Importing Grafana Dashboards

Overview

Dash0 provides the capability to import existing Grafana dashboards into Dash0 using the built-in conversion utility. This feature, available through the Edit as JSON functionality, automatically converts Grafana dashboard JSON or YAML into Perses' Custom Resource Definition (CRD) format. This documentation explains how to use this feature, outlines the conversion process, and highlights important limitations to be aware of when importing dashboards.

Importing a Grafana Dashboard

To import a Grafana dashboard into Dash0:

1. Navigate to the Dashboards area in Dash0
2. Click on the "+ Add" button to create a new dashboard
3. In the top-right corner of the dashboard editor, click on "Edit as JSON"
4. In the JSON editor dialog, use the upload functionality to select a Grafana dashboard file from your computer
5. Review the converted dashboard in the editor
6. Click "Apply" to see the changes in the dashboard viewer

Understanding the Conversion Process

When you import a Grafana dashboard, Dash0 performs the following conversions:

• Dashboard metadata (name, description, etc.) is mapped to the corresponding fields in the Perses CRD
• Grafana panels are converted to equivalent Perses panel types where possible
• Grafana variables are translated to Perses variables with similar functionality
• Layout information is converted to maintain a similar visual appearance (including rows that are translated to panel groups)

Supported Panel Types

The following Grafana panel types are supported for conversion:

• Time series
• Stat
• Gauge
• Pie
• Table
• Text/Markdown

Limitations

When importing Grafana dashboards, be aware of these limitations:

• Panel Types: Not all Grafana panel types are supported. Specialized panels like heatmaps, and custom panels may not convert properly. In those cases, the migrator will show a placeholder in the dashboard.
• Panel Options: Some panel visualization options and advanced settings in Grafana may not have direct equivalents in Dash0 and might be omitted during conversion.
• Query Types: Only Prometheus queries can be translated from Grafana dashboards. Other data sources like Elasticsearch, InfluxDB, or custom data sources are not supported.
• Variable Types: Only variables that have equivalents in the Perses specification are supported. Some advanced Grafana variable types and configurations may not convert correctly. Unsupported variables are translated into text variables.
• Row Repetitions: Grafana's row repetition feature is not supported in the conversion process.