Dashboards in OpenObserve

This guide introduces you to the Dashboards in OpenObserve, including what they are, how to access them, and how to create a new dashboard.

Introduction to Dashboards

In OpenObserve, Dashboards are the central tool for data visualization and monitoring. They provide a way to display real-time and historical data in an interactive, easy-to-understand format.

The purpose of Dashboards is to offer an intuitive, at-a-glance view of your data, helping you:

• Visualize trends: Track performance over time with charts and graphs.
• Monitor systems: Keep an eye on critical systems or services in real-time.
• Analyze errors: Detect and analyze errors or issues that need attention.
• Facilitate collaboration: Share and discuss insights with team members through dynamic and interactive data visualizations.

How to Access Dashboards

On the left-hand side menu, click Dashboards to access the dashboard management section.

How to Build Dashboards

Dashboard Structure in OpenObserve

Folders

Dashboards are stored in folders. By default, the default folder is created. However, you can create additional folders to organize Dashboards based on your requirements.

Create Folders

To create a new folder, click the New Folder button, and provide a folder name and description.

Editing or Deleting Folders

To edit or delete a folder, click the vertical ellipsis (three dots) menu next to the folder name in the folder list. This allows you to rename or remove the folder as needed.

Dashboards

Inside each folder, you can create one or more Dashboards. Dashboards hold Panels, which represent visualizations of your data.

Create Dashboards

To create a new Dashboard, click the New Dashboard button, add Name and Description for the Dashboard, and select an existing folder or create a new folder to organize the Dashboard. Use the Import button to import an existing Dashboard.

Dashboards can contain one or more Panels for visualizing various data points or metrics.

Panels

A Panel displays a single visualization using one of the supported chart types, based on specific data.

Create Panels

To add a Panel inside a Dashboard, click the Add Panel button.

Each Panel displays one type of visualization. You can add multiple Panels to a Dashboard to represent different data.

Example of a Dashboard with Panels:

Supported Chart Types in Dashboards

The following charts are supported in Dashboards:

1. Area
2. Area stacked
3. Vertical Bar
4. Horizontal bar
5. Line
6. Scatter
7. Vertical Bar stacked
8. Horizontal bar stacked
9. Geo map
10. Maps
11. Pie
12. Donut
13. Heatmap
14. Metric Text
15. Gauge
16. HTML
17. Markdown
18. Sankey
19. Custom Charts

Tabs

Tabs help organize your Panels into different sections within a Dashboard. For example, you might have one Tab for Performance, another for Errors, and another for Traffic Analysis. By default, Panels are added to the Default tab.

Create New Tabs

To create a new Tab, click the + icon next to the default Tab and enter a Tab name. You can create new Tabs from the Tabs menu under the Dashboard Settings.

Example of a Dashboard with Panels in different Tabs:

FAQ

Q: Why does my dashboard chart say "No data"?
A: OpenObserve shows a "No data" message on a dashboard chart when the selected query returns no results for the specified time range. This helps clarify that the chart loaded successfully, but no matching data was found. It is not an error. When a dashboard loads a blank chart placeholder appears while data is loading. If the query returns data for the selected time range, the chart is rendered normally. If the query returns no data, the chart shows a No data message to indicate an empty result.

To resolve this, try adjusting the time range or filters, and refresh the dashboard.

Next Step

• Manage Dashboards