Set up MySQL Database Observability

Welcome to the Grafana learning path that shows you how to set up Database Observability for MySQL with Grafana Cloud. Database Observability goes beyond basic metric monitoring to give you deep visibility into individual query performance, explain plans, wait events, and query samples.

By the end of this path, you’ll have Grafana Alloy collecting telemetry from your MySQL database and forwarding it to Grafana Cloud, where purpose-built dashboards help you identify slow queries, understand execution plans, and optimize performance.

Here’s what to expect

When you complete this path, you’ll be able to:

• Prepare a MySQL database for deep query monitoring
• Configure Grafana Alloy with Database Observability components
• Verify telemetry is flowing to Grafana Cloud
• Use the Queries Overview dashboard to find slow queries
• Drill into individual queries to analyze explain plans and wait events

Before you begin

Before you set up Database Observability, ensure you have:

• A running MySQL 8.0 or later instance (MariaDB is not supported).
• Administrative access to your MySQL server to create a monitoring user and enable Performance Schema.
• A machine where you can install Grafana Alloy with network access to both your MySQL database and Grafana Cloud.
• Basic familiarity with MySQL database administration.

Troubleshooting

If you get stuck, we’ve got your back! Where appropriate, troubleshooting information is just a click away.

More to explore

We understand you might want to explore other capabilities not strictly on this path. We’ll provide you opportunities where it makes sense.