---
title: "Attribute mistakes to avoid | Grafana Labs"
description: "Common mistakes to avoid when designing attributes"
---

> For a curated documentation index, see [llms.txt](/llms.txt). For the complete documentation index, see [llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt).

## What *not* to do

Attributes should describe groups of collectors, not individual instances. Most mistakes come from ignoring that.

| Mistake                         | Why it’s a problem                                                                       |
|---------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Too many attributes             | Hard to manage, and hits the limits (22 local per API request, 100 remote per collector) |
| Frequently changing values      | Use remote attributes in UI instead                                                      |
| Sensitive information           | Attributes are visible in the Fleet Management UI                                        |
| Duplicating reserved attributes | `collector.os`, `collector.version`, and `collector.ID` already exist                    |
| Inconsistent naming             | `myEnv` vs `my_env` vs `my-env` causes confusion                                         |
| Overly specific values          | `hostname=server-123` (use `collector.ID` instead)                                       |

## Tips for beginners

| Tip                      | Why it helps                                                  |
|--------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|
| **Start simple**         | Begin with `env` and maybe one or two others                  |
| **Be consistent**        | Pick a naming convention and stick to it                      |
| **Document your schema** | Note down what each attribute means                           |
| **Think about matching** | Every attribute should help you match pipelines to collectors |