SolarWinds Forwarder (via OTel)

This guide explains how to forward logs from Apica Ascent / Flow to SolarWinds Observability using the OpenTelemetry (OTLP) Logs Forwarder over HTTPS.

The OpenTelemetry Logs Forwarder converts logs ingested into Apica into OTLP-compliant log data and forwards them to a remote OTLP/HTTP endpoint.

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Prerequisites

Before configuring the forwarder, ensure the following:

• Logs are already being ingested into Apica Ascent

• You have access to the Ascent UI with permissions to create forwarders

• You have a SolarWinds Observability account

• You have a valid SolarWinds ingestion API token

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SolarWinds OTLP Logs Endpoint

SolarWinds supports OpenTelemetry log ingestion over HTTPS using the OTLP/HTTP protocol.

Endpoint format

https://otel.collector.<DATA_CENTER>.cloud.solarwinds.com/v1/logs

Example

https://otel.collector.na-01.cloud.solarwinds.com/v1/logs

Authentication is performed using an HTTP authorization header.

Required header

Authorization: Bearer <SOLARWINDS_API_TOKEN>

Note: SolarWinds also exposes a non-OTLP HTTPS logs endpoint, but Apica uses the OTLP-specific collector endpoint shown above.

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Create an OpenTelemetry Logs Forwarder

1. In the Ascent UI, navigate to Forwarders

2. Select Create Forwarder

3. Choose OpenTelemetry Logs as the forwarder type

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Configuration Fields

Field	Description
Name	A descriptive name for the forwarder (for example, solarwinds-otlp-logs)
Endpoint	The SolarWinds OTLP logs endpoint
Headers	HTTP headers to include with each request
Output Format	OTLP payload format

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Example Configuration

Endpoint

https://otel.collector.na-01.cloud.solarwinds.com/v1/logs

Headers

Authorization=Bearer <SOLARWINDS_API_TOKEN>

Output Format

proto

Note: SolarWinds supports OTLP/HTTP and recommends using the proto format for best performance.

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Map the Forwarder to Log Sources

Creating a forwarder does not automatically forward logs. You must map the forwarder to the applications or namespaces whose logs you want to forward.

Map via Explore

1. Navigate to Explore

2. Select the application or namespace receiving logs

3. Open the Actions (⋯) menu

4. Select Map Forwarder

5. Choose the SolarWinds OTLP logs forwarder

6. Save the mapping

Once mapped, all logs for the selected scope will be forwarded to SolarWinds.