avuru obs vs. SigNoz
SigNoz is the closest tool to avuru obs on paper: both are OpenTelemetry-native and both store every signal in ClickHouse. It's a strong, actively developed platform. The differences are three: how services get onto the map (eBPF vs. SDK instrumentation), whether continuous profiling is a first-class signal, and where the open-source line is drawn.
At a glance
| SigNoz | avuru obs | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary scope | Traces, logs, metrics, APM | Traces, logs, metrics, profiling |
| Instrumentation | OpenTelemetry SDKs (manual) | eBPF auto-discovery (OBI) + optional OTLP spans |
| Storage | ClickHouse | ClickHouse |
| Service map | From instrumented spans | Derived from spans + eBPF — even un-instrumented services appear |
| Continuous profiling | Not a core signal | Built in (opt-in) as the 4th signal |
| Ingest | Native OTLP | Native OTLP (:4318/:4317) |
| Deploy | Multiple components | One Helm chart |
| License | MIT core; SSO, RBAC & more gated behind commercial Enterprise | AGPL-3.0 — nothing gated |
Why teams look at avuru obs
- A map without instrumenting first. SigNoz shows what your SDKs emit; avuru's
sensorruns upstream OBI to reconstruct topology from the kernel, so un-instrumented services still appear. See Architecture. - Profiling in the box. Continuous CPU profiling is the fourth signal in the same ClickHouse store, correlated with traces — not a separate tool to add.
- No open-core line. SSO/OIDC, RBAC and similar are avuru features, not an Enterprise upsell. Everything ships under AGPL-3.0.
How to migrate
You're already on OpenTelemetry, so this is a one-line change:
- Install avuru obs alongside SigNoz.
- Point your OTLP exporter (or OTel Collector) at the avuru
gatewayon:4318/:4317. Dual-export to both while you validate. - Confirm the data matches, then retire the SigNoz pipeline.
See the OTLP bridge guide for exporter settings.
When SigNoz is the better fit
- You want a permissive MIT core rather than avuru's copyleft AGPL-3.0.
- You rely on its managed Cloud, its dashboards, or its broader APM feature catalog today.
- You don't run on Linux/Kubernetes, where the eBPF map adds the most value.
:::tip Try it side by side Install in 30 seconds and dual-export one service — the eBPF map appears next to the traces you already send SigNoz. :::