[✨ Triage] dotnet/aspire#11693 by KalleOlaviNiemitalo - Paused metrics graph on dashboard eventually disappears #1545
Description
Triage for dotnet/aspire#11693.
Repo filter: area-dashboard issues.
MihuBot version: 554101.
Ping MihaZupan for any issues.
This is a test triage report generated by AI, aimed at helping the triage team quickly identify past issues/PRs that may be related.
Take any conclusions with a large grain of salt.
Tool logs
dotnet/aspire#11693: Paused metrics graph on dashboard eventually disappears by KalleOlaviNiemitalo
[Tool] Searching for metrics graph disappears, dashboard metrics paused, metrics data not preserved, metrics graph clears, metrics graph duration, metrics graph no data (IncludeOpen=True, IncludeClosed=True, IncludeIssues=True, IncludePullRequests=True, Repository=dotnet/aspire)
[Tool] Found 77 issues, 249 comments, 40 returned results (12210 ms)
Here are the related issues and discussions for issue #11693 "Paused metrics graph on dashboard eventually disappears":
1. Issue #348 (October 2023) - "Dashboard: Metrics: Need a pause/resume button"
- This issue discussed the need for a pause/resume button on metrics and other monitoring pages, similar to Chrome's network tools.
- There was extensive discussion about what "pause" should mean: whether it stops collecting new data, freezes the UI, or both.
- The consensus was that pausing should freeze the UI and stop the timeline from advancing, allowing users to inspect data without it scrolling away.
- There was debate about whether pause should be global or per-page, and how it should interact with logs and traces.
- The issue was closed as a duplicate of #7610.
2. PR #8184 (March 2025) - "Add a pause button to console logs, structured logs, traces, and metrics pages"
- This PR implemented a pause/resume button for metrics, logs, and traces.
- For metrics, the X axis of the graph stays consistent during a pause.
- There was a design discussion about whether pause should be UI-only or affect telemetry collection.
- The implementation tracks the time when metrics were paused, so when navigating back, the graph uses the paused time as "now".
- Multiple bugs and edge cases were discussed and fixed, including thread safety and memory usage.
- The PR was merged, and the feature is now part of the dashboard.
3. Issue #11692 (September 2025) - "Dashboard metrics filters do not take effect while metrics are paused"
- This issue, opened by the same author as #11693, describes a related bug: while metrics are paused, changing filters does not immediately update the graph.
- The graph only updates when the duration is changed, not when filters are changed.
- This suggests that there are still edge cases in how paused state interacts with UI updates.
4. PR #9207 (May 2025) - "Add pause warning to metrics"
- This PR added a notification message to the metrics page when paused, addressing a UX issue.
- The warning is displayed under the graph, consistent with other pages.
- This improves user awareness of the paused state but does not address data retention.
5. Issue #8457 (April 2025) - "No notification message display when you clicked the 'Pause button' in the Metrics Page."
- This issue requested a notification when metrics are paused.
- It was fixed by PR #9207 and closed.
6. PR #1755 (January–February 2024) - "Add data grid view of metrics"
- This PR added a table view for metrics, with accessibility improvements.
- There was extensive discussion about how the table and graph should display the same data, and how data should be updated and retained.
- The table view now always shows the same values as the graph, and both use the same data source.
- There were discussions about data disappearing from the grid as it scrolls off the chart, and how this affects accessibility and user experience.
7. Issue #2104 (February 2024) - "Reuse code between table and graph views for metrics"
- This issue tracked the effort to unify the data source for metrics table and graph views.
- It was closed after PR #1755 was merged.
8. PR #6898 (December 2024–January 2025) - "Clear traces/structured logs functionality"
- This PR added the ability to clear telemetry data, including metrics, traces, and logs.
- There was discussion about UI placement and whether clearing should be global or per-resource.
- The final implementation allows clearing all telemetry or just for selected resources.
9. Issue #5299 (August 2024) - "Support showing metrics as deltas"
- This issue requests the ability to toggle charts/tables between value and delta views.
- The table view already has an option to show only value changes, which interacts with how data is retained and displayed.
10. PR #4629 (June–July 2024) - "Add support for exemplars in metrics UI"
- This PR added support for exemplars, allowing users to click on points in the metrics graph to view related traces.
- There was discussion about UI clutter and sampling, but not about data retention during pause.
11. Issue #9251 (May 2025) - "Counter Metric in Dashboard Updates Historical Data Instead of Incrementing Over Time"
- This issue discusses how counter metrics are displayed and updated, with some confusion about value retention and updates.
12. Issue #2366 (February–March 2024) - "Metrics table histogram column description changes when there is no data"
- This issue is about labels disappearing when there is no data, which is tangentially related to data retention.
13. Issue #8135 (March 2025) and #7948 (March 2025) - "Graph disappears after zooming/resizing"
- These issues are about the graph disappearing due to UI actions, not related to pausing.
Summary of Conclusions
- The pause/resume feature for metrics graphs was implemented and is intended to freeze the graph at the time of pause, preserving the data shown.
- There have been ongoing discussions and fixes to ensure that when paused, the graph does not scroll and the data remains viewable.
- However, there are still edge cases (see #11692) where UI updates (such as changing filters) do not immediately refresh the graph when paused.
- The table view and graph view now share a unified data source, and improvements have been made for accessibility and consistency.
- The ability to clear telemetry data is available, but does not affect paused data retention.
- Notification of the paused state is now shown in the UI.
- No issue or PR directly addresses the specific bug described in #11693: that after a certain time, paused metrics graphs clear and no longer show data. The closest related discussion is in PR #8184 and issue #11692, which suggest that further refinement may be needed to ensure paused data is retained indefinitely.
Recommendation
- Issue #11693 is related to the implementation and refinement of the pause/resume feature (see PR #8184) and the related bug in #11692.
- The current implementation intends for paused data to be retained, but there may be a bug or missing feature causing data to disappear after a time.
- Consider linking #11693 to #8184 and #11692 for further investigation and refinement.
- It may be worth re-opening or updating #8184 or #11692 to ensure that paused metrics data is retained as expected.
If you need more details on any specific issue or PR, let me know!