Best Practices for Docker Container Monitoring with Watchlog

Introduction

This guide will walk you through setting up Docker monitoring with Watchlog and applying best practices to gain deep visibility into your containerized applications.

Step 1: Install Watchlog Agent

Before configuring Docker monitoring, you need to install the Watchlog Agent on your host machine. If you haven’t installed it yet, use the following command:

sudo apiKey="your-api-key" server="your-server" bash -c "$(curl -L https://watchlog.io/ubuntu/watchlog-script.sh)"

This will install the agent and prepare your system for Docker monitoring.

Step 2: Enable Docker Monitoring in Watchlog

Once the agent is installed, you need to update the Watchlog configuration to enable Docker monitoring.

Modify integration.json

Navigate to your Watchlog configuration file and update it with the following settings:

{
    "monitor": true,
    "service": "docker"
}

What This Does:

✅ Enables Docker container monitoring. ✅ Configures Watchlog to collect real-time metrics from running containers. ✅ Allows you to view container statistics in the Watchlog dashboard.

Save the file and proceed to restart the Watchlog Agent.

Step 3: Restart Watchlog Agent

To apply the new configuration, restart the Watchlog Agent.

For Ubuntu Agent:

sudo systemctl stop watchlog-agent
sudo systemctl start watchlog-agent

For Source Agent:

pm2 reload watchlog-agent

Once restarted, Watchlog will begin collecting Docker container metrics.

Step 4: View Docker Metrics in Watchlog Panel

After enabling Docker monitoring, log in to your Watchlog dashboard and navigate to the Docker integration section.

What You Can Monitor:

✅ Container List – See all running and stopped containers. ✅ Images & Volumes – View container images and associated storage volumes. ✅ Per-Container Metrics:

• Memory Usage – Track container memory consumption.
• Disk Usage – Monitor storage and log file sizes.
• Network Activity – View bandwidth usage and network requests.

This gives you full visibility into your Docker environment, allowing you to troubleshoot performance issues effectively.

Best Practices for Docker Monitoring

1️⃣ Set Up Alerts for Resource Spikes

• Configure Watchlog alerts to notify you when a container exceeds memory, CPU, or disk thresholds.
• Helps prevent out-of-memory errors and unexpected downtime.

2️⃣ Monitor Network Traffic

• Use Watchlog’s network monitoring charts to track incoming and outgoing traffic per container.
• Identify potential bandwidth issues or suspicious activity.

3️⃣ Keep an Eye on Container Logs

• Ensure that container logs are rotated properly to avoid excessive disk usage.
• Use log monitoring tools alongside Watchlog to track application-specific errors.

4️⃣ Optimize Resource Allocation

• If a container is consuming too much memory, consider limiting its resources:

docker run --memory=512m --cpus=1 my-container

• This ensures fair resource distribution across containers.

5️⃣ Regularly Remove Unused Containers & Images

• Old or unused Docker images and containers consume unnecessary disk space.
• Run the following commands to clean up your system:

docker system prune -a

Conclusion

By following this guide, you’ve successfully configured Docker monitoring with Watchlog. You can now: ✅ Track all running containers, images, and volumes. ✅ Monitor memory, disk, and network usage per container. ✅ Set up alerts to detect resource spikes and potential issues.

With real-time monitoring and performance insights, you can ensure your Dockerized applications run efficiently and reliably. Start monitoring your Docker environment today with Watchlog and stay in control of your infrastructure! 🚀