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# Prometheus endpoint


<img src="https://netdata.cloud/img/prometheus.svg" width="150"/>


Plugin: go.d.plugin
Module: prometheus

<img src="https://img.shields.io/badge/maintained%20by-Netdata-%2300ab44" />

## Overview

This generic Prometheus collector gathers metrics from any [`Prometheus`](https://prometheus.io/) endpoints.


It collects metrics by periodically sending HTTP requests to the target instance.


This collector is supported on all platforms.

This collector supports collecting metrics from multiple instances of this integration, including remote instances.


### Default Behavior

#### Auto-Detection

By default, it detects instances running on the local host by trying to connect to known ports that are [allocated to exporters](https://github.com/prometheus/prometheus/wiki/Default-port-allocations).


#### Limits

The default configuration for this integration does not impose any limits on data collection.

#### Performance Impact

The default configuration for this integration is not expected to impose a significant performance impact on the system.

## Setup


You can configure the **prometheus** collector in two ways:

| Method                | Best for                                                                                 | How to                                                                                                                                 |
|-----------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| [**UI**](#via-ui)     | Fast setup without editing files                                                         | Go to **Nodes → Configure this node → Collectors → Jobs**, search for **prometheus**, then click **+** to add a job. |
| [**File**](#via-file) | If you prefer configuring via file, or need to automate deployments (e.g., with Ansible) | Edit `go.d/prometheus.conf` and add a job.                                                                        |

:::important

UI configuration requires paid Netdata Cloud plan.

:::


### Prerequisites

No action required.

### Configuration

#### Options

The following options can be defined globally: update_every, autodetection_retry.


<details open><summary>Config options</summary>



| Group | Option | Description | Default | Required |
|:------|:-----|:------------|:--------|:---------:|
| **Collection** | update_every | Data collection interval (seconds). | 10 | no |
|  | autodetection_retry | Autodetection retry interval (seconds). Set 0 to disable. | 0 | no |
| **Target** | url | Target endpoint URL. |  | yes |
|  | timeout | HTTP request timeout (seconds). | 10 | no |
| **Filters** | [selector](#option-filters-selector) | Time series selector (filter). |  | no |
| **Limits** | max_time_series | Global time series limit. If an endpoint returns more time series than this, the data is not processed. | 2000 | no |
|  | max_time_series_per_metric | Per-metric time series limit. Metrics with more time series than this are skipped. | 200 | no |
| **Customization** | [fallback_type](#option-customization-fallback-type) | Fallback type rules for untyped metrics. |  | no |
|  | label_prefix | Optional prefix added to all labels of all charts. Labels will be formatted as `prefix_name`. |  | no |
| **HTTP Auth** | username | Username for Basic HTTP authentication. |  | no |
|  | password | Password for Basic HTTP authentication. |  | no |
|  | bearer_token_file | Path to a file containing a bearer token (used for `Authorization: Bearer`). |  | no |
| **TLS** | tls_skip_verify | Skip TLS certificate and hostname verification (insecure). | no | no |
|  | tls_ca | Path to CA bundle used to validate the server certificate. |  | no |
|  | tls_cert | Path to client TLS certificate (for mTLS). |  | no |
|  | tls_key | Path to client TLS private key (for mTLS). |  | no |
| **Proxy** | proxy_url | HTTP proxy URL. |  | no |
|  | proxy_username | Username for proxy Basic HTTP authentication. |  | no |
|  | proxy_password | Password for proxy Basic HTTP authentication. |  | no |
| **Request** | method | HTTP method to use. | GET | no |
|  | body | Request body (e.g., for POST/PUT). |  | no |
|  | headers | Additional HTTP headers (one per line as key: value). |  | no |
|  | not_follow_redirects | Do not follow HTTP redirects. | no | no |
|  | force_http2 | Force HTTP/2 (including h2c over TCP). | no | no |
| **Virtual Node** | vnode | Associates this data collection job with a [Virtual Node](https://learn.netdata.cloud/docs/netdata-agent/configuration/organize-systems-metrics-and-alerts#virtual-nodes). |  | no |

<a id="option-filters-selector"></a>
##### selector

This option allows you to filter out unwanted time series. Only metrics matching the selector will be collected.

- Logic: (pattern1 OR pattern2) AND !(pattern3 or pattern4)
- Pattern syntax: [selector](https://github.com/netdata/netdata/blob/master/src/go/pkg/prometheus/selector/README.md).
- Option syntax:

```yaml
selector:
  allow:
    - pattern1
    - pattern2
  deny:
    - pattern3
    - pattern4
```


<a id="option-customization-fallback-type"></a>
##### fallback_type

This option allows you to process Untyped metrics as Counter or Gauge instead of ignoring them.

- Metric name pattern syntax: [shell file name pattern](https://golang.org/pkg/path/filepath/#Match).
- Option syntax:

```yaml
fallback_type:
  counter:
    - metric_name_pattern1
    - metric_name_pattern2
  gauge:
    - metric_name_pattern3
    - metric_name_pattern4
```



</details>


#### via UI

Configure the **prometheus** collector from the Netdata web interface:

1. Go to **Nodes**.
2. Select the node **where you want the prometheus data-collection job to run** and click the :gear: (**Configure this node**). That node will run the data collection.
3. The **Collectors → Jobs** view opens by default.
4. In the Search box, type _prometheus_ (or scroll the list) to locate the **prometheus** collector.
5. Click the **+** next to the **prometheus** collector to add a new job.
6. Fill in the job fields, then click **Test** to verify the configuration and **Submit** to save.
    - **Test** runs the job with the provided settings and shows whether data can be collected.
    - If it fails, an error message appears with details (for example, connection refused, timeout, or command execution errors), so you can adjust and retest.


#### via File

The configuration file name for this integration is `go.d/prometheus.conf`.

The file format is YAML. Generally, the structure is:

```yaml
update_every: 1
autodetection_retry: 0
jobs:
  - name: some_name1
  - name: some_name2
```
You can edit the configuration file using the [`edit-config`](https://github.com/netdata/netdata/blob/master/docs/netdata-agent/configuration/README.md#edit-configuration-files) script from the
Netdata [config directory](https://github.com/netdata/netdata/blob/master/docs/netdata-agent/configuration/README.md#locate-your-config-directory).

```bash
cd /etc/netdata 2>/dev/null || cd /opt/netdata/etc/netdata
sudo ./edit-config go.d/prometheus.conf
```

##### Examples

###### Basic

> **Note**: Change the port of the monitored application on which it provides metrics.

A basic example configuration.


```yaml
jobs:
  - name: local
    url: http://127.0.0.1:9090/metrics

```
###### Read metrics from a file

An example configuration to read metrics from a file.

<details open><summary>Config</summary>

```yaml
# use "file://" scheme
jobs:
  - name: myapp
    url: file:///opt/metrics/myapp/metrics.txt

```
</details>

###### HTTP authentication

> **Note**: Change the port of the monitored application on which it provides metrics.

Basic HTTP authentication.


<details open><summary>Config</summary>

```yaml
jobs:
  - name: local
    url: http://127.0.0.1:9090/metrics
    username: username
    password: password

```
</details>

###### HTTPS with self-signed certificate

> **Note**: Change the port of the monitored application on which it provides metrics.

Do not validate server certificate chain and hostname.


<details open><summary>Config</summary>

```yaml
jobs:
  - name: local
    url: https://127.0.0.1:9090/metrics
    tls_skip_verify: yes

```
</details>

###### Multi-instance

> **Note**: When you define multiple jobs, their names must be unique.
> **Note**: Change the port of the monitored application on which it provides metrics.

Collecting metrics from local and remote instances.


<details open><summary>Config</summary>

```yaml
jobs:
  - name: local
    url: http://127.0.0.1:9090/metrics

  - name: remote
    url: http://192.0.2.1:9090/metrics

```
</details>



## Alerts

There are no alerts configured by default for this integration.


## Metrics

This collector has built-in grouping logic based on the [type of metrics](https://prometheus.io/docs/concepts/metric_types/).

| Metric                    | Chart                                     | Dimension(s)         | Algorithm   |
|---------------------------|-------------------------------------------|----------------------|-------------|
| Gauge                     | for each label set                        | one, the metric name | absolute    |
| Counter                   | for each label set                        | one, the metric name | incremental |
| Summary (quantiles)       | for each label set (excluding 'quantile') | for each quantile    | absolute    |
| Summary (sum and count)   | for each label set                        | the metric name      | incremental |
| Histogram (buckets)       | for each label set (excluding 'le')       | for each bucket      | incremental |
| Histogram (sum and count) | for each label set                        | the metric name      | incremental |

Untyped metrics (have no '# TYPE') processing:

- As Counter or Gauge depending on pattern match when 'fallback_type' is used.
- As Counter if it has suffix '_total'.
- As Summary if it has 'quantile' label.
- As Histogram if it has 'le' label.

**The rest are ignored**.



## Troubleshooting

### Debug Mode

**Important**: Debug mode is not supported for data collection jobs created via the UI using the Dyncfg feature.

To troubleshoot issues with the `prometheus` collector, run the `go.d.plugin` with the debug option enabled. The output
should give you clues as to why the collector isn't working.

- Navigate to the `plugins.d` directory, usually at `/usr/libexec/netdata/plugins.d/`. If that's not the case on
  your system, open `netdata.conf` and look for the `plugins` setting under `[directories]`.

  ```bash
  cd /usr/libexec/netdata/plugins.d/
  ```

- Switch to the `netdata` user.

  ```bash
  sudo -u netdata -s
  ```

- Run the `go.d.plugin` to debug the collector:

  ```bash
  ./go.d.plugin -d -m prometheus
  ```

  To debug a specific job:

  ```bash
  ./go.d.plugin -d -m prometheus -j jobName
  ```

### Getting Logs

If you're encountering problems with the `prometheus` collector, follow these steps to retrieve logs and identify potential issues:

- **Run the command** specific to your system (systemd, non-systemd, or Docker container).
- **Examine the output** for any warnings or error messages that might indicate issues.  These messages should provide clues about the root cause of the problem.

#### System with systemd

Use the following command to view logs generated since the last Netdata service restart:

```bash
journalctl _SYSTEMD_INVOCATION_ID="$(systemctl show --value --property=InvocationID netdata)" --namespace=netdata --grep prometheus
```

#### System without systemd

Locate the collector log file, typically at `/var/log/netdata/collector.log`, and use `grep` to filter for collector's name:

```bash
grep prometheus /var/log/netdata/collector.log
```

**Note**: This method shows logs from all restarts. Focus on the **latest entries** for troubleshooting current issues.

#### Docker Container

If your Netdata runs in a Docker container named "netdata" (replace if different), use this command:

```bash
docker logs netdata 2>&1 | grep prometheus
```


