Application and service monitoring
Follow a slow application through DNS, connection setup, HTTP, API workflows, browser loads, and service dependencies.
The status endpoint responds, but the workflow people need is still failing. Build checks around that workflow, then use phase timing and dependency checks to decide whether to investigate resolution, transport, the service, or the browser.
Measure beyond an open port
- Resolution and connection setup
- Combine compatible DNS, TCP Connect, and HTTP checks for a web target. Compare resolution, connect, TLS handshake, and first-byte timing with the network measurements you have configured.
- HTTP and API workflows
- Check expected responses and use ordered API Flow steps for transactions that depend on earlier results. A successful health endpoint does not stand in for the workflow your users need.
- Real browser page loads
- Use the browser plugin to load a page in an actual browser and collect page timing and web vitals. Client-side work and dependent resources can explain a slow page even when the initial HTTP response is fast.
- Service dependencies
- Add dedicated checks for the services behind the application, including database connections, gRPC health, WebSocket exchanges, directory services, and file services. Configure each check for the question it needs to answer.
Begin with the workflow people cannot complete
Choose a representative vantage point
Place an agent where the affected users or dependent services reach the application. Define the target and the expected response or transaction before choosing the checks.
Add the layers needed for diagnosis
Use compatible web checks together, install the browser plugin for page loads, and configure service-specific checks for critical dependencies. Verify the first results from each source.
Compare the affected interval
Inspect the failed step and phase timing alongside the relevant path and infrastructure observations. Keep agent, target, and time scope explicit as you move between them.
What the evidence can tell you
Synthetic checks describe their configured workflow
An agent’s browser load does not reproduce every user’s authenticated session, device, or browser state. Choose the vantage, inputs, and assertions that represent the service behavior you need to monitor.
Dependencies keep their own evidence
A slow database check or a changed network measurement can guide an investigation without proving the cause of a separate transaction. Compare the actual targets and measurement windows before connecting the results.
Start with one business-critical workflow
Bring a recent incident or the environment you want to cover. We can walk through where to place agents and which measurements answer your questions.