Azure Monitor Insight No more with Docker- Find Alternative

Azure Existing Support for Monitoring Container on Docker on Sep 2022

Azure Monitor for containers is a service that allows you to collect log and metric data from your containers running on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) and other environments. It can monitor the health and performance of your containerized applications, and can also detect and diagnose issues with your containerized applications. The Azure Monitor for containers solution uses the Docker log driver and the Azure Log Analytics agent for Linux to collect logs and metrics from the container.

As of now, The Azure Monitor for containers solution is not discontinued yet, but it's announced that the service will be discontinued on September 2022.

This may mean that the existing support for monitoring containers running on Docker will be discontinued on September 2022, and that customers will need to find an alternative way to monitor their containers after that date. However, the specific details of the discontinuation and what it means for customers are still unclear at this time, and Microsoft may provide further information and guidance as the discontinuation date approaches.

It is also possible to use other services for monitoring like Prometheus, Grafana, ELK or third party companies that are able to collect data from running containers and also from Kubernetes. These services can be integrated into AKS cluster, or you can deploy them on your own and make sure that you are sending the logs from your containers to those services.

I recommend you to keep an eye on the official Azure Monitor for Containers documentation, as well as on the Azure blog for the latest information and guidance on this topic.

There are several alternative ways to monitor an Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) cluster, even after the discontinuation of Azure Monitor for Containers. Here are a few options:

Prometheus and Grafana: Prometheus is an open-source monitoring solution that can scrape metrics from the Kubernetes API and the nodes in the cluster. Grafana is an open-source visualization tool that can be used to display the metrics collected by Prometheus. Together, these tools can provide a powerful and flexible monitoring solution for AKS clusters.

Elasticsearch, Logstash and Kibana (ELK): The ELK stack is a set of open-source tools for collecting, analyzing, and visualizing logs. By configuring your AKS cluster to send logs to the ELK stack, you can gain insight into the health and performance of your cluster and its applications.

Azure Monitor and Log Analytics: Instead of using the Azure Monitor for Containers service, you can use Azure Monitor and Log Analytics to collect and analyze logs and metrics from your AKS cluster.

Third-party monitoring solutions: There are also many third-party monitoring solutions available that can be used to monitor AKS clusters. Some popular options include Datadog, New Relic, and Sysdig.

Kubernetes native solution like Prometheus Operator: This solution allows you to set up, manage, and operate Prometheus instances on a Kubernetes cluster, which can scrape metrics from the Kubernetes API and the nodes in the cluster.

Each of these options has its own advantages and limitations, and the best option for you will depend on the specific requirements and constraints of your AKS cluster and your organization.

Here is a list of open-source and paid products for Azure Monitor, Prometheus and Grafana, Elasticsearch, Logstash and Kibana (ELK), Datadog, New Relic, and Sysdig:

Open-source products:

1. Prometheus and Grafana
2. Elasticsearch, Logstash and Kibana (ELK)

Paid products:

1. Azure Monitor
2. Datadog
3. New Relic
4. Sysdig

Please note that the above list is not exhaustive and that some of these products may have additional paid features or options. Also, some of these products may have a different licensing model such as Apache 2.0 or GPL.

It's important to read and understand the licenses that each of these tools and services uses and how it will impact your usage and deployment, this information is easily available in their official websites.If you want to implement paid and opensource better way you can contact Go2Hire Team with free consulting

I recommend you to evaluate all the options and determine which option best meets your needs, and also check the compatibility and ease of integration with your current stack and architecture. And also check the pricing options, some of the solution s are open-source and free while other are paid.