alibabacloud-observability

This MCP server provides a unified interface to query and analyze Alibaba Cloud Observable data across multiple products such as SLS (logs), ARMS (application monitoring), CloudMonitor (cloud metrics), and Prometheus-compatible metrics. It exposes natural language driven tools that map queries to standardized tool invocations, enabling agents to retrieve structured results from logs, traces, metrics, and events without writing explicit queries. You can leverage the included PaaS tools for model-driven data access, the IaaS tools for legacy SLS/CMS APIs, and the Shared tools for workspace and domain management. To use it, start the MCP server via the configured command and interact with the available tools through the provided interfaces. The server’s capabilities include entity discovery, data set management, query of metrics/logs/traces/events, computational analyses (e.g., anomaly detection, forecasting), and cross-service data collaboration, all accessible via natural language prompts.

Prerequisites:

• Node.js installed (for npx-based installation) or a runtime compatible with the chosen command
• Access to Alibaba Cloud credentials (AccessKey, Secret, and optional STS token) with RAM permissions for the Observability resources

Installation steps:

1. Install prerequisites and ensure you have npm/npx available.
2. Install and run the MCP server via npx using the package name: aliyun-alibabacloud-observability-mcp-server

Example commands:

• Ensure environment variables (optional if using default credentials chain): export ALIBABA_CLOUD_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your-access-key-id export ALIBABA_CLOUD_ACCESS_KEY_SECRET=your-access-key-secret export ALIBABA_CLOUD_SECURITY_TOKEN=your-sts-token-optional

• Run the MCP server (via npx): npx -y aliyun-alibabacloud-observability-mcp-server

• If you prefer to pin a version (optional): npx -y @aliyun/aliyun-alibabacloud-observability-mcp-server@<version>

Notes:

• Ensure network access to Alibaba Cloud services and that the provided credentials have the necessary RAM permissions.
• If you encounter authentication issues, verify environment variable precedence and the default credentials chain as described in the OBSERVER documentation.

Tips and common issues:

• Permissions: You must configure AccessKey and RAM permissions for Observability resources to avoid access errors.
• Credentials: If you don’t pass credentials explicitly, the server will attempt to use the default credentials chain (environment variables, STS token) as described in the README. Ensure the environment variables are set correctly when not providing credentials directly.
• Regions: Some commands require regionId; ensure you specify the correct Alibaba Cloud region in your queries.
• Version differences: The project mentions multiple branches (0.3.x vs 1.x.x) with feature differences. If migrating from an older version, confirm compatibility and tool behavior differences.
• Security: The server validates inputs and uses Alibaba Cloud AccessKey-based authentication. Do not expose secrets in logs or command histories.