Collecting metrics by using BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel

The BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel streamlines data ingestion with a unified approach. It gathers metrics from various sources that export telemetry data in the OpenTelemetry Protocol (OTLP) format and forwards them to the backend.

OpenTelemetry is an open-source, vendor-neutral observability framework designed to instrument, generate, collect, and export telemetry data.

By adopting this standardized approach, the agent simplifies monitoring, improves visibility, and enables seamless integration of custom telemetry sources while optimizing data processing workflows.

Capabilities

Seamless deployment and scalability: The BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel can be easily deployed within existing infrastructure, supporting horizontal scaling to accommodate growing telemetry needs.
Centralized configuration and governance: Organizations can centrally configure and enforce telemetry data collection rules across all monitored environments with policy management.
Flexible data collection mechanisms: BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel supports both push and pull models, allowing independent receivers to push metrics directly and enabling pluggable Knowledge Modules (KMs) to pull metrics as needed.
Real-time, Low-Latency Telemetry: It ensures high-frequency data collection with near-instantaneous processing, enabling faster decision-making in dynamic environments.
High extensibility: Its modular architecture allows seamless integration with third-party monitoring tools, cloud-based observability solutions, and custom-built monitoring stacks.
Enhanced interoperability: BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel works effortlessly with existing telemetry solutions, including Prometheus, allowing you to leverage your preferred monitoring ecosystem without vendor lock-in.
Reduced operational overhead: BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel simplifies monitoring and reduces management complexity by unifying multiple observability signals into a single framework.

Architecture

The BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel is a vendor-agnostic telemetry agent that efficiently collects, processes, and exports performance metrics.

architecture

Key components of BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel

Receiver: Handles metric ingestion via pull mechanisms.
Processor: Transforms, aggregates, and filters collected data.
Exporter: Sends the processed metrics to BMC Helix Operations Management for visualization, analysis, and alerting.

Metric collection and data flow

Data ingestion
- The Host pushes performance metrics to the BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel by using OTLP.
- The agent also supports pluggable Knowledge Modules that pull additional metrics.
Data processing within BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel
- Receiver: Collects incoming OpenTelemetry (OTEL) metrics from the Host or pluggable KMs.
- Processor: Maps metadata and processes the data by aggregating, filtering, or transforming it.
- Exporter: Prepares and sends the processed monitoring entities to BMC Helix Operations Management.
Data streaming and policy configuration
- The BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel streams processed data to BMC Helix Operations Management, ensuring real-time monitoring insights.
- Policies configured in BMC Helix Operations Management dynamically control data collection, filtering, and processing within the agent.

This architecture ensures efficient and scalable telemetry data collection, reducing the operational complexity of managing multiple monitoring agents.

BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel

You can monitor the following metrics by using the BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel.

Generic OTel metrics	Configuring OTel metrics
REST-based OTel metrics	Configuring REST API metrics
Database-based OTel metrics	Configuring database metrics

Download the file from EPD

Select and download the installation files for your platform; see the following table. Use your BMC Support credentials to access the EPD website. You might also be prompted to complete the Export Compliance Form.

Component	EPD link	Installation file name
BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel	Download Link	Windows: otl_ALL_25100.zip

To create a deployable package

In the navigation pane, expand Administration, select Repository, and select the Deployable Packages tab.
ClickCreate Deployable Package.
The Create Deployable Package wizard starts.
On the Installation Package Solution Selection page, select the operating system for which you want to create a package, and then select the platform on which you want to install the package.
The list of components in the repository that are supported on the specified operating system and platform is displayed.
Select the components that you want to include in the package.
Select the version of the component from the Version list that you want to include in the package.
By default, the latest version available in the Presentation Server is selected. When imported to the Presentation Server, select the latest to automatically update the package with the latest component versions.
Click Next and enter the installation directory.
Success
In Windows, the default installation directory is C:\Program Files\BMC Software and not C:\Program Files (x86)\BMC Software.
Specify the installation directory:
- Proceed with the default installation directory.
- Enter a different directory for installation.
- Leave the field blank and proceed with the installation.
  The correct directory is automatically selected through the BMC_BASE variable when you leave the field blank.
Specify the PATROL 3.x product directory and click Next.
Follow the instructions in the Important Instructions section of the wizard.
Review the package details.
Enter a name and an optional description for the package.
The description is displayed when the Deployable Packages tab lists the packages.
Select the package file format.
Save the deployable package.
Select one of the following:
- Save: Save the package for future installation on the current host or other hosts.
- Save and Download: Save and download the package and note the downloaded package location. You will need the downloaded package location details while deploying the package.
- Close: Cancel the package creation and return to the Administration > Repository page.

To deploy the package

You can deploy a package either manually or silently. To deploy the package manually, use the option available on the UI. To deploy the package silently, either download it and run the silent installation commands or copy and run the install script.

When you are installing KMs and PATROL Agent for the first time, start with installing the PATROL Agent silently. Then, use the same package to install the KMs either manually or silently.

Deploying the package manually

Click Configuration and select Agents (in BMC Helix Operations Management) or Managed Devices (in TrueSight Operations Management).
Perform one of the following actions:
- To deploy and install packages on a single PATROL Agent, click the action menu.
- To deploy and install packages on multiple PATROL Agents, select the devices by holding the Shift key, selecting them, and then clicking the action menu from the column heading.
  For deploying a package on multiple PATROL Agents or when you upgrade PATROL Agents, only the instance or service names that contain the word "PatrolAgent" are supported. The instance or service names are not case-sensitive.
Click Deploy and Install Packages and select your package name.
View the current installation status by hovering your mouse over the icon in the Deploy Status column.
If a package deployment fails in validation, an error message is displayed. Any remaining compatible packages are deployed and installed on the PATROL Agent.

Deploying the package silently

If you have not downloaded the package, download it by following these steps:
1. Click Administration and select Repository.
2. On the Repository page, from the package menu, select Download.
Copy the downloaded file to the server where you want to deploy the package.
Extract the package file.
The bmc_products directory or folder is created.
Open the folder and run the following command:
- Linux: RunSilentInstall.sh
- Windows: RunSilentInstall.exe

Deploying the package silently and automatically

On the Repository page, select Deployable Packages, and from the package menu, select Copy Install Script.
On the computer where you want to deploy the package, paste it on the command line.

To verify the deployment status

In BMC Helix Operations Management, click the Configuration menu and select Agents.
Click the Managed Devices Actions menu or Agents Actions menu and select View Deployment and Installation Summary.
Search for your package by the package name.
In the Status column, verify that the deployment status is Successful.
If the status is Aborted or Failed, redeploy the package.

To configure application startup

Deploy the BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTel.
Copy the application.properties file from the following location:
%PATROL_HOME%\otl\conf
Paste the copied file into:
%PATROL_HOME%\profile\patrol
Restart the application to apply the changes.

To configure the monitoring policy

Monitor the availability and performance of your applications by using the BMC Helix Monitor Agent for OTEL.

Before you configure the monitoring policy, make sure that the following requirements are met:

Java 17 is installed and available in your environment.
Port 4318 is open and not in use by other applications.

In BMC Helix Operations Management, click Configuration > Monitoring Policies > Create Policy.
Click Add Monitoring Configuration.
To configure the KM, set the following preferences in the Add Monitoring Configuration dialog box:
Monitoring Solution
Monitor Profile
Monitor Type
OpenTelemetry Monitoring
OpenTelemetry Monitoring
OTEL Monitoring
Select the required version.

Monitoring Solution	Monitor Profile	Monitor Type
OpenTelemetry Monitoring	OpenTelemetry Monitoring	OTEL Monitoring

The following options are displayed:

Field	Description
OpenTelemetry Configuration
Generic Receiver	Configure the generics OTel metrics. Configuring OTel metrics
REST Endpoint Configuration	Configure the REST endpoint metrics. Configuring Rest Endpoint metrics
Database Monitoring Configuration	Configure the database metrics. Configuring database monitoring
Default Configuration
Timeout Period ( in Minutes )	Enter the time in a number of minutes until the session timeout.
Administration
Java home	Enter the full path name of the JRE directory on the Agent host.
JVM Arguments	Enter the additional Java Virtual Machine arguments for the Java collector.
Enable Logging	Select the check box to enable KM debugging.

Configuring OTel metrics

Field	Description
Environment Name	Enter the name of the OpenTelemetry monitoring environment.
Description	Enter a brief description of the OpenTelemetry monitoring environment.
Enable Generic Receiver	Select the checkbox to enable a generic receiver.
Generic Receiver Label	Enter the label for the generic receiver that you are monitoring.

Sample metric

[
  {
    "aggregation_temporality": "AGGREGATION_TEMPORALITY_DELTA",
    "unit": "#",
    "data_points": [
      {
        "start_time_unix_nano": 1.7430907692702305e+18,
        "value": 334,
        "time_unix_nano": 1.7430907992832125e+18
      }
    ],
    "name": "bigip.serverside.maxConns",
    "is_monotonic": true,
    "description": "bigip.serverside.maxConns",
    "type": "Sum"
  }
]

Configuring REST Endpoint

Field	Description
Environment Name	Enter the name of the OpenTelemetry monitoring environment.
Description	Enter a brief description of the OpenTelemetry monitoring environment.
REST Endpoint Configuration
Endpoint Label	Enter the label for the endpoint that you are monitoring. The input value must not contain characters from the set '@\\&V'.
Category Name	Enter the category of the data or metrics that you are monitoring. The input value must not contain characters from the set '@\\&V'.
REST Endpoint	Enter the REST API endpoint URL that OpenTelemetry is collecting data from or sending data to. For example, https://{F-5-MANAGEMENT-URL}mgmt/tm/ltm/pool/members/stats.
Schedule Interval ( in Minutes )	Enter the time interval in minutes at which the telemetry data collection should occur.
Timeout Period ( in Minutes )	Enter the time in a number of minutes until the session timeout.
Device Mapping	Select the checkbox to enable device mapping.
Metric Configuration
ID	Enter a unique identifier for the specific metric that you are monitoring.
Name	Enter the name of the metric that you are monitoring. The input value must not contain characters from the set '@\\&V'.
Aggregation Type	Select the type of metric. The following are the common types used in OpenTelemetry: Counter (Sum): A cumulative metric that only increases or stays constant. It is used to track counts of events or operations, such as the total number of database connections. For example, the total number of database connections. Gauge: A metric that can increase or decrease and represents a specific value at a given point in time. For example, temperature or memory usage. Histogram: A metric that groups values into predefined "buckets" and counts how many values fall into each bucket. For example, multiple response times. Summary: A metric that summarizes a set of observations, often including quantiles (like the 95th percentile), count, and sum. For example, quantities like response times.
Multiplication Factor [If Any]	Enter the multiplication factor for the unit conversion. For example, if the unit for the metric is in bytes and you want to convert it to KB, MB, or GB, then provide the multiplication factor as 0.0009765625, 0.00000095367431640625, or 9.3132257e-10 respectively. Warning Note If you update this field, then manually restart the Agent.
Unit	Enter the unit of measurement for the metric.
Authentication
User Name	Enter the username for authentication when interacting with the OpenTelemetry service or endpoint.
Password	Enter the password for authentication when interacting with the OpenTelemetry service or endpoint.

Configuring Database Monitoring

Field	Description
Environment Name	Enter the name of the OpenTelemetry monitoring environment.
Description	Enter a brief description of the OpenTelemetry monitoring environment.
Database Monitoring Configuration
Database Label	Enter the label for the specific database that you are monitoring.
Category Name	Enter the category or type of database metrics that you are monitoring.
Schedule Interval ( in Minutes )	Enter the frequency in minutes at which the database monitoring should occur.
Timeout Period ( in Minutes )	Enter the time in a number of minutes until the session timeout.
Query	Enter the specific SQL query used to collect database performance data or metrics.
Device Mapping	Select the checkbox to enable device mapping.
Metric Configuration
ID	Enter a unique identifier for the specific metric that you are monitoring.
Name	Enter the name of the metric that you are monitoring. The input value must not contain characters from the set '@\\&V'.
Aggregation Type	Select the type of metric. The following are the common types used in OpenTelemetry: Counter (Sum): A cumulative metric that only increases or stays constant. It is used to track counts of events or operations, such as the total number of database connections. For example, the total number of database connections. Gauge: A metric that can increase or decrease and represents a specific value at a given point in time. For example, temperature or memory usage. Histogram: A metric that groups values into predefined "buckets" and counts how many values fall into each bucket. For example, multiple response times. Summary: A metric that summarizes a set of observations, often including quantiles (like the 95th percentile), count, and sum. For example, quantities like response times.
Multiplication Factor [If Any]	Enter the multiplication factor for the unit conversion. For example, if the unit for the metric is in bytes and you want to convert it to KB, MB, or GB, then provide the multiplication factor as 0.0009765625, 0.00000095367431640625, or 9.3132257e-10 respectively. Warning Note If you update this field, then manually restart the Agent.
Unit	Enter the unit of measurement for the metric.
Authentication
User Name	Enter the username for authentication when interacting with the OpenTelemetry service or endpoint.
Password	Enter the password for authentication when interacting with the OpenTelemetry service or endpoint.