:_mod-docs-content-type: CONCEPT

// Module included in the following assemblies:
//
// assembly-distributed-tracing.adoc

[id='con-overview-tracing-{context}']
= Tracing options

[role="_abstract"]
Distributed traces consist of spans, which represent individual units of work performed over a specific time period.
When instrumented with tracers, applications generate traces that follow requests as they move through the system, making it easier to identify delays or issues.

OpenTelemetry, a telemetry framework, provides APIs for tracing that are independent of any specific backend tracing system. 
In Strimzi, the default protocol for transmitting traces between Kafka components and tracing systems is OpenTelemetry’s OTLP (OpenTelemetry Protocol), a vendor-neutral protocol.

While OTLP is the default, Strimzi also supports other tracing systems, such as Jaeger. 
Jaeger is a distributed tracing system designed for monitoring microservices, and its user interface allows you to query, filter, and analyze trace data in detail.

.The Jaeger user interface showing a simple query
image:image_con-overview-distributed-tracing.png[The Jaeger user interface showing a simple query]

[role="_additional-resources"]
.Additional resources

* {JaegerDocs}
* {OpenTelemetryDocs}