Traces
Distributed tracing is the foundation behind the tracing signal of OpenTelemetry. A distributed trace is a series of event data generated at various points throughout a system tied together via a unique identifier. This identifier is propagated across all components responsible for any operation required to complete the request, allowing each operation to associate the event data to the originating request. The following diagram gives us a simplified example of what a single request may look like when ordering groceries through an app:
Figure 2.5 – Example request through a simplified ordering system
Each trace represents a unique request through a system that can be either synchronous or asynchronous. Synchronous requests occur in sequence with each unit of work completed before continuing. An example of a synchronous request may be of a client application making a call to a server and waiting or blocking until a response is returned before...
