4 Getting inputs from containers and Kubernetes
This chapter covers
- Finding ways to capture events from containerized apps
- Investigating how we can observe containers and Kubernetes itself
- Discussing deployment patterns and tools to power our monitoring
- Applying techniques for adding container or Kubernetes context to events
Chapter 3 looked at a variety of input plugins that can be used in cloud-native and traditional deployments. These input plugins provide insights into applications and environments in which they are deployed: bare metal, virtual machine (VM), or container. Although these technologies provide the means to execute applications, they don’t address how we can orchestrate and manage these sources. This chapter examines how we can observe containers and container orchestration, particularly with Kubernetes, and the approaches available to manage our Fluent Bit configuration effectively. Understanding the complexities of how containers and container orchestration can work is important. It can influence how we approach observing our applications and the way we understand what container runtimes and container orchestration are doing and how they affect our solutions.
4.1 Architectural context
Figure 4.1 shows our architecture diagram again, highlighting the parts of Fluent Bit relevant to this chapter. We’re still on the top layer of our diagram, which reflects the importance of ingesting events. Without that capability, Fluent Bit’s value becomes rather limited.