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Google Cloud Monitoring

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Google Cloud Monitoring (GCM) provides visibility into the performance, uptime, and overall health of cloud-powered applications. It collects metrics, events, and metadata from Google Cloud, hosted uptime probes, and application instrumentation.

Google Cloud Monitoring parameters and supported features in Nobl9
General support:
Release channel: Stable, Beta
Connection method: Agent, Direct
Replay and SLI Analyzer: Historical data limit 30 days
Event logs: Supported
Query checker: Not supported
Query parameters retrieval: Supported
Timestamp cache persistence: Supported
Query parameters:
Query interval: 1 min
Query delay: 2 min
Jitter: 15 sec
Timeout: 50 sec
Agent details and minimum required versions for supported features:
Plugin name: n9gcm
Query delay environment variable: GCM_QUERY_DELAY
Replay and SLI Analyzer: 0.80.0
Query parameters retrieval: 0.73.2
Timestamp cache persistence: 0.65.0
Additional notes:
Support for PromQL queries in Nobl9 agent versions 0.88.0 / 0.83.0-beta or later
Support for Google Cloud Monitoring metrics
Learn more Opens in a new tab

Authentication​

Google Cloud Monitoring authorization requires user credentials. You can retrieve these credentials from the Google Cloud Platform (GCP) in the form of a Service account key file.

Learn more about authentication in Google Cloud.

Provide your Service account key when connecting GCM using the direct method. This ensures direct integration with the GCM APIs to retrieve the data, leveraging the SaaS-to-SaaS infrastructure in Nobl9.

  • On the Nobl9 Web, drag&drop the required file into the Service Account Key File field.
  • When you use sloctl, pass your credentials as the value for the gcm.serviceAccountKey field.
note

Your user account must have access to one of the following OAuth scopes:

Adding Google Cloud Monitoring as a data source​

To ensure data transmission between Nobl9 and Google Cloud Monitoring, it may be necessary to list Nobl9 IP addresses as trusted.

IP addresses to include in your allowlist for secure access

If you're using app.nobl9.com instance:
  • 18.159.114.21
  • 18.158.132.186
  • 3.64.154.26
If you're using us1.nobl9.com instance:
  • 34.121.54.120
  • 34.123.193.191
  • 34.134.71.10
  • 35.192.105.150
  • 35.225.248.37
  • 35.226.78.175
  • 104.198.44.161

You can add the Google Cloud Monitoring data source using the direct or agent connection methods.

Direct connection method​

A direct connection to Google Cloud Monitoring requires users to enter their credentials which Nobl9 stores safely.

Nobl9 Web​

To set up this type of connection:

  1. Navigate to Integrations > Sources.
  2. Click .
  3. Click your required Source tile.
  4. Choose Direct.
  1. Select one of the following Release Channels:
    • The stable channel is fully tested by the Nobl9 team. It represents the final product; however, this channel does not contain all the new features of a beta release. Use it to avoid crashes and other limitations.
    • The beta channel is under active development. Here, you can check out new features and improvements without the risk of affecting any viable SLOs. Remember that features in this channel can change.

  2. Upload your Service Account Key File to authenticate with GCP (mandatory).
    Retrieve your authentication credentials from the Google Cloud Platform. The file must be in JSON format. For more information, refer to the Getting Started with Authentication | Google Cloud documentation or the Authentication section above.

  3. Set Step to define the metric resolution (mandatory, default: 60 seconds).
    The Step value must be a positive integer. It controls how many data points Nobl9 retrieves in a single query.
      For optimal operation, consider the following recommendations for its value:
    • Aim for 15 seconds or more
    • Keep it less than or equal to your Google Cloud Monitoring query interval
  1. Select a Project (mandatory).
    Projects provide the structure for organizing Nobl9 resources and managing access permissions.
    If a project is not specified, Nobl9 assigns the default project value automatically.
  2. Enter a Display Name (optional).
    Spaces are allowed.
  3. Enter a Name (mandatory).
    The name is mandatory and can only contain lowercase, alphanumeric characters, and dashes (for example, my-project-1). Nobl9 duplicates the display name here, transforming it into the supported format, but you can edit the result.
  4. Enter a Description (optional).
    Provide extra details, such as the purpose and responsible personnel.
    Up to 1050 characters.
  5. Specify the Query delay to set a customized delay for queries when pulling the data from the data source.
    • The default value in Google Cloud Monitoring integration for Query delay is 2 minutes.
    Changing the query delay
    Changing the query delay can affect your SLI data.
    Learn more about query delay and its impact.
  6. Configure how Nobl9 uses your data source’s historical data for Replay and SLI Analyzer.
    These features allow you to backfill SLOs or analyze SLIs for assisted SLO creation.
    1. Maximum period for historical data retrieval (optional).
      • Defines the furthest point in the past from which data can be retrieved.
      • To activate Replay and SLI Analyzer for your data source, set this value to a positive whole number.
      • The maximum period is capped by your data source's specific limitations. Find the maximum value for your data source.
    2. Default period for historical data retrieval (optional).
      • Sets the automatic backfill window for new SLOs using this data source.
      • Enter 0 or a positive whole number (default: 0). You can change this value for individual SLOs during creation.
      • Setting a non-zero value results in automatic replay of newly created SLOs based on this data source, so they report past performance upon creation, rather than waiting for new data to accumulate.
  7. Click Add Data Source.

YAML​

  1. Create a YAML definition to set up a direct connection with Google Cloud Monitoring. For this, refer to the following example:
YAML definition for the direct connection method
apiVersion: n9/v1alpha
kind: Direct
metadata:
  name: google-cloud-monitoring
  displayName: Google Cloud Monitoring Direct
  project: default
  annotations:
    area: latency
    env: prod
    region: us
    team: sales
spec:
  description: Example Google Cloud Monitoring Direct
  releaseChannel: stable
  gcm:
    serviceAccountKey: "{\n  \"type\": \"service_account\",\n  \"project_id\": \"prod-app\",\n  \"private_key_id\": \"669180ba44964eddba9e2f6623721381\",\n  \"private_key\": \"-----BEGIN PRIVATE KEY-----\\nSECRET_KEY_GOES_HERE\\n-----END PRIVATE KEY-----\\n\",\n  \"client_email\": \"nobl9@nobl9.iam.gserviceaccount.com\",\n  \"client_id\": \"eddba9e2f66237213812\",\n  \"auth_uri\": \"https://accounts.google.com/o/oauth2/auth\",\n  \"token_uri\": \"https://oauth2.googleapis.com/token\",\n  \"auth_provider_x509_cert_url\": \"https://www.googleapis.com/oauth2/v1/certs\",\n  \"client_x509_cert_url\": \"https://www.googleapis.com/robot/v1/metadata/x509/nobl9%40nobl9.iam.gserviceaccount.com\"\n}"
    step: 15
  historicalDataRetrieval:
    maxDuration:
      value: 30
      unit: Day
    defaultDuration:
      value: 15
      unit: Day
  queryDelay:
    value: 3
    unit: Minute
FieldTypeDescription
queryDelay.unit
Mandatory
enumSpecifies the unit for the query delay. Possible values: Second | Minute.
• Check query delay documentation for default unit of query delay for each source.
queryDelay.value
Mandatory
numericSpecifies the value for the query delay.
• Must be a number less than 1440 minutes (24 hours).
• Check query delay documentation for default unit of query delay for each source.
logCollectionEnabled
Optional
booleanOptional. Defaults to false. Set to true if you'd like your direct to collect event logs. Contact us to activate it.
releaseChannel
Mandatory
enumSpecifies the release channel. Accepted values: beta | stable.
Source-specific fields
gcm.serviceAccountKey
Mandatory
stringCopy and paste your credentials from the credentials.json file. See authentication for more details.
gcm.step
Mandatory
integerDefines metrics resolution in seconds. Must be a positive integer, 60 seconds by default. Recommendations: Use a value of at least 15 seconds and less than or equal to your Google Cloud Monitoring query interval.
Replay-related fields
historicalDataRetrieval
Optional
n/aOptional structure related to configuration related to Replay.
❗ Use only with supported sources.
• If omitted, Nobl9 uses the default values of value: 0 and unit: Day for maxDuration and defaultDuration.
maxDuration.value
Optional
numericSpecifies the maximum duration for historical data retrieval. Must be integer ≥ 0. See Replay documentation for values of max duration per data source.
maxDuration.unit
Optional
enumSpecifies the unit for the maximum duration of historical data retrieval. Accepted values: Minute | Hour | Day.
defaultDuration.value
Optional
numericSpecifies the default duration for historical data retrieval. Must be integer ≥ 0 and ≤ maxDuration.
defaultDuration.unit
Optional
enumSpecifies the unit for the default duration of historical data retrieval. Accepted values: Minute | Hour | Day.
  1. Apply your YAML definition using the sloctl apply command.

Agent connection method​

Nobl9 Web​

Follow the instructions below to set up an agent connection.

  1. Navigate to Integrations > Sources.
  2. Click .
  3. Click your required Source tile.
  4. Choose Agent.
  1. Select one of the following Release Channels:
    • The stable channel is fully tested by the Nobl9 team. It represents the final product; however, this channel does not contain all the new features of a beta release. Use it to avoid crashes and other limitations.
    • The beta channel is under active development. Here, you can check out new features and improvements without the risk of affecting any viable SLOs. Remember that features in this channel can change.
  2. Set Step to define the metric resolution (mandatory, default: 60 seconds).
    The Step value must be a positive integer. It controls how many data points Nobl9 retrieves in a single query.
      For optimal operation, consider the following recommendations for its value:
    • Aim for 15 seconds or more
    • Keep it less than or equal to your Google Cloud Monitoring query interval

    Minimum agent version requirement
    The Step parameter is supported starting from Nobl9 agent versions 0.105.0-beta or 0.105.0 and later.
  1. Select a Project (mandatory).
    Projects provide the structure for organizing Nobl9 resources and managing access permissions.
    If a project is not specified, Nobl9 assigns the default project value automatically.
  2. Enter a Display Name (optional).
    Spaces are allowed.
  3. Enter a Name (mandatory).
    The name is mandatory and can only contain lowercase, alphanumeric characters, and dashes (for example, my-project-1). Nobl9 duplicates the display name here, transforming it into the supported format, but you can edit the result.
  4. Enter a Description (optional).
    Provide extra details, such as the purpose and responsible personnel.
    Up to 1050 characters.
  5. Specify the Query delay to set a customized delay for queries when pulling the data from the data source.
    • The default value in Google Cloud Monitoring integration for Query delay is 2 minutes.
    Changing the query delay
    Changing the query delay can affect your SLI data.
    Learn more about query delay and its impact.
  6. Configure how Nobl9 uses your data source’s historical data for Replay and SLI Analyzer.
    These features allow you to backfill SLOs or analyze SLIs for assisted SLO creation.
    1. Maximum period for historical data retrieval (optional).
      • Defines the furthest point in the past from which data can be retrieved.
      • To activate Replay and SLI Analyzer for your data source, set this value to a positive whole number.
      • The maximum period is capped by your data source's specific limitations. Find the maximum value for your data source.
    2. Default period for historical data retrieval (optional).
      • Sets the automatic backfill window for new SLOs using this data source.
      • Enter 0 or a positive whole number (default: 0). You can change this value for individual SLOs during creation.
      • Setting a non-zero value results in automatic replay of newly created SLOs based on this data source, so they report past performance upon creation, rather than waiting for new data to accumulate.
  7. Click Add Data Source.
  8. Deploy your agent in a Kubernetes cluster or Docker container.

YAML​

  1. Create a YAML definition to set up an agent connection with Google Cloud Monitoring. For this, refer to the following example:
YAML definition for the agent connection method
apiVersion: n9/v1alpha
kind: Agent
metadata:
  name: google-cloud-monitoring
  displayName: Google Cloud Monitoring Agent
  project: default
  annotations:
    area: latency
    env: prod
    region: us
    team: sales
spec:
  description: Example Google Cloud Monitoring Agent
  releaseChannel: stable
  gcm:
    step: 15
  historicalDataRetrieval:
    maxDuration:
      value: 30
      unit: Day
    defaultDuration:
      value: 15
      unit: Day
  queryDelay:
    value: 3
    unit: Minute
FieldTypeDescription
queryDelay.unit
Mandatory
enumSpecifies the unit for the query delay. Possible values: Second | Minute.
• Check query delay documentation for default unit of query delay for each source.
queryDelay.value
Mandatory
numericSpecifies the value for the query delay.
• Must be a number less than 1440 minutes (24 hours).
• Check query delay documentation for default unit of query delay for each source.
releaseChannel
Mandatory
enumSpecifies the release channel. Accepted values: beta | stable.
Source-specific fields
gcm.step
Mandatory
integerDefines metrics resolution in seconds. Must be a positive integer, 60 seconds by default. Recommendations: Use a value of at least 15 seconds and less than or equal to your Google Cloud Monitoring query interval.
Replay-related fields
historicalDataRetrieval
Optional
n/aOptional structure related to configuration related to Replay.
❗ Use only with supported sources.
• If omitted, Nobl9 uses the default values of value: 0 and unit: Day for maxDuration and defaultDuration.
maxDuration.value
Optional
numericSpecifies the maximum duration for historical data retrieval. Must be integer ≥ 0. See Replay documentation for values of max duration per data source.
maxDuration.unit
Optional
enumSpecifies the unit for the maximum duration of historical data retrieval. Accepted values: Minute | Hour | Day.
defaultDuration.value
Optional
numericSpecifies the default duration for historical data retrieval. Must be integer ≥ 0 and ≤ maxDuration.
defaultDuration.unit
Optional
enumSpecifies the unit for the default duration of historical data retrieval. Accepted values: Minute | Hour | Day.
Deploy your agent in a Kubernetes cluster or Docker container.
Check out these related guides and references:
Create SLOs with Google Cloud MonitoringCreating SLOsGetting started with authenticationGoogle Cloud docsCreating and managing projectsGoogle Cloud docsAgent metricsAgentCreating agents via TerraformTerraform
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