Prometheus Monitoring System and Time Series Database

Prometheus is a systems and service monitoring system developed as a Cloud Native Computing Foundation project. It is designed to collect metrics from configured targets at specified intervals, evaluate rule expressions, display results, and trigger alerts based on specified conditions.

Key features:

• Multi-dimensional data model - Time series are defined by metric name and a set of key/value dimensions.
• PromQL - A powerful and flexible query language that leverages the dimensionality of the data.
• No dependency on distributed storage - Each server node operates autonomously.
• HTTP pull model - Time series collection is achieved through an HTTP pull mechanism.
• Batch job support - Pushing time series is facilitated via an intermediary gateway.
• Service discovery - Targets can be discovered using service discovery mechanisms or static configuration.
• Graphing and dashboarding - Multiple modes of visual representation are supported.
• Federation - Hierarchical and horizontal federation capabilities are included.

Prometheus can be installed via various methods including precompiled binaries, Docker images, or by building from source. It is particularly useful for developers and system administrators looking to monitor and manage their services effectively.