Get best of the week

Prometheus, don't go: 6 alternative monitoring tools for Kubernetes



Monitoring helps ensure the smooth operation of Kubernetes applications and further resolves any problems that may arise during its operation.

For example, it allows you at any time to find out how much memory, disk space is currently available and how actively the CPU is used, to learn about the distribution of resources between containers and the state of applications running in the cluster. Very often, Prometheus is used for these purposes, in this article we will consider six alternative monitoring tools for Kubernetes.

Prometheus is a popular open source monitoring tool that many companies use to monitor their IT infrastructure. Prometheus was originally developed at SoundCloud to collect multidimensional data and queries. The Prometheus server has its own standalone unit, which is independent of network storage or external services. So, it does not require a lot of work to deploy additional infrastructure or software.

The main advantages of Prometheus are its tight integration with Kubernetes and many of the available exporters and client libraries, as well as its fast query language and API. The main disadvantages of Prometheus are the lack of encryption and the standard data model with key-based metrics, which may not coincide with the model of a third-party system. In this case, you need to use exporters to convert metrics. Prometheus works with data using the Pull model, that is, it polls endpoints for data.

However, there are many other tools, consider them.

Alternative monitoring tools


These tools, like Prometheus, can work in conjunction with Kubernetes. Each of them has its advantages and disadvantages.

1. Grafana




Grafana is an open source platform for visualization, monitoring and analysis of metrics. Grafana specializes in time series analytics. She can visualize the results of her monitoring work in the form of line graphs, heat maps and histograms. When the tracked metric exceeds the set threshold, you will receive an alert.

Key Features:

  • Alerts. You can receive alerts on various channels, including SMS, email, Slack or PagerDuty. If you prefer other options, you can add your own alerts manually by writing a small amount of code.
  • . () . , .
  • . Grafana . , Grafana Kubernetes , IP-, .
  • Annotations. If something goes wrong, you can time-match events from different dashboards and sources to analyze the cause of the failure. You can create annotations manually by adding comments to the necessary points and fragments of the graphs. On the graph, the annotation is displayed as a vertical red line. When you hover over an annotation, you can get a description of the event — for example, information about the server’s response or system restart.

2. cAdvisor




cAdvisor collects, processes and exports performance and resource utilization information for running containers. cAdvisor has built-in Kubernetes support, because it is integrated into Kubelet (an agent running on nodes).

Key Features:

  • . , , CPU, .
  • . , Elasticsearch InfluxDB.
  • -. -, .

* , cAdvisor , Kubernetes.

3. Fluentd




Fluentd separates data sources from backend systems, providing a single centralized logging. This allows you to collect and convert logs from different applications written in different languages. Fluentd translates data from multiple sources into JSON format.

Key Features:

  • Using the JSON format. Allows you to unify the processing of log data at the stages of buffering, filtering and transmission.
  • Extensible architecture. A flexible plug-in system allows you to extend the functionality of Fluentd by connecting multiple data sources and outputs.
  • . Fluentd 30-40 . 13 000 . , - Fluent Bit.
  • . , . , Fluentd , .

4. Jaeger




Jaeger is a backend written in Go. He is engaged in the collection, storage, analysis and display of traces. Jaeger uses distributed tracing to track the request path through various microservices. The tool allows you to get a visual representation of the flow of requests. Distributed tracing is a way to manage and monitor microservices. It starts by “integrating” into the service mesh.

Key Features:

  • High scalability. Allows you to solve the single point of failure (SPOF) problem and scale to fit your business needs.
  • Support for multiple repositories. It supports two open source NoSQL databases, Elasticsearch and Cassandra. For testing purposes, Jaeger also provides a simple in-memory storage.
  • Cloud Deployment. It supports various configuration methods, including environment variables, command line options, and configuration files. Uses templates, Kubernetes operators, and Helm diagrams.
  • Monitoring Jaeger backend components provide metrics and logs in the Prometheus format by default.

5. Telepresence




Telepresence is an open source tool that allows you to create the "illusion" of working with a local container in a remote Kubernetes cluster. Telepresence deploys a two-way network proxy in the hearth that collects data for Kubernetes environments, including TCP connections, environment variables, and volumes.

Key Features:

  • . Linux, Mac OS, .
  • . , Kubernetes. Docker-, «» .
  • Kubernetes. , , , . Telepresence , .
  • Kubernetes. . , , , .

6. Zabbix




Zabbix is designed to monitor the status of servers, as well as a large number of network parameters, and offers many visualization and reporting functions based on stored data. Zabbix can be used by both small organizations with a small number of servers and large enterprises with a large, extensive infrastructure to monitor IT infrastructure.

Key Features:

  • Flexible thresholds of problems. You can set the problem threshold in a trigger that will use the values ​​from the database.
  • Real-time visualization. You can immediately see the tracked data using the built-in graphical functions.
  • . Zabbix . . .
  • . Zabbix .
  • . Zabbix Proxy. , .


Prometheus, along with a built-in alert manager, is integrated into Kubernetes by default. However, as you can see, there are other monitoring solutions that at least allow you to complement and improve your own Kubernetes toolkit.


As an advertisement


VDSina offers virtual and physical servers for any task, a huge selection of operating systems for automatic installation, it is possible to install any OS from its own ISO , a convenient control panel of its own design and daily payment. And we also have eternal servers;)

More articles:


All Articles