Blog Post: Strimzi Metrics Reporter

_data/authors.yml

@@ -81,3 +81,6 @@ tina_selenge:
 sebastian_gaiser_hetzner:
   name: Sebastian Gaiser (Hetzner)
   github: sebastiangaiser
+owen_corrigan:
+  name: Owen Corrigan
+  github: OwenCorrigan76

_posts/2025-10-06-strimzi-metrics-reporter.md

@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+---
+layout: post
+title: "Using Strimzi Metrics Reporter to expose Kafka metrics in Prometheus format"
+date: 2025-10-06
+author: owen_corrigan
+---
+
+## Using Strimzi Metrics Reporter in your Kafka Cluster
+
+Apache Kafka generates and exposes metrics that reflect how it is operating.
+These metrics are useful for monitoring, troubleshooting, tuning, and capacity planning when it comes to running your Kafka cluster.
+In essence, monitoring is crucial to ensure the health and performance of your Kafka clusters.
+Prometheus is a widely used monitoring solution in the cloud-native ecosystem, and Strimzi exposes metrics in this format.
+The [JMX Exporter](https://github.com/prometheus/jmx_exporter) is a solid and fully supported option for existing setups and specific use cases as a way to expose Kafka metrics, and we have provided some example YAML files in our [Strimzi Examples folder](https://github.com/strimzi/strimzi-kafka-operator/tree/main/packaging/examples/metrics).
+
+As an alternative to JMX Exporter, [Strimzi Metrics Reporter](https://github.com/strimzi/metrics-reporter) is a new project in Strimzi, still in early access, and was announced as part of [Strimzi 0.47.0](https://strimzi.io/blog/2025/07/15/what-is-new-in-strimzi-0.47.0/).
+It implements the Kafka `MetricsReporter` interface to expose metrics via Prometheus.
+This implementation removes the need for JMX-based exporters or additional agents.
+Strimzi Metrics Reporter is designed from scratch as a Kafka plugin and allows you to configure it directly from the Kafka configuration.
+This makes it more efficient than other monitoring tools that run as sidecars or JVM agents.
+Strimzi Metrics Reporter uses fixed metric names, which simplifies configuration and ensures consistent naming across deployments.
+Unlike tools that rely on complex mapping rules or regular expressions, it offers a straightforward way to expose metrics.
+It is easier to use and provides a metrics interface that is more stable, like a well-defined API.
+
+Here, we will discuss Strimzi Metrics Reporter configuration and guide you on how to use it effectively to monitor your Kafka clusters.
+
+### Key Features
+* Native Prometheus support: The reporter exposes metrics in the Prometheus format through an HTTP endpoint, without relying on JMX.
+* Configurable Metrics Collection: Allows users to specify which metrics should be exposed using a flexible allowlist.
+* Scalability and Performance: Strimzi Metrics Reporter scales efficiently with increasing numbers of metrics, maintaining low response times even as the metric count grows, demonstrating strong performance characteristics and minimal overhead, making it well-suited for large-scale Kafka deployments.
+
+#### Deploying Metrics Reporter
+The first step is to include the Strimzi Metrics Reporter in your `Kafka` custom resource.
+To do this, add the following:
+
+```yaml
+apiVersion: kafka.strimzi.io/v1beta1
+kind: Kafka
+metadata:
+  name: my-cluster
+spec:
+  kafka:
+  # ...
+    metricsConfig:
+      type: strimziMetricsReporter
+  # ...  
+```
+
+By adding `type: strimziMetricsReporter` to the `metricsConfig` section of your `Kafka` custom resource, Strimzi will export a sensible set of default metrics.
+However, you can add your own custom values by filtering the metrics by name. 
+This is achieved by adding another field called `values`, and within that field, adding `allowList`.
+Then you can specify which metrics you want to collect, where each entry is used to filter allowed metrics.
+You can put individual metric names or use a regex to include a group of metrics and avoid having a long list.
+For example:
+
+```yaml
+apiVersion: kafka.strimzi.io/v1beta1
+kind: Kafka
+metadata:
+  name: my-cluster
+spec:
+  kafka:
+  # ...
+    metricsConfig:
+      type: strimziMetricsReporter
+      values:
+        allowList:
+          - "kafka_log.*"
+          - "kafka_network.*"
+  # ...  
+```
+
+If you add Strimzi Metrics Reporter to an existing cluster, all Kafka broker and Controller pods roll to apply the new configuration without any downtime to your pods.
+If you would like to deploy your Kafka cluster with the Strimzi Metrics Reporter enabled from the start, you can use the examples in our [Strimzi Metrics Reporter Examples folder](https://github.com/strimzi/strimzi-kafka-operator/tree/0.48.0/examples/metrics/strimzi-metrics-reporter) by running the following command:
+
+```bash
+$ kubectl apply -f https://strimzi.io/examples/0.48.0/metrics/strimzi-metrics-reporter/kafka-metrics.yaml -n myproject
+```
+
+We also provide [Grafana Dashboards](https://github.com/strimzi/strimzi-kafka-operator/tree/0.48.0/examples/metrics/strimzi-metrics-reporter/grafana-dashboards) to help you visualize Kafka metrics in Prometheus format.
+Strimzi Metrics Reporter can also be used with Strimzi Kafka Bridge, Kafka Connect, and Kafka MirrorMaker 2, and we provide [examples](https://github.com/strimzi/strimzi-kafka-operator/tree/0.48.0/examples/metrics/strimzi-metrics-reporter) for these too.
+
+
+### Conclusion
+We’ve demonstrated how to deploy the Strimzi Metrics Reporter in your Kafka cluster.
+As the feature is currently in early access, we invite users to experiment with it and provide feedback based on their experience, so please [reach out to us](https://strimzi.io/community/).
+The Strimzi Metrics Reporter was recently [featured as part of StrimziCon 2025](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evKGEziQj54) which you may also find worth watching.
+We also provide you with a practical demo video on our [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za04jVp8f5c) channel in which we go through the steps outlined above, and hopefully this will encourage you to try out Strimzi Metrics Reporter for yourself.
+
+Thanks for reading and keep an eye on our blog posts for future updates.
+
+