Here’s a step-by-step guide to set up Zipkin for export Permify traces.

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Step 1: Install Zipkin in Your Environment

You can run Zipkin via Docker using the following command: 
docker run -d -p 9411:9411 openzipkin/zipkin
This command runs the Zipkin server and exposes the UI on http://localhost:9411.

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Step 2: Configure Permify for Zipkin Tracing

In your configuration file, set up Zipkin as the exporter and provide the endpoint for exporting traces. Here’s an example configuration: 
tracer:
  exporter: zipkin
  endpoint: http://localhost:9411/api/v2/spans
  enabled: true
  insecure: true
Explanation:
  • exporter: zipkin: Specifies that Zipkin will be used as the exporter.
  • endpoint: http://localhost:9411/api/v2/spans: This is the default Zipkin endpoint for trace data.
  • enabled: true: Turns on the tracing feature.
  • insecure: true: Enables HTTP instead of HTTPS for exporting traces.
Refer to the Configuration section for more details on how to use the configuration file. You can also use environment variables (ENVs) for this.

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Step 3: Start Permify with Zipkin Configuration

Ensure that your configuration file is loaded when starting Permify, and confirm that the Zipkin instance is running. Permify will now start sending trace data to Zipkin.

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Step 4: View Traces in the Zipkin UI

After your setup is complete and your application begins sending traces, you can access the Zipkin UI at http://localhost:9411 to view the traces and analyze the performance of your authorization system.

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Optional: Use Secure Connection

If you need to use HTTPS for secure communication with Zipkin, update the configuration as follows: 
tracer:
  exporter: zipkin
  endpoint: https://your-zipkin-endpoint/api/v2/spans
  enabled: true
  insecure: false
This sets up a secure connection for exporting traces to Zipkin. See more configurations on Configuration section.