Overview

Probes are automated data collectors that fetch logs from external sources at regular intervals. Use probes to monitor APIs, collect metrics, and ingest data from external systems without writing custom code.

What Are Probes?

A probe is a scheduled HTTP request that:

• Runs automatically at a defined interval
• Fetches data from an external URL
• Sends the response as logs to a specified project
• Supports multiple authentication methods
• Can be configured with custom context fields

Common Use Cases

• Metrics Collection - Fetch metrics from Prometheus, application endpoints, or monitoring systems
• API Monitoring - Poll external APIs to track availability and response times
• Data Ingestion - Regularly pull data from third-party services
• Health Checks - Monitor service health endpoints
• Log Aggregation - Collect logs from distributed systems

Probes Dashboard

Navigate to Probes from the sidebar to access the probes dashboard.

Page Layout

Page Title: "Probes"
Description: "Configure automated data collection from external sources"

Probe Cards

Each probe is displayed as a card showing:

• Title - The probe name (with radar icon)
• Project - Which project receives the logs
• URL - The endpoint being monitored
• Interval - How often the probe runs (shown as badge, e.g., "60s")
• Auth - Authentication type (shown as badge, e.g., "PROBESTYX", "BEARER", "none")

Card Actions

Each probe card has two action icons:

• Edit (pencil icon) - Opens the probe configuration modal
• Delete (trash icon) - Removes the probe after confirmation

Empty State

When no probes exist:

• Message: "No probes configured yet"
• CTA button: "Create your first probe"

Creating Probes

Click the Add Probe button (top-right) to create a new probe.

The creation process uses a 3-step wizard:

1. Basic Config - Set title, project, interval, and optional context
2. Setup Connection - Configure HTTP method, URL, timeout, and authentication
3. Confirmation - Review your configuration before creating

See Creating & Managing Probes for detailed instructions.

How Probes Work

Execution Flow

1. Scheduled Execution - Probe runs at the specified interval (in seconds)
2. HTTP Request - Makes request to configured URL with authentication
3. Response Handling - Captures response data and metadata
4. Log Creation - Creates log entry in the specified project
5. Next Schedule - Automatically schedules next execution

Execution Context

Each probe execution creates a log with:

• Level - INFO for successful requests, ERROR for failures
• Context - Includes probe metadata (probe_id, probe_title, url, source)
• Data - Response data, status code, response time, and any errors
• Custom Context - Any additional fields you configured

Success Logs

Successful probe executions create logs containing:

• Response data from the endpoint
• HTTP status code
• Response time in milliseconds
• Probe identification information

Failure Logs

Failed probe executions create ERROR logs with:

• Error message and name
• URL that was attempted
• Status code (if available)
• Response time
• Flag: pull_success: false

Authentication Methods

Probes support five authentication types:

None

No authentication headers are sent.

Probestyx

HMAC-based authentication using timestamp and signature headers. See Using Probestyx for details.

Bearer Token

Sends an Authorization: Bearer <token> header.

Basic Auth

Sends standard HTTP Basic Authentication with username and password.

Custom Headers

Allows you to define any custom headers as JSON.

Interval Configuration

Probes run at regular intervals defined in seconds:

• Minimum interval: 5 seconds
• Maximum interval: 60 seconds (enforced by server)
• Default interval: 60 seconds

Interval Limit

While the UI allows values up to 3600 seconds, the server enforces a maximum of 60 seconds. Values above 60 will be rejected.

Pagination

The probes list supports pagination when you have many probes. Use the pagination controls at the bottom to navigate between pages.

Best Practices

Choosing Intervals

• High-frequency monitoring: 5-10 seconds for critical health checks
• Regular metrics: 30-60 seconds for standard monitoring
• Data collection: 60 seconds for most use cases

Shorter intervals increase server load and log volume.

Organizing Probes

• Use descriptive titles that indicate what is being monitored
• Group related probes in the same project
• Add context fields to help identify probe sources in logs

Testing Before Creation

Always use the Test Connection button before creating a probe to verify:

• URL is reachable
• Authentication works correctly
• Response format is as expected