privacy-control">Enterprise-grade privacy control</h3>



<p>Choose a session replay tool that prioritizes enterprise-grade privacy control, including data anonymization and masking of sensitive information, which enables compliance with data protection regulations. With this, you ensure the protection of user privacy while still providing valuable insights.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-correlation-between-front-end-and-backend-data">Correlation between front-end and backend data</h3>



<p>Consider a tool that, like Middleware, allows for the correlation of front-end session data with backend <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-application-performance-monitoring/">application performance monitoring</a> (APM) traces. This correlation of both user interactions and system behavior enhances troubleshooting capabilities and allows you to spot the right issue with your application.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-session-timeline-and-speed-control">Session timeline and speed control</h3>



<p>The session replay tool should offer session timeline and speed control, which enable you to navigate the sessions and explore relevant sections. With a session timeline, you can pinpoint specific interactions based on the time they occur. </p>



<p>Speed control allows you to adjust the playback speed for careful and detailed observation of user behavior, as well as to quickly scan through voluminous sessions.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion</h2>



<p>With session replay as part of your organization&#8217;s observability stack, you can be cocksure of an understanding of your users so deep it drives iterations of your products and improves your bottom line.</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/product/real-user-monitoring/session-replays/">Middleware offers session replay</a> as part of its observability solution, making it ideal for your monitoring and observability needs. See the Middleware session replay in action now!&nbsp;</p>


Session replays aid debugging by showing user interactions. Learn what they are, how to use them, and their importance in complex applications.

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Here are 8 reasons why monitoring your application is important in today's zero down-time world, along with some tried-and-tested best practices: 

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OpenTelemetry Collector: Everything an SDE Needs to Know


<p>Imagine your store being flooded with thousands of calls and customer walk-ins. Would you and your team be overwhelmed and want to take a pause?</p>



<p>Your website goes through something similar when Black Friday sales season kicks in. On the busiest shopping day of the year in the 2022 holiday season, there was a <a href="https://queue-it.com/blog/2022-online-holiday-shopping-statistics/">47% surge in</a> website traffic compared to the average daily traffic during that season. </p>



<p>Specifically, Black Friday witnessed three times the usual traffic seen on a standard day in October 2022.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="576" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday--1024x576.jpeg" alt="Black Friday Sales" class="wp-image-6397" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday--1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday--300x169.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday--768x432.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday--1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday--1200x675.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Black-Friday-.jpeg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Image Credits:&nbsp;<a href="https://queue-it.com/blog/2022-online-holiday-shopping-statistics/">Queue-it</a></figcaption></figure>



<p>Navigating the digital rush of Black Friday requires a robust website. A seamless experience can lead to record-breaking sales, while downtime risks revenue and customer trust. </p>



<p>This guide outlines key strategies to ensure your website remains resilient during the shopping frenzy.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-establish-proper-observability-practices-for-peak-loads">Establish Proper Observability Practices For Peak Loads</h2>



<p>To keep your website strong during the Black Friday rush, it&#8217;s crucial to watch its performance closely. For this, you need to start planning well in advance.</p>



<p>For this, the first step is to anticipate the spike in traffic during these mega-events. Observability practices are the first step to establishing a roadmap for peak loads.</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a> is the process of gaining deep insights into how your website operates, both under normal circumstances and during periods of heightened demand. This includes monitoring crucial metrics such as server response times, error rates, and overall system health.</p>



<p>Moreover, it includes monitoring and alerting for potential risks and implementing processes to mitigate any detected risks.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="454" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Observability.jpeg" alt="Observability" class="wp-image-6398" style="width:610px;height:270px" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Observability.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Observability-300x133.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Observability-768x341.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>By peering into the heart of your system, you can identify potential bottlenecks and weak points that may otherwise go unnoticed.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Establish Synthetic Monitoring To Understand the Effect On Users</h2>



<p>Once you have observability practices in place, you will need to focus on the monitoring aspect of it. </p>



<p>To ensure a seamless and satisfying experience for users navigating your website during peak loads, it&#8217;s imperative to go beyond conventional monitoring and embrace synthetic monitoring.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>What is Synthetic Monitoring?</strong></h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-to-use-synthetic-monitoring/">Synthetic monitoring</a> is a proactive approach that involves simulating user interactions with your website through automated scripts. These scripts replicate common user journeys, allowing you to proactively assess your website&#8217;s performance from a user&#8217;s perspective.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="651" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Synthetic-Monitoring-.jpeg" alt="Benefits of Synthetic Monitoring" class="wp-image-6399" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Synthetic-Monitoring-.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Synthetic-Monitoring--300x191.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Synthetic-Monitoring--768x488.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Implementing Synthetic Monitoring helps:</p>



<ul>
<li>Identify users’ key paths on your website, including product searches, adding items to the cart, and completing transactions.</li>



<li>Select metrics that align with user experience, such as page load times, transaction completion rates, and server response times.</li>



<li>Establish a Monitoring Schedule and tests to be well-prepared for an anticipated surge in traffic, especially leading up to Black Friday and other holidays.</li>
</ul>



<p>Unlike traditional monitoring methods that rely on real user data, synthetic monitoring provides a controlled environment to understand how your website behaves under various conditions.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Proactively Monitor Sites with Test Loads Prior to Black Friday</h2>



<p>One of the key steps in synthetic monitoring is stress testing. Stress testing involves intentionally subjecting your website to simulated loads that surpass normal operating conditions. </p>



<p>The goal is to identify the breaking points and weaknesses in your system before they become critical issues during peak traffic periods.</p>



<p>To derive maximum benefit and address identified issues, it&#8217;s crucial to conduct stress tests well in advance of Black Friday. This allows your team sufficient time to analyze results, implement optimizations, and retest the system to ensure the desired improvements have been achieved.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="536" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/website-performance-monitoring-tools.jpeg" alt="Website Monitoring tools for Black Friday" class="wp-image-6400" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/website-performance-monitoring-tools.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/website-performance-monitoring-tools-300x157.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/website-performance-monitoring-tools-768x402.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>For this, you may use<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/website-monitoring-tools/"> website performance monitoring tools</a> to assist you in tracking and optimizing your website’s performance. </p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> is an end-to-end AI-powered observability platform that you can consider.</p>



<p>It specializes in complex, multi-tiered applications and can even help you perform tests on your website to track the performance of web pages and APIs for different metrics.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Taking Inventory of Performance Culprits</h2>



<p>Once you have synthetic monitoring tools and practices in place, you will get a detailed report on the culprits that can damage your website&#8217;s performance. </p>



<p>Take inventory of performance culprits on your website, especially in preparation for high-traffic events like Black Friday.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Common Culprits that can Slow Down your Website</h3>



<ul>
<li><strong>Heavy Image Sizes and Animations:</strong> Oversized images can significantly slow down page load times. According to Google, images should be optimized and properly formatted, which can save up to<a href="https://web.dev/explore/fast#optimize-your-images"> 50% in file size</a> without compromising quality.</li>



<li><strong>JavaScript and CSS Files:</strong> Uncompressed JavaScript and CSS files can lead to increased load times. Tools like Fast Velocity Minify can reduce HTTP requests by merging and minifying these files, potentially improving load times by<a href="https://pressable.com/knowledgebase/troubleshooting-website-performance-issues/"> up to 20%</a>.</li>



<li><strong>Cache Files:</strong> Caching can greatly improve your site’s Time to First Byte (TTFB). With Edge Cache, for example, you can serve page cache directly from the closest server to a site’s visitors, which can enhance performance metrics significantly.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">More Best Practices to Consider</h3>



<ul>
<li><strong>Enabling Content Delivery Network (CDN):</strong> A CDN can distribute the load, save bandwidth, and improve access speed for your users. As per the Pressable knowledge base, enabling CDN can be a crucial step in troubleshooting website performance issues.</li>



<li><strong>Updating Themes and Plugins:</strong> Outdated themes and plugins not only pose security risks but can also slow down your website. Keeping them updated can improve response times and overall site performance.</li>



<li><strong>Use Performance Analysis Tools:</strong> Tools like GTMetrix and WebPageTest provide detailed insights into what might be affecting the load time of your site. For instance, an ideal TTFB should be<a href="https://pressable.com/knowledgebase/troubleshooting-website-performance-issues/"> 0.50 seconds or less</a>, as recommended by WebPageTest.</li>



<li><strong>Optimize for Mobile:</strong> With mobile traffic accounting for approximately half of the web traffic worldwide, having a responsive design is crucial. Google emphasizes mobile-first indexing, making it imperative to ensure your site performs well on mobile devices.</li>



<li><strong>Regularly Disable and Test Plugins:</strong> Plugins can often be the cause of slow loading times. Disabling them and testing site speed can help identify problematic plugins. Remember to back up your database before performing such tests.</li>



<li><strong>Monitor and Optimize Database Performance:</strong> Regular database optimization can prevent slow query times, which are common performance issues. Indexing and regular cleanups can significantly improve database response times.</li>



<li><strong>Assess Server Capacity: </strong>Ensure your hosting solution can handle traffic spikes. For example, cloud hosting solutions should offer scalability to manage sudden increases in traffic without performance degradation.</li>



<li><strong>Review Security Measures:</strong> Security features, while essential, can impact site speed. Efficient SSL/TLS protocols, for example, can reduce handshake times and improve load times.</li>
</ul>



<p>By addressing these areas and implementing recommended practices, you can mitigate potential performance issues and ensure your website is prepared for the increased traffic during Black Friday sales.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mapping Out Incident Response Practices</h2>



<p>Mapping out team practices to handle incidents is a critical aspect of IT incident management. Here&#8217;s a structured approach based on best practices and recent data:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Pre-Incident Preparation</h3>



<p>According to the Uptime Institute’s 2022 Outage Analysis report, a well-thought-out incident management plan is essential, as<a href="https://www.missioncriticalmagazine.com/articles/94144-uptime-institutes-2022-outage-analysis-finds-downtime-costs-and-consequences-worsening"> 20% of companies</a> have experienced a serious incident in the past three years. The incident management plan should be documented and practiced before it&#8217;s needed to mitigate risks effectively.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Incident Detection and Analysis</h3>



<p>Incorporating Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Service Level Objectives (SLOs) can be invaluable in detecting incidents early.<a href="https://www.honeycomb.io/blog/incident-report-running-dry-on-memory-without-noticing"> Metrics-driven detection</a> is crucial for rapid discovery and resolution.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Communication Strategy</h3>



<p>Establish dedicated communication channels and maintain an up-to-date list of essential contacts to minimize confusion during an incident.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Post-Incident Analysis</h3>



<p>Conduct detailed discussions post-incident to evaluate what worked and what didn&#8217;t. This helps in refining the incident management plan for future incidents.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Continuous Improvement</h3>



<p>Schedule mock incidents to ensure the team is familiar with the incident response plan. This practice helps in identifying and smoothing out any rough spots in the plan.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Tooling and Infrastructure</h3>



<p>Implement observability tools and platforms like Middleware to find and fix incidents quickly. Ensure that tools are regularly reevaluated as part of the incident management plan.</p>



<p>By following these steps and incorporating the provided data, organizations can create a robust framework to handle incidents effectively, reducing the potential impact on operations and reputation.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Using Observability for Security</h2>



<p>Using observability to detect runtime vulnerabilities and cyberattacks involves a multi-faceted approach that leverages modern technology and best practices. Here&#8217;s how to structure this process, along with relevant data and sources:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Establish Comprehensive Observability</h3>



<p>Implement real-time monitoring to detect anomalies as they occur. According to Dynatrace,<a href="https://www.dynatrace.com/news/blog/achieving-business-resilience-with-modern-observability-ai-and-automation/"> 79% of CISOs</a> believe that continuous runtime vulnerability management integrated with observability is key to addressing security gaps.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Integrate Security within Observability Platforms</h3>



<p>Security observability tools that create Runtime<a href="https://www.contrastsecurity.com/security-influencers/what-is-security-observability-contrast-security"> SBOMs</a> (Software Bill of Materials) can automatically detect which libraries are actively used by applications, helping to pinpoint vulnerabilities.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Leverage AI and Automation</h3>



<p>Utilize AI Observability tools, like Middleware, to analyze information in real-time, which can significantly speed up the response to cyber threats.<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/09/21/four-ways-to-build-a-more-resilient-and-future-proof-business/?sh=1de07fcd5821"> Forbes notes</a> that organizations using AI for real-time analysis can adapt more quickly and thrive.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Prioritize and Remediate Vulnerabilities</h3>



<p>Adopting dynamic observability can lead to an<a href="https://thenewstack.io/prioritize-runtime-vulnerabilities-via-dynamic-observability/"> 85% reduction</a> in noise because it helps prioritize vulnerabilities that are actually exploitable, as reported by The New Stack.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Continuous Improvement and Adaptation</h3>



<p>Continuously update and improve security measures based on observability data. PwC&#8217;s survey indicates that<a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/crisis-solutions/global-crisis-survey.html"> 96% of organizations</a> have experienced business disruption since 2021, highlighting the need for constant vigilance and improvement.</p>



<p>By integrating these practices into your observability framework, you can create a robust system for detecting and responding to runtime vulnerabilities and cyberattacks, thereby enhancing your website&#8217;s security posture, especially during critical periods like Black Friday.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Closing Summary</h2>



<p>As Black Friday approaches, the stakes are higher than ever for online retailers gearing up to meet the demands of an influx of eager shoppers. </p>



<p>In this guide, we&#8217;ve explored essential strategies to fortify your website against potential outages and ensure a seamless experience for users during the holiday rush.</p>



<p>To ensure Black Friday becomes a dream sales day, leverage<a href="https://middleware.io/product/synthetic-monitoring/"> Middleware&#8217;s capabilities</a>, such as:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Real-Time Monitoring</strong> to catch issues instantly, preventing prolonged downtime.</li>



<li><strong>AI-Based Insights</strong> to predict and address potential outages before they affect users.</li>



<li><strong>Centralized Data Analysis:</strong> With Middleware, all telemetry data is in one place, simplifying analysis and response.</li>



<li><strong>Proactive Alerts:</strong> Set up alerts that notify you immediately of any system anomalies to tackle issues promptly.</li>



<li><strong>Security Observability:</strong> The platform&#8217;s security features help detect vulnerabilities, keeping customer data safe during the sales rush.</li>



<li><strong>Scalability: </strong>Middleware scales with your traffic, handling Black Friday surges without a hitch.</li>
</ul>



<p>By integrating Middleware, businesses can not only anticipate and mitigate risks but also ensure a smooth, secure, and successful Black Friday sales. </p>



<p>For more details,<a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/"> sign up on our platform</a> to see it in action!</p>


Ensure a stress-free Black Friday for your online business. Learn how to avoid website outages with our expert tips and best practices.

Best Practices to Avoid Website Outages on Black Friday


<p>It is that time of the year again! The time to celebrate, exchange gifts, and make the most of the discounts. </p>



<p>But businesses, be cautious—ensure your website performance is top-notch to handle the holiday rush.</p>



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<p>There was an<a href="https://platform.sh/company/press/ecommerce-websites-handle-more-traffic-beginning-holiday-season/"> 80%</a> increase in web traffic between Black Friday 2022 compared to an average Friday. Similarly, web traffic on Cyber Monday increased by 50% compared to an average Monday.</p>



<p>But there is a catch! </p>



<p>For website owners and e-commerce businesses, the holiday season brings both tremendous opportunities and significant challenges. </p>



<p>With every great sale comes higher-than-expected visitors to the store. The spike in website traffic can put immense pressure on your website&#8217;s performance and reliability.</p>



<p>If caught off-guard, it can ultimately lead to your website being slow or laggy and even cost you a sale. Worst, it could lead to your server crashing completely, meaning all those visitors coming to your page will be met with a &#8220;404 Page Not Found.&#8221;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="576" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-1024x576.jpeg" alt="Website Performance during Holidays" class="wp-image-6373" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-1200x675.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed.jpeg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Image Credits: <a href="https://queue-it.com/blog/2022-online-holiday-shopping-statistics/">Queue-it</a></figcaption></figure>



<p>To steer clear of this issue, let’s explore some essential steps that you can take to improve your website’s performance and ensure that you are prepared to take on the additional demands this holiday season.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-optimizing-website-performance-for-the-holidays">Optimizing Website Performance for the Holidays</h2>



<p>Whether it is your website or web app that has experienced peak usage or is anticipating high activity, you can manage performance and availability in a few simple ways. </p>



<p>To help you out with this, check out the various<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/website-monitoring-tools/"> website monitoring tools</a> and follow the strategies outlined here:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Run a Wide Scan of Your Performance</h3>



<p>Before the holiday season, you need to have metrics in place that can help you anticipate the rise in activity. For this, it&#8217;s crucial to have a baseline understanding of your website&#8217;s performance.</p>



<p>Check your website’s functionality and performance metrics using a monitoring tool. There are two main categories in this:<a href="https://middleware.io/blog/rum-vs-synthetic-monitoring/"> synthetic monitoring and real user monitoring</a>.</p>



<p>These categories capture metrics related to the website’s performance, transaction monitoring, availability monitoring, user experience analysis, device and browser performance, demographic insights, and more.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="536" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-2.jpeg" alt="Viewing website performance on Middleware" class="wp-image-6374" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-2.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-2-300x157.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-2-768x402.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>For a comprehensive test, we recommend using an end-to-end observability and monitoring platform that specializes in tracking the performance of web pages and APIs at various levels.</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> is a great tool to consider since it can provide detailed insights into the following:</p>



<ul><li>Visualization of application performance and uptime data alongside key business metrics.</li><li>Root cause analysis using details of any breakdown, response errors, and delays.</li><li>Highly interactive dashboards and monitoring settings help you monitor your website for multiple areas.</li></ul>



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<p>Comprehensive performance testing helps you identify issues early and take action to address them.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Analyze Your Website&#8217;s Traffic Patterns</h3>



<p>Next, you must understand your website’s traffic patterns for planning and optimization. Look for areas that may be the cause of issues in the past, such as:</p>



<ul><li>Request Count</li><li>Page Load Time</li><li>Concurrent User Count</li></ul>



<p>This information will help you allocate resources effectively, ensuring your website can handle user surges without slowdowns or downtime.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Optimize Your Website&#8217;s Loading Times</h3>



<p>During peak traffic periods like Black Friday or Cyber Monday sales, slow load time is a common issue that most websites face. Slow load times are not just due to the increasing number of users visiting your page.</p>



<p>It has more to do with the kind of requests being made, the most visited pages, and other factors. To help decrease user frustration and even bounce rates, you should optimize the website’s load time by following the steps below:</p>



<ul><li>Optimizing images and other heavy elements on your page. Images that are too large or graphics with too many elements are the most common reasons for slow load time. Ensure you compress images and reduce file size without compromising image quality.</li><li>Cache static content to reduce server load and speed up page load times.</li><li>Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN) to distribute content from multiple servers located closer to your users. This helps to distribute the high traffic across networks and saves your website from taking the hit.</li><li>Reduce the number of requests your website makes to load a page by combining CSS and JavaScript files.</li><li><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/log-transaction-queries/">Analyze log queries</a> and transactions to gain insights into your website’s performance and the types of queries being generated.</li></ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Increase Your Website&#8217;s Capacity</h3>



<p>Slow load time and lags are often due to high spikes in requests or traffic on your page. A good starting point to help avoid this is to correctly predict the expected peak responses and the period when these may happen.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="576" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3-1024x576.jpeg" alt="Website performance during Black Friday" class="wp-image-6375" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3-1200x675.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/unnamed-3.jpeg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Image Credits: <a href="https://queue-it.com/blog/2022-online-holiday-shopping-statistics/">Queue-it</a></figcaption></figure>



<p>For example, peak traffic periods include the actual holiday season, a few days before, and the final few hours of the sale ending. You may also consider these steps:</p>



<ol><li>Upgrading your cloud hosting solution to auto-scale and accommodate for traffic spikes.</li><li>Distribute traffic spikes among multiple servers to prevent a single server from being overloaded and thereby slowing down the website.</li><li>Implementing server-side and browser caching to reduce the load on your web server.</li></ol>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Test Your Website&#8217;s Reliability</h3>



<p>A good approach is to conduct stress tests for your website to gauge its behavior during peak traffic. You can use the information from your analysis to define peak periods and conduct load tests or stress tests in the backend.</p>



<p>When conducting these tests, check for factors like:</p>



<ul><li>Issues with application or website architecture</li><li>Potential bottlenecks in website’s code or queries</li><li>Memory leaks or other issues with storage</li></ul>



<p>Depending on the findings of these tests, have a backup plan and prepare a worst-case scenario disaster recovery protocol. The idea is to ensure that you are prepared for any downtime and implement backup servers to ensure that this downtime is minimized.</p>



<p>You can also use continuous monitoring tools to detect issues in real-time and take action promptly, which can help you not just during the holiday season but throughout the year.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Remove Observability Blind Spots</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a> measures and understands a website’s performance and behavior by relying on data points like logs, metrics, and traces. You can detect and resolve performance issues by implementing comprehensive observability for your website. Use website and<a href="https://middleware.io/product/database-monitoring/"> database observability tools</a> to help gain insights into your performance, including:</p>



<ul><li><a href="https://middleware.io/product/apm/">Application Performance Monitoring</a> (APM): This metric helps you monitor your website&#8217;s code and pinpoint performance bottlenecks.</li><li><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-real-user-monitoring/">Real User Monitoring (RUM)</a>: Track how real users experience your website, allowing you to optimize based on actual user behavior.</li><li><strong>Error Tracking</strong>: Identify and resolve errors that impact user experience quickly.</li></ul>



<p>Once you have set in the observability process, keep upgrading your observability metrics, including dashboards and areas of concern. This feedback-based optimization will help you better monitor website performance and address any anomalies or suspicious behavior proactively.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Closing Thoughts</h2>



<p>As the holiday season approaches, ensuring your website performs flawlessly, whether in high-pressure situations or otherwise, is essential. Website owners and e-commerce businesses need to understand that traffic spikes present both opportunities and challenges. </p>



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<p>The strategies that we have outlined will help you take action and better prepare for the peak season. However, optimizing and analyzing website performance shouldn&#8217;t be a &#8216;one and done&#8217; process; it is an ongoing process that requires your attention throughout the year. </p>



<p>If you want a streamlined solution to improve performance observability, consider exploring<a href="https://middleware.io/product/database-monitoring/"> Middleware&#8217;s performance monitoring and testing tools</a>. To keep getting updates on this topic,<a href="https://middleware.io/contact-us/"> sign up</a> for our expert insights today!&nbsp;</p>


Don't let the holidays bog down your site. Discover expert strategies for enhanced website performance and unwavering reliability.

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<p>From the inception of the World Wide Web in the early 1990s to the groundbreaking debut of the iPhone in 2007, innovation has catalyzed monumental leaps forward, ushering in new eras of progress and transforming industries beyond recognition.&nbsp;</p>



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<p>These groundbreaking technologies have not only disrupted industries but have also generated trillions in shareholder value. However, innovation is relentlessly accelerating, forging a perpetual cycle of change and discovery.</p>



<p>Enter Generative AI (Gen AI), the latest jewel in the crown of technological innovation. With the remarkable ability to create novel data patterns from existing ones, Gen AI stands as a formidable force poised to reshape countless industries. It can craft lifelike images, generate context-aware text, and process data at previously deemed unattainable speeds.</p>



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<p>In 2023, Gen AI took the tech world by storm, captivating tech enthusiasts, futurists, and mainstream audiences with its uncanny ability to produce remarkably human-like content. Its impressive applications stem from its training on massive datasets. GPT-4, the engine powering ChatGPT, reportedly underwent training on over one trillion parameters.</p>



<p>Other large language models (LLMs), such as Google&#8217;s PaLM2 and DeepMind&#8217;s Gopher, train on hundreds of billions of parameters. Rumors are heating up that GPT-5 could be on the horizon, and we should expect another significant leap in terms of size. Increasing the dataset size isn&#8217;t the only way to make an LLM smarter, but so far, it has proven to be the most reliable way of achieving improvements.</p>



<p>In the business world, Gen AI is already making significant strides. According to <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/the-state-of-ai-in-2023-generative-ais-breakout-year">McKinsey</a>, organizations are increasingly integrating generative AI into their operations.&nbsp;</p>



<p>One-third of all respondents reported that their organizations regularly use it in at least one function. This means that 60 percent of organizations with said AI adoption are utilizing Gen AI. Notably, 40 percent of those indicating AI adoption in their organizations expect to invest more in AI overall. Additionally, 28 percent state that Gen AI use is already on their board&#8217;s agenda.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Businesses are applying these <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-tool-consolidation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">innovative tools</a> across various functions, with marketing and sales, product and service development, and service operations, such as customer care and back-office support, leading the way as the most common applications.</p>



<p>Furthermore, the rising demand for Gen AI products may generate around $280 billion in new software revenue, driven by specialized assistants, innovative <a href="https://middleware.io/product/infrastructure-monitoring/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">infrastructure</a> products, and coding acceleration copilots.</p>



<p>Leading technology companies like Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Google, and Nvidia stand to benefit significantly as enterprises increasingly migrate workloads to the public cloud.&nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/company/press/generative-ai-to-become-a-1-3-trillion-market-by-2032-research-finds/">Bloomberg Intelligence (BI)</a> foresees a remarkable transformation unfolding within the generative AI landscape. It accounts for less than 1% of total spending in IT, software services, advertising, and gaming markets. In a decade, the industry is projected to grow from $40 billion in 2022 to an astonishing $1.3 trillion by 2032, fundamentally reshaping technology trends and becoming an integral part of IT budgets, advertising strategies, and cybersecurity, driven primarily by Gen AI infrastructure-as-a-service, digital advertising, and specialized assistant software, which are expected to surge this share to 10%.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-generative-ai-s-infiltration-into-observability">Generative AI&#8217;s Infiltration into Observability</h2>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a> is a critical practice in monitoring systems, offering insights into system behavior and diagnosing issues. Its role in ensuring the seamless operation of production systems is paramount. With Gen AI gaining ground, the observability domain faces the impetus to adapt to fresh challenges and seize new opportunities.</p>



<p>Generative AI&#8217;s integration into observability marks a pivotal moment in delivering actionable insights to users, poised to revolutionize the observability landscape. It can analyze vast datasets efficiently, allowing organizations to make data-driven decisions that optimize software systems for superior performance.</p>



<p>According to the <a href="https://newrelic.com/resources/report/observability-forecast/2023/executive-summary" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2023 Observability Forecast</a>, achieving full-stack observability remains a challenge for most organizations (67%), but those that have embraced it have witnessed significant improvements in service-level metrics. Full-stack observability has led to fewer and shorter outages, resulting in lower outage costs.</p>



<p>Moreover, organizations are increasingly recognizing the business value of observability. Respondents in the survey reported receiving a median return of $2 for every $1 of investment in observability. A staggering 86% of respondents acknowledged the value derived from their observability investment, with 41% reaping annual values exceeding $1 million. This clear demonstration of the business benefits of observability underscores its importance.</p>



<p>By mid-2026, a significant industry shift in monitoring technology approaches is expected, with organizations deploying all 17 distinct observability capabilities, reaching an anticipated adoption rate of 82%.</p>



<p>Integrating Gen AI into observability further simplifies the ecosystem by alleviating complexities associated with accessing critical insights. Users will no longer need expertise in intricate query interfaces to unearth valuable data.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Generative AI effortlessly delivers pertinent insights and recommendations directly within the observability solution. This automation streamlines operations, enhances decision-making, and accelerates issue resolution, ultimately bolstering system uptime and reliability.</p>



<p>Organizations can realize generative AI&#8217;s true potential by going beyond its application in chatbots and language processing and instead by leveraging the right data sets within their engineering teams.</p>



<p>The <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/trends/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">future of observability</a> is already here, and solutions built on generative AI can create a single source of truth, break down silos, deliver better business outcomes, and enable knowledge workers to work smarter, not harder.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-merits-of-generative-ai-in-observability">The Merits of Generative AI in Observability</h2>



<p>Integrating Generative AI into observability solutions provides several significant advantages, with the expeditious identification of root causes being the most prominent.</p>



<p>Traditional observability solutions served as the singular repository for insights into system health. Generative AI eliminates the need for engineers to navigate between various tools. Instead, users can directly access relevant insights within the observability solution.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-seamless-insights">Seamless Insights</h3>



<p>Generative AI presents the opportunity to reduce engineers&#8217; workload drastically. Engineers can pivot their focus toward more strategic responsibilities by automating routine tasks, offering recommendations, and simplifying intricate procedures.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Furthermore, it has the potential to parse tacit knowledge within organizations, bridging expertise gaps and amplifying collaboration.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-automation-in-error-resolution">Automation in Error Resolution</h3>



<p>Another promising development that might arise from Generative AI&#8217;s presence in observability is automation. Engineers could instruct AI-powered assistants to effectuate recommendations autonomously, significantly curtailing the interval between issue detection and resolution.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This automated approach to error management holds the promise of substantially bolstering system uptime and reliability.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-impact-on-observability-solution-providers">Impact on Observability Solution Providers</h3>



<p>Including Generative AI in observability solutions brings a new set of challenges and opportunities for solution providers. Traditional observability solutions handle structured data, while Gen AI primarily operates on unstructured data.</p>



<p>This transition necessitates a cohesive partnership between AI technology providers and observability solution vendors.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-building-a-data-moat">Building a Data Moat</h3>



<p>Establishing data technology partnerships is paramount as Generative AI-powered observability solutions take center stage. Solution providers must adapt their systems to accommodate unstructured data while closely collaborating with AI technology firms to harness the full potential of <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-ai-based-insights-can-change-the-observability/">AI-driven insights</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-need-for-ethical-frameworks">The Need for Ethical Frameworks</h3>



<p>The burgeoning prominence of AI in observability mandates a concerted effort to define ethical frameworks governing its deployment. Organizations must establish clear guidelines for the ethical utilization of AI in monitoring and root cause analysis.&nbsp;</p>



<p>These guidelines should ensure transparency in AI-driven processes and adherence to stringent privacy regulations, thus safeguarding user data.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pioneering-the-path-of-inferencing">Pioneering the Path of &#8220;Inferencing&#8221;</h2>



<p>As Generative AI revolutionizes observability, it brings forth a new paradigm—Inferencing.</p>



<p>Inferencing represents a profound departure from the conventional approach to observability, transcending mere <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability-vs-monitoring/">monitoring</a> to embrace a predictive and prescriptive model.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-essence-of-inferencing">The Essence of Inferencing</h3>



<p>Inferencing amalgamates Gen AI with real-time data analysis, identifying issues and furnishing insights into potential root causes. Its primary objective is to abbreviate the mean time to resolution (MTTR) by offering precise and actionable recommendations, thereby closing the chasm between issue detection and resolution.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-ai-native-architecture">An AI-Native Architecture</h3>



<p>To realize the aspirations of Inferencing, observability solutions must cultivate an AI-native architecture. Design this architecture to effectively handle unstructured data, adapt to changing data sources, and swiftly process information. Additionally, ensure that observability solutions include flexible data collection, processing, and storage customized for AI-driven analytics.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-streamlining-user-interface">Streamlining User Interface</h3>



<p>A streamlined and interactive user interface is equally critical in Inferencing. Empower users to interact with the system, ask questions, and receive instant responses and recommendations.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This pivot towards more intuitive interfaces promises to democratize observability, extending its accessibility to a broader spectrum of personnel within organizations.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-tenets-of-inferencing">The Tenets of Inferencing</h3>



<p>Inferencing beckons a paradigm shift in observability principles. Organizations should pledge allegiance to core tenets to embrace this novel approach.</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>AI-Native Architecture:</strong> Architecting observability solutions necessitates seamlessly integrating generative AI and inferencing from the ground up. This requires an architecture that exhibits flexibility in handling data, agility in processing, and scalability.</li>



<li><strong>Adaptive Data Handling:</strong> The evolving data landscape demands that observability solutions exhibit adaptability. Gen AI mandates the capability to process a panoply of data formats and sources, ensuring that no critical insights evade detection.</li>



<li><strong>Streamlined User Interface: </strong>The user interface should exude user-friendliness and intuitiveness, permitting users to interact fruitfully with the system. Integrating natural language processing and AI-driven chatbots can expedite and simplify user-system interactions.</li>



<li><strong>Ethical Deliberations:</strong> As is incumbent with any AI technology, ethical considerations take center stage. Organizations must delineate unambiguous guidelines for AI utilization, ensuring transparency and adherence to privacy regulations.</li>



<li><strong>Continual Learning:</strong> Inferencing is not a one-time implementation; it necessitates perpetual learning and refinement. Organizations must invest in training data, fine-tuning models, and staying updated with AI advancements.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crafting-ai-centric-strategies">Crafting AI-Centric Strategies</h2>



<p>The rush to implement Gen AI demands substantial investments in observability products to monitor and maintain these newly acquired capabilities.</p>



<p>Key facets of AI integration, including competing with formidable language models, fine-tuning models, and establishing efficient feedback loops, will drive the demand for advanced observability solutions.&nbsp;</p>



<p>These solutions must be specifically tailored to address the unique challenges posed by AI-powered technologies to ensure the uninterrupted functionalities.</p>



<p>As things stand, prominent organizations in the observability sphere are actively developing new generative <a href="https://www.signitysolutions.com/blog/business-efficiency-with-generative-ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AI solutions</a> to automate the monitoring, visualization, and analysis of intricate systems. These innovations are on the cusp of revolutionizing our approach to system diagnostics and error resolution. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ushering-a-new-era-of-observability">Ushering a New Era of Observability&nbsp;</h2>



<p>Generative AI is poised to have a profound impact on the observability sector. Its capacity to generate data, automate workflows, and provide actionable insights is driving a paradigm shift in how organizations monitor and maintain their systems.&nbsp;</p>



<p>As the adoption of Generative AI continues to rise, we are on the cusp of a new era in observability &#8211; one characterized by Inferencing. Organizations that fully embrace generative AI and Inferencing will likely find themselves better equipped to navigate the complexities of modern technology. </p>



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<p>This can lead to reduced downtimes, enhanced system reliability, and a competitive edge within their industries.</p>



<p>Yet, ongoing tech industry mergers and acquisitions are compelling organizations to revamp IT management strategies, potentially intensifying the demand for cost-effective cloud-based observability platforms.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This poses a critical challenge for Gen AI solution developers, who must exhibit unwavering agility, foster relentless innovation, and champion unwavering ethical standards to drive the democratization of AI-driven observability. In rising to this challenge, they have the potential to reshape the future of observability for the better.</p>


The article explores how Generative AI is infiltrating the world of observability. With its remarkable capabilities, it promises to revolutionize data analysis, automate tasks, and simplify complex systems' understanding. The synergy of Generative AI and observability opens new frontiers of innovation and efficiency. 

Can Generative AI Transform Observability?

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<p>We’re constantly evolving based on customer feedback and are excited to share the progress we’ve made over the past month!</p>



<p>We have new integrations with databases and APM. We also launched the much-awaited feature for frontend monitoring, RUM.</p>



<p>See below for more details.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-product-features"><strong>Product Features</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">1. <strong>Real User Monitoring (RUM)</strong></h3>



<p>Get end-to-end visibility into the user journey for web applications.<br>Collect data such as clicks, page loading, and time spent, visualize it in the <a href="https://middleware.io/product/real-user-monitoring/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">RUM Dashboard</a>, and view session replays to understand user behavior.</p>



<p><a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/rum/getting-started">Set up RUM</a> in no time by reading our official docs or by following along with this video:</p>



<div style="position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0;"><iframe src="https://www.loom.com/embed/ed0f136a6dd7436ba951356c936e0ca3?sid=5b3b1d0e-dafd-41b3-89ee-0a2eb4e11753" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen style="position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%;"></iframe></div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">2. <strong>MySQL Database Integration</strong></h3>



<p>Track the performance of your MySQL database with Middleware for enhanced insights into query performance and database health.&nbsp;</p>



<p>You can monitor database operations, DB objects such as schemes, tables, etc., and view key SQL events in Middleware.</p>



<div style="position: relative; padding-bottom: 54.895833333333336%; height: 0;"><iframe src="https://www.loom.com/embed/51d1a2b6cde248e79316c2b26a9119c7?sid=62d58fb1-6001-4679-b60f-677b418ccbed" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen style="position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%;"></iframe></div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">3. <strong>.NET APM Integration</strong></h3>



<p>Get end-to-end visibility into your .NET application with our .NET <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/integrations/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">APM integration</a>.</p>



<p>You can collect application metrics, profiling information, logs, and traces and improve application performance.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="563" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1-1024x563.jpg" alt=".NET APM Integration" class="wp-image-6014" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1-1024x563.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1-300x165.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1-768x422.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1-1536x844.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1-1200x659.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/NET-APM-1.jpg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">4. <strong>Redis Integration</strong></h3>



<p>With this integration, you can store, visualize, and correlate metrics between Redis and the rest of your stack, improving visibility into your infrastructure&#8217;s performance.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/0HzANz15i2TA_ATCs2gUCqYDvnNUHxhqF-GBs2YERkwk3uTMLh96ya9gKY5oxtJe0ZroNHBXvsrWfpCHHMUbsLOOTMDimY6-yOyKCEj0levmbF_NsZhN46w2Bvk2VD7ZVqc_86hzLV5N1pJJ1l1dsw" alt="Redis Integration"/></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Improvements</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Multiple routes in alerting</strong></h3>



<p>You can now use a single APM alerting rule for multiple HTTP/GRPC routes simultaneously, so you won&#8217;t need to create duplicate alert rules for each of your HTTP/GRPC routes.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Improvements in logs</strong></h3>



<p>Now you can search logs with queries and filter logs by time frames for easy access. </p>



<p>That’s all from last month. <a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for weekly product updates and recommended reads from us.</p>


From launching RUM to improvement in logs & alerting. Check all major product updates released in August 2023 here:

August Product Update: Real User Monitoring (RUM)

Real User Monitoring (RUM) is a method used to observe and analyze how actual users interact with websites or applications.

What Is Real User Monitoring (RUM)?

No more guesswork! Resolve issues faster with real-time monitoring and session replays with Middleware real user monitoring (RUM).

Introducing Middleware’s Real User Monitoring


<p>We’re constantly evolving based on customer feedback and are excited to share the progress we’ve made over the past month!</p>



<p>We have new dashboards that enable you to make deeper insights on your stack, expanded custom metric capabilities for deeper analysis of your logs, and continuous profiling for next.js. See below for more details.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-all-in-one-dashboard">1. <strong>All-in-one Dashboard</strong></h3>



<p>With our new dashboard, you can easily see all your observability data for your entire tech stack in one dashboard. No more jumping between screens to get the insights you need.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This dashboard will be our default home dashboard which you will be directed to upon <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register?utm_source=emailnewsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=productmonthly">logging in</a>. Our previous homepage dashboard &#8211; The Unified Dashboard &#8211; is still accessible through the <a href="https://p2i13hg.middleware.io/reports/builders/unified-dashboard">Dashboard Builder</a> screen.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="667" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1-1024x667.jpg" alt="All-in-one Dashboard" class="wp-image-5730" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1-1024x667.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1-300x195.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1-768x500.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1-1536x1000.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1-1200x782.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/all-in-one-dashboard-1.jpg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">2. <strong>Custom metrics for Logs</strong></h3>



<p>You can now generate metrics for your logs. Custom metrics can help you gain deeper insights into your application’s behavior and performance by extracting meaningful information from your log data.</p>



<p>Utilizing log-based metrics provides a cost-effective method for condensing log data obtained from the entire ingestion stream.</p>



<p>Read our detailed <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/log-monitoring/log-custom-metrics?utm_source=emailnewsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=productmonthly">documentation</a> to learn more about leveraging custom metrics for logs.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="570" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs-1024x570.jpg" alt="Custom metrics for Logs" class="wp-image-5731" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs-1024x570.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs-300x167.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs-768x428.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs-1536x855.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs-1200x668.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/custom-metrics-for-logs.jpg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">3. <strong>Dashboard for database monitoring&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p>With our default dashboards, you can find all critical metrics for your databases (PostgreSQL and MongoDB) in one <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/integrations/postgresql-integration">dashboard</a>. Get started monitoring your database and improving performance with our <a href="https://app.middleware.io/installation#integration/databasemonitoring">quick and easy install</a>.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">4. <strong>Continuous Profiling</strong></h3>



<p>We now support continuous profiling for Next.js, which allows you to <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/apm/continuous-profiling">profile</a> your service to visualize all your stack traces in one place. Using a heatmap style visualization, you can now simply click through all traces pertaining to an event and its child events to expedite troubleshooting and diagnosis.</p>



<p>That’s all from last month.&nbsp;<a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a>&nbsp;for weekly product updates and recommended reads from us.</p>


From all-in-one dashboard to the ability to get custom metrics for logs. Check all major product updates released in July 2023 here:

July Product Update: Custom Metrics For Logs

In this article, we will delve into the topic of Datadog pricing in 2024, exploring its pricing model, and various offerings and comparing it with Middleware. We'll analyze the positive and negative aspects of Datadog's billing system and evaluate whether it's worth investing in their services.

Datadog Pricing: Is it Worth Spending for in 2024?

Searching for right logs from a pool of logs can be challenging. That's where custom query and filtering comes into picture. In this article, we will discover how to search logs effectively using Bash command & using free log management software.

How To Search Logs Effectively With Log Management

Container monitoring plays a vital role in ensuring containerized environments' performance, scalability, security, and efficiency. In this article, we evaluated and compared 10 best Container monitoring tools, you can use to monitor your container's performance. 

10 Best Container Monitoring Tools in 2024 (Free & Paid)


<p>From Vercel partnership to Database integration, we made quite a good update last month, and we are excited to share more details with you all.<br><br>Here’s what happened last month:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-vercel-middleware-partnership">1. Vercel &lt;&gt; Middleware partnership&nbsp;</h3>



<p>We are thrilled to announce that Middleware is an <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> partner of Vercel. You can find us on the <a href="https://vercel.com/integrations/middleware">Vercel </a>marketplace.  It brings you a monitoring solution for your Vercel serverless functions and performance. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="430" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643.jpg" alt="Vercel Integration" class="wp-image-5315" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643.jpg 800w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643-300x161.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643-768x413.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></figure>



<p>Read this article to <a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/p/introducing-vercel-middleware-partnership">understand in detail </a>how you can leverage this integration.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-postgresql-database-integration">2. PostgreSQL Database integration</h3>



<p>Collect performance and health metrics for your Postgres Database and visualize it in Middleware to understand the behavior of database resource usage over time and other key metrics.&nbsp;</p>



<p>You can create alerts on your database metrics to <a href="https://middleware.io/product/database-monitoring/">monitor any unusual database performance</a>. </p>



<p>Integrate the PostgreSQL database in just a few simple <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/integrations/postgresql-integration">steps</a>.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="496" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-1024x496.jpg" alt="PostgreSQL Dashboard" class="wp-image-5501" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-1024x496.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-300x145.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-768x372.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-1536x744.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-2048x992.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-1200x581.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002438-1-1-1980x959.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-aws-cloudwatch-metrics-reports">3. AWS Cloudwatch Metrics Reports</h3>



<p>With our default reports of <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/aws/kinesis-streams">AWS CloudWatch metrics</a>, you can conveniently monitor all the important metrics in one place. We provide a pre-created dashboard that eliminates the need to create one yourself. Simply use our default dashboard to monitor your AWS CloudWatch metrics effortlessly.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="547" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-1024x547.jpg" alt="AWS Cloudwatch Metrics Reports" class="wp-image-5502" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-1024x547.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-300x160.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-768x410.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-1536x820.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-2048x1094.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-1200x641.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Group-1000003445-1-1-1980x1057.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-product-improvements"><strong>4. Product Improvements&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p><strong>We now support application logs in Java applications</strong></p>



<p>Now, you can access logs for java based applications directly on our unified dashboard and within the log module.<br><br><strong>Log customization with advanced settings</strong></p>



<p>To offer you more control, we have introduced <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/settings/advanced">advanced settings</a> for log collection. You can now specify which logs to monitor and even define custom log paths.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="541" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-1024x541.jpg" alt="advanced settings" class="wp-image-5503" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-1024x541.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-768x406.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-2048x1082.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-1200x634.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Frame-1000002434-1-1980x1046.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p><strong>Custom dashboard with K8s service data.</strong></p>



<p>Now you can list and monitor K8s service in real-time by linking K8s pods and service data and creating graphs illustrating CPU, RAM, Disk, Network usage, and many more parameters.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-ux-update">5. UX update</h3>



<p>We have added a “save filter” option to save any filter and apply it with a single click to view log data.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="541" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware-1024x541.jpg" alt="saving filters in Middleware" class="wp-image-5617" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware-1024x541.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware-768x406.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware-1200x634.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/saveing-filters-in-Middleware.jpg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>That’s all from last month. <a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for weekly product updates and recommended reads from us.</p>


From PostgreSQL integration to improved UX. Check all major product updates released in June 2023 here:

June Product Update: New Integrations

This article explains the key difference between Real User Monitoring (RUM) and Synthetic Monitoring, highlighting their unique benefits, challenges, and use cases.

RUM vs. Synthetic Monitoring: A DevOps Differential Guide

Amazon CodeGuru Profiler is the only first-party AWS Profiler by Amazon. Learn about its limitations, challenges, and expert-backed guidance on how to select the best AWS profiler:

AWS Profiler: Find and Fix Inefficiencies In Your Infrastructure

In this article, we have evaluated 14 best website monitoring tools for their features, pros, and cons. We also included our expert insights on selecting the best website monitoring tool that meets your requirements:

Top 14 website monitoring tools for 2024 (Free & Paid)

Learn the ins and outs of Python performance monitoring. Learn valuable tips, proven best practices and compare some of the best python APM tools in this guide

What is Python Performance Monitoring?


<p>We are excited to bring the critical features, including continuous profiler, cloud watch metrics, new integrations, and UX improvements, in our latest release.</p>



<p>To see what’s new in May 2023, read this release along!</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-continuous-profiler">1. <strong>Continuous profiler</strong></h3>



<p>Gain real-time visibility into your application&#8217;s performance with our new Continuous Profiler. Visualize performance through interactive timeline graphs and flame charts, allowing you to identify bottlenecks quickly. Utilize comprehensive filters, labels and values to optimize your application performance.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Best of all, there&#8217;s no additional installation required! Start utilizing <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/apm/continuous-profiling">Continuous Profiling</a> in our APM section today.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="512" height="268" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Continues-Profiler.jpg" alt="Continuous profiler" class="wp-image-5314" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Continues-Profiler.jpg 512w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Continues-Profiler-300x157.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">2. <strong>AWS Monitoring: AWS cloud watch metrics</strong></h3>



<p>With our latest AWS integration, we now support <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/aws-monitoring/">AWS monitoring</a>. Now you can correlate and track amazon cloud watch with related metrics, traces, network data, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">logs</a>, and more from across your entire stack.</p>



<p>We provide a default dashboard featuring all the essential metrics:</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="547" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-1024x547.jpg" alt="AWS Monitoring dashboard" class="wp-image-5265" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-1024x547.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-300x160.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-768x410.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-1536x820.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-2048x1094.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-1200x641.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Group-1000003445-1980x1057.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>You also have the option to create a custom dashboard with AWS metrics that matter most to you.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">3. <strong>Vercel Integration</strong></h3>



<p>Thanks to our <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/apm-configuration/next-js/vercel-integration">partnership with Vercel</a>, we now offer a monitoring solution for your Vercel serverless functions and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/website-monitoring-tools/">website performance</a>. Monitor metrics such as latency, success rate, flame graphs, traces, and API performance.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="430" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643.jpg" alt="Vercel Integration" class="wp-image-5315" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643.jpg 800w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643-300x161.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/1686132461643-768x413.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></figure>



<p>Integrating Vercel with Middleware is just a few steps away.✨ Try <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/apm-configuration/next-js/vercel-integration">these steps</a></p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">4. <strong>Pagerduty and OpsGenie Integration</strong></h3>



<p>In our ongoing effort to provide comprehensive alerting options, we have integrated with alert tools <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/integrations/pagerduty-integration">Pagerduty</a> and OpsGenie. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Pagerduty-Integration.jpg" alt="PagerDuty Integration" class="wp-image-5316" width="612" height="331" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Pagerduty-Integration.jpg 512w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Pagerduty-Integration-300x162.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 612px) 100vw, 612px" /></figure>



<p>Now you can seamlessly send your Middleware alerts to Pagerduty and OpsGenie, and view all the alert details directly on your preferred alert platform.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Opsgenie.jpg" alt="OpsGenie" class="wp-image-5317" width="611" height="335" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Opsgenie.jpg 512w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Opsgenie-300x165.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 611px) 100vw, 611px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">5. <strong>UX Improvements</strong></h3>



<ul><li>We have made significant improvements to the user experience in Middleware. Enjoy a default dashboard that consolidates all your infrastructure metrics into one convenient location. Easily customize the dashboard to prioritize the data that matters most to you.</li><li>We have added the capability to perform on-premise <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-to-use-synthetic-monitoring/">synthetic monitoring</a>:<ul><li>Once you set up a synthetic test from Middleware UI and select the &#8220;on-premise&#8221; option, The Middleware agent, which is running inside your infrastructure, receives a job to perform this synthetic test from the agent itself and sends back the result to Middleware.</li></ul></li></ul>



<p>This way, you can test your endpoint with security and compliant concerns without performing a test from an external server.</p>



<p>That’s all from last month.&nbsp;<a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a>&nbsp;for weekly product updates and recommended reads from us.</p>


From Continues profiling support to being able to monitor your AWS environment. Check all major product updates released in May 2023 here:

May Product Update: Continuous Profiler

Unlock the power of AWS monitoring with our comprehensive guide. Explore best practices, effective strategies, and essential tools to optimize performance, bolster security, and extract maximum value from your AWS infrastructure.

AWS Monitoring: A Practical Guide

Learn how to use Python logging to track errors, debug applications, and troubleshoot issues. This article covers best practices for configuring Python logging, including how to choose the right logging levels, format your logs, and filter your logs.

12 Python Logging Best Practices To Debug Apps Faster

APM helps identify performance issues before they affect users. This comprehensive guide delves into APM, its functioning, prevalent challenges, corresponding solutions, and recommended best practices.

Application Performance Monitoring: An Advanced Guide

Struggling to adopt DevOps workflow in your organization? Don't know where to begin with? We got your covered! This article covers in-depth explanation about implementing DevOps Workflow (from development to production)

Adopting DevOps Workflow; From Development to Production


<p>We have released key features, including Database monitoring, Next.js, PHP APM, MS team integration, Jira integration, and UX improvements.</p>



<p>To see what’s new in April 2023, read this release along!</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-database-monitoring">1. <strong>Database monitoring</strong></h3>



<p>Get complete visibility into your databases across all of your hosts. Monitor your database with query metrics, track response time, throughput, errors, and most frequent queries, and optimize resources with database monitoring.<br><br>Get started with <a href="https://middleware.io/product/database-monitoring/">Database Monitoring</a> without extra installation.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="537" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-1024x537.jpg" alt="Database monitoring" class="wp-image-5007" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-1024x537.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-300x157.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-768x402.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-1536x805.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-2048x1073.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-1200x629.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/database-monitoring-dashboard-1980x1038.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">2. <strong>Next.JS APM</strong></h3>



<p>Monitor performance, issues, and errors for applications built in Next. JS. Keep track of browser-related metrics and application metrics like apdex score, Ajax request, page views, and throughput and find the root causes quickly.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<p>Get started with Next.Js APM with simple <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/nextjs">installation.</a></p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-1024x539.jpg" alt="Next.JS APM" class="wp-image-5009" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002399-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">3. <strong>Microsoft Team integration</strong></h3>



<p>You can now get notifications on your preferred communication channels. Real-time notifications in MS Team make communication easy, and your team can respond faster to any alert you receive.</p>



<p>Integrate Microsoft team and configure alerts with simple <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/microsoft-team-integration">installation</a>.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-1024x539.jpg" alt="Microsoft Team Integration" class="wp-image-5010" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002402-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>4. Jira integration</strong></h3>



<p>Assign alerts, logs, metrics, and important data directly to your team in Jira with this integration. With our two-way integration, you can update the status of the Jira task directly and get updated status in Jira and Middleware.<br><br>Get started with Jira integration with simple <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/jira-integration">installation</a>.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="506" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80-1024x506.png" alt="Jira Integration" class="wp-image-5011" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80-1024x506.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80-300x148.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80-768x380.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80-1536x760.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80-1200x593.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/image-80.png 1919w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">5. <strong>Alert improvements</strong></h3>



<p>You can now directly assign an alert in Middleware to your team member in one step. Also, you can manage the status of alerts (Pending, resolved, ignored)</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">6. <strong>Custom Dashboard builder improvements</strong></h3>



<p>With our latest update in the dashboard builder, you can get data updated in real time without any delay in the custom dashboard.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-1024x539.jpg" alt="Custom Dashboard builder improvements" class="wp-image-5012" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Frame-1000002401-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>We have added new visualization types for the dashboard builder; you can use a tree chart, pie chart, or top list chart view while building the custom dashboard.</p>



<p>That’s all from last month.&nbsp;<a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a>&nbsp;for weekly product updates and recommended reads from us.</p>


From introducing the Database monitoring capabilities to improved alerts. Check all major product updates released in April 2023 here:

April Product Updates: Database Monitoring

Struggling to measure the performance of your DevOps team? Here are 10+ key DevOps metrics you should be tracking in 2024!

11 DevOps Metrics You Should Be Monitoring in 2024!

Discover the critical role of Kubernetes observability in managing containerized applications. Read this article to learn about essential components to monitor and best practices for maximum efficiency and reliability.

Mastering Kubernetes Observability: A DevOps Engineer’s Guide

Synthetic monitoring is essential for ensuring the optimal performance of websites and applications in the digital landscape. This article provides insights into how it works and how it can help organizations maintain high-performance standards and protect their bottom lines.

What is Synthetic Monitoring? How It Enhances Application Performance

Want to free up your SREs, DevOps and IT teams time from doing the repetitive daily operations? Then tool consolidation is your answer! Know what is it and how it can help you here: 

Want to Achieve Full Observability? Tool Consolidation is the Key


<p>We have released key features, including AI-based Insights, performance enhancements, and UX improvements.</p>



<p>See what’s new in March 2023!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-middleware-advisor-ai-powered-insights">1. Middleware advisor (AI-powered insights)</h2>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-ai-based-insights-can-change-the-observability/">Middleware AI detection</a> will detect all the issues from infra and applications and give better and more detailed recommendations for fixing them.<br><br>To view AI-based insights and recommendations, follow these simple steps:</p>



<ul><li><a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/login">Login to Middleware</a></li><li>Go to “Advisor” from the left menu</li><li>View issues and recommendations with the impacted resource in the table.</li><li>Click on any issue and see detailed recommendations with steps to fix that issue.</li></ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-trace-php-applications">2. Trace PHP applications</h2>



<p>Once PHP APM is installed, it provides you with <a href="https://middleware.io/product/distributed-tracing/">distributed tracing</a> to visualize the full execution path of requests and detailed performance metrics for each of your services, endpoints, and database queries.</p>



<p><a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/php-apm-setup"><em>Install the PHP APM with easy steps.</em></a></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-single-script-installation">3. Single script installation</h2>



<p>You can collect all the data from the application and infrastructure, including Metrics, Logs, Traces, Events, Errors, Kubernetes clusters, and app running into it, with one script and without giving a lot of resources to our agents. </p>



<p><em>Get started with <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/installation">one script installation</a>.</em></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-ui-updates">4. UI updates</h2>



<p>Here are some improvements in our internal systems to foster &amp; improve the user experience:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-i-trace-profiling">i) Trace profiling</h3>



<p>View the trace&#8217;s details in the timeline, including the time it took for each step and the execution time.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="643" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-1024x643.jpg" alt="traces-profiling" class="wp-image-4491" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-1024x643.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-300x188.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-768x482.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-1536x964.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-2048x1286.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-1200x753.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/traces-profiling-1980x1243.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ii-custom-dashboard">ii) Custom Dashboard</h3>



<p>Create your custom dashboard with the data that matter most to you in just a few steps.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/custom-dashboard-by-Middleware.jpg" alt="custom dashboard by Middleware" class="wp-image-4709" width="611" height="296" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/custom-dashboard-by-Middleware.jpg 512w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/custom-dashboard-by-Middleware-300x145.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 611px) 100vw, 611px" /></figure>



<p>That&#8217;s all from last month. <a href="https://newsletters.middleware.io/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for weekly product updates and recommended reads from us. </p>


From AI-powered Insights to improved UI. Check all major product updates released in March 2023 here: 

March Product Update: AI-Powered Insights

Struggling to collect logs for your K8s application? We got you covered! Read more about K8s logging, various methods, best practices and tools in this detailed guide:

Kubernetes Logging: A Practical Guide


<p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the way we process and analyze data. In the field of observability, <strong>AI-powered insights</strong> are proving to be particularly valuable. Moreover, with the rise of cloud-native architectures and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/microservices-architecture/">microservices</a>, observability has become essential for modern IT operations.&nbsp;</p>



<p>AI-powered insights can help organizations better understand and manage their complex systems by providing real-time analysis and automated actions based on collected data.</p>



<p>In this article, we will explore how AI-powered insights using GPT-4 can enhance observability and provide valuable insights for IT operations teams.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-standard-approach-to-infrastructure-monitoring">The standard approach to Infrastructure monitoring</h2>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/product/infrastructure-monitoring/">Infrastructure monitoring</a> has been an essential aspect of IT operations for a long time. The standard approach to infrastructure monitoring involves collecting data from different sources, such as servers, networks, and applications, and analyzing that data to gain insights into the performance and health of the infrastructure and send alerts in case of an issue.&nbsp;</p>



<p>However, it is no longer the best approach in today&#8217;s fast-paced and complex IT environments.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The massive amounts of data generated by today&#8217;s applications and services make it difficult for human operators to identify issues and respond to issues quickly. As a result, IT teams are turning to AI-based insights to gain a better understanding of their <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-infrastructure-monitoring/">infrastructure performance</a>.</p>



<p>AI-based insights have transformed the infrastructure monitoring landscape by providing an intelligent and automated approach to <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a>. This approach involves using machine learning algorithms to analyze large volumes of data to identify patterns that may indicate potential issues and AI-powered solutions to fix them.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-ai-based-insights-can-change-the-observability-space-in-2024">How AI-based insights can change the Observability space in 2024</h2>



<p>AI-based insights have revolutionized the world of DevOps in 2023 and it is expected to change the game even further in 2024. Integrating AI into Ops has enabled automating of various processes, streamlining workflows, and reducing Mean Time to Repair (MTTR). </p>



<p>With AI-based insights, organizations can <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">leverage smart alerts</a> that can detect and diagnose issues in real time along with their possible solution, enabling IT teams to respond quickly and prevent further disruptions.</p>



<p>By leveraging machine learning algorithms and predictive analytics, AI-based insights can analyze vast amounts of data and identify potential issues before they occur. This helps IT teams to proactively address these issues, reducing the time required to identify and resolve them.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Furthermore, AI insights can help in root cause analysis, allowing teams to identify the underlying cause of the issue and prevent it from recurring in the future.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-data-does-middleware-provide-as-insights-using-ai-automation">What data does Middleware provide as insights using AI automation?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>Middleware has integration with the most powerful AI tool, ChatGPT-4. And using ChatGPT-4, middleware predicts the root cause behind the issue and presents smart solutions to resolve them.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Here’s what it looks like in action:&nbsp;</p>



<div style="position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0;"><iframe src="https://www.loom.com/embed/29252ad8b7cd43f18ab81397c12fccd7" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen="" style="position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%;"></iframe></div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-middleware-s-ai-powered-insights-help"><strong>Middleware’s AI-powered insights help:</strong></h3>



<p>1. Auto-detect all the <a href="https://middleware.io/product/log-monitoring/">logs errors from infrastructure</a> and application to give better solutions within the platform</p>



<p>2. Get a list of all resources which need to be fixed.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-1024x539.jpg" alt="AI-powered insights dashboard" class="wp-image-4607" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2791-1-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>3. Application error trace to find the route cause</p>



<p>4. Unify all the vital core issues in the platform</p>



<p>5. Find the solution (recommendation) for each issue with detailed steps.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="984" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-1024x984.jpg" alt="AI-powered Insights " class="wp-image-4610" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-1024x984.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-300x288.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-768x738.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-1536x1476.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-2048x1969.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-1200x1153.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/IMG_2790-1-1980x1903.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>6. The critical insight of the platform issue and actionable items to fix it.</p>



<p>7. History of error produced and a 360-degree view of your infrastructure and applications</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-benefits-of-adopting-ai-powered-insights">Benefits of adopting AI-powered insights</h2>



<p>With Middleware’s AI-based insights, you don’t need to go and look at each service and machine to check issues. MW AI advisor lists all the issues with details like affected resources and detailed solutions so you can make the fix faster.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Additionally, AI-based insights will help you fix your infrastructure issues before your user get impacted.&nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> offers three Categories (critical, medium, and low) that will help you identify and prioritize issues.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion</h3>



<p>With AI-powered insights, IT operations teams can quickly identify and resolve issues, improving system performance, reducing downtime, and enhancing customer experiences.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Middleware is offering AI-powered insights for free to all its user. So grab the opportunity to give it a try. <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sign up now</a>; it’s free.&nbsp;</p>


AI-based insights have revolutionized the world of Observability, and it is expected to change the game even further in 2024. Here's how:

How AI-Based Insights Can Change The Observability in 2024


<p>AWS dominates the cloud computing industry, and rightfully so. With its simplified server and service setup, and powerful monitoring solution, AWS is the go-to choice for IT teams and organizations worldwide. Despite all that, AWS monitoring can still be a daunting task.</p>



<p>Therefore, it is crucial to understand AWS monitoring completely to ensure that your cloud-based tasks run efficiently. Today, we’ll discuss seven <strong>AWS monitoring best practices</strong> you must know. But let’s sort the basics first.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-aws-monitoring"><strong>What is AWS Monitoring?</strong></h2>



<p>AWS monitoring is the practice of<strong> </strong>checking on the health and performance of your Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud infrastructure. The goal is to identify issues before they escalate, cause significant disruption, and ensure that your AWS resources run efficiently.</p>



<p>You can track metrics like CPU usage, memory usage, network traffic, and storage capacity. You can also <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">set up alerts</a> to notify you of any anomalies in your infrastructure. This way, you can take timely action to prevent any potential downtime or performance issues.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-is-monitoring-aws-important"><strong>Why is Monitoring AWS important?</strong></h2>



<p>Monitoring AWS is crucial for several reasons. When you’re monitoring AWS, you&#8217;re constantly on the lookout for any signs of trouble, from sneaky resource hogs to suspicious security breaches. </p>



<p>Let’s look at these reasons in detail:</p>



<ol>
<li><strong>Identify and Resolve Issues: </strong>Monitoring AWS helps you identify and resolve issues before they escalate and hamper your operational efficiency.</li>



<li><strong>Ensure High Availability: </strong>AWS monitoring ensures that your resources are available and that you can take timely action to prevent any potential downtime.</li>



<li><strong>Optimize Resource Utilization: </strong>AWS monitoring can identify areas where you can reduce costs. This enables you to optimize your resource utilization.</li>



<li><strong>Ensure Security: </strong>AWS monitoring helps ensure the security of your cloud infrastructure by tracking any suspicious activities or security breaches. You can also follow multiple <strong>AWS monitoring and alerting best practices</strong> for the same.</li>
</ol>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-aws-monitoring-best-practices-you-must-know-in-2024"><strong>7 AWS Monitoring Best Practices You Must Know in 202</strong>4</h2>



<p>Software engineers usually rely on application instrumentation frameworks to get insights into application issues. These frameworks provide valuable insights into the performance of code and applications and can include tools like breakpoints/debuggers and logging instrumentation.</p>



<p>However, relying solely on manual processes is not always practical in larger, multi-cloud environments. To help ensure AWS <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> in these more complex environments, you must keep the following AWS monitoring best practices in mind.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-define-monitoring-goals"><strong>1. Define Monitoring Goals</strong></h3>



<p>According to a<a href="https://aws.amazon.com/cloudops/monitoring-and-observability/?whats-new-cards.sort-by=item.additionalFields.postDateTime&amp;whats-new-cards.sort-order=desc&amp;blog-posts-cards.sort-by=item.additionalFields.createdDate&amp;blog-posts-cards.sort-order=desc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> survey</a> conducted by Amazon Web Services in 2021, 71% of IT decision-makers reported that <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability-vs-monitoring/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">monitoring and observability</a> were the top cloud initiatives for their organizations.</p>



<p>But, in order to do that effectively, you need to sort out and define your monitoring goals first.</p>



<p>Focus on the following questions:</p>



<ul>
<li>What are you trying to achieve?</li>



<li>What are your top priorities?</li>
</ul>



<p>Once you have the answers, you can develop a monitoring strategy that outlines the metrics you&#8217;ll use to track the health of your systems.</p>



<p>What next? Have clear processes in place for responding to alerts and incidents. In case of incidents, you’ll need to quickly identify the root cause of the issue and take action before it escalates. </p>



<p>Create an incident response plan with well-defined steps you&#8217;ll take to minimize the impact of any issues.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-collect-and-analyze-data-from-all-areas-of-your-aws-environment"><strong>2. Collect and Analyze Data from All Areas of Your AWS Environment:</strong></h3>



<p><strong>Multiple Amazon services (and platforms) have different roles and specifications. </strong>Some might seem like a better fit for your needs, and some won’t. However, creating a monitoring plan that collects data from all areas of your AWS environment is essential.</p>



<p>With complete visibility, you can efficiently collect and analyze data, enabling you to address multi-point failures as and when they occur quickly. </p>



<p>It&#8217;s important to have answers to basic monitoring questions to save time when navigating different areas of your <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-infrastructure-guide/">cloud infrastructure</a>. Some of these questions include:</p>



<ul>
<li>What resources are being monitored?</li>



<li>Who is responsible for monitoring them?</li>



<li>How often are they monitored?</li>
</ul>



<p>We at Middleware have integration with CloudWatch and CloudTrail, allowing you to collect data from all areas of your AWS environment.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-use-the-right-aws-monitoring-tools"><strong>3. Use the Right AWS Monitoring Tools</strong></h3>



<p>The right AWS monitoring tool is essential to monitor your AWS infrastructure effectively. There’s a variety of monitoring tools available, and hence selecting the right one becomes challenging.</p>



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<p>Choose a tool that fits your needs and clearly understands your AWS infrastructure&#8217;s performance. Consider the following factors while selecting the right AWS monitoring tool for your organization:</p>



<ul>
<li>Level of automation to reduce routine tasks</li>



<li>Ease of use and customization capabilities</li>



<li>Cost-effectiveness and its value for money</li>



<li>The tool&#8217;s ability to integrate with your existing infrastructure</li>



<li>How well it can <a href="https://middleware.io/product/infrastructure-monitoring/">monitor your infrastructure&#8217;s various components</a>, such as servers, applications, and databases.</li>
</ul>



<p>Consider Middleware, a cloud-based monitoring platform that offers real-time visibility into your AWS monitoring infrastructure. You can use its comprehensive tools, automated alerting, customer dashboard, etc., to <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/aws-monitoring/">monitor your AWS environment</a>. </p>



<p>Other alternative options are,&nbsp; Datadog, <a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/dynatrace-alternative/">Dynatrance</a>, and AppDynamics.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-automate-monitoring-tasks-as-much-as-possible"><strong>4. Automate Monitoring Tasks as Much as Possible</strong></h3>



<p>Automating monitoring tasks is an essential part of maintaining a stable and efficient AWS infrastructure. It lets you can free up valuable time for your team to focus on more strategic tasks and minimize the risk of human error.</p>



<p>Here are some tips to help you automate your monitoring tasks in AWS:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Use AWS CloudFormation:</strong> It lets you define your infrastructure as code and automate the provisioning and configuration of your resources.</li>



<li><strong>Use AWS Lambda: </strong>A <a href="https://middleware.io/product/serverless-monitoring/">serverless computing service</a> that lets you run code in response to events or triggers. You can automate monitoring tasks like log processing and data aggregation using AWS Lambda.</li>



<li><strong>Use AWS Config</strong>: This service allows you to track changes to your AWS resources and enforce compliance policies. You can use Config rules to automate monitoring tasks, such as checking for security vulnerabilities and resource misconfigurations.</li>



<li><strong>Leverage machine learning: </strong>Machine learning algorithms can help you detect patterns and anomalies in your data that may be difficult to identify manually. AWS offers a range of machine learning services, such as Amazon SageMaker and Amazon Rekognition, that can be used for monitoring and analysis.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-setup-alerts-and-smartly-route-them-to-the-correct-person"><strong>5. Setup Alerts and Smartly Route Them to the Correct Person</strong></h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">Setting up alerts</a> is a crucial aspect of AWS monitoring. It enables you to receive notifications at the time of incidents. This allows you to take quick action and resolve issues before it affects your end users.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="507" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-1024x507.jpg" alt="Alerts, AWS monitoring best practice" class="wp-image-4571" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-1024x507.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-300x148.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-768x380.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-1536x760.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-2048x1013.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-1200x594.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002361-1-1980x980.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Ensure that these alerts are routed to the right person or team. Here are some best practices for setting up alerts in AWS:</p>



<ul>
<li>Define appropriate thresholds for your alerts. They should be based on the specific requirements of your infrastructure. Setting too high or too low thresholds can lead to unnecessary alerts or missed critical issues.</li>



<li>Configure notification preferences for alerts, including the method of notification (email, SMS, etc.), the recipient, and the severity level. Use AWS Simple Notification Service (SNS) to route notifications to multiple recipients or endpoints.</li>



<li>Use escalation policies to ensure that alerts are routed to the appropriate person or team based on severity level or time sensitivity.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-check-the-log-files-on-your-ec2-instances"><strong>6. Check the Log Files on Your EC2 Instances</strong></h3>



<p>Checking log files on your <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/aws-terminology-101-a-complete-glossary/">EC2 instances</a> is one of the important AWS monitoring best practices. Log files provide valuable information about your system events, errors, and application performance.</p>



<p>To check log files on EC2 instances, you can SSH into the instance and navigate to the relevant log files.</p>



<p>Collect the following log data:</p>



<ul>
<li><strong>Database Logs:</strong> To detect slow queries.</li>



<li><strong>Application Logs:</strong> Understand the reasons behind application failure.</li>



<li><strong>AWS CloudTrail Logs:</strong> To detect API calls made to the application.</li>



<li><strong>OS Logs: </strong>To identify host-failure reasons.</li>



<li><strong>Web Server Logs:</strong> To capture firewall logs and VPC logs for patterns of access and attacks.</li>
</ul>



<p>However, manually checking log files can be time-consuming and inefficient, especially in larger environments. That&#8217;s where log monitoring tools, such as Middleware, can come in handy.</p>



<p>To simplify the process, you can use tools like Middleware to collect log data from multiple sources, including EC2 instances, and provides centralized log analysis.&nbsp;</p>



<p>You can search, filter, and <a href="https://middleware.io/product/log-monitoring/">analyze log data</a>, set up alerts and notifications, and quickly troubleshoot issues in your AWS environment.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="537" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-1024x537.jpeg" alt="Middleware for Log monitoring" class="wp-image-4569" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-1024x537.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-300x157.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-768x403.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-1536x806.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-2048x1074.jpeg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-1200x630.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1-1980x1039.jpeg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-monitor-costs"><strong>7. Monitor Costs</strong></h3>



<p>Although AWS offers automatic scalability and elasticity to systems, monitoring costs continuously to ensure resource utilization stays within a budget is important.</p>



<p>Here are some tips to keep costs in check:</p>



<ul>
<li>Map resources to requirements: Reduce costs by stopping or resizing low-utilization instances, databases, and other resources.</li>



<li>Locate resource waste: Snapshot and delete low-utilization EBS volumes and idle load balancers to reduce costs. Use low-cost storage tiers for infrequently accessed S3 objects.</li>



<li>Ensure reliability: Monitor workloads using logs and metrics and set up notifications for significant events and threshold violations.</li>
</ul>



<p>Amazon Web Services (AWS) offers a varied range of tools (free and paid) to help you monitor your systems. Let’s have a look at the two most prominent first-party AWS monitoring tools.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-aws-cloudtrail"><strong>1. AWS CloudTrail</strong></h3>



<p>It enables you to track events across your account by automatically recording event logs and activity logs for your services and storing the data in S3.</p>



<p>These logs include critical information such as user identities, traffic origin IPs, and timestamps. While management events can be viewed for free for the last 90 days, data events and insights based on your data are available for an additional fee.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-aws-cloudwatch"><strong>2. AWS CloudWatch</strong></h3>



<p>CloudWatch lets you collect and analyze metrics from various sources.</p>



<p>It consists of two primary parts:</p>



<ul>
<li>Alarms: These generate notifications based on predefined thresholds for individual metrics.</li>



<li>Events: These enable you to automate actions based on metric values or system changes.</li>
</ul>



<p>Additionally, CloudWatch provides tools for visualizing metrics and logs, making it easier to monitor (and troubleshoot) your systems.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-third-party-aws-monitoring-tools"><strong>Top Third-Party AWS Monitoring Tools</strong></h2>



<p>AWS provides multiple built-in tools for monitoring your cloud environment. However, many organizations choose to use third-party tools to supplement these monitoring capabilities.</p>



<p>Let’s take a closer look at some of the top third-party AWS monitoring tools:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-middleware">1. Middleware</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Middleware</a> is a monitoring platform that specializes in complex, multi-tiered applications. It provides comprehensive management of both the application layer and underlying infrastructure, as well as intelligent alerting and visualization features.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-datadog">2. Datadog</h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/datadog-alternative/">Datadog</a>, a cloud-based monitoring platform, offers real-time visibility into metrics and logs from your AWS infrastructure. It supports a wide range of AWS services and provides advanced features such as anomaly detection and machine learning-based forecasting.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-dynatrace">3. Dynatrace</h3>



<p><a href="https://www.dynatrace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">Dynatrace</a> is an AI-powered monitoring platform that provides full-stack observability for your AWS applications and infrastructure. It automatically discovers and maps your entire environment and uses machine learning to provide insights and recommendations for optimizing performance and reducing downtime.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-to-conclude"><strong>To Conclude</strong></h2>



<p>Utilizing appropriate AWS monitoring tools can significantly transform your cloud operations and enable you to:</p>



<ul>
<li>Detect cost inefficiencies</li>



<li>Allocate costs more confidently</li>



<li>And avoid unpleasant surprises during billing cycles.</li>
</ul>



<p>However, relying solely on tools won&#8217;t solve all monitoring challenges. Implementing the above-mentioned AWS monitoring best practices and using the right tools is essential for building a solid foundation. </p>



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<p>Adopting these practices and tools can help you prevent minor issues from escalating into major (and costly) problems.</p>



<p>Simplify the process and adopt a full-stack observability platform, Middleware, that comes with built-in AWS monitoring best practices. <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sign up now</a>; it’s free!&nbsp;</p>


Monitoring AWS environment continues to be one of the rising challenges in cloud computing industry. Here are 7 expert backed AWS monitoring best practices to help you monitor your AWS environment effectively:

7 AWS Monitoring Best Practices in 2024


<p>In 2023, modern systems and applications have become more complex and distributed, making it difficult to pinpoint the root cause of issues when they occur. Even the reliance on digital services has increased so much that organizations need to ensure their systems are always available and performing at their best.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<p>Hence, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> has become essential for organizations to monitor their systems and applications effectively. It helps organizations gain insights into their systems&#8217; behavior, including their dependencies and interactions, making identifying and troubleshooting issues easier.</p>



<p>It also provides a holistic view of system performance that includes metrics, logs, and traces, enabling IT, security, and DevOps teams to monitor and optimize their systems&#8217; health and reliability proactively.</p>



<p>Therefore, it becomes important to keep in touch with the latest observability trends and predictions expected to shape the industry in 2023. Let&#8217;s find out.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-critical-observability-trends-and-predictions-for-2023"><strong>6 Critical Observability trends and predictions for 2023</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-applied-observability-will-become-the-new-normal">1. Applied Observability will become the new normal</h3>



<p>Applied observability involves using observable data in a coordinated and integrated manner across various business functions, applications, and I&amp;O teams.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="732" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888-1024x732.jpeg" alt="Applied observability Survey" class="wp-image-4524" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888-1024x732.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888-300x214.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888-768x549.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888-1536x1097.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888-1200x857.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002888.jpeg 1754w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>The goal is to enable quick decision-making and proactive planning by minimizing the time between taking action and seeing results.</p>



<p>In one of their reports,<a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/documents/4020028"> Gartner</a> ranked applied observatory as number two on its list of top ten strategic <strong>observability trends</strong> for 2023.</p>



<p>This pertains to using holistic and coordinated data-driven decision-making and strategies and implementing enterprise and data architectures and Data Ops practices in a cross-functional or business unit capacity.</p>



<p>On top of that, Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG)<a href="https://opsmatters.com/posts/2023-trends-aiops-observability-and-itops"> predicts</a> that in 2023, investing in observability can reduce average downtime costs by almost 90%. From $23.9 million for organizations in the early stages of their observability journey to just $2.5 million for those with mature programs, resulting in significant ROI.</p>



<p>Additionally, IDC&#8217;s research indicates that organizations that implement observability can benefit in various ways, such as:</p>



<ul><li><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/developer-productivity/">Improving productivity</a> and collaboration among IT staff</li><li>Enabling faster and more accurate IT and business decision-making</li><li>Strengthening their cybersecurity posture and practices</li><li>Driving digital innovation</li><li>Enhancing customer and employee digital experiences</li></ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="integrated-observability-business-data">2. Integrated Observability &amp; business data</h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="584" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1-1024x584.jpg" alt="Evolution of Observability" class="wp-image-4526" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1-1024x584.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1-300x171.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1-768x438.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1-1536x875.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1-1200x684.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002887-1.jpg 1604w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>As the volume of data generated by organizations continues to grow, it has become challenging to gain meaningful insights from disparate sources of information.</p>



<p>Integrated observability solutions that consolidate data like (database logs, activity logs, timestamps, etc.) from various sources into a single, unified platform are gaining traction.&nbsp;</p>



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<p>Integrating observability with business data can help break down silos between IT and business units. For instance, some time back, Hotstar (an OTT platform that streams cricket matches) was at its peak live visitors during India vs. Pakistan cricket match, when they suddenly noticed a sudden decline in live visitors.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Reason? They had a payment gateway after five minutes, and when a user tried to pay for the purchase, the payment gateway would not process the transaction. As a result, the application didn’t allow them to continue watching the match.&nbsp;</p>



<p>They quickly found and resolved the error because they had one unified observability solution to monitor their entire end-to-end infrastructure. And more importantly, they knew how a single error could affect the entire business.&nbsp;</p>



<p>With a shared understanding of how IT impacts business outcomes, teams can work together more effectively to drive innovation and improve performance. Organizations can also comprehensively understand how their IT systems impact business outcomes.</p>



<p>It also enables IT teams to identify issues and opportunities that can impact the business. For example, identifying:</p>



<ul><li>The root cause of a performance issue that is impacting the user experience</li><li>A trend in customer behavior can inform new product development</li></ul>



<p>Some key players that have caught up with this trend are <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> and <a href="https://middleware.io/comparison/datadog-alternative/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Datadog</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="use-ai-observability">3. Use of AI in Observability</h3>



<p>Automation (one of the hottest <strong>observability trends</strong>) will play a crucial role in 2023 as businesses face economic challenges and aim to do more with less. It enables companies to redirect skilled resources toward tasks with the most impact, speeding up <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-digital-transformation/">digital transformation</a> and innovation efforts.</p>



<p>AI-powered observability solutions will continue to help IT teams:</p>



<ul><li>Detect issues on the agent level, providing granular visibility into system performance. These platforms can also help IT teams search and filter vast amounts of data quickly, making pinpointing the root cause of issues easier.</li><li>Create custom dashboards that provide real-time visibility into system performance. It enables IT teams to monitor critical metrics and track trends over time.</li><li>Provide alerts and suggestions for fixing issues, enabling IT teams to resolve problems quickly and efficiently.</li><li>Detect anomalies that may be indicative of issues. By leveraging machine learning algorithms, observability platforms can identify patterns that deviate from the norm, helping IT teams to identify issues before they become critical problems.</li><li>Provide actionable insights by summarizing data into easy-to-understand visualizations. This feature allows IT teams to monitor system performance and make informed decisions quickly.</li></ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="organizations-will-cut-multiple-observability">4. Organizations will cut the use of multiple observability tools</h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="662" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-1024x662.jpg" alt="DevOps Monitoring &amp; Observability tools" class="wp-image-4474" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-1024x662.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-300x194.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-768x497.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-1200x776.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1.jpg 1252w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Using multiple observability tools can create silos between different teams, making it harder to comprehensively view system performance. According to Grafana’s 2023 observability report, that surveyed 250+ respondents, 11% said their company uses 16 or more observability tools.</p>



<p>The challenge with having multiple observability tools is that each tool has its own learning curve, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/opentelemetry-collector/">data collection method</a>, agents, and cost.</p>



<p>Therefore, in 2023, organizations are more likely to cut the use of these tools and go for an integrated approach.</p>



<p>Integrated observability solutions like Middleware provide a single source of truth for system performance, enabling teams to monitor critical metrics and track trends over time.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"><p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/best-practices/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observability best practices</a></p></blockquote>



<p>These solutions provide a unified view of system performance across the entire technology stack. This will help teams to identify issues faster, resolve them more efficiently, and improve overall system performance.</p>



<p>In addition, solutions like Middleware can provide automated root cause analysis, making it easier for teams to identify the underlying cause of issues and resolve them quickly.</p>



<p>By reducing the need for manual analysis, teams can free up time to focus on more strategic tasks, such as innovation and digital transformation.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="observability-cybersecurity">5. Observability for cybersecurity</h3>



<p>Cybersecurity is something that is majorly missing from the beginning of the development process.</p>



<p>Many vendors build security mechanisms, but usually, engineers are conditioned to outsource the responsibility of secure code to the security team and expect them to identify the system’s vulnerabilities.</p>



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<p>This system doesn’t work anymore. How about you provide sufficient signals to engineers with controls and policies in place? For instance, engineers couldn’t deploy or merge code unless the security parameters were met.</p>



<p>This ensures that security becomes aforethought in the development process from the beginning. Although some may view these measures as burdensome for engineering teams, failing to meet security or cost standards can lead to delayed responses and increased risks.</p>



<p>Addressing security concerns upfront can streamline the development process and prevent the need for time-consuming and inefficient fixes later on.</p>



<p>The<a href="https://newrelic.com/observability-forecast/2022/state-of-observability"> 2022 Observability Forecast</a> highlights the growing importance of security, governance, risk, and compliance in driving the need for observability, with 49% of respondents citing it as a top <strong>observability trend.</strong></p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="finOps-will-use-cost-golden-signal">6. FinOps will use cost as a golden signal</h3>



<p>Another <strong>observability trend </strong>that will become increasingly important in 2023 is the need to monitor and optimize the cost per transaction.</p>



<p>As organizations look at cost-cuttings in the current economic climate, traditional metrics such as latency, throughput, and errors are no longer sufficient.</p>



<p>Instead, FinOps departments are being established to oversee budget consumption, and engineers are being involved in the process to make more informed decisions about what to work on and how to deploy code.</p>



<p>Organizations must consider cost as a &#8220;golden signal&#8221; and analyze it alongside other metrics to gain better visibility into resource usage.</p>



<p>This enables engineers to make data-driven spending decisions and optimize costs. Companies have utilized this approach and tools like sensitivity analysis to maximize business value by analyzing cost data in the context of the business function it supports.</p>



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<p>The trend towards more holistic observability is expected to continue to grow in importance in 2023. It involves the involvement of engineers in the cost optimization process.</p>



<p>By considering a broader range of metrics and involving cross-functional teams in the monitoring and optimization process, organizations can gain a more comprehensive view of system performance and make better-informed decisions.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="in-conclusion"><strong>In Conclusion</strong></h2>



<p>The observability market is set to change as it moves towards comprehensive end-to-end observability solutions.</p>



<p><strong>Observability trends </strong>in 2023 reflect the need for organizations to balance efficiency and innovation while navigating challenging economic times.</p>



<p>Applied observability, integrated observability, business data, the use of AI in observability, cutting the use of multiple observability tools, observability for cybersecurity, and democratizing observability are the key trends and predictions for 2023.</p>



<p>By implementing these trends, organizations can gain real-time visibility into system performance, improve decision-making, strengthen cybersecurity posture, drive digital innovation, and enhance customer and employee digital experiences.</p>


Observability trends in 2023 reflect the need for organizations to balance efficiency and innovation while navigating challenging economic times. Read more about emerging Observability trends in this article.

6 Key Observability Trends and Predictions for 2023


<p>According to data from the latest IT spending <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1105798/it-spending-share-revenue-by-industry/">reports</a>, SaaS companies spend 18% of their total revenue on IT. The number is 11% for Tech hosting/cloud companies. That’s why reducing IT costs is vital in 2023.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Observability is the key that can help businesses reduce their IT spending.&nbsp;</p>



<p><strong>So, What is observability? And how to reduce IT Costs with observability?&nbsp;</strong></p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a>, as we all know, is the ability to identify a system’s internal state based on the data from its external state.&nbsp;</p>



<p>We&#8217;ll answer the second question by breaking it down into seven ways to use observability to reduce costs while improving uptime, data transparency and analytical power. Continue reading for more!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-observability-and-it-costs-an-overview"><strong>Observability and IT costs- An Overview</strong></h2>



<p>Many enterprises are under pressure to cut IT costs.</p>



<p>According to a recent survey by<a href="https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022-10-19-gartner-forecasts-worldwide-it-spending-to-grow-5-percent-in-2023"> Gartner</a>, an average enterprise will spend 5.1 percent of its IT operations and maintenance (O&amp;M), with an estimated 11.3 percent going toward software licenses.&nbsp;</p>



<p>That&#8217;s a significant portion of the overall budget that can be put to better use elsewhere. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce IT costs through observability.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-ways-to-reduce-costs-with-observability"><strong>7 Ways To Reduce Costs With Observability</strong></h2>



<p>You may have heard about observability from people discussing monitoring, logging and metrics. While those are all critical parts of observability, it&#8217;s more than just the tools used to capture data.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s also about how you use that data to decide about your services, applications and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-infrastructure-monitoring/">infrastructure</a>.</p>



<p>By using the following observability techniques mentioned below, you can reduce costs:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-building-an-agile-development-culture"><strong>1. Building an Agile development culture</strong></h3>



<p>With observability tools, you can quickly identify and reduce unnecessary resource use (e.g., CPU) that affects performance before it affects users or applications.</p>



<p>For example, if an application runs on a server that needs only 50% of its CPU but currently uses 100%, this could be due to an inefficient algorithm or lousy code.</p>



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<p>By identifying this kind of problem early on, you can optimize your code and prevent future performance issues from arising.</p>



<p>The ability to respond quickly to changing business needs is critical for any software company. If your application stops working at any moment, it may cause huge losses for your company and your clients and partners.</p>



<p>For example, with observability tools, you can easily monitor how your system behaves from start to finish without writing a single line of code or restarting your app every time it crashes unexpectedly.</p>



<p>You can also see how long each request takes from beginning to end, so you&#8217;ll know exactly what&#8217;s going wrong if there&#8217;s any problem with an endpoint or <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/microservices-architecture/">microservice</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-reduce-the-need-for-multiple-observability-tools"><strong>2. Reduce the need for multiple observability tools</strong></h3>



<p>Using one centralized platform for managing all your applications and infrastructure allows you to get a holistic view of the health of your entire system.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="662" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-1024x662.jpg" alt="DevOps Monitoring &amp; Observability Tools" class="wp-image-4474" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-1024x662.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-300x194.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-768x497.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1-1200x776.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Group-1000002881-1.jpg 1252w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>This is especially important regarding security incidents because they can happen anywhere in the system.</p>



<p>Once you&#8217;ve got everything in one place, you can quickly identify problems and take action before they turn into serious issues that impact customer experience or business operations.</p>



<p>Grafana Labs’ latest <a href="https://grafana.com/observability-survey-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observability 2023 report</a> claims, &#8220;Centralized observability saves other teams from having to build their own monitoring infrastructure.”</p>



<p>With a single, centralized observability tool like Middleware, you can get all the data you need in one place: logs, traces and metrics.</p>



<p>Middleware lets you collect data from all over your stack — from microservices and containers to message queues and databases — so that you don&#8217;t have to use separate tools for each part of your application stack.</p>



<p>Middleware helps you reduce the need for multiple <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-monitoring-tools/">cloud monitoring tools</a> by providing visibility into all aspects of your infrastructure. It is a powerful observability platform that offers insights into your applications, servers, containers and networks.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-decrease-data-storage-costs"><strong>3. Decrease data storage costs</strong></h3>



<p>In today’s zero-downtime world, you need to know how your systems perform and if they meet their SLAs (service-level agreements).</p>



<p>But, it possesses a key challenge, data and the associated cost behind handling, storing, and reading the data.</p>



<p>Yes, having observability data is important and a general <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/best-practices/">observability best practice</a>. But, only storing the data which matters to you can help reduce cost.&nbsp;</p>



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<p>Middleware only sends the necessary data, and we save data on S3/customer&#8217;s own cloud storage if needed to save data cost by up to 10X.</p>



<p>Access to the right data to the right people at the right time can help you significantly optimize your systems and reduce the chances of downtime.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-reduction-in-mttr-mean-time-to-respond-and-mtbf-mean-time-between-failures"><strong>4. Reduction in MTTR (mean time to respond) and MTBF (mean time between failures)</strong></h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="453" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002879-1024x453.jpeg" alt="MTTR" class="wp-image-4472" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002879-1024x453.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002879-300x133.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002879-768x340.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002879-1200x531.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Group-1000002879.jpeg 1268w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>MTTR (Mean Time To Resolution) measures how long it takes for an issue to be identified, diagnosed, and fixed.</p>



<p>Observability tools help reduce MTTR by providing visibility into what&#8217;s happening inside your application at any given time and <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">alerting</a> you when something goes wrong so that you can fix it as soon as possible.</p>



<p>This allows you to resolve issues faster, with less downtime and fewer errors for your users.</p>



<p>MTBF is a measure of how often an item fails during its lifetime.</p>



<p>Observability tools allow you to catch failures early on so that they don&#8217;t happen again later on down the road — which means that failures are less likely to occur repeatedly throughout an application&#8217;s lifetime or across multiple instances of its deployment.</p>



<p>Middleware’s <a href="https://middleware.io/product/distributed-tracing/">distributed tracing</a> feature can help teams identify various factors like latency, response time, and errors which help them reduce MTTR and MTBF</p>



<p>You can reduce MTBF and increase the overall reliability of your application by catching failures early on and fixing them before they become problems.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-improve-uptime-with-proactive-root-cause-analysis"><strong>5. Improve uptime with proactive root cause analysis</strong></h3>



<p><a href="https://coresignal.com/blog/buying-data/" target="_blank" rel="follow noreferrer noopener">Collecting data</a> from multiple sources gives you a holistic view of your application&#8217;s performance. But sending all that data to an observability tool can be expensive if you&#8217;re not careful about how much data you collect and send.</p>



<p>Data sent to observability tools should be as minimal as possible. We should only send the necessary data instead of everything we have.</p>



<p>For example, if you are using Middleware for monitoring, you should only send metrics required by Middleware and not send metrics it doesn&#8217;t need.&nbsp;</p>



<p>There are many ways to do this:</p>



<ul>
<li>Use custom time series for metrics that aren&#8217;t critical but might affect performance if they become too large (such as the number of requests per second).</li>



<li>Send only high cardinality metrics (i.e., those with more than one value) when possible instead of a tuple containing every value in your application (e.g., request latency).</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-reduce-incidents-outages-and-unplanned-work"><strong>6. Reduce incidents, outages and unplanned Work</strong></h3>



<p>It&#8217;s common for an IT department to spend 30% of its time on non-value-added activities. An observability tool can help reduce incidents, outages and unplanned work by providing visibility into your application&#8217;s performance or availability.</p>



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<p>Reduce incidents by creating more visibility into production systems (physical or virtual). With more visibility, you can detect anomalies before they become problems.</p>



<p>This lets you quickly resolve issues before they impact your users or customers.</p>



<p>Reduce unplanned work by helping your team find root causes faster. You can spot patterns across the entire infrastructure and identify issues at the source — instead of just reacting to symptoms.</p>



<p>Reduce outages by detecting problems before they impact customers and users. Detecting issues early on, you can take action before they become a problem — like getting a server back online quickly after an outage.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-prepare-for-the-unplanned"><strong>7. Prepare for the unplanned</strong></h3>



<p>Real-time diagnostics help you quickly identify problems as they occur.</p>



<p>By monitoring your systems&#8217; performance over time, you can determine whether there is any deviation from standard behavior patterns and take action accordingly.</p>



<p>This will help reduce downtime costs associated with fixing critical bugs in production environments<strong>.</strong></p>



<p>Before deploying observability tools, it&#8217;s hard to diagnose problems in real-time. For example, you might have a slow worker node or a resource contention issue.</p>



<p>The only way to find out is by <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">inspecting the logs</a> afterward. With observability tools, you can monitor your application in real-time and get visibility into your systems so you can fix issues as they happen.</p>



<p>This will help you avoid unplanned downtimes and increase uptime for your customers.</p>



<p>One of the most common ways to reduce costs is to identify and monitor for anomalies. For example, if you&#8217;re paying for storage only when needed, you can avoid paying for unused capacity.</p>



<p>Similarly, if your application uses 10TB of data per month but never more than 2TB at any one time, you can limit your storage costs by storing only 2TB in S3.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-takeaways"><strong>Key takeaways</strong></h2>



<p>Observability is vital to maintaining a healthy infrastructure and reducing costs.</p>



<p>As we see in the above examples where sites that have suffered from downtime due to cascading errors, observability ensures that even simple changes are appropriately authorized and accounted for before implementation.</p>



<p>That&#8217;s what it means to keep an eye on your applications.</p>



<p>More and more companies are going to start pushing the envelope when it comes to increasing the <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-infrastructure-monitoring/">visibility of their infrastructure</a>. It&#8217;s not just important that your Apache servers are healthy.</p>



<p>Whether you&#8217;re operating a modern SaaS, large-scale websites, or enterprise applications, there&#8217;s no reason to lose sleep over troubleshooting that minor issue.</p>



<p>Middleware is here to help ensure you have all the information you need to make the best decisions. It&#8217;s never been so simple or cost-efficient. <a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sign up now</a> to see it in action!</p>


Businesses are under the constant pressure of reducing IT spend. This post highlights 7 ways observability can help reduce IT costs.

7 Ways to Reduce IT Costs with Observability


<p>Given the importance of Observability in today’s complex systems, having a set of <strong>Observability best practices</strong> becomes critical.</p>



<p>This is because Observability best practices provide a set of guidelines for sustained and efficient development which are compliant with standards and regulations while providing a path for continuous improvement.</p>



<p>Wait, what is observability?</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a> is the extent to which you can understand a complex system’s internal state or condition based only on knowledge of its external outputs in real time.</p>



<p>With multiple components like hardware, software, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-infrastructure-guide/">cloud infrastructure</a>, containers, etc., modern systems generate a huge volume of records.</p>



<p>Observability analyzes <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-opentelemetry/">telemetric data</a> for resolving issues and keeping the system efficient and reliable. Data like metrics, traces, and logs are analyzed to gain actionable knowledge or insights.</p>



<p>As per recent <a href="https://newrelic.com/resources/report/observability-forecast/2023/state-of-observability/benefits">studies</a>, companies using observability on some level have witnessed improvements in system uptime and reliability, real-user experience, and developer productivity and an increase in operational efficiency and security management.</p>



<p>Having understood observability and its importance, let us look at 10 <strong>observability best practices</strong> every DevOps engineer should implement.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-10-observability-best-practices-every-devops-should-implement"><strong>10 observability best practices every DevOps should implement</strong></h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-know-your-platform"><strong>1.&nbsp; Know your platform</strong></h3>



<p>You need to have a detailed knowledge of the physical platform to identify all possible data feed sources.</p>



<p>Different platforms and systems require different <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability-vs-monitoring/">monitoring and observability</a> approaches, and understanding the unique characteristics of your platform can help you optimize your observability practices.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="512" height="512" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-1544355361.jpg" alt="Know your platform" class="wp-image-6593" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-1544355361.jpg 512w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-1544355361-300x300.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-1544355361-150x150.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px" /></figure>



<p>Some factors to consider for understanding your platform are:</p>



<ul>
<li>&nbsp;Platform architecture, including the components, dependencies, and communication patterns between services.</li>



<li>&nbsp;Workloads running on your platform, such as batch jobs, real-time services, and background tasks.</li>



<li>The operating system running on your platform, including its performance characteristics, resource utilization, and limitations.</li>



<li>&nbsp;In the case of a cloud platform, the cloud infrastructure’s monitoring and observability capabilities and limitations.</li>



<li>&nbsp;Relevant data sources for monitoring and observability, such as logs, metrics, traces, and events, and how to collect and analyze them.</li>
</ul>



<p>Understanding the unique characteristics of your platform can help you optimize your observability best practices score.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-you-don-t-need-to-monitor-everything-just-monitor-what-s-important"><strong>2.  You don’t need to monitor everything, just monitor what’s important</strong>!</h3>



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<p>IT platforms generate a lot of data, and not all of it is useful. Observability systems should be designed for filtering data as close to the source, at multiple levels, to avoid cluttering with excess data.</p>



<p>This will enable faster data analysis in real-time.</p>



<p>Of course, observability best practices recommend you to ensure that data that may be unimportant from an operational perspective but important from a business analysis perspective should not be deleted.</p>



<p>Monitoring selectively has the following benefits:</p>



<ul>
<li>Focusing only on critical metrics and events reduces the amount of noise in the monitoring data, making it easier to identify and address issues in critical areas faster, thus reducing downtime.</li>



<li>DevOps teams can scale monitoring efforts more effectively by focusing resources on the most critical areas, thereby improving cost-effectiveness.</li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-put-alerts-only-for-critical-events">&nbsp;<strong>3.&nbsp;Put alerts only for critical events</strong></h3>



<p>Alerts can be configured to send notifications for a critical event, like when an application behaves outside of predefined parameters.</p>



<p>It detects important events in the system and <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">alerts</a> the responsible party. An alert system ensures that developers know when something has to be fixed so they can stay focused on other tasks.</p>



<p>An effective observability tools like <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> will pick up on critical early-stage problems or zero-day attacks on the platform.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="772" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-1024x772.jpeg" alt="Alerts in Middleware" class="wp-image-4394" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-1024x772.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-300x226.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-768x579.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-1536x1158.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-2048x1544.jpeg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-1200x905.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002333-1980x1493.jpeg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Using pattern recognition, they secure platforms from internal and external threats.</p>



<p>Developers can use self-healing infrastructure or automation to resolve non-critical issues. However, issues that are business-critical require developers to be more hands-on, tapping into data and analytics.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-create-a-standardized-data-logging-format"><strong>4. Create a standardized data logging format</strong></h3>



<p>Data produced by <a href="https://middleware.io/product/log-monitoring/">logging</a> can help DevOps teams identify problem occurrences in a system and also to isolate the root cause of the problem.</p>



<p>Hence, log data should be formatted for maximizing usage by structuring logs in a standardized manner.</p>



<p>Structured logging represents all crucial log elements as attributes with associated values that can easily be ingested and parsed.</p>



<p>This allows teams to use the log management platform optimally with data visualization features that enhance the ability to recognize application or <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-native-infrastructure-challenges/">infrastructure problems</a> and respond to them.</p>



<p>This becomes critical, especially when you are dealing with a large volume of log data.</p>



<p>We suggest you ensure that data logging has been enabled and use Network Management Protocols or other means of standardized logging wherever possible.</p>



<p>You can use connectors that can translate your data into a standardized format.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-store-logs-that-only-give-insights-about-critical-events"><strong>5.&nbsp; Store logs that only give insights about critical events</strong></h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="537" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1024x537.jpeg" alt="Log monitoring in Middleware" class="wp-image-4392" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1024x537.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-300x157.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-768x403.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1536x806.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-2048x1074.jpeg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1200x630.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002334-1980x1039.jpeg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Storing only logs that provide insights about critical events is an observability best practice.</p>



<p>Certain logs must be managed and monitored</p>



<ul>
<li>Failed login attempts can be red flags that something is wrong. Multiple login failures in a short time period could indicate an attempt to break into the system. Of course, compliance reasons make it a must to manage and monitor them.&nbsp;</li>



<li>Firewalls and other intrusion detection devices are an important first line of security. Though advanced attacks can nowadays circumvent most firewalls, still <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">monitoring logs</a> here is a must.&nbsp;</li>



<li>When control policies are not being followed, or some unauthorized changes are occurring, it could be unprofessional behavior, but it could be something sinister. These changes could be catastrophic and actually bring down a network.</li>
</ul>



<p>Applications also <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/search-logs-effectively-with-log-management/">generate a lot of logs</a> that need to be monitored.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-ensure-data-can-be-aggregated-and-centralized">&nbsp;<strong>6.&nbsp;Ensure data can be aggregated and centralized</strong></h3>



<p>DevOps culture is based on collaborative, consistent, and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/ci-cd-best-practices/">continuous delivery</a>, and centralized logging plays an important role in it.</p>



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<p>Without centralized data, management will not be efficient in the complex, large-scale environments in which <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-devops/">DevOps</a> teams work.</p>



<p>With individual management of logs, the workload increases. And compromises the team’s ability to integrate and correlate data from multiple logs when troubleshooting a problem.</p>



<p>This goes against the grain of DevOps culture.</p>



<p>Centralized logging by aggregating logs from all stages of the software delivery pipeline into a single place gives developers and IT engineers the end-to-end visibility they need to deliver software continuously and consistently.</p>



<p>With centralization, logs from development and testing environments are collected in the same place as production logs, making it easier for all to view and correlate data.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-don-t-rely-on-default-dashboards"><strong>7.&nbsp; Don’t rely on default dashboards</strong></h3>



<p>Default dashboards may provide a starting point, but they are not designed to capture the unique characteristics of each system.</p>



<p>Custom dashboards can help to highlight important metrics, provide insights into the performance of critical components, and help identify potential issues before they impact the system.</p>



<p>Custom dashboards can help identify and highlight important metrics specific to the system. Making it easier for IT teams to analyze and interpret data.</p>



<p><strong>With Middleware, you can create custom dashboards in just a few easy steps and under a minute:</strong></p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="496" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-1024x496.jpeg" alt="how to create custom dashboard in Middleware" class="wp-image-4390" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-1024x496.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-300x145.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-768x372.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-1536x744.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-2048x993.jpeg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-1200x582.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002337-1980x960.jpeg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="496" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-1024x496.jpeg" alt="custom dashboard - Middleware" class="wp-image-4388" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-1024x496.jpeg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-300x145.jpeg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-768x372.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-1536x744.jpeg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-2048x993.jpeg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-1200x582.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/opt_Frame-1000002336-1980x960.jpeg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Also, dashboards have a larger audience than just system administrators and IT teams and are also important for senior IT managers and business clients.</p>



<p>Dashboards should show the root cause of problems with trend analysis for IT professionals, along with the consequent business impacts that management requires.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-8-leverage-integrations"><strong>8. Leverage integrations</strong></h3>



<p>We recommend DevOps teams to automate observability systems for <a href="https://middleware.io/product/continuous-profiler/">continuous ecosystem monitoring</a> for any issues</p>



<p>Tools like the Middleware platform use AI-powered algorithms to collect and analyze data from across the entire infrastructure to spot signs of potential problems before they even occur.</p>



<p>Artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms can help to incorporate automation into observability.</p>



<p>You can store and process vast amounts of data and recognize unique patterns or insights that will help you to improve application efficiency.</p>



<p>Moreover, it also allows you to scale up easily while eliminating the element of human error.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-9-integrate-with-automated-remediation-systems-wherever-possible"><strong>9. Integrate with automated remediation systems wherever possible</strong></h3>



<p>Observability often identifies relatively low-level issues related to the kernel or the operating system level.</p>



<p>Such issues are routinely addressed by system administrators who have tooling in place to automatically fix such issues by patching or by the application of extra resources to a workload.</p>



<p>Observability software like Middleware can be integrated with the existing ecosystem to maintain an optimized environment.</p>



<p>Having such a filter can ensure that even where automation is not possible, IT teams can focus on the critical issues and fix them on priority.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-10-feedback-loops-should-be-present-and-effective"><strong>10. Feedback loops should be present and effective</strong></h3>



<p>Feedback loops are basically an internal review of how teams, systems, and users function, not necessarily in the context of Observability but also in the larger DevOps context.</p>



<p>They are critical because they help improve development quality while ensuring deliverables are on time. The objective of feedback loops is to create a loop between DevOps business units, i.e., development and user.</p>



<p>When a change happens in one unit, it causes a change in the other unit, eventually leading to a change in the first unit.</p>



<p>This makes the organization agile for performing required corrections continually. Using a feedback loop to collect data and create a constant flow of information translates into enhanced Observability in the DevOps context.</p>



<p>Of course, feedback is great, provided you act on it. And that’s where you need to close the loop by solving the problem and tightening it for speed.</p>



<p>Else with an open loop, things will start failing, and teams will be lost as they have failed to find the root cause and communicate it.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion"><strong>Conclusion</strong></h2>



<p>Observability has become a necessary infrastructure enabler as organizations migrate to decentralized IT platforms.</p>



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<h3>Try Middleware, the Observability platform with built-in best practices.</h3>
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<p>Without the capability to aggregate and analyze data from all IT platform areas, organizations open themselves up to problems ranging from inadequate application performance through a poor user experience to major security issues. Most importantly, they are constantly at the risk of outages that can cost roughly $500K per hour of downtime.</p>



<p>Implementing the 10 <strong>observability best practices</strong> mentioned above can help l organizations survive and thrive in today’s complex and dynamic environment.</p>


In this article we have mentioned top 10 observability best practices that every DevOps engineer should implement in their organization.

10 Observability Best Practices Every DevOps Should Implement


<p>We have released key features, including synthetic monitoring, performance enhancements, and UX improvements.</p>



<p>See what’s new in February 2023!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-synthetic-monitoring">1. <strong>Synthetic monitoring</strong></h2>



<p>You can use synthetic monitoring to see how your systems and applications are performing by simulating requests and actions from around the world.</p>



<p>This monitors the performance of your webpages and APIs from the backend to the frontend, as well as at various network levels (HTTP, SSL, DNS, WebSocket, TCP, UDP, ICMP, and gRPC), alerting you to faulty behavior such as regressions, broken features, high response times, and unexpected status codes.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>How to set up API tests &amp; synthetic tests in Middleware</strong></h3>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Step 1: Create a new monitor (Test)</h4>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/how-to-use-synthetic-monitoring/">Synthetic monitoring</a> allows you to launch single or chained requests to perform verifications on your key systems at various network levels: HTTP test, SSL test, DNS test, WebSocket test, TCP test, UDP test, ICMP test, and gRPC test.<br><br>You can create a new monitor by clicking on the &#8216;Create Monitor&#8217; button:</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-1024x540.jpg" alt="Create Monitor" class="wp-image-4424" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002338-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Create a monitor in Middleware</figcaption></figure>



<p>Now, select the request type to create the monitor:</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-1024x540.jpg" alt="Select request" class="wp-image-4426" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-1536x810.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-2048x1080.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002339-1980x1044.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Select the request type</figcaption></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Step 2: Define the request</h4>



<p>Define the request with a name and an environment, then enter the URL where you want to run the test. With an advanced setting option, you can add put request headers, authentication, and query parameters.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-1024x540.jpg" alt="Define the Request" class="wp-image-4428" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-1536x810.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-2048x1080.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002340-1980x1044.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Defineing the request</figcaption></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Step 3: Define assertions and select the location</h4>



<p>Add as many assertions as you need for your request. If you need more specific testing, assertions can help (for example, the status code should be 200 only).</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-1024x539.jpg" alt=" Define assertions and select the location" class="wp-image-4432" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-1-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Defining assertions and selecting the location</figcaption></figure>



<p>You can choose where you want this test to run. Location selection is useful when you have global users, and your API is accessed worldwide</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Step 4: Specify test frequency and setup retry rules</h4>



<p>You can specify the test frequency by selecting a time interval such as every 1m, 5m, etc., or you can define a custom time interval with a day selection (ex: every Monday at 09:00 AM)</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-1024x539.jpg" alt="Specify Test frequency" class="wp-image-4434" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002341-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Specify test frequency</figcaption></figure>



<p>You can configure when the system should retry the test if it fails.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Step 5: Configure the alert monitoring for the test</h4>



<p>You can choose who to notify and what to notify about your test.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="539" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-1024x539.jpg" alt=" Configuration for alert monitoring" class="wp-image-4436" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-1024x539.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-768x404.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-1536x808.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-2048x1078.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-1200x632.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002342-2-1980x1042.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Configuration for alert monitoring</figcaption></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>View your tests and their details </strong></h3>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">List of all created monitors</h4>



<p>View a list of all monitors with information such as uptime, interval, status, and the ability to pause/start, edit, or delete the test.</p>



<p>You can also filter the list by request type or location.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-1024x540.jpg" alt="List view of custom monitors" class="wp-image-4438" width="610" height="321" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002344-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px" /><figcaption>View all monitors in one place</figcaption></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">View details of specific test</h4>



<p>Select the test from the list to view all the details, including response time by location, network timing, and test run results.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-1024x540.jpg" alt="View details of specific test" class="wp-image-4440" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002345-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>View details of specific test</figcaption></figure>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-1024x540.jpg" alt="test run results" class="wp-image-4442" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002346-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Test run results</figcaption></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">View details of a specific result</h4>



<p>You can view the response time timeline for each test result.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-1024x540.jpg" alt="View details of a specific result" class="wp-image-4444" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002347-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>View details of a specific result</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">2. <strong>APM updates</strong></h2>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/product/apm/">APM</a> with an improved user interface and charts for better visibility of traces and other data.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-1024x540.jpg" alt="APM Dashboard" class="wp-image-4446" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002348-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="542" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-1024x542.jpg" alt="New updates in APM Module" class="wp-image-4448" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-1024x542.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-300x159.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-768x406.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-1536x813.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-2048x1083.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-1200x635.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002351-1980x1048.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">3. <strong>Alert update</strong></h2>



<p>With this updated <a href="https://middleware.io/platform/alerts/">Alert</a> UI, you can define the rule and set the alert condition all in one screen. The chart data will be filtered based on your selected criteria, giving you a better idea of your data so you can set alerts accordingly.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-1024x540.jpg" alt="Alert Update" class="wp-image-4450" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002350-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">4. <strong>Log filters</strong></h2>



<p>Use filters and advanced search for logs to get log data.<br>In the search bar, select multiple parameters as per your need and get the data accordingly.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="540" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-1024x540.jpg" alt="updated log filters" class="wp-image-4452" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-1024x540.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-300x158.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-768x405.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-1536x811.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-2048x1081.jpg 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-1200x633.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Frame-1000002349-1980x1045.jpg 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>That&#8217;s it from our February updates! Stay tuned by subscribing to our newsletter for more updates.</p>



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Here's a summarized article highlighting all major product updates rolled out during Feb. 2023.

Feb Product Update: Synthetic Monitoring

This guide aims to explain OpenTelemetry (OTel) from ground up, how it works, why it's still important in 2023 and it's potential use cases.

What is OpenTelemetry?

Explore this guide on Golang logging to learn how to track and analyze what's happening inside the Golang application and the best practices around it. 

Golang Logging: A Step-by-step Guide

Explore Golang monitoring's vital role in ensuring performance, reliability, and swift issue resolution. Delve into basics, benefits, and top tools in this article.

Golang Monitoring: A Comprehensive Guide


<p>The cloud has transformed the way we do business. It has enabled companies to operate globally with the agility that wasn&#8217;t possible before. But as the use of the cloud becomes more commonplace, so do the <strong>cloud-native infrastructure challenges</strong> that come with it.</p>



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<p>This is why we have listed 10 of the most common <strong>cloud-native infrastructure challenges </strong>in the sections below. However, since different companies face unique challenges, the list is by no means exhaustive.</p>



<p>Nonetheless, knowing these primary challenges is invaluable info for anyone looking to switch to cloud-native.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-10-common-cloud-native-infrastructure-challenges"><strong>10 Common cloud-native infrastructure challenges</strong></h2>



<p>Here are the top 10 most common challenges with cloud-native infrastructure:&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-identifying-the-right-tools-or-platforms"><strong>1. Identifying the right tools or platforms</strong></h3>



<p>If you&#8217;re new to cloud-native infrastructure, one of the first challenges is identifying the right tools or platforms.</p>



<p>As many options are available, knowing which will work best for your company can be difficult.</p>



<p>Fortunately, there are some tips you can follow to help you make the right decision.&nbsp;</p>



<p>First, you need to understand your company&#8217;s needs and requirements, namely:</p>



<ul><li>What are you trying to achieve?&nbsp;</li><li>What are your goals?&nbsp;</li><li>What kind of tool do you need to achieve your goals?</li></ul>



<p>Once you clearly understand your goals, you can start researching the different options.</p>



<p>There are many factors to check when choosing a tool or platform; some common ones include the following:&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li>Cost</li><li>Ease of use</li><li>Features</li><li>Support</li></ul>



<p>Spend time comparing all the different options before making a final decision.</p>



<p>The best approach is working with an all-inclusive tool that offers cloud observability services, so you can have someone technically savvy working alongside you to help manage and <a href="https://middleware.io/product/infrastructure-monitoring/">monitor your infrastructure</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-ability-to-filter-important-metrics-from-the-pool-of-metrics"><strong>2. Ability to filter important metrics from the pool of metrics</strong></h3>



<p>Cloud-native infrastructure generates a ton of metrics that you can easily get lost in the pile of data. Remember, your priority is to store and focus on data that matter. After all, no need to pay an abnormally high cost to store data that you don&#8217;t need.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This is where an excellent monitoring solution comes in.</p>



<p>A platform like <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> allows you to customize your cloud so you can only keep the datasets you need in S3. It will help you identify and filter the important metrics, so you can focus on the ones that matter most.&nbsp;</p>



<p>This is essential in understanding your system&#8217;s health/performance and detecting any possible issues.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-monitoring-microservices"><strong>3. Monitoring microservices</strong></h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/microservices-architecture/">Microservices</a> can be difficult to monitor because they produce so much data.</p>



<p>The monitoring process is hectic because one microservice can run on 100 machines, and 100 microservices run on one device, and you need to track multiple metrics per service.&nbsp;</p>



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<p>As such, manual monitoring may not be feasible, so you need a system that automatically tracks performance and flags issues.</p>



<p>That&#8217;s where a tool like Middleware comes in. We can monitor all your microservices and filter out the essential data so you can quickly identify and fix any issues.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-cost"><strong>4. Cost</strong></h3>



<p>Cost and confusing pricing models are other common <strong>cloud-native infrastructure challenges</strong>.</p>



<p>The cost of deploying and maintaining a cloud-native infrastructure can be high, especially for smaller companies that don&#8217;t have the budget to support the necessary <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/devops-tools/">DevOps tools</a> or resources.</p>



<p>Some cloud providers offer various services to help companies save money, but those costs can add up quickly. In addition, teams may need to watch out for hidden costs associated with their cloud deployments.</p>



<p>For example, when spinning up a new server, teams must consider the cost of hosting and software licensing fees associated with the same. Additionally, specific tasks that require automation or specialized personnel incur additional expenses.</p>



<p>But partnering with the right companies can help you reduce the costs associated with maintaining a cloud-native infrastructure without sacrificing security or stability.</p>



<p>For example, organizations can leverage tools such as Middleware&#8217;s unified platform to monitor performance and identify potential <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-cost-optimization/">cost-saving opportunities</a>.</p>



<p>This way, you can track your spending on cloud services while ensuring that your systems are running optimally and efficiently, thereby preventing any unwanted <strong>cloud-native infrastructure challenges.</strong></p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-security-compliance"><strong>5. Security &amp; Compliance</strong></h3>



<p>Security and compliance remain major challenges for cloud-native infrastructure.</p>



<p>As the digital world continues to evolve, new security protocols are being added, and companies must ensure their infrastructure complies with these standards.</p>



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<p>Additionally, companies must ensure that authorized users and services have access to the data stored in their infrastructure.</p>



<p>One way to address these issues is to deploy a cloud <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> platform that provides insights into your system&#8217;s security status and flags any anomalies ASAP.</p>



<p>This is because access to real-time metrics from your system can help you identify potential security threats, respond to them effectively, and remain compliant with industry regulations.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Additionally, having an observability platform that provides visibility into your cloud infrastructure can help you keep your system secure by monitoring user activity, network connections, and more.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-reliability-issues"><strong>6. Reliability issues</strong></h3>



<p>Reliability issues can be difficult to identify and tackle because they can stem from different elements in the infrastructure.</p>



<p>This makes it hard to pinpoint the root cause of errors and bugs. Remember, it may take a while before identifying the exact cause, even if you suspect it&#8217;s due to intermittent availability, sudden latency spikes, or even complete outages.</p>



<p>A unified platform can aggregate data across multiple sources and services so that you can quickly pinpoint problems and take preventive measures.</p>



<p>This will enable you to monitor the health of your <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-infrastructure-guide/">cloud infrastructure</a> and identify potential reliability issues before they become serious problems.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The best way to avoid reliability issues is to use a platform that allows easy monitoring, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">logging</a>, and analyzing of the key metrics so that you can address all the problems in real-time.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-lack-of-visibility-in-distributed-systems"><strong>7. Lack of visibility in distributed systems</strong></h3>



<p>The cloud is a distributed environment, which makes it difficult to gain visibility across disparate systems.</p>



<p>You&#8217;ll find yourself struggling to track relevant metrics, make out trends and even correlate events from various individual services.</p>



<p>This is because traditional monitoring tools are built on a traditional IT environment, making them inadequate for the cloud-native infrastructure.</p>



<p>Cloud observability services can thus provide you with a holistic view of your entire system.</p>



<p>A unified platform with <a href="https://middleware.io/product/distributed-tracing/">distributed tracing</a> capabilities can get you intelligent insights into all your microservices and enable you to identify and fix any arising performance issues proactively. </p>



<p>It should also have an intuitive interface to easily and accurately interpret system data.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-8-keeping-up-to-date-with-outdated-technologies"><strong>8. Keeping up to date with outdated technologies</strong></h3>



<p>Keeping up to date with outdated technologies can be challenging for cloud users. To make this process easier, it&#8217;s essential to understand the technology you are using and baseline its current capabilities.</p>



<p>Additionally, you&#8217;ll want to utilize tools explicitly built for cloud-native infrastructure&#8211; and are under constant update and improvement.</p>



<p>That way, you&#8217;re sure to enjoy the latest trends in the market– and won&#8217;t ever have to worry about obsolete tools.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-9-lack-of-technical-expertise"><strong>9. Lack of technical expertise</strong></h3>



<p>One of the biggest challenges for organizations transitioning to cloud-native infrastructure is the lack of adequate technical expertise.</p>



<p>Building and managing <strong>cloud-native infrastructure</strong> often requires people with the right skill set and experience who understand the nuances of modern application architectures and cloud platforms.</p>



<p>This means that companies need to develop a qualified and certified workforce to manage their cloud-native applications.</p>



<p>In addition, there needs to be a well-defined process for onboarding new resources, training existing personnel, and keeping an eye on market trends and emerging technologies.</p>



<p>To help build up these capabilities within organizations, developers should take advantage of the vast resources—blogs, tutorials, webinars, etc.—that offer insights into best practices for building cloud-native infrastructure.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Additionally, leveraging specialized vendors or service providers with experienced teams, such as Middleware, can be immensely helpful in setting up their systems for success.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-10-need-for-organizational-shifts-and-team-shifts"><strong>10. Need for organizational shifts and team shifts</strong></h3>



<p>You may also discover that you must restructure your organization and teams for a successful <strong>cloud-native infrastructure</strong>. Companies often underestimate the importance of organizational changes, especially when moving to the cloud.</p>



<p>First, identify the roles and responsibilities that need to be added or changed when transitioning from a traditional environment to the cloud.</p>



<p>This can include shifting the organization&#8217;s focus from operational tasks such as server provisioning and configuration to more complex functions like automation, security compliance, and <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/elasticity-vs-scalability/">scalability</a>.</p>



<p>Understanding how existing roles will change in a new cloud-native environment is also important. For example, teams used to working with physical servers may find themselves in unfamiliar territory with <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-virtual-machine/">virtual machines</a> or containers.</p>



<p>Therefore, members must acquire new skills and develop an understanding of different tools related to the cloud-native environment.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-takeaway"><strong>The takeaway</strong></h2>



<p>With so many <strong>cloud-native infrastructure challenges</strong> ahead, it&#8217;s safer to shift into cloud-native with an experienced and supportive partner.</p>



<p>So, what about Middleware?</p>



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<p>Well, for one, it offers a unified cloud observability platform. This allows companies to identify, understand and fix issues across their cloud infrastructure.</p>



<p>Additionally, Middleware is always up-to-date with the latest technologies, so companies don&#8217;t have to worry about being left behind. It also has the technical expertise to help your team shift to a cloud-native infrastructure.&nbsp;</p>


Moving to cloud can introduce unexpected challenges. Here are top 10 cloud-native infrastructure challenges & their solutions.

10 Common Challenges with Cloud-Native Infrastructure


<p>January 2023 was an excellent month for Middleware; We shipped the most code and products. In addition, this month was the kick-off <a href="https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/middleware">YC W23 batch</a>, and we closed our multiple paid customers.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-s-new-in-middleware">What’s New in Middleware?</h2>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-custom-dashboard"><strong>1. Custom dashboard</strong>&nbsp;</h3>



<p>Customer dashboard where you can build a dashboard by drag and drop interface. We support all the metrics data in that right now.<br>Build a dashboard with no query language or coding and see the data that matter most to you.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1-1024x497.png" alt="Custom dashboard builder" class="wp-image-4350" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1-1024x497.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1-768x373.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1-1536x746.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1-1200x583.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-dashboard-1.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-cloudflare-worker-support"><strong>2. Cloudflare worker support</strong>&nbsp;</h3>



<p>We start supporting cloud flare workers to install so you can collect all the traces and logs of your application and monitor the health and performance of your Cloudflare workers and load balancing utilities.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="617" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-1024x617.png" alt="Cloudflare worker integration in Middleware" class="wp-image-4352" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-1024x617.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-300x181.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-768x462.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-1536x925.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-2048x1233.png 2048w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-1200x722.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Cloudflare-Workers-installation-process-1-1980x1192.png 1980w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-custom-metrics"><strong>3. Custom metrics</strong>&nbsp;</h3>



<p>We support custom metrics from your infrastructure, and you can create a custom metrics dashboard. We are entirely free to collect custom metrics and create a dashboard. There is no extra cost for that.<br>Add custom metrics by following these steps:</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="849" height="1024" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-849x1024.png" alt="How to collect custom metrics" class="wp-image-4348" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-849x1024.png 849w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-249x300.png 249w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-768x926.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-1274x1536.png 1274w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-1698x2048.png 1698w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1-1200x1447.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Frame-1000002319-1-1.png 1912w" sizes="(max-width: 849px) 100vw, 849px" /></figure>



<p>Once Custom metrics are added, you can visualize them by creating a custom report for those metrics. While creating a custom report, you can select your metrics and visualize the data.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="500" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1-1024x500.png" alt="Custom metrics" class="wp-image-4346" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1-1024x500.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1-768x375.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1-1536x750.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1-1200x586.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/custom-metrics-2-1.png 1912w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-error-traces"><strong>4. Error traces</strong>&nbsp;</h3>



<p>We start supporting error traces in the APM tool. Error Tracking enables you to reason about errors at a higher level—and investigate more effectively—by automatically grouping application errors.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1-1024x497.png" alt="Error traces" class="wp-image-4342" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1-1024x497.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1-768x373.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1-1536x746.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1-1200x583.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-1.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>You can get the context you need for root cause analysis—and reduce your mean time to resolution.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1-1024x497.png" alt="Error traces, extended view" class="wp-image-4344" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1-1024x497.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1-768x373.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1-1536x746.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1-1200x583.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Error-traces-2-1.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-default-alerts">5. Default alerts&nbsp;</h3>



<p>With default alerts, you can start alerting on critical monitoring data from your environment, so you can focus your attention on growing your business—without worrying about undetected problems in your ecosystem.<br>You can customize these alerts and set thresholds based on your needs.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1-1024x497.png" alt="Default alerts " class="wp-image-4340" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1-1024x497.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1-768x373.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1-1536x746.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1-1200x583.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/default-alert-1.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-slack-integration"><strong>6. Slack integration</strong>&nbsp;</h3>



<p>Integrate slack with Middleware and get all the alerts on your slack workspace. Set the necessary permissions by clicking on slack in the integration section. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1-1024x497.png" alt="Slack integration " class="wp-image-4336" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1-1024x497.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1-768x373.png 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1-1536x746.png 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1-1200x583.png 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/slack-integration-1.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>Once it&#8217;s done, you will receive alerts in your selected slack channel, and it will look something like this: </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1010" height="536" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Slack-in-Middleware.png" alt="Alerts in Slack" class="wp-image-4338" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Slack-in-Middleware.png 1010w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Slack-in-Middleware-300x159.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Slack-in-Middleware-768x408.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1010px) 100vw, 1010px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-are-we-doing">How are we doing?</h2>



<p>Please keep us updated on your Middleware experience. Have a query? Didn’t like any particular thing? We are all ears…</p>



<p>Fill out the contact us form or chat with us using the live chat option on the home page.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<p>You can <a href="https://middleware.io/contact-us/">contact us</a> using the same contact us form if you have any specific feature requests. </p>


Here's a summarized article highlighting all major product updates rolled out during Jan. 2023. 

Jan Product Update: Custom Dashboard

This article highlights the importance of Node.js performance monitoring, what metrics you should monitor in your node.js application, and the best practices you can follow. 

Node.js Performance Monitoring: A Complete Guide

This article explains Kubernetes monitoring from root-level. It covers K8s monitoring methods, its importance, key metrics, best practices, and more!

Kubernetes Monitoring: A Complete Guide


<p>Java is a pioneer programming framework. In 2022, Java ranked sixth among all programming languages used by developers. In fact, Java was used by 35.35% of developers to create solutions and applications. Java is still ranked third among programming languages in <a href="https://www.tiobe.com/tiobe-index/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow">TIOBE&#8217;s index for April 2023</a> with a 12.96 grade.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Java is widely used in the development of web applications and other software. As with any software, it&#8217;s <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/why-is-monitoring-your-application-important/">important to <strong>monitor</strong></a><strong> java applications</strong> to ensure they are running efficiently and effectively.&nbsp;</p>



<p>In this article, we go in-depth on <strong>Java application performance monitoring</strong> (APM); we discuss its significance, use cases, best practices, and tools you can use to monitor the performance of your Java applications.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-java-performance-monitoring">What is Java performance monitoring?</h2>



<p>Java performance monitoring is the process of tracking the performance of a Java application or system in order to identify and resolve issues that may be affecting its performance. By monitoring various metrics such as CPU usage, memory usage, and response times, it is possible to identify performance bottlenecks and other problems that may be causing the application to run slowly or crash.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-is-java-performance-monitoring-important">Why is Java performance monitoring important?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>For maximum performance, evaluating and improving your Java applications is crucial. As mentioned before, Java programs that run poorly have serious repercussions. However, you can only analyze and improve what you can see. Therefore, <strong>java performance monitoring</strong> is the cornerstone of a stable and dependable Java application.</p>



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<p>Poorly optimized code, ineffective algorithms, and a lack of hardware resources are some of the things that might cause Java to run poorly. Monitoring enables you to identify what succeeds and fails and iterate and fix problems before they become serious.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-traditional-vs-new-ways-to-monitor-java-performance">Traditional vs. New ways to monitor Java performance&nbsp;</h3>



<p>Java performance monitoring is not new. There are traditional and contemporary java APM approaches. Traditional <strong>Java APM</strong> technologies are intrusive, and use static instrumentation to gather metrics through statically specified tracepoints.</p>



<p>This has several ramifications, however. To add the user marks, you must first have access to the source code. Second, the evolution of the code base requires that user markers be maintained over time. In either scenario, recompilation is needed to activate the pre-defined marker.</p>



<p>But the tides have changed. There are now more effective ways to execute java APM, with the eBPF-based method being the most effective.&nbsp;</p>



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<p>eBPF is a non-intrusive framework to monitor <strong>java application performance.</strong> It employs dynamic instrumentation through user-level dynamic tracing. Dynamic tracing lets you trace any software function in a running binary without restarting it.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The eBPF framework allows you to execute programs to exfiltrate monitoring data within the application without altering the source code. Java APM with eBPF is very secure, isolated, and can be exported to centralized platforms. This enables eBPF-based <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> tools to provide a great deal of visibility, accuracy, and granular details of your java application.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Additionally, an eBPF based Java APM program runs in a sandbox environment, ensuring machine resources do not get saturated. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-five-ways-to-improve-java-application-performance">Five ways to improve java application performance</h2>



<p>Five of the most effective approaches to improve the performance of a java application are:&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-get-started-with-code-profiling">1. Get started with code profiling</h3>



<p>Systematic code profiling is a direct approach to isolate inefficiencies and regressions in the code. Profiling the Java code helps you identify slow performing areas in the Java virtual machine (JVM) system. Additionally, you can install profiling software with live code profiling components to overcome the hassles of manually profiling the codebase.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-avoid-recursion">2. Avoid recursion</h3>



<p>Recursion is a systematic method for breaking a big issue into several more minor, repeatable issues. Recursion is a technique that can be quick and effective in languages that provide tail call optimization. Java, however, is not one of these languages. Recursion is hence an expensive procedure. In most cases, you should choose an iterative solution utilizing loops over a recursive solution with Java.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-spot-java-log-errors-with-tracing">3. Spot Java log errors with tracing</h3>



<p>Java logs assist with error tracking. The Logging API, which was first available in Java 1.4 keeps them in a log file controlled by the Logging API. However, these logs are equally prone to errors because there are numerous logging frameworks. Tracing made it easier to find these issues in the Java logs. Hence, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-distributed-tracing/">tracing</a> is the guiding principle of Java&#8217;s error detection.</p>



<p>Tracing identifies an error&#8217;s primary source and ensures all problems are fixed. The most popular method for tracing is to use effective software. Effective tracing software tracks the transactions back to their origins in the log data. Numerous out-of-the-box tracing solutions exist, but only a tiny percentage are effective. For instance, Middleware aids in tracking down transactions and reporting their status, latency, total hits, and many other data significant for the prompt and efficient resolution of errors.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-leverage-stringbuilder">4. Leverage StringBuilder</h3>



<p>Java offers a bewildering array of options for combining shorter strings into longer ones, but most of these options follow a two-sequence approach to buffering a string into a long thread, adding significantly to the Java heap.&nbsp; Because of this, memory duplication is required when an operator is initialized. Java has Stringbuilders that employ a one-sequence approach.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The StringBuilder is a mutable asynchronous function that provides a string-like class that allows you to initialize an operator in a single sequence. StringBuilder doesn’t have any overhead from thread synchronization and is, therefore, the fastest way to build large strings from smaller pieces.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-find-and-fix-performance-bottlenecks">5. Find and fix performance bottlenecks&nbsp;</h3>



<p>The garbage collection system is the source of most performance issues. However, If the Java heap is too big, it must be stored outside the main memory. The higher paging activity impacts Java performance.&nbsp;</p>



<p>A sizable Java heap can also take a long time to fill up. This means that even though garbage collection happens less frequently, garbage collection pause times grow. You can enhance the performance of your Java program by correcting issues like these.</p>



<p>Another option to enhance the efficiency of your Java program is to use efficient techniques and tools while <a href="https://middleware.io/product/log-monitoring/">analyzing java logs</a>. Finding the most frequent exceptions is a powerful technique. Most logging frameworks keep track of the exception&#8217;s type, message, and manner of occurrence.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Numerous solutions can graph and categorize exceptions by the number of occurrences if your logs are already parsed and stored. For instance, grep can discover exceptions based on type or class. The majority of log management solutions can offer ways to organize and search log entries by log type, message content, class, method, and thread.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-java-performance-monitoring-using-middleware"><strong>Java performance monitoring using Middleware&nbsp;</strong></h2>



<p>Middleware uses the new eBPF-based approach to monitor your java applications. It collects java metrics with no interference, operates in a sandbox environment, and unifies all artifacts into a single APM dashboard. To configure your java application for monitoring with Middleware, follow these three steps:&nbsp;</p>



<ol>
<li>Install the Middleware Host agent. You can install the agent on <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/installing-on-kubernetes">Kubernetes</a>, <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/installing-on-ubuntu">Ubuntu</a>, and <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/installing-on-docker">Docker</a>.&nbsp;</li>



<li>Download the <a href="https://install.middleware.io/jars/middleware-javaagent.jar">jar</a> files.&nbsp;</li>



<li>If you want to add custom logs include our logging library in the pom.xml file</li>
</ol>



<p>For comprehensive details on how to configure your java application for monitoring with Middleware, follow this <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/java-apm-setup">document</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-middleware-does-java-apm"><strong>How Middleware does Java APM</strong></h2>



<p>Middleware collects Java metrics with no interference, operates in a sandbox environment, and unifies all artifacts into a single APM dashboard.</p>



<p>Middleware has customized the OTEL Java Instrumentation project using its extension feature. It supports libraries and frameworks like Apache Dubbo, Apache Kafka, AWS lambda, Azure core, and several other libraries and frameworks.&nbsp;</p>



<p>After collecting application-level information, Middleware adds machine-level information to the data for easy filtering. This allows you to get clear bifurcation when monitoring your application across different machines.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Middleware’s APM dashboard allows you to search, filter, and analyze Java traces. You can also auto-detect problems and issues with the AI-based auto-alerting system of Middleware for Java applications.   </p>



<p>To configure your Java application for monitoring with Middleware, follow this <a href="https://docs.middleware.io/docs/java-apm-setup">document</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-best-java-performance-monitoring-tools">5 Best Java performance monitoring tools</h2>



<p>A variety of tools offer Java APM. Here we will take a look at the 5 best java performance monitoring tools.&nbsp;</p>



<p>We selected these tools based on their features, ease of use, and overall effectiveness in helping to improve the performance of Java applications.</p>



<p>Whether you are a developer looking to troubleshoot issues with your code or an SRE responsible for maintaining the performance of a production system, these tools can provide the insights and data you need to identify and fix performance issues:&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-middleware">Middleware  </h3>



<p>Middleware is a java APM tool that employs the eBPF approach to ensure you get granular visibility into your java operations. Its auto-alerting features ensure that no problems go undetected, and its machine-level filtering enables you to locate the source of issues and quickly resolve them. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="497" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Unified-observability-Platform-Middleware-1.png" alt="Unified observability Platform-Middleware" class="wp-image-6951" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Unified-observability-Platform-Middleware-1.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Unified-observability-Platform-Middleware-1-300x146.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Unified-observability-Platform-Middleware-1-768x373.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>The unified dashboard with Middleware shows all core and necessary operations in one location. You can start using middleware for free and pay as your needs increase.</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-solarwinds-appoptics">SolarWinds AppOptics</h3>



<p>AppOptics provides distributed tracing, personalized and pre-configured metrics and alarms, and easily programmable dashboards. With built-in capabilities for numerous other coding frameworks and libraries, such as .NET, PHP, Python, and more, you can gather performance metrics, and complete transaction traces with AppOptics.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="562" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SolarWinds-AppOptics-1.png" alt="SolarWinds AppOptics" class="wp-image-6950" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SolarWinds-AppOptics-1.png 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SolarWinds-AppOptics-1-300x165.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SolarWinds-AppOptics-1-768x422.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jprofiler">JProfiler </h3>



<p>JProfiler concentrates on memory and storage. This Java Application performance monitoring tool aids in finding memory leaks, which helps to address storage and memory-related issues. Its intuitive user interface makes understanding threading problems easier. Application server integrations and IDE integrations are abundant in JProfiler.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="640" height="456" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/JProfiler-dashboard.webp" alt="JProfiler Dashboard" class="wp-image-3792" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/JProfiler-dashboard.webp 640w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/JProfiler-dashboard-300x214.webp 300w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-glowroot">Glowroot </h3>



<p>Glowroot is a quick, spick-and-span, and simple-to-use open-source Java APM solution. Thanks to its interactive user interface, you can monitor your Java program from desktop and mobile devices. It supports SQL catch, aggregation, log time follow for each user action, and tracing to capture slow requests and errors. The application also offers charts to show time breakdown and reaction time percentiles, as well as a historical roll-up of all information with configurable maintenance.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1012" height="502" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Java-APM-solution-Glowroot-1.png" alt="Java APM solution, Glowroot " class="wp-image-6952" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Java-APM-solution-Glowroot-1.png 1012w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Java-APM-solution-Glowroot-1-300x149.png 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Java-APM-solution-Glowroot-1-768x381.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1012px) 100vw, 1012px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-eclipse-memory-analyzer">Eclipse Memory Analyzer </h3>



<p>Eclipse Memory Analyzer enables you to precisely track memory usage, spot memory leaks, and fix OutOfMemoryError. The tool examines productive heap dumps to provide information on the relative sizes of kept objects, which is another important function. You can examine heap dumps using the Memory Analyzer tool even while millions of elements flow through. You can also define object retention sizes to guarantee that the garbage collector removes the right things from the heap.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image"><img decoding="async" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/XA4LWtz1JV4wBDPINCmprtl-12_1egpZzV-TmD5huzBjoUQuHHvJx9PXnjhoAzQR4a6n_Fue-Yi6Cffdk6lFv0Ilq44sY0-FBharpaVFMKi3qv8Sb8z3bzYct94oOVb3dgB34F1NhHVbvb6rh8CGQop6Png6uEYj6xobWKa-8Fvyc8IcGZHWgv8vnvaf" alt="Java application performance monitoring tool, Eclipse Memory Analyzer"/></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conclusion">Conclusion&nbsp;</h2>



<p>Java application performance monitoring is vital to the smooth running of your java application. It enables you to find and resolve issues quickly. </p>



<p>To improve the performance of your java application, install code profilers with code-level profiling capabilities, avoid recursion, trace, and find and fix performance bottlenecks. </p>



<p>In this article, we have seen how Middleware executes java APM and other tools available on the market for the same purpose.&nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://app.middleware.io/auth/register/">Sign up now on Middleware</a> to start Java application performance monitoring for free.&nbsp;</p>


Monitoring Java applications is not easy. That’s why, we complied this guide to help you understand why monitoring java applications is difficult, how to overcome it, and which tools can assist you in the process:  

Java Performance Monitoring: An SREs Guide


<p>The holidays are coming, and with them, the mad rush of consumers looking to get what they need upfront. If you&#8217;re an SRE, or an IT administrator, you would agree that infrastructure management during the holiday season is one of the most crucial parts of your job.</p>



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<p>We know his is going to be your busiest time of year. But don&#8217;t worry, we&#8217;ve got your back.</p>



<p>This post walks you through 15 tips to help you with i<strong>nfrastructure management during the holiday season</strong>. We&#8217;ll kick off with the basics and work our way up to more advanced tips, so whether you&#8217;re a seasoned pro or a rookie administrator, there&#8217;s something for everyone.</p>



<p>Before discussing the tips, let&#8217;s understand why IT preparedness is a must-do for all business, be it SaaS, PaaS or eCommerce!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-you-should-be-proactive-during-the-festive-season"><strong>Why you should be proactive during the festive season</strong></h2>



<p>Today&#8217;s cloud-first applications require a 24/7 uptime strategy. This is even more important for <strong>infrastructure management during the holiday season</strong>. Many customers will visit your site or your store, and you want them to have a pleasant experience.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-avoid-losing-revenue-customers"><strong>1. Avoid losing revenue &amp; customers</strong></h3>



<p>Remember, even a few minutes of downtime can lead to the loss of hundreds of dollars. If a customer cannot purchase something because your website is down, they could go to your competitor or never come at all. This means you will not close any sales from those customers while they&#8217;re there, and they may never return.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-get-protection-against-litigation"><strong>2. Get protection against litigation</strong></h3>



<p>Another reason to maintain your infrastructure during the holiday is it protects you against litigation risks tied to online shopping, e.g., intellectual property rights infringement claims. It also safeguards you from other legal issues related to third-party products (e.g., counterfeit goods).</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-you-have-a-backup-plan"><strong>3. You have a backup plan</strong></h3>



<p>Plus, if you are going to be away from your office for a long, it would be wise to have a backup plan. That way, an alternative solution is still available for continued operations when something goes wrong. This could include using another system or software application as a backup for your primary one.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-data-security"><strong>4. Data security</strong></h3>



<p>It&#8217;s essential to understand how vulnerable your data is during this period. Not only do you need to ensure your systems are running smoothly, but it&#8217;s also vital to keep them up-to-date with the latest patches and updates.</p>



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<p>A <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/cloud-infrastructure-guide/">proactive approach to IT management</a> should prevent any problems from arising during this busy period. It also ensures your company has all its bases covered regarding security and data protection.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-15-tips-for-infrastructure-management-during-the-holiday-season"><strong>15 Tips for Infrastructure management during the holiday season</strong></h2>



<p>Before heading out to your local holiday shindig or family gathering, ensure you have a system to keep your tech stack and infrastructure humming.</p>



<p>Here are some tips:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-pre-inspect-your-tech-stack-infrastructure"><strong>1. Pre-inspect your tech stack &amp; infrastructure</strong></h3>



<p>Checking your network configuration is essential as you may want to add or remove devices from the network over the holiday period. Before the holiday, you should also review server hardware, software, and operating systems.&nbsp;</p>



<p>You should also check for any newly installed applications or programs. If you plan on transferring data over a holiday period, back up all data on disk onto another drive or server. This can help prevent data loss if an error happens.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-plan-predict-the-necessary-resource-usage"><strong>2. Plan &amp; predict the necessary resource usage</strong></h3>



<p>Before the holiday season hits in full swing, take some time to plan and predict the necessary resource usage. There are a few ways to optimize infrastructure management during the holiday season:</p>



<ul><li>Create a holiday plan that maps out your expected traffic and peak hours.</li><li>Ensure that your bandwidth can handle the load by testing it ahead of time.</li><li>Add extra storage space, and plan enough backup power to support your systems.</li><li>Inform staff of the company&#8217;s holiday policies and procedures, including acceptable use of company resources.</li><li>Train your team on how to use new tools and applications, or review the basics.</li><li>Review security protocols and ensure you have enough staff to manage increased security threats.</li><li>Plan for downtime and have a backup plan in case of emergencies.</li></ul>



<p>Lastly, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-infrastructure-monitoring/">monitor your systems closely</a> during the holiday season and be prepared to make changes as needed.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-stress-test-load-test-your-infrastructure"><strong>3. Stress test &amp; load test your infrastructure</strong></h3>



<p>You want to ensure your systems can handle the increase in traffic that the festive season brings. That&#8217;s why it&#8217;s essential to load test and stress test your infrastructure before things get too busy.</p>



<p><strong><em>Load testing</em></strong><em> simulates real-world traffic conditions to help you see how your systems will perform</em>. On the other hand, <strong><em>stress testing</em></strong><em> is designed to push your systems to their limits to find potential weak spots.</em></p>



<p>By running these tests, you can identify and fix any problems before they cause any significant issues. The last thing you want is for your online shop to crash during the busiest shopping time of the year.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-have-additional-resources-on-standby"><strong>4. Have additional resources on standby</strong></h3>



<p>If you&#8217;re expecting a surge in traffic, the best to do is to have additional resources on standby. That way, you can quickly switch to the backup server if your website slows down or crashes.</p>



<p>You should also plan how you will scale up your resources. This might mean adding more servers or upgrading existing ones. Whatever it is, ensure you plan for infrastructure management during the holiday season<strong>, </strong>so you don&#8217;t scramble when things get busy.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-use-observability-for-complete-application-infrastructure-monitoring"><strong>5. Use observability for complete application &amp; infrastructure monitoring</strong></h3>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a> is a method that allows you to get complete visibility into all aspects of your system. This approach helps you identify and diagnose issues before they cause problems.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s crucial to have full observability during the holiday season because there&#8217;s more traffic and activity. That also means there&#8217;s a greater chance of something going wrong. By monitoring everything, you can quickly identify and fix any arising issues.</p>



<p>Using open-source tools like <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> should be sufficient for most people. However, our paid versions are available if you need more features or support.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-configure-databases-to-auto-grow-data-files"><strong>6. Configure databases to auto-grow data files</strong></h3>



<p>If you&#8217;re unfamiliar with the term, auto-growth means a database automatically allocates more space as needed. This is crucial because your databases will work overtime, and you want them to stay in space and safe.</p>



<p>Here&#8217;s how to configure auto-growth:</p>



<ul><li>Open up your database in SQL Server Management Studio&nbsp;</li><li>Click on the &#8220;Properties&#8221; tab.&nbsp;</li><li>From there, click on the &#8220;Options&#8221; page</li><li>Next, scroll down to the &#8220;Auto Grow&#8221; section.&nbsp;</li><li>Lastly, set the &#8220;Database&#8221; and &#8220;Log&#8221; files to &#8220;Enabled.&#8221;</li></ul>



<p>That&#8217;s it! This is a small but vital step to ensure your databases handle the increased holiday workload.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-7-implement-microservices-containerized-applications-to-improve-resiliency"><strong>7. Implement microservices &amp; containerized applications to improve resiliency</strong></h3>



<p>The holiday is a great time to implement microservices and containerized applications. These two technologies can make your IT infrastructure resistant to outages and disruptions.</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/microservices-architecture/">Microservices are a software architecture</a> that allows you to break down a monolithic application into smaller, more manageable services. This can help improve your applications&#8217; availability and the speed at which you can deploy new features and updates.</p>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/containerization/">Containerized applications</a> are another way to improve the resiliency of your IT infrastructure. Containers enable you to package an app with all its dependencies, making it easy to deploy and run on any environment. This can reduce the time it takes to recover from an outage and the risk of human error when deploying new updates.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-8-review-container-migration-restart-policies"><strong>8. Review container migration &amp; restart policies&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p>This is the time when people shop online more than ever, so you want to ensure your container migration and restart policies are in good shape.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="922" height="1024" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1-922x1024.jpg" alt="container migration &amp; restart policies" class="wp-image-3618" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1-922x1024.jpg 922w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1-270x300.jpg 270w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1-768x853.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1-1382x1536.jpg 1382w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1-1200x1333.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-1.jpg 1531w" sizes="(max-width: 922px) 100vw, 922px" /></figure>



<p>First, take a look at your container migration policy. This will determine how your containers move around, and you want to ensure they&#8217;re efficient and up-to-date. Next, review your container restart policy. This is important because if a container goes down, you want to ensure it comes back up quickly and without any issues.</p>



<p>Both policies are essential for ensuring a smooth and prosperous holiday season for your IT infrastructure.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-9-check-thresholds-autoscale-policies-rules"><strong>9. Check thresholds &amp; autoscale policies/rules</strong></h3>



<p>If you&#8217;re using <a href="https://middleware.io/whitepaper/the-ultimate-guide-to-auto-scaling-your-application-infrastructure/">cloud-based autoscaling</a>, ensure your thresholds and autoscale policies/rules are good. You don&#8217;t want your system scaling up and down excessively, causing performance issues.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s a good idea to monitor your system closely during the holiday season so that you can fine-tune these as needed. But if you set up everything correctly, you should be able to relax and enjoy the holidays knowing that your IT infrastructure is ready to handle the increased traffic.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-10-configure-all-the-alerts-correctly"><strong>10. Configure all the alerts correctly</strong></h3>



<p>Alerts are a critical part of <a href="https://middleware.io/product/infrastructure-monitoring/">infrastructure management</a> during the holiday season. You want alerts as soon as an issue occurs in your system. So it&#8217;s essential to configure them correctly. For critical alerts, you should integrate with SMS via Pagerduty, and for standard warnings, you can use slack or email.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-11-real-user-monitoring"><strong>11. Real user monitoring</strong></h3>



<p>Real User Monitoring (RUM) is a process that allows you to track what users are doing on your system in real-time. It&#8217;s similar to how Google Analytics works, but instead of capturing data at the server level, it collects information from user-level agents.</p>



<p>This means that when a user logs into your application or attempts to access sensitive data, RUM can capture their actions to provide insight into what&#8217;s happening on your network and how it impacts business operations.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-12-change-traffic-routing-policies"><strong>12. Change traffic routing policies</strong></h3>



<p>Another way to optimize<strong> </strong>infrastructure management during the holiday season is changing your servers&#8217; routing policies.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="707" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2-1024x707.jpg" alt="traffic routing policies" class="wp-image-3616" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2-1024x707.jpg 1024w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2-300x207.jpg 300w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2-768x531.jpg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2-1536x1061.jpg 1536w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2-1200x829.jpg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Image-2.jpg 1840w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



<p>For example, if you use a load balancer for your web servers, you can change the default route to an internal IP address so that only requests from local clients are routed to them. This helps avoid unexpected downtime because most of the traffic comes from other servers in your network instead of from outside sources.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-13-double-check-your-code"><strong>13. Double-check your code</strong></h3>



<p>Another thing that you can do is optimize the code. When you make any changes to your website during the holidays, there may be bugs in the code that need urgent fixing. Therefore, you should check every single code line carefully and ensure everything works correctly before leaving for vacation.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-14-avoid-late-untested-changes"><strong>14. Avoid late untested changes</strong></h3>



<p>One way to keep your IT infrastructure running smoothly during holidays is by avoiding late untested changes.</p>



<p>You may need to make changes at the last minute due to the holiday season, but this can cause downtime if they are tested thoroughly after time. Make sure any new changes are tested before going live, or at least as part of your routine testing process.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-15-distributed-uptime-monitoring"><strong>15. Distributed uptime monitoring</strong></h3>



<p>Another way to ensure your infrastructure runs smoothly during the holidays is by using distributed monitoring solutions.</p>



<p>These tools allow you to keep tabs on all your servers across different locations and provide real-time alerts when something goes wrong so that you can react quickly and resolve issues quickly before they become widespread. Using these tools can help prevent downtime in your organization.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-words"><strong>Final words</strong></h2>



<p>The most important thing to remember is there&#8217;s no such thing as &#8216;work&#8217; and &#8216;holiday&#8217; when it comes to your IT infrastructure. Don&#8217;t forget your IT infrastructure during the holiday season; you could end up paying the price in terms of productivity, data loss, and downtime – and nobody wants that. We hope you&#8217;ve found our tips helpful.</p>


Infrastructure management during the holiday season is one of the most challenging tasks for all SREs and IT administrators. Not this year, we have put together 15 tried and tested strategies to ease your time off: 

15 Tips to prepare your IT Infrastructure for the holiday season

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<p>Demands on engineers are constantly increasing. Consumers, investors, executives—everyone wants their IT teams to do more with less.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So as an IT leader, it&#8217;s critical to know where you’re devoting resources and whether your efforts are moving the needle. A data-driven approach to software engineering helps you visualize how work is being done, the quality and quantity of output, and how to improve your team’s daily work life.&nbsp;</p>



<p>While taking the time to adopt a data-driven approach may seem like a distraction from design and coding, it presents significant benefits:&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li>According to data from Accenture, data-driven organizations have an <a href="https://www.accenture.com/nl-en/blogs/insights/data-driven-enterprise">annual growth rate of 30% or more</a></li><li>McKinsey found that organizations that use users’ behavioral insights <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/capturing-value-from-your-customer-data">outperform their competitors by 85%</a></li><li>McKinsey also has stated that by 2025, <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/the-data-driven-enterprise-of-2025">most employees will use data</a> to optimize nearly every aspect of their work</li></ul>



<p>Adopting a data-driven approach is certainly worth the investment. Here’s how to get started within your own organization.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-a-data-driven-approach-to-engineering">What is a data-driven approach to engineering?</h2>



<p>Data-driven engineering collects information regarding <strong><a href="https://middleware.io/product/real-user-monitoring/">real user behavior</a></strong> to help software engineers <strong>prioritize the products, features, and designs</strong> that will <strong>drive deeper user engagement. </strong></p>



<p>Additionally, a data-driven approach involves optimizing the working process of your software engineering team to generate more efficiency, better results, and greater customer satisfaction.</p>



<p>Generally, there are three ways to make decisions in software engineering:</p>



<ul><li><strong>Human intuition. </strong>While a powerful tool for brainstorming and innovation, intuition cannot tell you which features and designs will be most used and impactful for the customer.</li></ul>



<ul><li><strong>Usability studies.</strong> There are plenty of insights from these studies. But ultimately, they take place in an artificial environment and do little to show you how your application will function in the marketplace.&nbsp;</li><li><strong>Data. </strong>By seeing how users actually engage with your software, you can base your development efforts on solid information and insights.&nbsp;</li></ul>



<p>While the first two approaches have their benefits, data-driven is the only approach that bases your decisions on verifiable facts. This mitigates risk and improves the odds of success.&nbsp;</p>



<p>There are many aspects to a data-driven engineering approach. Here are some of the most important.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-company-vision">Company vision</h3>



<p>While it’s not technically a pillar of data transformation, a strong company vision provides a foundation that enables everyone to determine KPIs and OKRs. As such, leadership plays a critical role in defining this vision and clarifying the “why” behind your efforts.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-performance-indicators-kpis">Key performance indicators (KPIs)</h3>



<p>Key performance indicators (KPIs) measure your ongoing business performance, from profitability to other mission critical metrics. KPIs are the “North Star” to keep everyone rowing in the same direction.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-objectives-key-results-okrs">Objectives &amp; key results (OKRs)</h3>



<p>Objectives &amp; key results (OKRs) are more transitory than KPIs, often limited to specific achievements or improvements within a particular time frame (month, quarter, or year). Generally, OKRs focus on smaller accomplishments that, over time, drive KPIs.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-engineering-metrics">Engineering metrics</h3>



<p>While KPIs and OKRs are generally simpler to define—because they tie back to revenue and profitability—engineering metrics are more fluid. They depend on specific priorities within your engineering department:</p>



<ul><li>What constitutes “good” software development?</li><li>What constitutes a “good” engineer or developer?</li><li>What are the standards we expect from engineers?</li><li>What defines our quality of work?&nbsp;</li></ul>



<p>If you don’t define the expected quality of your work product, you can’t be upset when engineers don’t meet that bar. As such, engineering metrics are necessary for consistent productivity.&nbsp;</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-positive-behavioral-metrics">Positive behavioral metrics</h3>



<p>Software development depends heavily on personnel quality. Your team&#8217;s mental and physical state determines your ability to produce efficiently. As such, it’s important to quantify areas like physical health, mental health, morale, motivation, energy, etc., to keep your team motivated and engaged, even during difficult times.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-are-the-benefits-of-data-driven-engineering">What are the benefits of data-driven engineering?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>The first step to adopting a data-driven approach is to generate buy-in among your team. If your developers don’t understand its benefits, they’re not going to be motivated to include it in their process.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-business-impact">Business Impact</h3>



<p>Every business function should want to justify its existence by measuring impact. A data-driven approach enables software engineers to show that their long hours and constant iteration are actually contributing to the business’s bottom line.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-real-time-observability">Real-time observability</h3>



<p>Part of a data-driven approach is investing in appropriate enablement technologies. One particularly helpful class is real-time <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a>. These tools enable you to <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/search-logs-effectively-with-log-management/">view your entire organization&#8217;s logs</a>, metrics, and traces in real-time. By identifying errors at the source, you can fix small issues before they balloon into major problems. </p>



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<h3>Get real-time metrics, traces and logs in one place with Middleware&#8217;s unified dashboard.</h3>
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<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-team-coordination">Team coordination</h3>



<p>When you don’t have insight into where your team is putting their efforts, it can be difficult to coordinate with various arms of the business. A data-driven approach enables transparency to answer questions about your team’s workload, timelines, and output.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-continuous-improvement-and-optimization">Continuous improvement and optimization</h3>



<p>It’s impossible to improve or optimize without a way to measure where you’ve been and where you’re going. Data-driven engineering provides the insights and metrics you need to track improvement across time. That way, your team can make the incremental changes needed to fully optimize your resources and efforts.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-risk-mitigation">Risk mitigation</h3>



<p>Uninformed decisions can be costly. At worst, they can threaten your business’s very existence. You can reduce errors and mitigate your risk exposure by basing decisions on real data.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-does-a-data-driven-approach-work">How does a data-driven approach work?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>Once you’ve generated buy-in among your team regarding the value of data-driven engineering, now you put it into practice.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-data-collection">Data collection</h3>



<p>The first step is to collect your data. In an increasingly distributed world, this is easier said than done. Here are some key components of modern, <a href="https://middleware.io/whitepaper/cloud-native-observability-the-new-normal-for-enterprises/">cloud-native observability</a> that make distributed data collection possible. </p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-metrics">Metrics</h4>



<p>Metrics are the numerical values that represent and describe the overall behavior of a service or component measured over time. Examples include timestamps, names, and values. Because they’re structured by default, they’re easy to query and optimize for storage.&nbsp;</p>



<p>For observability purposes, metrics enable engineers to define what is normal and what is not.&nbsp; However, they do have limits. When triggered, they can indicate when maximum or minimum thresholds are reached, not <em>why </em>the issue occurred or <em>what </em>the user experiences on the front end.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-traces">Traces</h4>



<p>If metrics tell you <em>that</em> an issue is occurring, traces can help you investigate the precise service causing the issue, enabling developers and engineers to identify and fix the root cause quickly. Through traces, engineers can analyze request flow and understand the entire lifecycle of a request in a <a href="https://middleware.io/product/distributed-tracing/">distributed application</a>, as each operation is encoded with critical data related to the microservices performing that operation.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-logs">Logs</h4>



<p>Logs are immutable, timestamped records of discrete events that happened over a set time frame within an application. Developers can use logs to uncover emergent and unpredictable behaviors within each component in a <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/microservices-architecture/">microservices architecture</a>. </p>



<p>There are three types of logs:</p>



<ul><li>Plain text</li><li>Structured&nbsp;</li><li>Binary</li></ul>



<p>Every component of a cloud-native application emits one of these log types. This can lead to a lot of noise. Thus, it is critical for engineers to centralize and <a href="https://middleware.io/product/log-monitoring/">analyze these logs</a> to uncover actionable insights from them. </p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-data-measurement-analysis">Data measurement &amp; analysis</h3>



<p>Once you have solid methods for collecting key data, the next step is to interpret that data. Here are a number of insights that are key to <a href="https://middleware.io/product/apm/">optimizing software development and performance</a>. </p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-feature-usage">Feature usage</h4>



<p>Feature usage focuses on user behavior surrounding a particular product feature rather than the overall product itself. These metrics enable developers to drill down into which aspects of the product generate engagement and offer the most value.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-entry-points">Entry points</h4>



<p>For complex, distributed systems, functional entry points are critical to a seamless user experience. Collecting insights into entry points enables you to identify high load-bearing assets, so you can prioritize resources to best service those assets.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-errors">Errors</h4>



<p>There are three constants in life: death, taxes, and software errors. The key to providing seamless user experiences is to identify errors in real-time, determine the root cause, and fix the error as quickly as possible. Full-stack observability tools enable you to do this across your entire tech stack.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-success-criteria">Success criteria</h4>



<p>By collecting data surrounding key success criteria, you can justify building or cutting certain features, fix usability issues, and optimize reliability and performance. This enables you to justify the bottom-line contribution of your development efforts to the business as a whole.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-team-efficiency">Team efficiency</h4>



<p>Although much of the data you collect will focus on external factors, you can also collect internal data to make your team work more efficiently. This starts with prioritizing products, features, and designs that generate the most value for the customer but also looking at where individual engineers spend their time. Small adjustments to individual and team behaviors can have exponential benefits.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-data-driven-decisioning">Data-driven decisioning</h3>



<p>Once you’ve collected insights into key aspects of software usage and team performance, you can use those insights to make decisions that drive the business forward.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-resource-allocation">Resource allocation</h4>



<p>Development teams have limited resources, and it is important to allocate those resources where they can have the biggest impact. Data gives you the ability to identify which products, features, updates, etc., have the greatest potential for impact.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-task-project-prioritization">Task &amp; project prioritization</h4>



<p>Individual team members are responsible for ensuring their daily, and weekly efforts are contributing to long-term goals. As such, managers should leverage data to help their teams direct their efforts in the most impactful direction possible.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-strategic-planning">Strategic planning</h4>



<p>As CIOs are increasingly responsible for contributing to the strategic development of the business, you can leverage data to inform these key strategic decisions—and remain profitable.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-examples-of-data-driven-engineering">Examples of data-driven engineering</h2>



<p>Given those broad concepts mentioned above, it may be helpful to understand how a data-driven approach can be part of your day-to-day operations.&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li>Incorporate data into daily stand-ups to build accountability and prioritize activities in real time</li><li>Use data in 1-on-1s to provide objectivity to your evaluation of a developer’s or engineer’s performance.</li><li>Enrich your sprints by using <a href="https://coresignal.com/use-cases/data-enrichment/" target="_blank" rel="follow noopener">data enrichments</a> to track performance and efficiency, and find areas for improvement&nbsp;</li><li>Provide meaningful retrospectives by basing your analysis on data</li><li>Identify which features generate value for the business and user to prioritize team activities</li><li>Give leadership insight into your team’s performance and progress—so they can see the value you add to the business</li><li>Test new business practices to see whether your new methods move the needle</li></ul>



<p>Ultimately, data should play a key role in every step of the development process. The more it becomes embedded within your organization, the more you’ll be able to realize its benefits.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-empower-your-engineers-to-adopt-a-data-driven-approach">How to empower your engineers to adopt a data-driven approach</h2>



<p>For all its benefits, a data-driven approach won’t work without one critical component: your engineers actually have to adopt it. There is a cultural component to this, but equipping your team with the right tools is just as critical.</p>



<p>At its core, data-driven engineering asks the following:&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li>Are your teams prioritizing the right projects?</li><li>Are your teams moving the needle on user experience and business objectives?</li><li>Is your organization allocating the proper resources to meet your objectives?&nbsp;</li></ul>



<p>If you want your engineers to adopt a data-driven approach, you need to encourage them to ask these questions (culture) and give them the tools necessary to answer them (technology).&nbsp;</p>



<p>Here are some tips to empower your engineers with this approach:</p>



<ol><li>Involve every member of your organization in data-driven engineering—not just engineering and C-suite executives.&nbsp;</li><li>Instill data-driven methodology into every step of the process (e.g., build-measure-learn)</li><li>Focus your efforts not only on building great software but measuring its impact and learning from those measurements</li><li>Create processes that encourage continuous improvement and interaction</li><li>Invest in observability software to provide the insights necessary to adopt a data-driven approach</li></ol>



<p><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">Observability</a> tools are central to data-driven engineering. By providing full-stack visibility into every aspect of your operation, engineers can collect and implement information throughout every development stage.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The best observability platforms will enable you to:&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li>Pull metrics, traces, and logs into a unified dashboard you can share with your team</li><li>Reduce the need to go back and forth between various platforms to see and fix problems</li><li>Drill down to identify root causes of issues and high load-bearing assets</li><li>Improve ability to respond to challenges—both internal and external—to remain adaptive and innovative</li></ul>



<p>To learn more about how cloud-native observability is key to adopting a data-driven approach in your organization, <a href="https://middleware.io/whitepaper/cloud-native-observability-the-new-normal-for-enterprises/">check out our latest whitepaper here.</a></p>


A data driven approach to software engineering is critical to mitigating risk and adapting to changing consumer expectations. Here’s how to adopt it within your own organization. 

How to empower your Engineers to adopt data-driven approach


<p>Although still in its infancy, Web3 is quickly dominating the marketplace: </p>



<ul><li>In H1 of 2022, Web3 companies raised more than $1.8 billion</li><li>46% of finance apps are based on the Web3 technology</li><li>There were 18,416 monthly active Web3 developers in December 2021</li></ul>



<p>If you don’t want to be blindsided by the oncoming transformation, it’s important to start considering how your processes will adapt to Web3 architecture. Specifically: how will Web3 observability differ from previous iterations?</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-web3-architecture">What is Web3 architecture?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>Web3 is (not surprisingly) the third iteration of how internet applications are built and run. In short, this three-phase can be described as follows:</p>



<ul><li>Web 1.0 is the “read-only Web,” where developers could build webpages for people to visit and view, but there was no way for users to interact with them</li><li>Web 2.0 is the “social Web,” where users can add and edit website content, enabling everything from social media to cloud applications.</li><li>Web 3.0 (or Web3) is the “distributed Web” or the “semantic Web,” which includes both machine readability as well as the rise of blockchain-based application architecture.</li></ul>



<p>While there are many differences between Web 2.0 and Web3, perhaps the most important for <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> is that of <strong>distribution</strong>. With assets spread across the cloud and connected only through blockchain, it will require a complete transformation of how <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-application-performance-monitoring/">applications are built and monitored</a>. </p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-web-2-0-vs-web3-applications">Web 2.0 vs. Web3 applications</h3>



<p>At their core, Web 2.0 applications require three central components:&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li>Data storage, which in turn requires a constantly updated database</li><li>Backend code (e.g. Java or Python) that defines the application’s business logic</li><li>Frontend code (e.g. JavaScript, HTML, and CSS) that defines the application’s UI logic</li></ul>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="780" height="1024" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1-780x1024.jpeg" alt="web2 vs web3 application" class="wp-image-3387" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1-780x1024.jpeg 780w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1-228x300.jpeg 228w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1-768x1009.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1-1169x1536.jpeg 1169w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1-1200x1576.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications1.jpeg 1263w" sizes="(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px" /></figure>



<p>The primary difference between Web 2.0 architecture and Web3 architecture is that Web3 eliminates the middleman. There’s no longer a need for a database to store information or a centralized server where the backend logic resides.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Instead, Web3 developers leverage blockchain to build apps on a decentralized state machine maintained by anonymous nodes on the internet. Blockchains are state machines that have an instantiated genesis state, and very strict rules define a state transition.&nbsp;</p>



<p>In terms of control, no single entity controls the decentralized state machine—everyone on the network collectively maintains it.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So instead of operating a backend server, Web3 developers <strong>write smart contracts</strong> that define the logic of applications, then deploy them onto the decentralized state machine. This allows any person who wants to build a blockchain application to deploy code on this shared state machine. The front end, generally speaking, remains the same.&nbsp;</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="772" height="1024" src="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications-772x1024.jpeg" alt="web2 vs web3 applications" class="wp-image-3383" srcset="https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications-772x1024.jpeg 772w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications-226x300.jpeg 226w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications-768x1019.jpeg 768w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications-1158x1536.jpeg 1158w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications-1200x1591.jpeg 1200w, https://middleware.io/backend/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Web2-vs-Web3-applications.jpeg 1263w" sizes="(max-width: 772px) 100vw, 772px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-web3-application-architecture-components">Web3 application architecture components</h3>



<p>In the previous section, we described several components that go into Web3 application architecture. Now let’s take a closer look at each of them.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-blockchain">Blockchain</h4>



<p>There are multiple types of blockchains, but each of them has fundamentally the same structure. Blockchains are globally accessible, deterministic state machines maintained by a peer-to-peer (P2P) network of nodes. State changes on the blockchain are governed by rules of consensus that peers in the network follow.</p>



<p>Data written into the blockchain can only be written, not updated. This is because data is not maintained centrally but collectively by everyone in the network.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-smart-contracts">Smart contracts</h4>



<p>Smart contracts define the logic of your applications and deploy them onto the decentralized state machine. In this paradigm, web servers and traditional databases are no longer needed since everything is done on or around the blockchain. Smart contracts are written in high-level languages, such as Solidity or Vyper.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-virtual-machine">Virtual machine</h4>



<p>The central component of Web3 architecture is the <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-virtual-machine/">virtual machine</a>. This system executes the logic defined in smart contracts and processes the state changes that happen. For this work, developers must compile high-level languages into bytecode, which the virtual machine then executes.</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-p2p-database">P2P database</h4>



<p>Because blockchain is slow and expensive, P2P databases form an essential component of the system. P2P databases enable developers to access data off-chain, which reduces access points and, by extension, costs. This architecture eliminates centralized database servers and local storage.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-authentication">Authentication</h4>



<p>One of the unique advantages of blockchain is that in order to access a smart contract, users must provide authentication at every step. This happens through private keys that are unique to each user. As such, the very structure of authentication and security changes when adopting a Web3 infrastructure.&nbsp;</p>



<p>In Web3, applications don’t hold user data but wallets that leverage cryptographic signatures to prove ownership of specific blockchain addresses. If a user loses their private key to the wallet address, no one can recover it for them.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-front-end">Front end</h4>



<p>Finally, there’s the part of the application that the user will engage with themselves. Generally speaking, the front-end technologies for Web3 are the same as Web 2.0. The only difference is that developers need to reimagine the UX of the application to accommodate authentication and processing in the blockchain.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-complications-of-web3-applications">Complications of Web3 applications</h3>



<p>Although Web3 applications are filled with potential, they’re still a new technology. As such, there are complications and drawbacks that developers need to know.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scalability">Scalability</h4>



<p>Decentralized applications (or dapps) have difficulty scaling up because the cost of running them on a particular blockchain server increases with usage. Each transaction requires a fee (called “gas”), which is subject to extreme price volatility.</p>



<p>To solve this problem, developers can adopt decentralized, off-chain storage solutions like Interplanetary File Systems (IPFS) or Swarm, which leverage P2P network architecture.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-user-experience">User experience</h4>



<p>Dapps generally have a poor user experience compared to traditional web applications. The primary reason: their complex architecture, technical limitations, and environmental impact make them slow, difficult to use, and not very reliable. This is one reason why there are no mainstream dapps to speak of, even in 2022. Most current dapps are related to money—namely cryptocurrency.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-data-collection-storage">Data collection &amp; storage</h4>



<p>The thing that sets software companies apart is not their features and functionality, UI/UX, or business logic but the data they’ve aggregated. Web3 disrupts this reality, making every application composable by sharing and consuming data between applications.&nbsp;</p>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-observability">Observability</h4>



<p>In Web 2.0, <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/observability/">observability</a> has become a norm. In Web3, however, the transformation of systems architecture makes this observability much more complicated. While some centralized aspects of Web3 can rely on Web 2.0 observability tools and tactics, there are still significant blind spots that developers need to overcome if they’re going to adopt a Web3 architecture.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-web3-observability-and-how-does-it-work">What is Web3 observability, and how does it work?&nbsp;</h2>



<p>No complex system is ever fully healthy. If this was true for Web 2.0, it’s even more true for Web3. Highly decentralized systems are inherently unpredictable. Without observability, developers and engineers are stuck making assumptions about system behavior and basing their decisions on those assumptions.&nbsp;</p>



<p>In Web 2.0, observability depends on three fundamental components: logs, metrics, and traces. By processing these data into a usable format, observability platforms surface the most important insights, enabling developers and engineers to quickly address errors at the root cause.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So how do developers maintain their current observability expectations in a distributed Web3 environment? Here’s how those three observability components function differently in Web3.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-web3-logs">Web3 logs</h3>



<p>A <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">log</a> is an immutable, timestamp record of discrete events over time. Its primary function is to provide insights into application performance over time, particularly when evaluated within its proper context. By <a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-log-monitoring/">collecting logs</a>, engineers can catch issues in real-time. </p>



<p>The primary difference between logging in to Web 2.0 and Web3 is the volume of logs. Every bit of data that a smart contract incurs will require more “gas.” <a href="https://middleware.io">Observability platforms</a> need to become smarter in sorting through the most relevant data, leaving out events that aren’t critical for assessing system performance.&nbsp;</p>



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<p>Most modern <a href="https://middleware.io/product/log-monitoring/">log management systems</a> collect logs and automatically aggregate, index, and analyze them to surface the most important insights. This capability will become even more important as Web3 increases the volume of logs that observability platforms compile.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-web3-metrics">Web3 metrics</h3>



<p>A metric is the numerical representation of data measured over time. Metrics in observability detect system anomalies, which can clue engineers into problems as they arise. Metrics are stored in a time series database and contain a name, label, numeric value, and timestamp in milliseconds.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Web3 metrics aren’t that different from their Web 2.0 counterparts. Blockchain data is public data, and each entry in the distributed ledger already has a timestamp. All developers and engineers have to do are set up the data pipeline and warehouse.</p>



<p>One key difference, however, is that Web3 enables the collection of additional metrics related to specifications of transactions:</p>



<ul><li>Event logs</li><li>Gas burn</li><li>Time elapsed until confirmation</li><li>Input/output specifics</li></ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-web3-traces">Web3 traces</h3>



<p>While logs and metrics are fairly straightforward in Web3, tracing is different. To implement tracing, every component in the path of a request needs to propagate that tracking information. Because of the decentralized nature of blockchain, this is more difficult than in a centralized cloud platform.&nbsp;</p>



<p>It is important here to consider the two most common types of tracing methods:&nbsp;</p>



<ul><li><strong>Stack tracing </strong>consists of logs and metadata issued by an application runtime, containing all invocations from the start of a threat until an exception&nbsp;</li><li><strong><a href="https://middleware.io/blog/what-is-distributed-tracing/">Distributed tracing</a></strong> is the observation of the end-to-end path of causally related distributed events flowing as a request through a distributed system, allowing developers to see which services are involved in the request.</li></ul>



<p>Stack tracing is the only method that works for Web3, as there is no way to follow a transaction from the UI to persistence layers without further context. Many developers are now employing a hybrid approach, using distributed tracing for Web 2.0 components and adapting stack tracing for Web3.&nbsp;</p>



<p>However, overall there are severe limitations to Web3 tracing. Overcoming this challenge needs to be a priority for developers and engineers in the Web3 space if these types of applications are ever going to become mainstream.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Why existing web2 tools don&#8217;t work in web3</h2>



<p>There are a few key reasons why existing web2 tools don&#8217;t work in web3.&nbsp;</p>



<p>First, web2 is built on a centralized architecture, whereas web3 is built on a decentralized architecture. This means that web2 tools rely on central servers, while web3 tools do not.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Second, web2 tools are typically designed to be used by humans, while web3 tools are designed to be used by machines. This means that web2 tools are not well-suited for interacting with the decentralized data and applications of the web3 world.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Finally, web2 tools are often closed and proprietary, while web3 tools are open and decentralized. This means that web2 tools cannot take advantage of the many benefits of the web3 world, such as the ability to connect to and interact with a variety of different decentralized networks.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"><p><em>Therefore the best way is to build your applications on web3 based architecture Alchemy instead of hosting on AWS, and then, you can easily monitor your smart contracts and decentralized applications.&nbsp;</em></p></blockquote>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">When do you need to think about web3 observability&nbsp;</h2>



<p>When you’re either already running web2 applications, partially moving to or creating standalone web3 applications, then you should consider web3 observability at different stages of your company&#8217;s development.&nbsp;</p>



<p>We at <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> provide full-stack observability for web2 and web3 applications.&nbsp; So, if you’re already using tools A, B, and C, then you should probably think about using Middleware. Motivate your readers to think about where they are in their journey and if they should think about web3 observability.</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-benefits-of-web3-observability">The benefits of Web3 observability</h2>



<p>The benefits of Web3 observability are similar to the benefits of Web2, with one notable difference: Web3 observability is uniquely set up to function in a decentralized environment. As such, some of the benefits are slightly different depending on context:</p>



<ul><li>Because decentralized systems have no single source of truth, Web3 observability provides much-needed transparency</li><li>Engineers can document the production environment and get the information needed to improve it without spending hours accessing various blocks and nodes.</li><li>Develop a comprehensive understanding of the distributed environments</li><li>Detect issues as they arise, and address the problem in real-time</li></ul>



<p>At the end of the day, Web3 engineers are dealing with a complex array of systems with multiple points of failure. While decentralization does help mitigate overall risk, it is important to understand where points of failure occur and have a comprehensive idea of overall system health. Without it, they’ll be flying blind.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-thoughts-on-web3-observability">Final thoughts on Web3 observability</h2>



<p>Like the architecture itself, Web3 observability is in its nascent stage. In order for companies to rely on these new technologies to provide the foundation for their business, they’ll have to become more mature.</p>



<p>Yet perfect should never be the enemy of good. By leveraging the available technologies to improve observability in Web3 environments, engineers can create more reliable, efficient, and innovative applications and take advantage of decentralization and its benefits.</p>



<p><em>Learn more about how <a href="https://middleware.io/">Middleware</a> can provide observability into your entire tech stack here.</em></p>


As more applications adopt Web3 architecture, observability tools are even more critical to maintaining the health of decentralized systems. Learn how to monitor web3 applications. 

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