TraceChecklyPoC Python

Proof of concept project for instrumenting Python APIs with OpenTelemetry and Checkly.

Table of Contents

• About
• Prerequisites
• Installation
• Environment Variables Setup
• Running the API
• Simulating Trace Problems
• OpenTelemetry Instrumentation
• Testing
• Deployment
• References

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About

This API demonstrates distributed tracing and monitoring in Python using OpenTelemetry and integration with Checkly.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.8+
• pip
• Git

Installation

Clone the repository and install the dependencies:

git clone https://github.com/drigocsouza/tracechecklypoc-python.git
cd tracechecklypoc-python
pip install -r requirements.txt

Environment Variables Setup

Never expose sensitive tokens directly in your code!

Create a .env file at the root of the project (do not commit this file) and add:

CHECKLY_OTEL_TOKEN=<your_checkly_token>

Or export it directly in your terminal (Linux/macOS):

export CHECKLY_OTEL_TOKEN=<your_checkly_token>

On Windows (CMD):

set CHECKLY_OTEL_TOKEN=<your_checkly_token>

Add .env to .gitignore to ensure it is not versioned:

.env

Running the API

With the environment variable set, run:

python app.py

The API will be available at http://localhost:8000.

Simulating Trace Problems

The /ping endpoint will randomly:

• Return a simulated error (HTTP 500) ~30% of the time.
• Introduce a delay (~2 seconds) ~50% of the time.

This allows you to see both latency and error traces in Checkly.

A /fail endpoint is also available, which always raises an error and can be used to generate error traces intentionally.

OpenTelemetry Instrumentation

• The code already includes tracer configuration and sends spans to Checkly via OTLP.
• To change to another backend, update the endpoint and headers in the OTLPSpanExporter section.

Testing

It is recommended to use pytest for automated tests:

pytest

Deployment

Use environments that allow secure configuration of environment variables (Docker, Heroku, cloud servers).

References

• OpenTelemetry Python
• Checkly
• Flask

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Questions or suggestions? Open an issue in this repository!