Documentation Plugins Zabbix Template variables

Zabbix template variables

Template variables let you create dynamic, reusable dashboards that switch between host groups, hosts, applications, and items without editing the dashboard. You can populate variable drop-downs with values from Zabbix and reference those variables in queries, panel titles, and text panels.

Before you begin

• Configure the Zabbix data source.
• Understand Grafana template variables.

Supported variable types

Create a query variable

To create a variable that fetches values from Zabbix:

1. Open a dashboard and click Dashboard settings (gear icon).
2. Click Variables in the left menu.
3. Click Add variable.
4. Set Variable type to Query.
5. Select the Zabbix data source.
6. Select a Query Type and fill in the filter fields.
7. Click Apply.

Query types

The variable query editor uses a structured form with a Query Type drop-down. Select the type of Zabbix entity you want to populate the variable with.

All filter fields support regex patterns (for example, /.*/ to match all values) and references to other template variables (for example, $group).

For the Item and Item values query types, the editor shows either Application (Zabbix < 5.4) or Item Tag (Zabbix 5.4+) depending on your Zabbix server version. Only one field is visible at a time.

When the Item query type is selected, you can also toggle Show disabled items to include disabled items in the results.

Legacy query format

Older dashboards may use a legacy string-based query format. The Zabbix variable editor displays these as a read-only Legacy Query field and automatically converts them to the structured format.

The legacy format uses four parts wrapped in braces:

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{host group}{host}{application}{item name}

Each part can be a specific name or * (all values). The number of parts determines what the variable returns:

Use variables in queries

Reference variables in the query editor by prefixing the variable name with $. For example, if you have a variable named host, use $host in the Host field of a Metrics query.

Variables work in most query editor fields, including:

• Group, Host, Application / Item tag, Item
• Service, SLA
• Proxy, Problem, Item Ids, Macros
• Panel and row titles
• Text panel content

Built-in macros

In addition to the template variables you define, the plugin automatically populates a set of read-only macros for each series returned by a Metrics query. Use them in alias functions (setAlias, setAliasByRegex, replaceAlias) to build readable series names. You don’t create these macros; the plugin sets them per item.

For example, to rename each series to <visible host name> - <item name>, add the following function to a Metrics query:

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setAlias($__zbx_host_name - $__zbx_item)

Chain variables

You can reference one variable inside another variable’s query to create cascading drop-downs. For example:

1. Create a variable named group with Query Type set to Group.
2. Create a variable named host with Query Type set to Host and set the Group field to $group.
3. Create a variable named item with Query Type set to Item, set Group to $group, and Host to $host.

When you change the group selection, the host variable automatically updates to show only hosts in that group, and the item variable updates accordingly.

Examples

Build a host picker for a dashboard

Let viewers switch the dashboard between hosts without editing panels.

1. Create a variable named host with Query Type set to Host and Group set to the group you want (or /.*/ for all hosts).
2. In each Metrics query, set the Host field to $host.

Filter a query with a multi-value variable

Show several hosts on one panel from a single drop-down.

1. Create the host variable as in the previous example and enable Multi-value.
2. Set the Host field of your query to $host.

When you select web01 and web02, the plugin sends (web01|web02) to Zabbix, so the query returns data for both hosts.

Repeat a panel for each selected host

Render one copy of a panel per selected host.

1. Create a multi-value host variable.
2. In the panel’s Repeat options, set Repeat by variable to host.
3. Set the query’s Host field to $host.

Grafana renders a separate panel for each host you select.

Populate a drop-down with current item values

Use the Item values query type to build a variable from the latest values of an item, which is useful for text panels or annotations.

1. Create a variable with Query Type set to Item values.
2. Set Group, Host, and Item to target the item you want.

Next steps

• Build queries with the Zabbix query editor
• Apply functions to transform query results