Question 1

What is zero-instrumentation monitoring and how does it work?

Accepted Answer

Zero-instrumentation monitoring is a revolutionary approach that monitors applications without requiring any code changes, agents, or SDKs. HyperObserve uses eBPF (Extended Berkeley Packet Filter) technology to observe applications at the kernel level, capturing performance data, traces, and metrics automatically. This means you get complete visibility into your application's behavior without modifying a single line of code or installing monitoring agents that consume 15-20% of your CPU resources.

Question 2

How long does it take to deploy HyperObserve monitoring?

Accepted Answer

HyperObserve can be deployed in under 5 minutes. Simply run our single Docker command or Kubernetes deployment, and you'll instantly have visibility across your entire stack. Unlike traditional APM tools that require weeks of instrumentation, agent installation, and configuration, HyperObserve automatically discovers all services, databases, and infrastructure components without any manual setup.

Question 3

What are the system requirements for HyperObserve?

Accepted Answer

HyperObserve requires Linux kernel 4.4+ (recommended 5.0+ for optimal eBPF features), at least 1GB RAM, and network connectivity. It supports all major cloud providers (AWS, GCP, Azure), on-premises deployments, and hybrid environments. No special permissions or root access to your applications is needed - only standard container runtime privileges for the HyperObserve agent.

Question 4

Can HyperObserve monitor applications without code access?

Accepted Answer

Yes! HyperObserve monitors applications entirely from the outside using kernel-level observability. It doesn't need access to your source code, application logs, or configuration files. This makes it perfect for monitoring third-party applications, legacy systems, or any scenario where code modification is impossible or undesirable.

Question 5

What is eBPF and why is it better than traditional monitoring?

Accepted Answer

eBPF (Extended Berkeley Packet Filter) is a Linux kernel technology that allows safe, efficient programs to run in kernel space. For monitoring, this means HyperObserve can observe all application behavior - network calls, file I/O, database queries, and more - without any application-level instrumentation. Traditional monitoring requires agents that consume 15-20% CPU overhead, while eBPF-based monitoring uses less than 2% CPU, making it 10x more efficient.

Question 6

How does eBPF monitoring compare to agent-based APM tools?

Accepted Answer

eBPF monitoring is fundamentally different from agent-based APM. Agents inject code into your application, consuming significant resources (15-20% CPU) and requiring constant updates. eBPF operates at the kernel level with <2% overhead, requires no code changes, can't crash your application, and provides deeper visibility into system calls, network traffic, and resource usage that agents simply can't access.

Question 7

Is eBPF monitoring secure and production-ready?

Accepted Answer

Yes, eBPF is extremely secure and used by tech giants like Netflix, Facebook, and Google in production. The Linux kernel verifies all eBPF programs before execution, ensuring they can't crash the system or access unauthorized data. HyperObserve is SOC2 compliant, uses eBPF's built-in security sandbox, and has been battle-tested in enterprise environments processing billions of events daily.

Question 8

How much does HyperObserve cost compared to Datadog or New Relic?

Accepted Answer

HyperObserve is 90% more cost-effective than traditional APM tools. While Datadog charges $155/host/month and New Relic charges $149/host/month, HyperObserve pricing starts at $99/host/month for the Pro tier, with a generous free tier for up to 5 hosts. Additionally, you save on infrastructure costs since our <2% CPU overhead is significantly lower than the 15-20% overhead of traditional agents.

Question 9

What's included in the HyperObserve free tier?

Accepted Answer

The HyperObserve free tier includes monitoring for up to 5 hosts with full access to APM, infrastructure monitoring, distributed tracing, and basic alerting. You get 7-day data retention, unlimited team members, and all core monitoring features. This is perfect for small teams, development environments, or trying HyperObserve before scaling up.

Question 10

Are there any hidden costs with HyperObserve?

Accepted Answer

No hidden costs. HyperObserve has transparent, predictable pricing based solely on the number of hosts. Unlike competitors who charge extra for data ingestion, custom metrics, or advanced features, HyperObserve includes everything in one simple price. You also save on indirect costs since our low overhead means you need fewer servers to handle the same workload.

Question 11

What types of monitoring does HyperObserve provide?

Accepted Answer

HyperObserve provides comprehensive monitoring including: Application Performance Monitoring (APM) with automatic code profiling, Infrastructure monitoring for servers and containers, Database monitoring for MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis without needing credentials, Distributed tracing across microservices, Kubernetes and Docker container monitoring, Real-time alerting and anomaly detection, Custom dashboards and visualizations. All of this without any code instrumentation.

Question 12

Can HyperObserve monitor microservices and distributed systems?

Accepted Answer

Yes! HyperObserve excels at monitoring microservices and distributed systems. It automatically discovers service dependencies, traces requests across multiple services, and provides full visibility into service mesh communications. Using eBPF, it captures all network traffic between services, providing distributed tracing without any code changes or service mesh modifications.

Question 13

Does HyperObserve support database monitoring?

Accepted Answer

HyperObserve monitors all major databases including MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis, Elasticsearch, and more - without requiring database credentials or query logs. It captures query performance, slow queries, connection pools, and resource usage by observing database protocol traffic at the kernel level. This provides complete database visibility without the security risks of credential management.

Question 14

Is HyperObserve SOC2 compliant?

Accepted Answer

Yes, HyperObserve is SOC2 Type II compliant. We undergo regular third-party security audits, maintain strict data encryption standards, and follow security best practices. Our eBPF-based approach is inherently more secure than traditional agents since we don't inject code into your applications or require access to sensitive application data or credentials.

Question 15

How does HyperObserve handle sensitive data?

Accepted Answer

HyperObserve never accesses your application's business data. We only collect performance metrics, not the actual data being processed. All data is encrypted in transit using TLS 1.3 and at rest using AES-256. You can configure data retention policies, and we support both cloud and on-premises deployments for organizations with strict data residency requirements.

Question 16

Can HyperObserve be deployed in air-gapped environments?

Accepted Answer

Yes, HyperObserve supports fully on-premises deployments in air-gapped environments. You can run the entire HyperObserve stack within your infrastructure without any external connectivity. This is ideal for government, financial services, and healthcare organizations with strict security requirements.

Question 17

How do I migrate from Datadog to HyperObserve?

Accepted Answer

Migrating from Datadog to HyperObserve is straightforward: 1) Deploy HyperObserve alongside your existing Datadog agents (they won't conflict), 2) Verify that HyperObserve is capturing all your metrics and traces, 3) Export any custom dashboards using our migration tools, 4) Remove Datadog agents to immediately reduce CPU usage by 15-20%. The entire migration typically takes less than a day with zero downtime.

Question 18

Does HyperObserve integrate with existing DevOps tools?

Accepted Answer

Yes, HyperObserve integrates with all major DevOps tools including PagerDuty, Slack, Jira, Grafana, Prometheus, and more. We provide REST APIs, webhooks, and pre-built integrations. You can also export metrics in Prometheus format, send alerts to any webhook endpoint, and use our Terraform provider for infrastructure-as-code deployments.

Question 19

What happens if HyperObserve agent crashes or stops?

Accepted Answer

If the HyperObserve agent stops, your applications continue running normally without any impact. Unlike APM agents that can crash your application, HyperObserve runs completely separately at the kernel level. The agent has automatic restart capabilities, health checks, and can buffer data locally during network outages to prevent data loss.

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