DNS and Apache Druid Integration

Input and output integration overview

The DNS plugin enables users to monitor and gather statistics on DNS query times, facilitating performance analysis of DNS resolutions.

This plugin allows Telegraf to send JSON-formatted metrics to Apache Druid over HTTP, enabling real-time ingestion for analytical queries on high-volume time-series data.

Integration details

DNS

This plugin gathers DNS query times in milliseconds, utilizing the capabilities of DNS queries similar to the Dig command. It provides a means to monitor and analyze DNS performance by measuring the response time from specified DNS servers, allowing network administrators and engineers to ensure optimal DNS resolution times. The plugin can be configured to target specific servers and customize the types of records queried, encompassing various DNS features such as resolving domain names to IP addresses, or retrieving details from specific records as needed, while also clearly reporting on the success or failure of each query, alongside relevant metadata.

Apache Druid

This configuration uses Telegraf’s HTTP output plugin with json data format to send metrics directly to Apache Druid, a real-time analytics database designed for fast, ad hoc queries on high-ingest time-series data. Druid supports ingestion via HTTP POST to various components like the Tranquility service or native ingestion endpoints. The JSON format is ideal for structuring Telegraf metrics into event-style records for Druid’s columnar and time-partitioned storage engine. Druid excels at powering interactive dashboards and exploratory queries across massive datasets, making it an excellent choice for real-time observability and monitoring analytics when integrated with Telegraf.

Configuration

DNS

[[inputs.dns_query]]
  servers = ["8.8.8.8"]

  # network = "udp"

  # domains = ["."]

  # record_type = "A"

  # port = 53

  # timeout = "2s"

  # include_fields = []
  

Apache Druid

[[outputs.http]]
  ## Druid ingestion endpoint (e.g., Tranquility, HTTP Ingest, or Kafka REST Proxy)
  url = "http://druid-ingest.example.com/v1/post"

  ## Use POST method to send events
  method = "POST"

  ## Data format for Druid ingestion (expects JSON format)
  data_format = "json"

  ## Optional headers (may vary depending on Druid setup)
  # [outputs.http.headers]
  #   Content-Type = "application/json"
  #   Authorization = "Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

  ## Optional timeout and TLS settings
  timeout = "10s"
  # tls_ca = "/path/to/ca.pem"
  # tls_cert = "/path/to/cert.pem"
  # tls_key = "/path/to/key.pem"
  # insecure_skip_verify = false

Input and output integration examples

DNS

1. Monitor DNS Performance for Multiple Servers: By deploying the DNS plugin, a user can simultaneously monitor the performance of different DNS servers, such as Google DNS and Cloudflare DNS, by specifying them in the servers array. This scenario enables comparisons of response times and reliability across different DNS providers, assisting in selecting the best option based on empirical data.

2. Analyze Query Times for High-Traffic Domains: Integrate the plugin to measure response times specifically for high-traffic domains relevant to an organization’s operations, such as internal services or customer-facing sites. By focusing on performance metrics for these domains, organizations can proactively address latency issues, ensuring service reliability and improving user experiences.

3. Alerting on DNS Timeouts: Utilize the plugin in combination with alerting systems to notify administrators whenever a DNS query exceeds a defined timeout threshold. This setup can help in proactive troubleshooting of networking issues or server misconfigurations, fostering a rapid response to potential downtime scenarios.

4. Gather Historical Data for Performance Trends: Use the plugin to collect historical data on DNS query times over extended periods. This data can be used to analyze trends and patterns in DNS performance, enabling better capacity planning, identifying periodic issues, and justifying infrastructure upgrades or changes to DNS architectures.

Apache Druid

1. Real-Time Application Monitoring Dashboard: Use Telegraf to collect metrics from application servers and send them to Druid for immediate analysis and visualization in dashboards. Druid’s low-latency querying allows users to interactively explore system behavior in near real-time.

2. Security Event Aggregation: Aggregate and forward security-related metrics such as failed logins, port scans, or process anomalies to Druid. Analysts can build dashboards to monitor threat patterns and investigate incidents with millisecond-level granularity.

3. IoT Device Analytics: Collect telemetry from edge devices via Telegraf and send it to Druid for fast, scalable processing. Druid’s time-partitioned storage and roll-up capabilities are ideal for handling billions of small JSON events from sensors or gateways.

4. Web Traffic Behavior Exploration: Use Telegraf to capture web server metrics (e.g., requests per second, latency, error rates) and forward them to Druid. This enables teams to drill down into user behavior by region, device, or request type with subsecond query performance.

Feedback

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