---
name: otel-guides
description: Curated map of the official OpenTelemetry documentation by language. Use when planning or implementing OpenTelemetry instrumentation for a codebase - pick the language, open its reference file, and follow the linked official docs for traces, metrics, logs, instrumentation libraries, exporters, and SDK configuration. Covers C++, .NET, Erlang/Elixir, Go, Java, JavaScript, Kotlin, PHP, Python, Ruby, Rust, Swift, and other community SDKs, plus the cross-language references for SDK configuration, semantic conventions, and the Collector.
---

# OpenTelemetry Language Guides

A selection map over the official OpenTelemetry docs
(https://opentelemetry.io/docs/languages/). Pick the language of the code
you are instrumenting, read its reference file, then fetch the linked
official pages you need — links ending in `index.md` return the page as raw
markdown (the rest are external redirects), so read them directly instead of
paraphrasing from memory.

## Pick the language

| Language | Reference |
| --- | --- |
| C++ | [references/cpp.md](references/cpp.md) |
| .NET | [references/dotnet.md](references/dotnet.md) |
| Erlang/Elixir | [references/erlang.md](references/erlang.md) |
| Go | [references/go.md](references/go.md) |
| Java | [references/java.md](references/java.md) |
| JavaScript / Node.js | [references/js.md](references/js.md) |
| Kotlin | [references/kotlin.md](references/kotlin.md) |
| PHP | [references/php.md](references/php.md) |
| Python | [references/python.md](references/python.md) |
| Ruby | [references/ruby.md](references/ruby.md) |
| Rust | [references/rust.md](references/rust.md) |
| Swift | [references/swift.md](references/swift.md) |
| Anything else | [references/other.md](references/other.md) |

Each reference file lists every section of that language's official docs —
what it covers and what to do with it when planning instrumentation
(getting started, traces, metrics, logs, instrumentation libraries,
zero-code instrumentation where it exists, exporters, resources, sampling,
API references, registry).

## Cross-language references

Three things are the same whatever the language: the environment variables
that configure the SDK (`OTEL_SERVICE_NAME`, `OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT`,
`OTEL_RESOURCE_ATTRIBUTES`, ...), the conventions that name what you emit
(resource, HTTP, database, messaging, RPC, ...), and the option of putting
a Collector between the app and the backend (agent, gateway, or neither).

| Topic | Reference |
| --- | --- |
| SDK configuration | [references/sdk-configuration.md](references/sdk-configuration.md) |
| Semantic conventions | [references/semconv.md](references/semconv.md) |
| Collector | [references/collector.md](references/collector.md) |

Open the semantic conventions reference for every domain you name things
in, and the Collector reference before deciding between direct OTLP export
and a Collector.

## Rules

- Always confirm against the fetched official page before recommending a
  package name, API call, or env var — the linked docs are the source of
  truth, not memory.
- Prefer zero-code/automatic instrumentation and existing instrumentation
  libraries over manual spans; check the language's registry section before
  writing any manual instrumentation.
- The registry pages render client-side, so a text fetch of them often
  returns nothing. When that happens, fall back in order: the language's
  contrib repository on GitHub (`opentelemetry-<lang>-contrib` — for Java it is `opentelemetry-java-instrumentation` — whose
  README lists the instrumentation packages), then the package index search
  (`pip index`, `npm search @opentelemetry`, Maven Central, NuGet,
  crates.io). If a page cannot be fetched at all, say so and mark whatever
  you derived from it as unverified — never present an unfetched claim as
  sourced.
- The planning notes in each reference file are a snapshot (last verified
  2026-08); the fetched official page always overrides them — re-verify any
  stability or version claim you rely on.
- A local export target is one `odd_stack_up` away: OTLP on
  `http://localhost:4317` (gRPC) / `:4318` (HTTP). `localhost` holds only
  for host processes — a containerized app needs the host reachable from
  inside the container (e.g. `host.docker.internal`).