Observability

Observability is about making your system understandable from the outside. It helps testers understand why something broke or failed, not just "that it broke".  Monitoring tells you something’s broken > Observability helps you figure out why.

For testers, observability is a game-changer. Instead of guessing or relying on devs to dig into the code, you can use observable signals to pinpoint issues, validate assumptions, and even test in production with confidence. It means having the right tools and data like logs, metrics, and traces so you can answer questions like:

In software development, the ability to quickly understand the health of your applications and diagnose issues is essential

Observability is the ability to understand a system’s internal state by analyzing its external outputs. In software development, observability enables teams to analyze vast amounts of data from various sources to gain insights into the health and behavior of applications.

Observability is especially valuable in modern, distributed systems because it helps teams identify not only where failures occur but also why and how. By analyzing telemetry data, observability allows developers to view complex applications as cohesive systems rather than isolated services. This comprehensive view is critical for diagnosing issues that span multiple services or environments.

Observability typically relies on three types of telemetry data:

Observability makes it possible to collect, store, and analyze enormous amounts of information from across network boundaries, giving developers a complete picture of what is happening within an environment — even when multiple technologies are involved. It goes beyond error detection to provide actionable insights developers can use to improve and optimize their software.