Grafana Tempo 2.5 introduces several updates including performance improvements, TraceQL metrics enhancements, and support for new streaming endpoints, alongside a shift to the vParquet4 format. TraceQL metrics, still experimental, now allow users to create dynamic metrics from traces with new methods such as quantile_over_time() and histogram_over_time(), enabling aggregation of numerical values. The update includes a major refactor of the query frontend to support streaming gRPC endpoints, aiming to expand beyond the currently supported TraceQL streaming search endpoint. The introduction of vParquet4, although not yet default, prepares for future TraceQL features with added support for querying events, links, and arrays. Tempo 2.5 also brings breaking changes like the removal of the original vParquet format and a security update running the process as a non-root user, requiring attention during upgrades. Looking ahead, Grafana Labs focuses on making TraceQL metrics generally available and extending the TraceQL language, while also considering architectural changes to improve performance and cost-efficiency. For community engagement, users are encouraged to participate in discussions, join community calls, and explore open positions at Grafana Labs, with Grafana Cloud offering a free tier to get started with Tempo.