Troubleshoot the Node.js Library

If you are not receiving traces and metrics in the Traces Explorer and Metrics Explorer, these are some options to troubleshoot.

Tracing disabled

The C++ addon requires glibc 2.27 and above, which means by default, it will not compile on older distros such as Ubuntu 16.04 or RHEL/CentOS 7. If the C++ addon fails to compile, the library will output the following message during install, and go into no-op mode:

solarwinds-apm bindings - failed to build, tracing disabled

Your application will run normally, but no metrics or traces will be collected.

Nothing showing up in SolarWinds Observability

The most likely cause is that your Service key is not correct. There should be a message in the log saying Server responded: Invalid API key

The Service key is used to identify your account and the service being instrumented. It is shown in the Add Data dialog when adding the new service.

It is a required configuration and should be in the form of YourApiToken:YourServiceName. Replace YourApiToken with the SolarWinds Observability API token (ingestion type) generated for this service, and replace YourServiceName with your chosen name for this service. See API Tokens.

The service name is also called the entity's service ID in SolarWinds Observability. The service name can also be seen in the Overview tab in the service entity's Entity Explorer details view. Editing the display name of the service entity in SolarWinds Observability does not affect the Service key.

Another common cause is connectivity problems between the library and the SolarWinds APM collector. If your server is behind a firewall, you may not be able to connect to the SolarWinds APM collector. See Firewall or access control requirements.

Where are the library logs?

The library log messages are sent to stderr, which is usually written to the log file configured for the web server.

More verbose logs

The log verbosity of the C++ addon and the library log level can both be changed, see the Addon Log Level and Agent Log Level configuration options.

Do you have another APM library installed?

It is not recommended to run other APM libraries alongside the SolarWinds Observability Node.js Library. Disable other APM libraries from your application before using your application with the SolarWinds Observability Node.js Library.