Error Grouping

Default Grouping

Error Tracking intelligently groups similar errors into issues. This grouping is based on the following error properties:

service: The service where the error occurred.
error.type or error.kind: The class of the error.
error.message: A description of the error.
error.stack: The filename and function name of the top-most meaningful stack frame.

The error stack trace is the code path followed by an error between being thrown and being captured by Datadog instrumentation. Error Tracking evaluates the topmost stack frame (the location of the error) and uses it to group the error.

If any stack frame properties differ for two given errors, the two errors are grouped under different issues. For example, Error Tracking does not group issues across services or error types. Error Tracking also ignores numbers, punctuation, and anything that is between quotes or parentheses: only word-like tokens are used.

Tip: To ensure optimal grouping, enclose variables in your error messages in quotes or parentheses.

Note: To improve grouping accuracy, Error Tracking removes variable stack frame properties such as versions, ids, dates, and so on.

Custom Grouping

Error Tracking intelligently groups similar errors into issues with a default strategy. By using custom fingerprinting, you can gain full control over the grouping decision and customize the grouping behavior for your error spans.

You can customize grouping by providing an error.fingerprint for the error. The fingerprint is provided in an attribute or tag, depending on the error source (see Setup for details). While the value of error.fingerprint does not have any particular format or requirement, the content must be a string.

If error.fingerprint is provided, the grouping behavior follows these rules:

Custom grouping takes precedence over the default strategy.
Custom grouping can be applied only to a subset of your errors and can coexist with the default strategy.
The content of error.fingerprint is used as-is without any modification (although it is converted to a standardized fingerprint format).
Errors from the same service and with the same error.fingerprint attribute are grouped into the same issue.
Errors with different service attributes are grouped into different issues.

Setup

APM

Custom grouping only needs an error span and an error.fingerprint string span tag.

If you aren’t already collecting APM traces with Datadog, see the APM documentation to set up APM.

Example

If you’re already sending APM spans, add a new error.fingerprint tag to your error span.

Here’s an example in Python:

with tracer.trace("throws.an.error") as span:
  span.set_tag('error.fingerprint', 'my-custom-grouping-material')
  raise Exception("Something went wrong")

Exception information is captured and attached to a span if there is one active when the exception is raised. In this case, my-custom-grouping-material is used to group these error spans into a single issue in Error Tracking.

Log Management

Custom grouping only needs an error log and an error.fingerprint string attribute.

If you aren’t already collecting logs with Datadog, see the Log Management documentation to set up logs.

Ensure that the source tag (specifying language) is properly configured.

Example

If you’re already logging in JSON format, add a new error.fingerprint attribute to your error log.

Here’s an example in Python for a JSON-formatted logger:

import logging
import json_log_formatter

formatter = json_log_formatter.JSONFormatter()

json_handler = logging.FileHandler(filename='/var/log/my-log.json')
json_handler.setFormatter(formatter)

logger = logging.getLogger('my_json')
logger.addHandler(json_handler)
logger.setLevel(logging.INFO)

logger.error('Error processing request', extra={'error.fingerprint': 'my-custom-grouping-material'})

In this case, my-custom-grouping-material is used to group these error logs into a single issue in Error Tracking.

Mobile Example

In Datadog’s mobile SDKs, you can add a custom error fingerprint when logging an error by adding a predefined attribute to the log call:

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Android SDK 2.7.0 or higher.

val errorFingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-material"
val attributes = mapOf(LogAttributes.ERROR_FINGERPRINT to errorFingerprint)
logger.e("My error message", error, attributes)

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Flutter SDK 2.4.0 or higher.

final errorFingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-material";
logger.error(
  'My error message',
  errorStackTrace: st,
  attributes {
    DatadogAttributes.errorFingerprint: "my-custom-grouping-material",
  }
);

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog iOS SDK 2.8.1 or higher.

let errorFingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-material"
logger.error(
  "My error message",
  error: error,
  attributes: [
    Logs.Attributes.errorFingerprint: errorFingerprint
  ]
)

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog RUM SDK 2.4.2 or higher.

DdLogs.error(
  'message',
  'my-error-type',
  'my-error-message',
  'my-stack-trace',
  { my: 'context' },
  'my-custom-fingerprint'
);

Or, you can add or adjust the fingerprint in the log mapper:

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Android SDK 2.7.0 or higher.

val mapper = object : EventMapper<LogEvent> {
    override fun map(event: LogEvent): LogEvent {
        event.fingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-material"
        return event
    }
}
val logsConfiguration = LogsConfiguration.Builder()
    .setEventMapper(mapper)
    .build()
Logs.enable(logsConfiguration)

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Flutter SDK 2.4.0 or higher.

LogEvent? mapLogEvent(LogEvent event) {
  event.error?.fingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-material";
  return event;
}

final loggingConfiguration = DatadogLoggingConfiguration(
  eventMapper: mapLogEvent,
);

final configuration = DatadogConfiguration(
    // ...
    loggingConfiguration: loggingConfiguration,
);

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog iOS SDK 2.8.1 or higher.

let logsConfiguration = Logs.Configuration(
  eventMapper: { log in
      var log = log
      log.error?.fingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-material"
      return log
  }
)
Logs.enable(
  with: logsConfiguration
)

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog RUM SDK 2.4.2 or higher.

configuration.errorEventMapper = event => {
  event.fingerprint = 'my-custom-fingerprint'
  return event;
};

RUM

Example

If you aren’t already collecting Browser RUM events with Datadog, see the RUM Browser Monitoring setup documentation or the RUM Mobile and TV Monitoring setup documentation.

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Android SDK 2.7.0 or higher.

To add a custom fingerprint when manually reporting errors, you can add a predefined attribute when calling addError:

GlobalRumMonitor.get().addError(
  "My error message",
  RumErrorSource.SOURCE,
  exception,
  mapOf(
    RumAttributes.ERROR_CUSTOM_FINGERPRINT to "my-custom-grouping-fingerprint"
  )
)

Or, you can use the errorEventMapper:

val rumConfiguration = RumConfiguration.Builder("rum-application-id")
  .setErrorEventMapper(object : EventMapper<ErrorEvent> {
    override fun map(event: ErrorEvent): ErrorEvent {
        event.error.fingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-fingerprint"
        return event
    }
  }).build()
RUM.enable(rumConfiguration)

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Browser SDK v4.42.0 or later, a browser RUM error, and an additional string attribute.

If you’re already collecting browser errors, it’s possible to add the attribute by either:

Adding a dd_fingerprint attribute to the error object:

import { datadogRum } from '@datadog/browser-rum';
// Send a custom error with context
const error = new Error('Something went wrong');
error.dd_fingerprint = 'my-custom-grouping-fingerprint'
datadogRum.addError(error);

Or, using the beforeSend callback with an error.fingerprint attribute:

DD_RUM.init({
  ...
  beforeSend: () => {
    if (event.type === 'error') {
      event.error.fingerprint = 'my-custom-grouping-fingerprint'
    }
  },
})

In both cases, my-custom-grouping-material is used to group the Browser RUM errors into a single issue in Error Tracking.

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog Flutter SDK 2.4.0 or higher.

To add a custom fingerprint when manually reporting errors, you can add a predefined attribute when calling addError:

final rum = DatadogSdk.instance.rum;
rum?.addErrorInfo("My error message",
  RumErrorSource.source,
  attributes: {
    DatadogAttributes.errorFingerprint: 'my-custom-grouping-fingerprint',
  },
);

Or, you can use the errorEventMapper:

RumErrorEvent? mapRumErrorEvent(RumErrorEvent event) {
  event.error.fingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-fingerprint";
  return event;
}

final rumConfiguration = DatadogRumConfiguration(
  // ...
  errorEventMapper: mapRumErrorEvent,
);

final configuration = DatadogConfiguration(
    // ...
    rumConfiguration: rumConfiguration,
);

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog iOS SDK 2.8.1 or higher.

To add a custom fingerprint when manually reporting errors, you can add a predefined attribute when calling addError:

RUMMonitor.shared().addError(
  message: "My error message",
  source: .source,
  attributes: [
    RUM.Attributes.errorFingerprint: "my-custom-grouping-fingerprint"
  ]
)

Or, you can use the errorEventMapper:

var config = RUM.Configuration(applicationID: "rum-application-id")
config.errorEventMapper = { errorEvent in
  var errorEvent = errorEvent
  errorEvent.error.fingerprint = "my-custom-grouping-fingerprint"
  return errorEvent
}
RUM.enable(with: config)

To use custom grouping, you need the Datadog RUM SDK 2.4.2 or higher.

DdRum.addError(
  'message',       
  'my-source',       
  'my-stack-trace',  
  { my: 'context' },
  Date.now(), 
  'my-custom-fingerprint'        
);

Or, you can use the errorEventMapper:

configuration.errorEventMapper = event => {
  event.fingerprint = 'my-custom-fingerprint'
  return event;
};