In this exciting episode of Cloud Dialogues, Matt & Georgia sit down with Boris Tame—formerly of Bass Lime and now with Cloudflare — to dive deep into the latest in observability for cloud computing.
Boris shares insights from his unique journey and discusses the challenges, requirements, and innovations shaping observability today. Boris combines technical expertise with a fresh perspective on observability. With a Master’s in Aerospace Dynamics and a background in predicting drone behavior, he’s tackled the complexities of data processing for unpredictable scenarios. His passion for analytics led him to a career in observability, where he now helps organizations unlock the potential of real-time data.
What we Covered
From Monitoring to Modern Observability
- Traditional Monitoring: Built around dashboards that forecast issues or document past events.
- Modern Observability: Emphasizes understanding application behavior live, without code changes, and goes beyond the classic "three pillars" (logs, metrics, traces) to focus on high-quality data and efficient query engines.
Core Requirements for Effective Observability
1. High Cardinality: The ability to handle limitless unique values per field.
2. High Dimensionality: The capacity to track hundreds of attributes per event—like user ID, location, headers, and more.
Tackling Common Obstacles
- Over-reliance on Dashboards: Many teams are caught up in dashboards instead of implementing true observability.
- Transition Hurdles: Moving from traditional logging to advanced observability can be tough.
- Developer Experience: A seamless experience is crucial for adoption and successful implementation.
Memorable Quotes
“Observability without action is just storage. If you’re not actively using logs, metrics, and traces, you’re simply paying for storage.”
“The quality of your observability is only as good as the quality of data your application produces.”
Key Takeaways
1. Observability goes beyond debugging—it's about empowering teams to create better products.
2. Cloud providers are starting to integrate observability as a core platform feature.
3. Effective observability requires strong team ownership and a culture that values data-driven decisions.
4. A gradual, user-friendly transition to modern observability is essential—no need for complete application overhauls.
Industry Trends
- Cloud Maturity Levels: Different cloud providers vary widely in their observability capabilities.
- Built-In Observability: Newer platforms like Cloudflare are incorporating high cardinality and high dimensionality into their infrastructure.
- OpenTelemetry Standards: OpenTelemetry is emerging as a standard, but it still needs to be complemented with application-specific insights.
Business Impact
- Faster Problem Resolution: Enhanced observability enables teams to solve issues more efficiently.
- Product Insights for Managers: Observability data can help track feature usage and user experience.
- Informed Decision-Making: Teams with comprehensive data access make smarter choices.
Final Thoughts
This episode highlights that while the right tools are critical, the heart of effective observability lies in producing high-quality data and empowering teams to act on it. Organizations that foster a culture of observability and improve data quality over time will see a true business impact from their observability practices.
