How to Use Prometheus's Native Histograms

Both histograms and Prometheus have a special place in the SRE toolbox. But their mutual relationship over the last decade has been somewhat strained. While mathematically sound, the “classic” Prometheus histograms (as we call them now) suffered from several issues that made their practical usage tricky, even outright painful at times. Fortunately, there is a new kid in town: native histograms!

Learn how you can start using this cutting edge feature right away (without hurting yourself), and how to use it to tackle typical SRE tasks, such as SLO tracking and troubleshooting. The talk is focused on the practical usage aspects, but a short overview and in particular helpful pointers to other sources will be provided to help you understand the theoretical background as well.