How Observability Can Get Expensive, and How to Fix It

In the OpenObservability Talks episode, Dotan Horovits hosts Ben Sigelman, co-founder of Lightstep, to discuss the challenges and costs associated with monitoring and observability in microservices-based systems, particularly focusing on the "cardinality problem." As organizations increase the number of microservices and business transactions, the costs of collecting and storing observability telemetry data, such as metrics, logs, and traces, can escalate quickly. Sigelman emphasizes the need for effective solutions to manage these costs, as developers often unintentionally contribute to high expenses by adding tags and dimensions that multiply data volumes. He argues that the burden of managing cardinality should not fall solely on developers, suggesting that observability systems should handle this complexity to prevent negative returns on investment. Despite the challenges, the importance of adequate instrumentation for diagnosing issues remains critical, and Sigelman advocates for observatory systems that can support these needs without imposing prohibitive costs.