FAQ

• General information

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  How is Logs different from a self-hosted Loki instance?

  We handle the operational complexity for you. You don’t have to worry about scaling, maintenance or updating the Loki infrastructure. You get a stable, highly available endpoint and can focus entirely on sending and analyzing your log data.

  What are "labels" and why are they so important?

  Labels are key-value pairs (e.g., app="api", cluster="prod") that you attach to your log streams. They are the metadata that Loki indexes. Choosing the right labels is crucial for your query performance. Good labels are static and describe the origin of the log data (for example application, environment, host). Avoid using labels with high cardinality like a request_id or user_ip.

  Is there a limit to how many log data I can send per second?

  Yes, to ensure fair use and platform stability for all customers, we have rate limits (4 MB/s) in place.

  What happens if I exceed my rate limit?

  If you exceed your limit, our server will respond with an HTTP status code 429 (Too Many Requests). Your log agent (for example Grafana Alloy) should be able to handle this by retrying after a short backoff period. If you consistently exceed the limit, log data will be rejected.

  Can I extend the retention period of "Logs" beyond 180 days?

  No. As the Logs-Service is a fully managed service, we do not support individual retention configurations beyond 180 days.

  This limit is in place for two primary technical reasons:

  • Query Performance: Our service is built on Loki, which is optimized for high-speed troubleshooting over hours, days, or weeks. Querying extremely long timeframes (e.g., scanning a full year) often leads to timeouts or slow performance due to the massive volume of “hot” data involved.

  • Cost-Benefit Ratio: Maintaining data in “hot” storage for over 6 months incurs significant infrastructure costs. Since data of that age is rarely accessed for operational tasks, it is not efficient to keep it in the primary logging tier.

  How can I store logs longer than 180 days for compliance or audit requirements?

  For long-term retention (e.g., 1 year or more), we recommend implementing a “Cold Storage” strategy.

  • The Approach: Stream your log data to a low-cost long-term storage solution (such as a separate Object Storage bucket) in parallel to sending it to “STACKIT Logs”.

  • The Benefit: This allows you to meet strict compliance and audit deadlines at a fraction of the cost of active log storage.