Google Cloud Stackdriver and Azure Data Explorer Integration

Input and output integration overview

This plugin enables the collection of monitoring data from Google Cloud services through the Stackdriver Monitoring API. It is designed to help users monitor their cloud infrastructure’s performance and health by gathering relevant metrics.

The Azure Data Explorer plugin allows integration of metrics collection with Azure Data Explorer, enabling users to analyze and query their telemetry data efficiently. With this plugin, users can configure ingestion settings to suit their needs and leverage Azure’s powerful analytical capabilities.

Integration details

Google Cloud Stackdriver

The Stackdriver Telegraf plugin allows users to query timeseries data from Google Cloud Monitoring using the Cloud Monitoring API v3. With this plugin, users can easily integrate Google Cloud monitoring metrics into their monitoring stacks. This API provides a wealth of insights about resources and applications running in Google Cloud, including performance, uptime, and operational metrics. The plugin supports various configuration options to filter and refine the data retrieved, enabling users to customize their monitoring setup according to their specific needs. This integration facilitates a smoother experience in maintaining the health and performance of cloud resources and assists teams in making data-driven decisions based on historical and current performance statistics.

Azure Data Explorer

The Azure Data Explorer plugin allows users to write metrics, logs, and time series data collected from various Telegraf input plugins into Azure Data Explorer, Azure Synapse, and Real-Time Analytics in Fabric. This integration serves as a bridge, allowing applications and services to monitor their performance metrics or logs efficiently. Azure Data Explorer is optimized for analytics over large volumes of diverse data types, making it an excellent choice for real-time analytics and monitoring solutions in cloud environments. The plugin empowers users to configure metrics ingestion based on their requirements, define table schemas dynamically, and set various ingestion methods while retaining flexibility regarding roles and permissions needed for database operations. This supports scalable and secure monitoring setups for modern applications that utilize cloud services.

Configuration

Google Cloud Stackdriver

[[inputs.stackdriver]]
  ## GCP Project
  project = "erudite-bloom-151019"

  ## Include timeseries that start with the given metric type.
  metric_type_prefix_include = [
    "compute.googleapis.com/",
  ]

  ## Exclude timeseries that start with the given metric type.
  # metric_type_prefix_exclude = []

  ## Most metrics are updated no more than once per minute; it is recommended
  ## to override the agent level interval with a value of 1m or greater.
  interval = "1m"

  ## Maximum number of API calls to make per second.  The quota for accounts
  ## varies, it can be viewed on the API dashboard:
  ##   https://cloud.google.com/monitoring/quotas#quotas_and_limits
  # rate_limit = 14

  ## The delay and window options control the number of points selected on
  ## each gather.  When set, metrics are gathered between:
  ##   start: now() - delay - window
  ##   end:   now() - delay
  #
  ## Collection delay; if set too low metrics may not yet be available.
  # delay = "5m"
  #
  ## If unset, the window will start at 1m and be updated dynamically to span
  ## the time between calls (approximately the length of the plugin interval).
  # window = "1m"

  ## TTL for cached list of metric types.  This is the maximum amount of time
  ## it may take to discover new metrics.
  # cache_ttl = "1h"

  ## If true, raw bucket counts are collected for distribution value types.
  ## For a more lightweight collection, you may wish to disable and use
  ## distribution_aggregation_aligners instead.
  # gather_raw_distribution_buckets = true

  ## Aggregate functions to be used for metrics whose value type is
  ## distribution.  These aggregate values are recorded in in addition to raw
  ## bucket counts; if they are enabled.
  ##
  ## For a list of aligner strings see:
  ##   https://cloud.google.com/monitoring/api/ref_v3/rpc/google.monitoring.v3#aligner
  # distribution_aggregation_aligners = [
  #  "ALIGN_PERCENTILE_99",
  #  "ALIGN_PERCENTILE_95",
  #  "ALIGN_PERCENTILE_50",
  # ]

  ## Filters can be added to reduce the number of time series matched.  All
  ## functions are supported: starts_with, ends_with, has_substring, and
  ## one_of.  Only the '=' operator is supported.
  ##
  ## The logical operators when combining filters are defined statically using
  ## the following values:
  ##   filter ::=  {AND  AND  AND }
  ##   resource_labels ::=  {OR }
  ##   metric_labels ::=  {OR }
  ##   user_labels ::=  {OR }
  ##   system_labels ::=  {OR }
  ##
  ## For more details, see https://cloud.google.com/monitoring/api/v3/filters
  #
  ## Resource labels refine the time series selection with the following expression:
  ##   resource.labels. = 
  # [[inputs.stackdriver.filter.resource_labels]]
  #   key = "instance_name"
  #   value = 'starts_with("localhost")'
  #
  ## Metric labels refine the time series selection with the following expression:
  ##   metric.labels. = 
  #  [[inputs.stackdriver.filter.metric_labels]]
  #    key = "device_name"
  #    value = 'one_of("sda", "sdb")'
  #
  ## User labels refine the time series selection with the following expression:
  ##   metadata.user_labels."" = 
  #  [[inputs.stackdriver.filter.user_labels]]
  #    key = "environment"
  #    value = 'one_of("prod", "staging")'
  #
  ## System labels refine the time series selection with the following expression:
  ##   metadata.system_labels."" = 
  #  [[inputs.stackdriver.filter.system_labels]]
  #    key = "machine_type"
  #    value = 'starts_with("e2-")'
</code></pre>

Azure Data Explorer

[[outputs.azure_data_explorer]]
  ## The URI property of the Azure Data Explorer resource on Azure
  ## ex: endpoint_url = https://myadxresource.australiasoutheast.kusto.windows.net
  endpoint_url = ""

  ## The Azure Data Explorer database that the metrics will be ingested into.
  ## The plugin will NOT generate this database automatically, it's expected that this database already exists before ingestion.
  ## ex: "exampledatabase"
  database = ""

  ## Timeout for Azure Data Explorer operations
  # timeout = "20s"

  ## Type of metrics grouping used when pushing to Azure Data Explorer.
  ## Default is "TablePerMetric" for one table per different metric.
  ## For more information, please check the plugin README.
  # metrics_grouping_type = "TablePerMetric"

  ## Name of the single table to store all the metrics (Only needed if metrics_grouping_type is "SingleTable").
  # table_name = ""

  ## Creates tables and relevant mapping if set to true(default).
  ## Skips table and mapping creation if set to false, this is useful for running Telegraf with the lowest possible permissions i.e. table ingestor role.
  # create_tables = true

  ##  Ingestion method to use.
  ##  Available options are
  ##    - managed  --  streaming ingestion with fallback to batched ingestion or the "queued" method below
  ##    - queued   --  queue up metrics data and process sequentially
  # ingestion_type = "queued"

Input and output integration examples

Google Cloud Stackdriver

1. Integrating Cloud Metrics into Custom Dashboards: With this plugin, teams can funnel metrics from Google Cloud into personalized dashboards, allowing for real-time monitoring of application performance and resource utilization. By customizing the visual representation of cloud metrics, operations teams can easily identify trends and anomalies, enabling proactive management before issues escalate.

2. Automated Alerts and Analysis: Users can set up automated alerting mechanisms leveraging the plugin’s metrics to track resource thresholds. This capability allows teams to act swiftly in response to performance degradation or outages by providing immediate notifications, thus reducing the mean time to recovery and ensuring continued operational efficiency.

3. Cross-Platform Resource Comparison: The plugin can be used to draw metrics from various Google Cloud services and compare them with on-premise resources. This cross-platform visibility helps organizations make informed decisions about resource allocation and scaling strategies, as well as optimize cloud spending versus on-premise infrastructure.

4. Historical Data Analysis for Capacity Planning: By collecting historical metrics over time, the plugin empowers teams to conduct thorough capacity planning. Understanding past performance trends facilitates accurate forecasting for resource needs, leading to better budgeting and investment strategies.

Azure Data Explorer

1. Real-Time Monitoring Dashboard: By integrating metrics from various services into Azure Data Explorer using this plugin, organizations can build comprehensive dashboards that reflect real-time performance metrics. This allows teams to respond proactively to performance issues and optimize system health without delay.

2. Centralized Log Management: Utilize Azure Data Explorer to consolidate logs from multiple applications and services. By utilizing the plugin, organizations can streamline their log analysis processes, making it easier to search, filter, and derive insights from historical data accumulated over time.

3. Data-Driven Alerting Systems: Enhance monitoring capabilities by configuring alerts based on metrics sent via this plugin. Organizations can set thresholds and automate incident responses, significantly reducing downtime and improving the reliability of critical operations.

4. Machine Learning Model Training: By leveraging the data sent to Azure Data Explorer, organizations can perform large-scale analytics and prepare the data for feeding into machine learning models. This plugin enables the structuring of data that can subsequently be used for predictive analytics, leading to enhanced decision-making capabilities.

Feedback

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