OpenStatus

Product Introduction

1. OpenStatus is an open-source uptime and synthetic monitoring platform designed to track the availability and performance of websites, APIs, and infrastructure globally. It enables users to detect downtime, measure latency across continents, and validate SSL/TLS certificates, DNS configurations, and SMTP services.
2. The core value of OpenStatus lies in its ability to provide real-time visibility into service reliability while allowing organizations to transparently share uptime data with users through customizable public status pages. It prioritizes simplicity, developer-centric workflows, and integration with modern observability tools.

Main Features

1. Global Latency Monitoring: OpenStatus performs synthetic checks from multiple regions, including Amsterdam (ams), Sydney (syd), and Northern Virginia (iad), to measure endpoint response times and availability worldwide. It supports HTTP, DNS, SSL, SMTP, and ping protocols for comprehensive validation.
2. Public Status Pages with Custom Domains: Users can deploy branded status pages to display uptime history, incident reports, and service subscriptions. Custom domains and subscription features allow businesses to maintain brand consistency and notify users automatically during outages.
3. Monitoring as Code (MaC): Configuration is managed via YAML files and a CLI tool, enabling version-controlled workflows and CI/CD integration. Users can apply monitor definitions, trigger checks programmatically, and export metrics to OpenTelemetry-compatible observability stacks.

Problems Solved

1. Proactive Downtime Detection: OpenStatus identifies performance degradation and outages before they impact end-users by running frequent checks from distributed locations. It captures screenshots during failures and provides root-cause analysis through detailed incident timelines.
2. Target User Groups: The platform serves DevOps teams, SaaS companies, and enterprises requiring transparent uptime reporting. It is particularly valuable for businesses needing public status pages to build customer trust and reduce support inquiries during outages.
3. Use Case Scenarios: A SaaS company uses OpenStatus to monitor its API endpoints globally, deploy a custom status page at status.example.com, and notify engineers via Slack alerts when latency exceeds thresholds in specific regions.

Unique Advantages

1. Open-Source Flexibility: Unlike proprietary tools like BetterStack or UptimeRobot, OpenStatus allows full customization of monitoring logic, self-hosting options, and integration with existing infrastructure without vendor lock-in.
2. Unified Incident Timeline: The platform aggregates monitor failures, recovery events, and notifications (e.g., Grafana alerts, Slack messages) into a single chronological view, simplifying post-mortem analysis.
3. Edge-Native Execution: Checks are performed from Vercel’s edge network, ensuring low-latency testing and alignment with modern serverless architectures. This contrasts with traditional tools limited to fixed data centers.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. How do I configure monitors for my API endpoints? Monitors are defined in a YAML file specifying the URL, frequency (e.g., 1m), regions, and request methods. The OpenStatus CLI applies configurations directly from the terminal, enabling GitOps workflows.
2. What regions are supported for latency checks? OpenStatus currently supports Amsterdam (ams), Sydney (syd), and Northern Virginia (iad), with plans to expand to all continents. Each region validates endpoints independently for geographic redundancy.
3. Can I export monitoring data to my observability stack? Yes, OpenStatus integrates with OpenTelemetry to export synthetic monitoring metrics, allowing correlation with application performance data in tools like Prometheus or Grafana.
4. Is there a public dashboard for real-time status? A public dashboard displays live ping data, weekly/monthly uptime trends, and active monitors. Users can share this dashboard or embed it into internal tools.
5. Which notification channels are supported? Alerts are sent via email, SMS, Slack, and Discord. Escalation policies and scheduled maintenance windows are planned for future releases.