Core components of the OpenTelemetry open source project

OpenTelemetry is an open-source project that provides a comprehensive framework for generating, collecting, and exporting telemetry data, including metrics, logs, and traces, using a set of APIs, SDKs, and tools. The project defines a centralized collector and exporters to transmit telemetry data to various backend platforms, enhancing visibility into system performance. Its architecture decouples the API from the SDK, allowing flexibility in implementation across different programming languages. OpenTelemetry Protocol (OTLP) standardizes the data exchange format, while semantic conventions ensure consistency in how operations are recorded across platforms. The OpenTelemetry Collector serves as a central hub for processing and exporting telemetry data, supporting various open formats, and can be deployed as a gateway or agent. Exporters translate and transmit data to desired backend observability systems, allowing flexibility in data handling without redeploying services.