API Ops - The Difficulties In Monitoring API Usage

Nolan Sullivan shares his experiences working with LiveRamp's web APIs from 2016-2018, emphasizing the critical importance of monitoring API usage and the challenges posed by inadequate tooling. Despite significant advancements in API and microservices architecture, Sullivan notes that the primary tools for monitoring and troubleshooting APIs have not evolved significantly since his tenure, with many organizations still relying on similar tools and processes from that period. He describes the logging and monitoring infrastructure evolution his team underwent, from AWS to GCP, and highlights the manual processes developed to fill gaps in tooling, especially in diagnosing and triaging breaking changes to APIs and their dependencies. Sullivan underscores the need for more API-centric monitoring solutions and developer guardrails to help teams avoid unintentional errors and improve integration insights. He advocates for advanced tools that could offer smaller teams the same level of operational insight as larger companies, expressing a desire for feedback on others' experiences in API operations and the tools they have used.