AdvancedTechnical
5 min
Metrics vs Logs vs Traces in Observability
ObservabilityMonitoringSRE
Advertisement
Interview Question
Explain the roles of metrics, logs, and traces in observability, and how they complement each other.
Key Points to Cover
- Metrics: numerical time series for SLIs and alerts
- Logs: detailed event/context data for debugging
- Traces: request flows across distributed systems
- Together: metrics trigger, logs explain, traces show causal flow
Evaluation Rubric
Defines metrics clearly30% weight
Explains logs role30% weight
Describes traces and correlation20% weight
Explains how they complement each other20% weight
Hints
- 💡Think “RED” and “USE” monitoring methods.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
- ⚠️Treating them as independent entities rather than a cohesive system.
- ⚠️Over-reliance on one pillar (e.g., only metrics) leading to blind spots.
- ⚠️Insufficient detail in logs, making root cause analysis difficult.
- ⚠️Inconsistent or missing trace data across services in a distributed environment.
- ⚠️Not correlating metrics anomalies with specific log entries or traces for effective debugging.
Potential Follow-up Questions
- ❓Which tools integrate all three?
- ❓How to set SLOs from metrics?
Advertisement