OpenTelemetry Collector is an open-source project under the OpenTelemetry umbrella that helps collect, process, and export telemetry data in a unified way. It’s designed to be extensible, allowing users to build custom solutions by adding their own components, such as custom authenticators, receivers, processors, exporters, or connectors.
Getting Started
To get started with OpenTelemetry Collector, you can follow the official getting started guide. This guide covers building a custom collector using the OpenTelemetry Collector Builder (OCB).
Configuration
The next step is to create a configuration file for the OpenTelemetry Collector. You can use a YAML file named otel-config.yaml with the following content:
receivers:
otlp:
protocols:
grpc: {}
http: {}
processors:
batch: {}
exporters:
otlp:
endpoint: "http://localhost:4317/v1/traces"
service:
pipelines:
traces:
receivers: [otlp]
processors: [batch]
exporters: [otlp]
Components and Extensions
The OpenTelemetry Collector consists of several components and extensions:
Components: These are the core building blocks of the OpenTelemetry Collector. They include Receivers, Processors, Exporters, and Connectors. Each component is usually part of one or more pipelines.
Extensions: Extensions provide additional capabilities to the Collector, such as health checks, but they do not require direct access to telemetry data and are not part of pipelines.
Installation
You can install the OpenTelemetry Collector on various operating systems and architectures. The official documentation provides instructions for installing the Collector using Docker.
Distributions
The OpenTelemetry project offers pre-built distributions of the collector, which include various components. You can also build your own custom distributions using the OpenTelemetry Collector Builder (OCB).
Troubleshooting
The OpenTelemetry Collector documentation provides guidance on troubleshooting common issues with the Collector. This includes receiver issues, exporter issues, and general troubleshooting tips.
Conclusion
OpenTelemetry Collector is a powerful tool for collecting, processing, and exporting telemetry data in a unified way. Its extensibility and flexibility make it a popular choice for observability solutions. For more information, refer to the official OpenTelemetry Collector documentation.
