Pillar 02

Debug

Why observability systems fail and how to diagnose them

Spans disappearing, broken context propagation, backpressure, dropped telemetry, and queue bottlenecks.

Debug Guide 21 min read

Query-level PostgreSQL evidence with OpenTelemetry: a privilege decision, not a config flag

Query samples, blocking evidence and pg_stat_statements are not config flags. Each one buys diagnostic power for a privilege, for query text leaving the database, or for work the receiver makes PostgreSQL do. What each costs, measured.

Published Aug 12, 2026

postgresql opentelemetry observability

Debug Guide 8 min read

A Local Lab for Debugging OpenTelemetry Collector Pipelines

Use Docker Compose to prove that traces, metrics, and logs pass through each OpenTelemetry Collector pipeline before you debug the backend.

Published May 30, 2026

opentelemetry collector prometheus

Debug Guide 5 min read

The Guided Ops Era: Why Observability Needs a Compass

For years, “visibility” was the holy grail. Teams instrumented everything (logs, traces, metrics), following the seemingly reasonable principle that if they col

Published Nov 2, 2025

datadog observability

Debug Guide 4 min read

The Most Common Mistakes Teams Make With Datadog Logs (and How to Avoid Them)

I’ve worked with teams running Datadog Logs across some of the largest enterprises in the world. One thing I’ve noticed: most logging mistakes aren’t about Data

Published Sep 15, 2025

datadog observability usage_optimization

Debug Guide 5 min read

DevOps Without SREs: Why Firefighting Never Ends - and How to Fix It

If you’re a DevOps engineer at a mid-size SaaS company, chances are you don’t have a Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) team backing you up. * If you’ve worke

Published Aug 31, 2025

datadog observability