This page illustrates how you can create dashboards by using the Cloud Monitoring API. For each example, the dashboard definition in JSON and the corresponding dashboard are shown.
Cloud Monitoring also provides a curated set of dashboard definitions on GitHub. You can install these definitions in your Google Cloud project as custom dashboards. For information about this repository and how to install these dashboards, see Install sample dashboards.
When to use the API
The Cloud Monitoring API provides you with a way of managing many dashboards at once. While you can use the Google Cloud Console to manage your dashboards, you may find it easier to use the API to manage your custom dashboards in bulk.
You also need to use the API when you want to add the blank placeholder widget to your dashboard.
Using MQL with the API
When you create a dashboard, you can provide an MQL query
to the TimeSeriesQuery
specification in the dashboards.create method.
For more information, see Building charts.
Dashboard layouts
Dashboard in GridLayout
This dashboard shows a GridLayout with three widgets.
{
"displayName": "Grid Layout Example",
"gridLayout": {
"columns": "2",
"widgets": [
{
"title": "Widget 1",
"xyChart": {
"dataSets": {
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"agent.googleapis.com/nginx/connections/accepted_count\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_RATE"
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"plotType": "LINE"
},
"timeshiftDuration": "0s",
"yAxis": {
"label": "y1Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
}
}
},
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 2"
}
},
{
"title": "Widget 3",
"xyChart": {
"dataSets": {
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"agent.googleapis.com/nginx/connections/accepted_count\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_RATE"
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"plotType": "STACKED_BAR"
},
"timeshiftDuration": "0s",
"yAxis": {
"label": "y1Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
}
}
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard in MosaicLayout
This dashboard shows a MosaicLayout with two widgets.
{
"displayName": "Mosaic Layout Example",
"mosaicLayout": {
"columns": 12,
"tiles": [
{
"xPos": 2,
"yPos": 2,
"width": 7,
"height": 2,
"widget": {
"title": "CPU utilization in us-central1-a",
"scorecard": {
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\" resource.label.zone=\"us-central1-a\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX"
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"gaugeView": {
"upperBound": 1.5
},
"thresholds": [
{
"value": 0.8,
"color": "YELLOW",
"direction": "ABOVE"
},
{
"value": 1,
"color": "RED",
"direction": "ABOVE"
}
]
}
}
},
{
"xPos": 1,
"yPos": 5,
"width": 4,
"height": 4,
"widget": {
"title": "My Chart",
"xyChart": {
"dataSets": [
{
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX",
"groupByFields": [
"resource.label.zone"
]
}
},
"unitOverride": "'1'"
},
"plotType": "LINE",
"minAlignmentPeriod": "60s"
}
],
"yAxis": {
"label": "y1Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
}
}
}
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard in RowLayout
This dashboard displays a RowLayout with three widgets.
{
"displayName": "Row Layout Example",
"rowLayout": {
"rows": [
{
"weight": "1",
"widgets": [
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 1",
"format": "MARKDOWN"
}
},
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 2",
"format": "MARKDOWN"
}
},
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 3",
"format": "MARKDOWN"
}
}
]
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard in ColumnLayout
This dashboard displays a ColumnLayout with three
widgets.
{
"displayName": "Column Layout Example",
"columnLayout": {
"columns": [
{
"weight": "1",
"widgets": [
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 1",
"format": "MARKDOWN"
}
},
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 2",
"format": "MARKDOWN"
}
},
{
"text": {
"content": "Widget 3",
"format": "MARKDOWN"
}
}
]
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboards with Widgets
Dashboard with an XyChart
This dashboard shows a dashboard with a basic XyChart. If
you ever used the Google Cloud Console to create charts on dashboards, those charts
are instances of the XyChart widget.
Similar to the functionality provided in the Cloud Console, the API
provides options to change the chart's PlotType or to
configure the chart's view modes.
{
"displayName": "Demo dashboard",
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"title": "Sample line chart",
"xyChart": {
"dataSets": [
{
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX",
"groupByFields": [
"resource.label.zone"
]
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"plotType": "LINE"
}
],
"timeshiftDuration": "0s",
"yAxis": {
"label": "y1Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
},
"chartOptions": {
"mode": "COLOR"
}
}
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with an XyChart and a threshold
This dashboard shows a dashboard with a basic XyChart,
a threshold, and the left Y-axis configured.
{
"category": "CUSTOM",
"displayName": "Dashboard with xyChart",
"mosaicLayout": {
"columns": 12,
"tiles": [
{
"height": 4,
"widget": {
"title": "VM Instance - CPU utilization [MEAN]",
"xyChart": {
"chartOptions": {
"mode": "COLOR"
},
"dataSets": [
{
"minAlignmentPeriod": "60s",
"plotType": "LINE",
"targetAxis": "Y2",
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"apiSource": "DEFAULT_CLOUD",
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"aggregation": {
"alignmentPeriod": "60s",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_NONE",
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN"
},
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"secondaryAggregation": {
"alignmentPeriod": "60s",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_NONE",
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_NONE"
}
}
}
}
],
"thresholds": [
{
"label": "",
"targetAxis": "Y2",
"value": 0.45
}
],
"timeshiftDuration": "0s",
"y2Axis": {
"label": "y2Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
}
}
},
"width": 6,
"xPos": 0,
"yPos": 0
}
]
}
}
In the preceding example, the JSON specifies the use of the left Y-axis because
it contains a y2Axis structure. In the targetAxis field, use "Y1" for the
right Y-axis and "Y2" for the left Y-axis. If you omit the targetAxis
field, then the right Y-axis is used.
The chart on this dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with an XyChart with a STACKED_AREA PlotType
This dashboard shows an XyChart with a STACKED_AREA
PlotType.
{
"displayName": "Demo dashboard",
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"title": "Sample stacked-area chart",
"xyChart": {
"dataSets": [
{
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX",
"groupByFields": [
"resource.label.zone"
]
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"plotType": "STACKED_AREA"
}
],
"timeshiftDuration": "0s",
"yAxis": {
"label": "y1Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
},
"chartOptions": {
"mode": "COLOR"
}
}
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with an XyChart with a STACKED_BAR PlotType
This dashboard shows an XyChart with a STACKED_BAR
PlotType.
{
"displayName": "Demo Dashboard",
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"title": "My First Chart",
"xyChart": {
"dataSets": [
{
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX",
"groupByFields": [
"resource.label.zone"
]
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"plotType": "STACKED_BAR"
}
],
"timeshiftDuration": "0s",
"yAxis": {
"label": "y1Axis",
"scale": "LINEAR"
},
"chartOptions": {
"mode": "COLOR"
}
}
},
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with a basic Scorecard
This dashboard shows a Scorecard without a gauge or
sparkline. The example shows the Compute Engine CPU utilization and the scorecard
has two thresholds. One threshold uses the color yellow to indicate that
CPU utilization is over 70%, the other threshold uses red to indicate that the
CPU utilization is over 90%.
Because the current CPU utilization is less than the specified thresholds, the color is green.
{
"displayName": "Unadorned scorecard",
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"title": "Compute Engine CPU utilization",
"scorecard": {
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX",
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"thresholds": [
{
"color": "RED",
"direction": "ABOVE",
"label": "Danger",
"value": 0.9,
},
{
"color": "YELLOW",
"direction": "ABOVE",
"label": "Warning",
"value": 0.7,
}
]
}
},
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with a Scorecard with GaugeView
This dashboard adds a gauge to the basic scorecard in the previous example.
The GaugeView object can specify an upper and a lower bound, to specify the
range of values to show on the gauge. Since the scorecard shows values from
0 to 1, those upper and lower bounds are reasonable. To add the gauge, add the
following to the JSON for the basic scorecard:
"gaugeView": {
"lowerBound": 0,
"upperBound": 1,
},
The following shows the complete modified dashboard specification: The current value is under the thresholds, which are colored appropriately on the gauge.
{
"displayName": "Gauge scorecard",
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"title": "Compute Engine CPU utilization",
"scorecard": {
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\"",
"aggregation": {
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_MAX",
}
},
"unitOverride": "1"
},
"gaugeView": {
"lowerBound": 0,
"upperBound": 1,
},
"thresholds": [
{
"color": "RED",
"direction": "ABOVE",
"label": "Danger",
"value": 0.9,
},
{
"color": "YELLOW",
"direction": "ABOVE",
"label": "Warning",
"value": 0.7,
}
]
}
},
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with a Scorecard with SparkChartView
This dashboard replaces the gauge in the previous example with a sparkline.
The SparkChartView object can create line charts or bar charts on a scorecard.
This example uses a line. As long as the value doesn't violate a threshold, it
is green. To add the sparkline, replace the gaugeView JSON object in the
previous chart with the following:
"sparkChartView": {
"sparkChartType": "SPARK_LINE"
},
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with a TimeSeriesTable widget
This example shows a dashboard with a TimeSeriesTable widget.
{
"category": "CUSTOM",
"displayName": "Pams Table - Sep 7, 2021 1:35 PM",
"mosaicLayout": {
"columns": 12,
"tiles": [
{
"height": 5,
"widget": {
"timeSeriesTable": {
"dataSets": [
{
"minAlignmentPeriod": "0s",
"tableDisplayOptions": {},
"timeSeriesQuery": {
"timeSeriesFilter": {
"aggregation": {
"alignmentPeriod": "60s",
"crossSeriesReducer": "REDUCE_NONE",
"perSeriesAligner": "ALIGN_MEAN"
},
"filter": "metric.type=\"compute.googleapis.com/instance/cpu/utilization\" resource.type=\"gce_instance\""
}
}
}
]
},
"title": "VM Instance - CPU utilization [MEAN]"
},
"width": 7,
"xPos": 0,
"yPos": 0
}
]
}
}
As shown in the following screenshot, the table widget displays a title, contains a filter bar, and displays data in a tabular format:
The columns of the table correspond to labels. Each row corresponds to a time series.
Dashboard with a Text widget
This example shows a simple dashboard with a Text widget.
{
"displayName": "Demo Dashboard"
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"text" {
"content": "Hello World"
}
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
Dashboard with an AlertChart widget
This dashboard shows a dashboard with an AlertChart
widget:
{
"category": "CUSTOM",
"displayName": "Alert chart example",
"mosaicLayout": {
"columns": 12,
"tiles": [
{
"height": 8,
"widget": {
"alertChart": {
"name": "projects/my-project/alertPolicies/14205854094151528373"
}
},
"width": 9,
"xPos": 0,
"yPos": 0
}
]
}
}
Unlike other dashboard widgets, you don't specify a title or a metric filter
for these widgets. Instead, you specify the resource name for an alerting
policy. The last entry in the name field is the alerting policy identifier.
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
In this example, the alerting policy is monitoring the CPU usage of two
different virtual machines. The dashed line shows the condition threshold,
which is set to 50%. The green chip with the label No incidents
indicates that there are no open incidents for the alerting policy. If
you place your pointer on the incidents chip, then a dialog opens that
links to the underlying alerting policy.
Dashboard with a blank widget
This example shows a simple dashboard with an empty, placeholder widget.
The value of the displayName field appears in the widget.
{
"displayName": "Demo Dashboard",
"gridLayout": {
"widgets": [
{
"blank": {}
}
]
}
}
The dashboard looks similar to the following example:
