APM Insight AutoProfiler

The APM Insight AutoProfiler service simplifies application performance monitoring by automatically detecting application processes running on the server. When you install the Site24x7 Full-Stack Agent with APM Insight enabled, the APM Insight AutoProfiler service is automatically installed.

This service downloads the APM agents and automatically instruments supported application processes with the appropriate agent. This eliminates the need to manually install, configure, or modify application code for language- or platform-specific APM Insight agents.

Use case

In production environments with multiple applications and frequent deployments, manually installing and managing language-specific APM agents is time-consuming and error-prone. New services often go live without proper monitoring, and updating monitoring configurations requires additional manual effort, impacting operational efficiency.

With the Site24x7 APM Insight AutoProfiler enabled, applications are automatically detected and instrumented. The appropriate APM agents are attached as new processes start, without manual setup. This enables teams to update rules and scale services without disrupting production workloads.

Supported APM agents and platforms

The AutoProfiler currently supports the following APM agents:

• Linux: Java, .NET, Node.js, and Python agents
• Windows: Java, .NET, .NET Framework, and Node.js agents

Installation steps

Read the help document to learn the installation steps for the AutoProfiler.

Application Discovery

Application Discovery automatically detects web application processes running on your host using the AutoProfiler and lists them for monitoring.

APM Insight Process Monitoring Rules

APM Insight Process Monitoring Rules give you fine-grained control over the applications you want to monitor.

eBPF-APM

eBPF-APM provides agentless monitoring using eBPF at the Linux kernel level. It automatically discovers applications and collects key metrics like latency, throughput, and errors without code changes. This enables quick visibility into performance with no overhead.

Frequently asked questions

1. Where can I find the release notes for each sub-agent version?

   You can view the release notes in this help page.

2. Where can I view the application monitors running on my servers?

   Navigate to Site24x7 > APM to view all the application monitors associated with your servers.

3. How can I uninstall/reinstall only one sub-agent?

   You can uninstall/reinstall the sub-agent directly from the Site24x7 console. The Full-Stack Agent (FSO) will automatically roll out the changes.

4. How can I disable the APM Insight AutoProfiler after installation if it is not needed?

   Disabling the APM Insight AutoProfiler will prevent further auto-discovery and addition of applications. To disable the AutoProfiler, refer here. After disabling, please restart the relevant application process to apply the changes.

5. Is it enough if the proxy settings are configured at the Full-Stack agent level?

   Yes. Proxy settings configured at the FSO level are sufficient.

6. What happens to the APM Insight AutoProfiler when the Full-Stack agent is offline?

   The APM Insight AutoProfiler service operates independently and continues to function even if the FSO Agent is offline. It only stops if the FSO Agent is uninstalled.

7. How long does each the APM Insight AutoProfiler retain data?

   AutoProfiler doesn’t store trace data. Data retention applies only to APM agents that use DataExporter.

8. What happens if I uninstall APM Insight AutoProfiler? What happens to the APM agents installed by the AutoProfiler, and what happens to the respective monitors?

   Uninstalling the APM AutoProfiler removes all APM agents and services that were installed through the AutoProfiler. This stops further application auto-discovery and automatic agent attachment. When the application is restarted, the agent will no longer be attached and the associated monitors will transition to a down state.

9. What happens if I already have some APM agents running on my server and I install the Full-Stack agent? Will the APM agents be automatically associated with the AutoProfiler?

   Existing manually installed APM agents will continue to function normally, and data collection will continue as long as the application process is running. However, once the application process restarts, the APM Insight AutoProfiler will attach the new agent it manages, and new APM monitors will be created for the application.

   It is recommended to uninstall any manually installed APM agents before installing the FSO with the AutoProfiler enabled to avoid duplicate instrumentation.

10. How to verify if the Site24x7 APM Insight AutoProfiler is up and running?

    You can verify the AutoProfiler service status on your host machine:

    • Windows: Open the Services window and ensure that the APM Insight AutoProfiler service is listed and its status is Running.
    • Linux: Run the below service command,
      systemctl status apm-autoprofiler.service

    Also verify that the APM Insight AutoProfiler service is in the running state.

11. What to do if AutoProfiler is running but the APM monitor is not added in the Site24x7 console?

    Restart the application process or reset the IIS server (for Windows IIS environments) from a fresh terminal. After the restart, once the application starts receiving traffic, the monitor will be added within a minute.

12. What to do if data collection is happening for the application process even after all the Site24x7 services (FSO, AutoProfiler, etc) are removed?

    Uninstalling the FSO Agent or disabling/uninstalling AutoProfiler does not automatically stop data collection. Data will continue to be collected as long as the monitored application is running. To stop data collection, please restart the relevant application process.

13. Can it detect and auto-monitor newly added services or applications?

    Yes. AutoProfiler automatically detects and monitors new applications that meet the APM Insight Process Monitoring Rules.

14. I skipped AutoProfiler during installation. Can I enable it later?

    Yes. You can install AutoProfiler even if you did not enable it during the initial installation. For detailed instructions, please refer to our help documentation.

Related articles

• APM Insight AutoProfiler agent security
• Full-Stack Agent