Create and configure CloudWatch Application Insights monitoring using CloudFormation templates - Amazon CloudWatch
Create an Application Insights application for the entire AWS CloudFormation stack Create an Application Insights application with detailed settings Create an Application Insights application with CUSTOM mode component configurationCreate an Application Insights application with DEFAULT mode component configurationCreate an Application Insights application with DEFAULT_WITH_OVERWRITE mode component configuration

Create and configure CloudWatch Application Insights monitoring using CloudFormation templates

You can add Application Insights monitoring, including key metrics and telemetry, to your application, database, and web server, directly from AWS CloudFormation templates.

This section provides sample AWS CloudFormation templates in both JSON and YAML formats to help you create and configure Application Insights monitoring.

To view the Application Insights resource and property reference in the AWS CloudFormation User Guide, see ApplicationInsights resource type reference.

Create an Application Insights application for the entire AWS CloudFormation stack

To apply the following template, you must create AWS resources and one or more resource groups from which to create Application Insights applications to monitor those resources. For more information, see Getting started with AWS Resource Groups.

The first two parts of the following template specify a resource and a resource group. The last part of the template creates an Application Insights application for the resource group, but does not configure the application or apply monitoring. For more information, see the CreateApplication command details in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

Template in JSON format

{
    "AWSTemplateFormatVersion": "2010-09-09",
    "Description": "Test Resource Group stack",
    "Resources": {
        "EC2Instance": {
            "Type": "AWS::EC2::Instance",
            "Properties": {
                "ImageId" : "ami-abcd1234efgh5678i",
                "SecurityGroupIds" : ["sg-abcd1234"]
            }
        },
        ...
        "ResourceGroup": {
            "Type": "AWS::ResourceGroups::Group",
            "Properties": {
                "Name": "my_resource_group"
            }
        },
        "AppInsightsApp": {
            "Type": "AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application",
            "Properties": {
                "ResourceGroupName": "my_resource_group"
            },
            "DependsOn" : "ResourceGroup"
        }
    }
}

Template in YAML format

---
AWSTemplateFormatVersion: '2010-09-09'
Description: Test Resource Group stack
Resources:
  EC2Instance:
    Type: AWS::EC2::Instance
    Properties:
      ImageId: ami-abcd1234efgh5678i
      SecurityGroupIds:
      - sg-abcd1234
  ...
  ResourceGroup:
    Type: AWS::ResourceGroups::Group
    Properties:
      Name: my_resource_group
  AppInsightsApp:
    Type: AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application
    Properties:
      ResourceGroupName: my_resource_group
    DependsOn: ResourceGroup

The following template section applies the default monitoring configuration to the Application Insights application. For more information, see the CreateApplication command details in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

When AutoConfigurationEnabled is set to true, all components of the application are configured with the recommended monitoring settings for the DEFAULT application tier. For more information about these settings and tiers, see DescribeComponentConfigurationRecommendation and UpdateComponentConfiguration in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

Template in JSON format

{
    "AWSTemplateFormatVersion": "2010-09-09",
    "Description": "Test Application Insights Application stack",
    "Resources": {
        "AppInsightsApp": {
            "Type": "AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application",
            "Properties": {
                "ResourceGroupName": "my_resource_group",
                "AutoConfigurationEnabled": true
            }
        }
    }
}

Template in YAML format

---
AWSTemplateFormatVersion: '2010-09-09'
Description: Test Application Insights Application stack
Resources:
  AppInsightsApp:
    Type: AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application
    Properties:
      ResourceGroupName: my_resource_group
      AutoConfigurationEnabled: true

Create an Application Insights application with detailed settings

The following template performs these actions:

  • Creates an Application Insights application with CloudWatch Events notification and OpsCenter enabled. For more information, see the CreateApplication command details in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Tags the application with two tags, one of which has no tag values. For more information, see TagResource in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Creates two custom instance group components. For more information, see CreateComponent in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Creates two log pattern sets. For more information, see CreateLogPattern in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Sets AutoConfigurationEnabled to true, which configures all components of the application with the recommended monitoring settings for the DEFAULT tier. For more information, see DescribeComponentConfigurationRecommendation in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

Template in JSON format 

{
    "Type": "AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application",
    "Properties": {
        "ResourceGroupName": "my_resource_group",
        "CWEMonitorEnabled": true,
        "OpsCenterEnabled": true,
        "OpsItemSNSTopicArn": "arn:aws:sns:us-east-1:123456789012:my_topic",
        "AutoConfigurationEnabled": true,
        "Tags": [
            {
                "Key": "key1",
                "Value": "value1"
            },
            {
                "Key": "key2",
                "Value": ""
            }
        ],
        "CustomComponents": [
            {
                "ComponentName": "test_component_1",
                "ResourceList": [
                    "arn:aws:ec2:us-east-1:123456789012:instance/i-abcd1234efgh5678i"
                ]
            },
            {
                "ComponentName": "test_component_2",
                "ResourceList": [
                    "arn:aws:ec2:us-east-1:123456789012:instance/i-abcd1234efgh5678i",
                    "arn:aws:ec2:us-east-1:123456789012:instance/i-abcd1234efgh5678i"
                ]
            }
        ],
        "LogPatternSets": [
            {
                "PatternSetName": "pattern_set_1",
                "LogPatterns": [
                    {
                        "PatternName": "deadlock_pattern",
                        "Pattern": ".*\\sDeadlocked\\sSchedulers(([^\\w].*)|($))",
                        "Rank": 1
                    }
                ]    
            },
            {
                "PatternSetName": "pattern_set_2",
                "LogPatterns": [
                    {
                        "PatternName": "error_pattern",
                        "Pattern": ".*[\\s\\[]ERROR[\\s\\]].*",
                        "Rank": 1
                    },
                    {
                        "PatternName": "warning_pattern",
                        "Pattern": ".*[\\s\\[]WARN(ING)?[\\s\\]].*",
                        "Rank": 10
                    }
                ]
            }
        ]
    }
}

Template in YAML format

---
Type: AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application
Properties:
  ResourceGroupName: my_resource_group
  CWEMonitorEnabled: true
  OpsCenterEnabled: true
  OpsItemSNSTopicArn: arn:aws:sns:us-east-1:123456789012:my_topic
  AutoConfigurationEnabled: true
  Tags:
  - Key: key1
    Value: value1
  - Key: key2
    Value: ''
  CustomComponents:
  - ComponentName: test_component_1
    ResourceList:
    - arn:aws:ec2:us-east-1:123456789012:instance/i-abcd1234efgh5678i
  - ComponentName: test_component_2
    ResourceList:
    - arn:aws:ec2:us-east-1:123456789012:instance/i-abcd1234efgh5678i
    - arn:aws:ec2:us-east-1:123456789012:instance/i-abcd1234efgh5678i
  LogPatternSets:
  - PatternSetName: pattern_set_1
    LogPatterns:
    - PatternName: deadlock_pattern
      Pattern: ".*\\sDeadlocked\\sSchedulers(([^\\w].*)|($))"
      Rank: 1
  - PatternSetName: pattern_set_2
    LogPatterns:
    - PatternName: error_pattern
      Pattern: ".*[\\s\\[]ERROR[\\s\\]].*"
      Rank: 1
    - PatternName: warning_pattern
      Pattern: ".*[\\s\\[]WARN(ING)?[\\s\\]].*"
      Rank: 10

Create an Application Insights application with CUSTOM mode component configuration

The following template performs these actions:

  • Creates an Application Insights application. For more information, see CreateApplication in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Component my_component sets ComponentConfigurationMode to CUSTOM, which causes this component to be configured with the configuration specified in CustomComponentConfiguration. For more information, see UpdateComponentConfiguration in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

Template in JSON format

{
    "Type": "AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application",
    "Properties": {
        "ResourceGroupName": "my_resource_group,
        "ComponentMonitoringSettings": [
            {
                "ComponentARN": "my_component",
                "Tier": "SQL_SERVER",
                "ComponentConfigurationMode": "CUSTOM",
                "CustomComponentConfiguration": {
                    "ConfigurationDetails": {
                        "AlarmMetrics": [
                            {
                                "AlarmMetricName": "StatusCheckFailed"
                            },
                            ...
                        ],
                        "Logs": [
                            {       
                                "LogGroupName": "my_log_group_1",
                                "LogPath": "C:\\LogFolder_1\\*",
                                "LogType": "DOT_NET_CORE",
                                "Encoding": "utf-8",
                                "PatternSet": "my_pattern_set_1"
                            },      
                            ...     
                        ],      
                        "WindowsEvents": [
                            {       
                                "LogGroupName": "my_windows_event_log_group_1",
                                "EventName": "Application",
                                "EventLevels": [
                                    "ERROR",
                                    "WARNING",
                                    ...     
                                ],       
                                "Encoding": "utf-8",
                                "PatternSet": "my_pattern_set_2"
                            },      
                            ...     
                        ],
                        "Alarms": [
                            {
                                "AlarmName": "my_alarm_name",
                                "Severity": "HIGH"
                            },
                            ...
                        ]
                    },
                    "SubComponentTypeConfigurations": [
                        {
                            "SubComponentType": "EC2_INSTANCE",
                            "SubComponentConfigurationDetails": {
                                "AlarmMetrics": [
                                    {
                                        "AlarmMetricName": "DiskReadOps"
                                    },
                                    ...
                                ],
                                "Logs": [
                                    {
                                        "LogGroupName": "my_log_group_2",
                                        "LogPath": "C:\\LogFolder_2\\*",
                                        "LogType": "IIS",
                                        "Encoding": "utf-8",
                                        "PatternSet": "my_pattern_set_3"
                                    },
                                    ...
                                ],
                                "processes" : [
                                    {
                                        "processName" : "my_process",
                                        "alarmMetrics" : [
                                    {
                                        "alarmMetricName" : "procstat cpu_usage",
                                        "monitor" : true
                                    }, {
                                        "alarmMetricName" : "procstat memory_rss",
                                        "monitor" : true
                                    }
                                ]
                            }
                        ],
                                "WindowsEvents": [
                                    {
                                        "LogGroupName": "my_windows_event_log_group_2",
                                        "EventName": "Application",
                                        "EventLevels": [
                                            "ERROR",
                                            "WARNING",
                                            ...
                                        ],
                                        "Encoding": "utf-8",
                                        "PatternSet": "my_pattern_set_4"
                                    },
                                    ...
                                ]
                            }
                        }   
                    ]
                }
            }
        ]
    }
}

Template in YAML format

---
Type: AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application
Properties:
  ResourceGroupName: my_resource_group
  ComponentMonitoringSettings:
  - ComponentARN: my_component
    Tier: SQL_SERVER
    ComponentConfigurationMode: CUSTOM
    CustomComponentConfiguration:
      ConfigurationDetails:
        AlarmMetrics:
        - AlarmMetricName: StatusCheckFailed
        ...
        Logs:
        - LogGroupName: my_log_group_1
          LogPath: C:\LogFolder_1\*
          LogType: DOT_NET_CORE
          Encoding: utf-8
          PatternSet: my_pattern_set_1
        ...
        WindowsEvents:
        - LogGroupName: my_windows_event_log_group_1
          EventName: Application
          EventLevels:
          - ERROR
          - WARNING
          ...
          Encoding: utf-8
          PatternSet: my_pattern_set_2
        ...
        Alarms:
        - AlarmName: my_alarm_name
          Severity: HIGH
        ...
      SubComponentTypeConfigurations:
      - SubComponentType: EC2_INSTANCE
        SubComponentConfigurationDetails:
          AlarmMetrics:
          - AlarmMetricName: DiskReadOps
          ...
          Logs:
          - LogGroupName: my_log_group_2
            LogPath: C:\LogFolder_2\*
            LogType: IIS
            Encoding: utf-8
            PatternSet: my_pattern_set_3
          ...
          Processes:
          - ProcessName: my_process
            AlarmMetrics:
            - AlarmMetricName: procstat cpu_usage
              ...
            ...
          WindowsEvents:
          - LogGroupName: my_windows_event_log_group_2
            EventName: Application
            EventLevels:
            - ERROR
            - WARNING
            ...
            Encoding: utf-8
            PatternSet: my_pattern_set_4
          ...

Create an Application Insights application with DEFAULT mode component configuration

The following template performs these actions:

  • Creates an Application Insights application. For more information, see CreateApplication in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Component my_component sets ComponentConfigurationMode to DEFAULT and Tier to SQL_SERVER, which causes this component to be configured with the configuration settings that Application Insights recommends for the SQL_Server tier. For more information, see DescribeComponentConfiguration and UpdateComponentConfiguration in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

Template in JSON format

{
    "Type": "AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application",
    "Properties": {
        "ResourceGroupName": "my_resource_group",
        "ComponentMonitoringSettings": [
            {
                "ComponentARN": "my_component",
                "Tier": "SQL_SERVER",
                "ComponentConfigurationMode": "DEFAULT"
            }
        ]
    }
}

Template in YAML format

---
Type: AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application
Properties:
  ResourceGroupName: my_resource_group
  ComponentMonitoringSettings:
  - ComponentARN: my_component
    Tier: SQL_SERVER
    ComponentConfigurationMode: DEFAULT

Create an Application Insights application with DEFAULT_WITH_OVERWRITE mode component configuration

The following template performs these actions:

  • Creates an Application Insights application. For more information, see CreateApplication in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

  • Component my_component sets ComponentConfigurationMode to DEFAULT_WITH_OVERWRITE and tier to DOT_NET_CORE, which causes this component to be configured with the configuration settings that Application Insights recommends for the DOT_NET_CORE tier. Overwritten configuration settings are specified in the DefaultOverwriteComponentConfiguration:

    • At the component level AlarmMetrics settings are overwritten.

    • At the sub-component level, for the EC2_Instance type sub-components, Logs settings are overwritten.

    For more information, see UpdateComponentConfiguration in the Amazon CloudWatch Application Insights API Reference.

Template in JSON format

{
    "Type": "AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application",
    "Properties": {
        "ResourceGroupName": "my_resource_group",
        "ComponentMonitoringSettings": [
            {
                "ComponentName": "my_component",
                "Tier": "DOT_NET_CORE",
                "ComponentConfigurationMode": "DEFAULT_WITH_OVERWRITE",
                "DefaultOverwriteComponentConfiguration": {
                    "ConfigurationDetails": {
                        "AlarmMetrics": [
                            {
                                "AlarmMetricName": "StatusCheckFailed"
                            }
                        ]
                    },
                    "SubComponentTypeConfigurations": [
                        {
                            "SubComponentType": "EC2_INSTANCE",
                            "SubComponentConfigurationDetails": {
                                "Logs": [
                                    {
                                        "LogGroupName": "my_log_group",
                                        "LogPath": "C:\\LogFolder\\*",
                                        "LogType": "IIS",
                                        "Encoding": "utf-8",
                                        "PatternSet": "my_pattern_set"
                                    }
                                ]
                            }
                        }   
                    ] 
                } 
            }
        ]
    }
}

Template in YAML format

---
Type: AWS::ApplicationInsights::Application
Properties:
  ResourceGroupName: my_resource_group
  ComponentMonitoringSettings:
  - ComponentName: my_component
    Tier: DOT_NET_CORE
    ComponentConfigurationMode: DEFAULT_WITH_OVERWRITE
    DefaultOverwriteComponentConfiguration:
      ConfigurationDetails:
        AlarmMetrics:
        - AlarmMetricName: StatusCheckFailed
      SubComponentTypeConfigurations:
      - SubComponentType: EC2_INSTANCE
        SubComponentConfigurationDetails:
          Logs:
          - LogGroupName: my_log_group
            LogPath: C:\LogFolder\*
            LogType: IIS
            Encoding: utf-8
            PatternSet: my_pattern_set