With the Instana Argo CD sensor, you can gain visibility into Argo CD-managed deployments and correlate code changes with runtime metrics to quickly detect and resolve application performance issues. After you install the Instana agent, the sensor is automatically installed. You can view synchronization details for applications that are deployed in Argo CD-managed clusters in the Instana UI after you enable and configure the sensor as outlined in the following sections.
Note:
Currently, Instana supports Argo CD installations within a single cluster that might be managing one or more Kubernetes clusters. You can monitor multiple clusters through configurable access credentials and a defined list of target clusters.
Support information
To make sure that the Argo CD sensor is compatible with your current setup, check the following support information sections:
Configure Argo CD to manage the same Kubernetes clusters in which the Instana agent is set up to monitor. For more information, see InstallationFigure 1. Opens in a new tab or window
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Make sure that the actual name of the Argo CD-managed cluster is used when you add the cluster to Instana. By default, Argo CD identifies the cluster as in-kubernetes. Update this name to match the real cluster name to help ensure proper data correlation and visibility in Instana.
Access requirements
The Argo CD sensor requires credentials that allow read access to the Argo CD API.
To follow the principle of least privilege, complete the following access configuration steps:
Create a dedicated Argo CD user with read-only access.
Restrict the user access to only the applications and clusters that you intend to monitor.
For instructions on creating such a user and configuring access control, refer to the following official Argo CD documentation:
To enable and configure the sensor, update the agent configuration file as shown in the following example:
# Argo CD Sensor
com.instana.plugin.argocd:
enabled: true
poll_rate: 5 # Integer value in seconds. Default value is 5 seconds.
url: 'https://argocd-server.argocd'
username: 'admin'
password: 'your-password'
clusters: # List of one or more k8s cluster names.
- 'demo-cluster1'
The sensor retrieves application sync data through the Argo CD REST APIs.
Configuration parameters
The following table lists the configuration parameters and their description:
Parameter
Description
enabled
Boolean to enable or disable the Argo CD sensor.
poll_rate
Integer value that represents the rate (in seconds) at which the sensor polls the Argo CD API. The default value is 5.
Important:
Specify this value without quotation marks.
url
Argo CD server URL, for example, http://argocd.demo.xyz.
username
Username that is used to authenticate with the Argo CD API.
password
Password that is associated with the provided username.
clusters
List of clusters that are monitored by Argo CD. These clusters must be monitored by both the Instana agent and Argo CD.
Viewing data
After the Argo CD sensor is enabled, you can view synchronization details for applications that are deployed in clusters that are managed by Argo CD directly within the Instana UI. The sensor collects and displays key information, such as application lists, sync status, and Git repository details.
To access this information, complete the following steps in the Instana UI:
From the navigation menu, select Platforms > Kubernetes.
In the Clusters tab, search the Argo CD-managed cluster. If the cluster is configured for monitoring, a sync status button appears next to the Argo CD-managed cluster, indicating the number of applications that are currently out of sync. The cluster dashboard provides the same functionality and includes a timeline of Argo CD sync events with related performance metrics.
Figure 2. Kubernetes dashboard - Total number of out-of-sync Argo CD-deployed applications
Figure 3. Kubernetes cluster dashboard
Click the Argo CD sync status button next to a monitored cluster. An Argo CD window is displayed with a list of Argo CD-managed applications for that cluster.
Figure 4. Kubernetes cluster - Modal displaying the list of Argo CD-deployed applications
This view provides a quick summary of each application's deployment status. The following table lists the key details that are related to an application managed by Argo CD:
Field
Description
Argo CD application name
The name of the application as defined in Argo CD.
Sync status
The status indicates whether the application is currently synced with its Git repository (For example, Synced, Out of Sync).
Namespace
The Kubernetes namespace where the application is deployed.
Git repository and branch
The source Git repository and the branch that is associated with the application.
Last sync
The time since the application's last successful sync operation with Argo CD.
To troubleshoot and explore deployment details, use the following options in the Argo CD window:
To explore your Argo CD setup in more detail, click Launch Argo CD Interface. It opens the Argo CD web UI home page in a new browser tab.
To view the Git repository of Argo CD applications, click the branch name in the Repository and Branch column in the Argo CD applications table. You can quickly review the source configuration and recent changes that are related to each application.
These options simplify the workflow by giving you quick access to both the deployment tool and the source configuration for your applications.
Viewing Argo Rollouts data
In addition to Argo CD application synchronization monitoring, Instana provides comprehensive monitoring for Argo Rollouts, enabling you to track progressive delivery strategies, such as canary and blue-green deployments.
After you configure the Argo CD sensor, Instana automatically collects and displays Argo Rollouts data in the Instana UI.
Overview of Argo Rollouts monitoring
Argo Rollouts is a Kubernetes controller that provides advanced deployment strategies for progressive delivery.
Argo Rollouts is a Kubernetes controller that provides advanced deployment strategies, such as blue-green and canary deployments, for progressive delivery. Instana provides comprehensive monitoring for Argo Rollouts, giving you real-time visibility into rollout health, progress, and performance metrics to help ensure safer deployments.
Monitoring capabilities
Comprehensive monitoring for Argo Rollouts in Instana provides visibility into rollout health, deployment strategies, and performance metrics.
With comprehensive monitoring for Argo Rollouts in Instana, you can:
Monitor rollout health and progress: View the health status of all active rollouts, including whether they are healthy, progressing, suspended, or degraded.
Track deployment strategies: Identify whether a rollout uses a canary or blue-green deployment strategy.
Observe traffic distribution: For canary deployments, monitor traffic weight distribution and step progress (for example, "Step 3 of 7" indicates the rollout is on the third step out of seven total configured steps in the canary deployment strategy).
Correlate with application performance metrics (APM): When the Instana APM agent is installed on your pods, automatically correlate rollout data with APM, including:
Error rates and latency for services that are deployed through Argo Rollouts
Side-by-side comparison of metrics between canary and stable variants during active canary rollouts
Access to correlated logs and traces for services that are managed by Argo Rollouts
Analyze service-level performance in depth to identify issues introduced by new deployments
Analyze replica status: Track ready versus desired replica counts for each rollout.
Identify deployment issues: Quickly spot rollouts that failed or are experiencing problems, with error rate comparisons against baseline metrics to detect performance degradation.
Accessing Argo Rollouts information
Access rollout information through the Kubernetes platform view in the Instana UI.
To access rollout information:
From the navigation menu, select Platforms > Kubernetes.
Go to the cluster dashboard for an Argo CD-managed cluster.
Click the Argo Rollouts tab to view all active rollouts for that cluster.
Figure 5. Argo Rollouts tab showing all active rollouts
The Argo Rollouts view includes:
Summary bar: Displays total rollout count and breakdown by health status (healthy, progressing, suspended, or degraded).
Rollout cards: Each card shows:
Rollout name, namespace, and deployment strategy (canary or blue-green)
Health status badge (Healthy, Progressing, Suspended, Degraded)
Ready versus desired replica counts
For canary deployments: Traffic weight progress bar and step progress
For blue-green deployments: Active versus preview indicators
Error rate and latency metrics (when APM agent is installed; "N/A" if not available)
During active canary rollouts: Side-by-side comparison of error rates and latency between canary and stable variants
Click any rollout card to view detailed information about that specific rollout.
Canary rollout details
The canary rollout detailed view provides comprehensive information about progressive deployment with performance comparisons between canary and stable variants.
When you click a canary rollout card, the detailed view provides comprehensive information about the progressive deployment:
Canary step progress: Current step in the rollout process (for example, "Step 3 of 7" indicates the rollout is on the third step out of seven total configured steps) with traffic weight distribution
Performance comparison: Side-by-side comparison of error rates and latency between canary and stable variants
Replica status: Ready versus desired replica counts for both canary and stable versions
Rollout timeline: Historical view of rollout progression and events
APM correlation: When the Instana APM agent is installed, access correlated application performance data:
Click service names to go to the service dashboard for detailed performance analysis
View error rates, latency, and throughput metrics specific to the canary and stable versions
Access logs from pods that are running the canary and stable versions
Analyze traces to identify performance issues introduced by the new version
Figure 6. Canary rollout detailed view showing traffic distribution and performance metrics
With this integrated view, you can quickly identify whether the canary version is performing as expected compared to the stable version, and act if performance degradation is detected.
Blue-green rollout details
The blue-green rollout detailed view provides comprehensive information about the deployment with clear identification of active and preview versions.
When you click a blue-green rollout card, the detailed view provides comprehensive information about the deployment:
Active and preview indicators: Clear identification of which version is currently serving production traffic (active) and which is ready for promotion (preview)
Replica status: Ready versus desired replica counts for both active and preview versions
Performance metrics: Error rates and latency for each version when APM agent is installed
Rollout status: Current state and progression of the blue-green deployment
APM correlation: When the Instana APM agent is installed, access correlated application performance data:
Click service names to go to the service dashboard for detailed performance analysis
Compare performance metrics between active and preview versions before promotion
Access logs from pods that are running in both active and preview environments
Analyze traces to validate that the preview version is ready for production traffic
Figure 7. Blue-green rollout detailed view showing active and preview versionsFigure 8. Blue-green rollout showing correlated services and logs for deep performance analysis
With this comprehensive view, you can monitor progressive delivery in real time, validate new versions before promoting them to production, quickly identify issues, and help ensure that your deployments are proceeding safely and successfully. The deep integration with Instana APM provides the observability that is needed to make confident deployment decisions.
