This page describes how to configure data collectors for Transaction Analytics.

There are three types of data collectors: HTTP, method invocation, and SQL. Data collectors enable you to add business context to a transaction. For example, a Method Invocation Data Collector (MIDC) can tell you if an order is slow based on method parameters.

Before You Begin

You must configure Transaction Analytics before you can configure data collectors. See Collect Transaction Analytics Data.

Configure HTTP Request Data Collectors

To collect HTTP request data, you can use the default HTTP Request Data Collector. You need to explicitly enable the collector for Analytics.

To configure HTTP Data Collectors for Analytics:

  1. In the Controller UI, select Analytics > Configuration from the top navigation bar. 
  2. Go to the Transaction Analytics - Manual Data Collection tab.
  3. Select the application of interest from the Configure Analytics for Application dropdown. 
  4. Navigate to HTTP Request Data Collectors. Select the HTTP Data Collector to enable and click Edit (or Add to create new collectors).
    HTTP Request Data Collectors
  5. On the HTTP Request Data Collector page, confirm the data to collect, confirm Transaction Analytics is checked, and click Save.
    Enable Data Collector
  6. Select Configure Transactions and confirm that the data collector is enabled on the appropriate business transactions. See Data Collectors.  

Configure Method Invocation Data Collectors

You can also use the Analytics > Configuration page to enable existing or new Method Invocation Data Collectors. Open the Method Invocation Data Collectors panel. The process is essentially the same as described in Data Collectors.

  • Check the Transaction Analytics check box to use this collector for Analytics.
  • Check the Configure Transactions popup to confirm you have enabled the right Business Transactions.
  • Check that the name of the MIDC does not exceed the 50 character limit.

Field Name Recommendations

While there are no requirements for MIDC field names, AppDynamics recommends using only alpha-numeric characters, hyphens, and underscores. 

MIDC field names that start with special characters may cause application events to disappear from Analytics in the Controller. As a best practice, avoid the following characters in your MIDC field names:

  • Dots 

  • Spaces

  • Slashes

  • Special characters (such as $, %, &)

  • Regular expression characters

You can learn more about field name conventions and recommendations in Data Field Naming for Events Service >= 4.5.3. 

Changing the name of method invocation data collector will create a completely new field in Transaction Analytics. If you want to change the type of a data collector field, we recommend creating a new field instead to avoid conflicts with the old data.

Field Length Limit

The maximum number of characters allowed in a custom data field is 8,191.

Configure SQL Data Collectors

Transaction snapshots capture SQL queries. SQL data collectors provide a way to extract business data from parameters used in the SQL statements for use in analytics. See Collect Business Data From SQL Calls.

Enable Transaction Analytics Data Type Conversion for Data Collectors

Transaction Analytics data type conversion requires Controller versions 21.6.3, 21.8.0, and >=21.9.0. For Java deployments, Transaction Analytics data type conversion is available for Java Agents >= 21.3.0.32281. For .NET deployments, Transaction Analytics data type conversion is available for .NET Agents = 21.5.1.

Data collectors determine field type (string, boolean, or number) at runtime. At times the data you collect may not be the type in which you want to use it. For example, you are not able to add metrics if any data collectors are field type string. 

While field type cannot be changed, you can specify field type before runtime with Transaction Analytics data type conversion. 

To enable Transaction Analytics data type conversion:

  1. Log in to the administration console: 
    http:<controller-hostname>:8080/controller/admin.jsp or https:<controller-hostname>:45/controller/admin.jsp.
  2. On the Controller Settings page, change the value of analytics.type.conversion.enabled from false to true. 
  3. Click Save. 

Data type conversion only appears when enabled in the HTTP and Method Invocation Data Collector configuration pages on your Controller. If this page was opened while you enabled data type conversion, you will need to refresh your page to see changes.   

Data type conversion operates by the following rules:

  • Available for new data collectors only.
  • Select type manually for each data collector.
  • Type cannot be changed once saved.

Transaction Analytics Data Type Conversion in HTTP Data Collectors

To use Transaction Analytics data type conversion, create a new HTTP parameter. You can add to an existing HTTP Request Data Collector or create a new one.

The process is essentially the same as creating an HTTP parameter. However, now that you've enabled Transaction Analytics data type conversion, you will see Type field with a dropdown.

Transaction Analytics Data Type Conversion

Select the desired field type for your HTTP parameter. If you do not want to specify a type, leave this field blank. The default type for HTTP data collectors is string.

Transaction Analytics Data Type Conversion in Method Invocation Data Collectors

To use Transaction Analytics data type conversion, create a new Method Invocation Data Collector (MIDC). You can add to an existing MIDC or create a new one.

The process is essentially the same as creating an MIDC. However, now that you've enabled Transaction Analytics data type conversion, you will see Change Type to field with a dropdown.

Transaction Analytics Type Conversion

Select the desired field type for your MIDC. 

Transaction Analytics Type defaults to Use APM Type, which determines type at runtime. If you do not want to specify a type, select Use APM Type.

Name Requirements For Transaction Analytics Data Type Conversion

Refer to these naming requirements when using Transaction Analytics data type conversion:

  • Display Names must be unique within each data collector. Names are case sensitive. 
  • You can repeat Display Names across different data collector configurations, as long the field type is also the same.  
  • If you delete a field from a data collector and add it again with a different field type, you must rename the data collector. 

Change Field Types 

Field types cannot be changed once they have been saved to the data collector. To change the field type, we recommend to delete and recreate with a new name.