Observability

Observability is the ability to measure and monitor the internal state of a system through collected metrics, logs, and traces. It provides visibility into the health and performance of infrastructure and applications. Key terms include metrics, logs, and traces.

Metrics are numerical measurements that provide insights into resource utilization, request rates, error rates, and more. They are aggregated into time series data that can be visualized to identify trends and anomalies. For example, monitoring CPU usage metrics helps determine when more computing resources are needed. Logs record events or outputs from an application or system. Reviewing logs helps debug errors and understand usage patterns. Traces track the path of a request through all the microservices and dependencies that support an application. Traces help pinpoint latency issues across distributed systems.

The three pillars of observability - metrics, logs, and traces - provide crucial insights for understanding the internal workings of complex cloud native environments. By leveraging observability tooling and practices, operations teams gain the necessary visibility to monitor services, troubleshoot issues, and optimize performance.