What are some effective ways to monitor system logs and metrics?

Monitoring system logs and metrics is an essential skill for systems managers who want to ensure the performance, reliability, and security of their IT infrastructure. System logs are records of events and activities that occur in the operating system, applications, and services. Metrics are quantitative measurements of key aspects of the system, such as CPU usage, memory consumption, disk space, network traffic, and response time. By collecting, analyzing, and visualizing system logs and metrics, systems managers can identify and troubleshoot issues, optimize resources, and improve user experience. In this article, we will discuss some effective ways to monitor system logs and metrics.

1 Use a centralized logging system

One of the challenges of monitoring system logs is that they are often dispersed across multiple servers, devices, and locations. This makes it difficult to correlate and compare data from different sources, and to access and store logs efficiently. A centralized logging system is a solution that collects and aggregates logs from various sources into a single platform, where they can be stored, indexed, searched, and analyzed. A centralized logging system can also provide features such as alerting, reporting, and dashboards. Some examples of centralized logging systems are ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana), Splunk, Graylog, and Fluentd.

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2 Use a metrics collection and visualization tool

Another challenge of monitoring system metrics is that they are often complex and dynamic, requiring frequent and real-time updates. A metrics collection and visualization tool is a solution that gathers and displays metrics from various sources in a graphical and interactive way, allowing systems managers to easily monitor and compare key performance indicators, trends, and anomalies. A metrics collection and visualization tool can also provide features such as alerting, reporting, and dashboards. Some examples of metrics collection and visualization tools are Prometheus, Grafana, InfluxDB, and Zabbix.

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Leon Fayer

Technology and Product Innovation | Author | Public Speaker
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Ability to correlate metrics visually is a critical tool for reducing your Time to Remedy (TTR)/ I am huge fan of a top-down monitoring strategy, where you alert on business critical processes (revenue, registration, etc.) and then correlate it to a technical metrics (running out of memory, disk fail, latency. etc).

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3 Define meaningful and actionable alerts

Monitoring system logs and metrics is not only about collecting and displaying data, but also about taking action when something goes wrong or needs improvement. Alerts are notifications that inform systems managers about important or abnormal events or conditions that require attention or intervention. Such alerts can be triggered by predefined thresholds, patterns, or rules based on system logs and metrics, and delivered via various channels like email, SMS, or Slack. To define meaningful and actionable alerts, systems managers should consider the severity and impact of the event or condition, the frequency and duration of the alert, the context and root cause of the alert, as well as the expected and recommended response to the alert.

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Leon Fayer

Technology and Product Innovation | Author | Public Speaker
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Make sure to monitor everything, but only alert on what’s important. And more often than not — you’ll find business processes affecting revenue are most important. Nobody cares if your cache hit ratio is slightly below threshold in the middle of the night. A lot of people do care, however, if the revenue suddenly drops.

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4 Automate and integrate monitoring tasks

Monitoring system logs and metrics can be a tedious and time-consuming task, especially when dealing with large and complex IT environments. To reduce the manual effort and human error involved in monitoring, systems managers can leverage automation and integration tools and techniques. Automation tools can perform repetitive and routine tasks, such as collecting, processing, and analyzing data, generating reports, and sending alerts. Integration tools can connect and synchronize data and actions across different systems, platforms, and applications, enabling a seamless and consistent monitoring workflow. Some examples of automation and integration tools are Ansible, Puppet, Chef, and Jenkins.

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5 Review and improve monitoring practices

Monitoring system logs and metrics is not a one-time or static activity, but a continuous and dynamic process that requires constant review and improvement. Systems managers should regularly evaluate and update their monitoring goals, strategies, and tools, based on the changing needs and demands of their IT infrastructure and users. Systems managers should also seek feedback and input from other stakeholders, such as developers, operators, and customers, to ensure that their monitoring practices are aligned with the business objectives and expectations. Systems managers should also follow best practices and standards for monitoring, such as the four golden signals (latency, traffic, errors, and saturation), the SMART criteria (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely), and the observability triad (logs, metrics, and traces).

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Leon Fayer

Technology and Product Innovation | Author | Public Speaker
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Granularity of data collected is important. One of the biggest mistakes most observability platforms make is presenting metrics averaged in 1-minute increments. Averages hide problems that may impact real users, and every user should matter. Histograms and heatmaps present much more granular approach, focusing on individual instances and experiences that can assist in understanding edge case problems and isolation of those hard-to-track problems in your systems.

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What are some effective ways to monitor system logs and metrics?

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1 Use a centralized logging system

2 Use a metrics collection and visualization tool

3 Define meaningful and actionable alerts

4 Automate and integrate monitoring tasks

5 Review and improve monitoring practices

6 Here’s what else to consider

Systems Management

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What are some effective ways to monitor system logs and metrics?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Use a centralized logging system

2 Use a metrics collection and visualization tool

3 Define meaningful and actionable alerts

4 Automate and integrate monitoring tasks

5 Review and improve monitoring practices

6 Here’s what else to consider

Systems Management

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