Zipkin

Zipkin is an open-source distributed tracing system designed to help developers gather and analyze data about the latency and errors in their distributed systems. According to the vendor, Zipkin is suitable for companies of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises. It is widely used by professionals in software development, DevOps, IT operations, system architecture, and e-commerce industries.

Key Features

Distributed Tracing System: Zipkin helps gather timing data needed to troubleshoot latency problems in service architectures by collecting and analyzing trace data.

Trace Collection and Lookup: According to the vendor, users can collect and lookup trace data based on attributes such as service, operation name, tags, and duration, enabling them to identify and analyze performance bottlenecks.

Trace Visualization: The user-friendly Zipkin UI provides a visual representation of traces and dependencies between services, which the vendor claims can help users identify aggregate behavior and error paths.

Instrumentation Libraries: Zipkin supports a wide range of instrumentation libraries for various programming languages and frameworks, making it easier for developers to integrate with existing applications.

Data Storage Options: Zipkin supports various backend storage options, including in-memory storage and integration with popular databases such as Apache Cassandra and Elasticsearch, according to the vendor.

Flexible Data Transport: According to the vendor, users can report trace data to Zipkin using flexible options such as HTTP, Kafka, Apache ActiveMQ, gRPC, and RabbitMQ, based on their infrastructure and requirements.

Integration with Existing Systems: Zipkin seamlessly integrates with existing systems and frameworks, allowing users to leverage its tracing capabilities without significant changes to their codebase, according to the vendor.

Real-time Monitoring and Analysis: Zipkin provides real-time monitoring and analysis of trace data, enabling users to identify and troubleshoot performance issues as they occur, according to the vendor.

Scalability and Performance: Zipkin is designed to be highly scalable, capable of handling large volumes of trace data without compromising performance, according to the vendor.

Message Tracing: According to the vendor, Zipkin offers message tracing, allowing users to trace messages in distributed systems using parent-child relationships and annotations, making it suitable for systems with multiple consumers and no response path.