Logs to the rescue

At New Relic, application performance monitoring (APM) is extensively used to optimize services, but when preemptive instrumentation falls short, logs serve as a critical alternative for troubleshooting. Logs, despite being unstructured, are ubiquitous and can provide insights when other telemetry is unavailable. However, their lack of structure can lead to inconsistencies and challenges in data management, especially given the massive volume they can generate. To enhance log utility, structured logging, such as using JSON format, can impose order and facilitate easier data processing. New Relic's features allow for the integration of logs with other data, enabling better correlation and analysis through the use of New Relic Query Language (NRQL), which can parse and extract valuable metrics from log messages. This capability is particularly useful for tracking performance data, identifying errors, and improving monitoring without the need for additional instrumentation. The blog emphasizes the power of logs in providing new visibility into systems, advocating for effective logging practices as a means to enhance observability and performance analysis.