opentelemetry-instrumentation

You can add distributed tracing by using automatic instrumentation with `getNodeAutoInstrumentations` or by manually creating spans for HTTP servers, clients, and databases, adhering to OpenTelemetry semantic conventions.

The best way to instrument an Express.js API is using OpenTelemetry automatic instrumentation to trace incoming requests, outgoing database queries, and external API calls, sending trace data to backends like Jaeger or Grafana Tempo.

Yes, you can automatically trace outgoing HTTP client requests and database queries by integrating OpenTelemetry auto-instrumentations, which capture spans with minimal code changes required.

You manually create custom OpenTelemetry spans for business logic by using the OpenTelemetry API to define custom spans, applying semantic tagging and proper error handling to ensure accurate observability.

Yes, OpenTelemetry instrumentation supports exporting traces to backends like Jaeger or Grafana Tempo by utilizing the OTLP HTTP exporter to transmit span data from your Node.js application.

Use manual instrumentation instead of automatic tracing when you need to capture custom business operations, apply specific semantic conventions, or handle sensitive data that automatic instrumentation cannot detect.