Grafana

Use Grafana or Grafana Cloud to visualize data from your InfluxDB {{< current-version >}} instance.

[!Note] {{< influxdb-version-detector context="grafana" >}}

[!Note]

Grafana 12.2+

The instructions below are for Grafana 12.2+ with the newInfluxDSConfigPageDesign feature flag enabled. This introduces the newest version of the InfluxDB core plugin. The interface dynamically adapts based on your product and query language selection in URL and authentication.

• Install Grafana
• Create an InfluxDB data source
• Query and visualize data

Install Grafana

1. Start InfluxDB OSS 2.x.

2. Sign up for Grafana Cloud or download and install Grafana.

3. If running Grafana locally, enable the newInfluxDSConfigPageDesign feature flag to use the latest InfluxDB data source plugin.

   {{< expand-wrapper >}} {{% expand "Option 1: Configuration file (recommended)" %}}

   Add the following to your grafana.ini configuration file:

   iniCopy

   [feature_toggles]
   enable = newInfluxDSConfigPageDesign
   

   Configuration file locations:

   • Linux: /etc/grafana/grafana.ini
   • macOS (Homebrew): /opt/homebrew/etc/grafana/grafana.ini
   • Windows: <GRAFANA_INSTALL_DIR>\conf\grafana.ini

   {{% /expand %}}

   {{% expand "Option 2: Command line" %}}

   Enable the feature flag when starting Grafana:

   {{< code-tabs-wrapper >}} {{% code-tabs %}} Linux macOS (Homebrew) Windows {{% /code-tabs %}} {{% code-tab-content %}}

   shCopy

   grafana-server --config /etc/grafana/grafana.ini \
     cfg:default.feature_toggles.enable=newInfluxDSConfigPageDesign
   

   {{% /code-tab-content %}} {{% code-tab-content %}}

   shCopy

   /opt/homebrew/opt/grafana/bin/grafana server \
     --config /opt/homebrew/etc/grafana/grafana.ini \
     --homepath /opt/homebrew/opt/grafana/share/grafana \
     --packaging=brew \
     cfg:default.paths.logs=/opt/homebrew/var/log/grafana \
     cfg:default.paths.data=/opt/homebrew/var/lib/grafana \
     cfg:default.paths.plugins=/opt/homebrew/var/lib/grafana/plugins \
     cfg:default.feature_toggles.enable=newInfluxDSConfigPageDesign
   

   {{% /code-tab-content %}} {{% code-tab-content %}}

   powershellCopy

   grafana-server.exe --config <GRAFANA_INSTALL_DIR>\conf\grafana.ini `
     cfg:default.feature_toggles.enable=newInfluxDSConfigPageDesign
   

   {{% /code-tab-content %}} {{< /code-tabs-wrapper >}}

   {{% /expand %}} {{< /expand-wrapper >}}

   For more information, see Configure feature toggles in the Grafana documentation.

4. Visit your Grafana Cloud user interface (UI) or, if running Grafana locally, start Grafana and visit http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

{{% show-in "v2" %}}

[!Note]

Using Grafana Cloud with a local InfluxDB instance

If you need to keep your database local, consider running Grafana locally instead of using Grafana Cloud, as this avoids the need to expose your database to the internet.

To use InfluxDB running on your private network with Grafana Cloud, you must configure a private data source for Grafana Cloud. {{% /show-in %}}

[!Note] SQL is only supported in InfluxDB 3. {{% show-in "v2" %}}For more information, see how to get started with InfluxDB 3 Core.{{% /show-in %}}{{% show-in "cloud" %}}For more information, see how to upgrade to InfluxDB Cloud Serverless.{{% /show-in %}}

Quick reference

Create an InfluxDB data source

1. In your Grafana interface, click Connections in the left sidebar.
2. Click Data sources.
3. Click Add new connection.
4. Search for and select InfluxDB. The InfluxDB data source configuration page displays.
5. In the Settings tab, enter a Name for your data source.

Configure URL and authentication

In the URL and authentication section, configure the following:

• URL: Your {{% show-in "v2" %}}server URL--for example, https://{{< influxdb/host >}}{{% /show-in %}}{{% show-in "cloud" %}}region URL--for example, https://us-east-2-1.aws.cloud2.influxdata.com{{% /show-in %}}
• Product: From the dropdown, select {{% show-in "v2" %}}InfluxDB OSS 2.x{{% /show-in %}}{{% show-in "cloud" %}}InfluxDB Cloud (TSM){{% /show-in %}}
• Query Language: Select Flux or InfluxQL
• (Optional) Advanced HTTP Settings, Auth, and TLS/SSL Settings as needed for your environment

Configure database settings

The fields in this section change based on your query language selection in URL and authentication.

{{< tabs-wrapper >}} {{% tabs %}} Flux
InfluxQL {{% /tabs %}} {{% tab-content %}}

Configure Grafana to use Flux

When you select Flux as the query language, configure the following:

• Organization: Your InfluxDB organization name or ID
• Default Bucket: The default bucket to use in Flux queries
• Token: Your InfluxDB API token

{{% show-in "v2" %}}{{< img-hd src="/img/grafana/influxdb-v2-grafana-influxql-flux.png" alt="Flux configuration for InfluxDB OSS 2.x" />}}{{% /show-in %}} {{% show-in "cloud" %}}{{< img-hd src="/img/grafana/influxdb-cloud-grafana-flux.png" alt="Flux configuration for InfluxDB Cloud (TSM)" />}}{{% /show-in %}}

Click Save & Test. Grafana attempts to connect to {{% show-in "v2" %}}InfluxDB OSS 2.x{{% /show-in %}}{{% show-in "cloud" %}}InfluxDB Cloud{{% /show-in %}} and returns the results of the test.

{{% /tab-content %}} {{% tab-content %}}

Configure Grafana to use InfluxQL

[!Important]

DBRP mapping required

To query InfluxDB OSS 2.x with InfluxQL, you must first create Database and Retention Policy (DBRP) mappings. The configuration form displays a warning if DBRP mapping is required.

When you select InfluxQL as the query language, you can authenticate using either tokens or username/password credentials.

Token authentication (recommended)

Configure the following fields:

• Database: The database name mapped to your InfluxDB bucket
• User: Enter any string (this field is required by the form)
• Password: Your InfluxDB API token

Username and password authentication

Configure the following fields:

• Database: The database name mapped to your InfluxDB bucket
• User: Your v1 authorization username
• Password: Your v1 authorization password

{{% show-in "v2" %}}{{< img-hd src="/img/grafana/influxdb-v2-grafana-influxql.png" alt="InfluxQL configuration for InfluxDB OSS 2.x with DBRP warning" />}}{{% /show-in %}} {{% show-in "cloud" %}}{{< img-hd src="/img/grafana/influxdb-cloud-grafana-influxql.png" alt="InfluxQL configuration for InfluxDB Cloud (TSM) with v1 auth" />}}{{% /show-in %}}

Click Save & Test. Grafana attempts to connect to {{% show-in "v2" %}}InfluxDB OSS 2.x{{% /show-in %}}{{% show-in "cloud" %}}InfluxDB Cloud{{% /show-in %}} and returns the results of the test.

Create DBRP mappings

When using InfluxQL to query InfluxDB, the query must specify a database and retention policy. InfluxDB DBRP mappings associate database and retention policy combinations with InfluxDB OSS 2.x buckets.

View existing DBRP mappings

Use the influx v1 dbrp list command:

influx v1 dbrp list

Create a DBRP mappings

Use the influx v1 dbrp create command:

influx v1 dbrp create \
  --db example-db \
  --rp example-rp \
  --bucket-id 00xX00o0X001 \
  --default

Provide:

• --db: Database name
• --rp: Retention policy name (not retention period)
• --bucket-id: Bucket ID
• --default: (Optional) Make this the default retention policy for the database

[!Note] Repeat for each DBRP combination Each unique database and retention policy combination used by Grafana must be mapped to an InfluxDB OSS 2.x bucket.

For more information, see Database and retention policy mapping.

Create v1 authorizations

InfluxDB OSS 2.x provides a v1-compatible authentication API for username/password authentication.

View existing v1 authorizations

Use the influx v1 auth list command:

influx v1 auth list

Create a v1 authorization

Use the influx v1 auth create command:

influx v1 auth create \
  --read-bucket 00xX00o0X001 \
  --write-bucket 00xX00o0X001 \
  --username example-user

Provide:

• --read-bucket: Bucket ID to grant read permissions
• --write-bucket: Bucket ID to grant write permissions
• --username: New username

You'll be prompted to enter a password.

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Query and visualize data

With your InfluxDB connection configured, use Grafana to query and visualize time series data.

Query inspection in Grafana

To learn about query management and inspection in Grafana, see the Grafana Explore documentation.

Build visualizations with Grafana

For a comprehensive walk-through of creating visualizations with Grafana, see the Grafana documentation.