Connect Agent to Cloud

This section guides you through installing and securely connecting a new Agent to Netdata Cloud via the encrypted Agent-Cloud Link (ACLK). Connecting your Agent to your Space unlocks centralized monitoring, easier collaboration, and more.

Quick Start - New Installation

For new installations, Netdata Cloud generates a command that you can execute on your Node to install and connect the Agent to your Space.

You can find this command in three places in the UI:

• Space/Room settings: Click the cogwheel (the bottom-left corner or next to the Room name at the top) and select "Nodes." Click the "+" button to add a new node.
• Nodes tab: Click on the "Add nodes" button.
• Integrations page: From the "Deploy" groups of integrations, select the OS or container environment your node runs on, and follow the instructions.

Connect Existing Agent

For Agents already installed, you can connect them to your Space using one of three methods:

Method 1: Via UI (Recommended)

Best for: Most users, easiest setup

1. Open your Agent's local dashboard (normally under IP:19999)
2. Sign in to your Netdata Cloud account
3. Click the "Connect" button
4. Follow the on-screen instructions to connect your Agent

Method 2: Via Configuration File

Best for: Automated deployments, multiple Agents

Create /INSTALL_PREFIX/etc/netdata/claim.conf:

[global]
   url = https://app.netdata.cloud
   token = NETDATA_CLOUD_SPACE_TOKEN
   rooms = ROOM_KEY1,ROOM_KEY2,ROOM_KEY3
   proxy = http://username:password@myproxy:8080
   insecure = no

:::info

File Permissions and Ownership:

The claim.conf file contains sensitive claiming tokens and must be properly secured:

• Required permissions: 0640 (owner read/write, group read, no world access)
• Required ownership: root:netdata (owner root, group netdata)

The claiming script automatically sets these permissions when creating or updating claim.conf. If you create the file manually, ensure it follows these same security standards to prevent unauthorized access to your claiming tokens.

:::

Configuration Options:

Applying the Configuration:

If the Agent is already running, you can either run netdatacli reload-claiming-state or restart the Agent. Otherwise, the Agent connects when it starts.

Method 3: Via Environment Variables

Best for: Container deployments, CI/CD pipelines

You can configure Netdata using the following environment variables:

Connection Troubleshooting

If the connection process fails, you can find the reason in daemon.log (search for "CLAIM") and the cloud section of http://ip:19999/api/v3/info.

Advanced Configuration

Proxy Configuration

You can configure proxy settings for both the configuration file and environment variable methods.

For Configuration File (claim.conf)

You can set the proxy option at the [global] section in claim.conf to:

• empty, to disable proxy configuration
• none to disable proxy configuration
• env to use the environment variable http_proxy (this is the default)
• http://[user:pass@]host:port, to connect via a web proxy
• socks5[h]://[user:pass@]host:port, to connect via a SOCKS5 proxy

Environment Variable Proxy Settings

Netdata uses the http_proxy environment variable only when you set the proxy option to env (which is the default). You can set the http_proxy environment variable to:

• http://[user:pass@]host:port, to connect via an HTTP proxy
• socks5[h]://[user:pass@]host:port, to connect via a SOCKS5 or SOCKS5H proxy

Proxy Security Considerations

:::note

Netdata does not support secure connections to proxies. Data between Netdata Agents and Netdata Cloud remains end-to-end encrypted since the Agent establishes a TCP tunnel through the proxy (HTTP CONNECT for HTTP proxies, SOCKS5 CONNECT for SOCKS proxies) and handles all encryption directly, however initial Agent-to-proxy communication is not encrypted.

:::

How End-to-End Encryption Works with Proxies:

1. Proxy Connection: The Agent connects to the configured proxy using a plain TCP connection.
2. TCP Tunneling Request: The Agent asks the proxy to establish a TCP tunnel to the Netdata Cloud server (HTTP CONNECT for HTTP proxy, SOCKS5 CONNECT for SOCKS5/SOCKS5H).
3. Proxy Tunneling: Once accepted, the proxy forwards raw TCP data in both directions without interpreting application-layer traffic.
4. Encrypted Communication: The Agent then establishes a TLS/SSL connection through this tunnel directly with the Netdata Cloud server. All subsequent data (including the WebSocket handshake and MQTT protocol data) is encrypted end-to-end.

:::note

The proxy only sees encrypted TLS traffic flowing through the tunnel it established, never the decrypted content.

:::

:::info

Netdata uses two connection libraries: libcurl for claiming and MQTToWSoHTTPS for the actual Cloud connection. While libcurl supports encrypted proxy connections, MQTToWSoHTTPS does not - so encrypted proxy connections will fail during the Cloud connection phase. The proxy configuration patterns above work for both libraries and provide end-to-end encryption for Netdata Cloud communication.

For SOCKS proxies:

• socks5:// resolves target hostnames locally on the Agent and sends IP to the proxy.
• socks5h:// sends hostname to the proxy and resolves DNS remotely on the proxy side.

:::

Manage Connections

Reconnect Agent

To remove a node from your Space in Netdata Cloud, delete the cloud.d/ directory in your Netdata library directory.

cd /var/lib/netdata   # Replace with your Netdata library directory, if not /var/lib/netdata/
sudo rm -rf cloud.d/

:::note

The Agent will be re-claimed automatically if the environment variables or claim.conf exist when you restart the Agent.

:::

This node will no longer have access to the credentials it used when connecting to Netdata Cloud via the ACLK.

To remove a node from your Space and connect it to another, follow these steps:

1. Enter the running container you wish to remove from your Space

   bashCopy

   docker exec -it CONTAINER_NAME sh
   

   Replace CONTAINER_NAME with either the container's name or ID.

2. Delete the connection files

   bashCopy

   rm -rf /var/lib/netdata/cloud.d/
   rm /var/lib/netdata/registry/netdata.public.unique.id 
   

3. Stop and remove the container

   Docker CLI:

   bashCopy

   docker stop CONTAINER_NAME
   docker rm CONTAINER_NAME
   

   Replace CONTAINER_NAME with either the container's name or ID.

   Docker Compose:
   Inside the directory that has the docker-compose.yml file, run:

   bashCopy

   docker compose down
   

   Docker Swarm:
   Run the following, and replace STACK with your Stack's name:

   bashCopy

   docker stack rm STACK
   

4. Connect to new Space

   Go to your new Space, copy the installation command with the new claim token and run it. If you're using a docker-compose.yml file, you will have to overwrite it with the new claiming token. The node should now appear online in that Space.

cloud.d Directory Contents

When an Agent is claimed to Netdata Cloud, the cloud.d/ directory (located in your Netdata library directory, typically /var/lib/netdata/cloud.d/) stores the credentials and identity information for the Agent-Cloud Link (ACLK). The directory typically includes the following core files:

In addition to these, depending on your configuration and features in use, you may also see the following optional files:

• token / rooms: Used for split-file auto-claiming workflows.
• trusted.pem / cloud_fullchain.pem: Optional custom CA bundle files used to validate the TLS connection to Netdata Cloud.

:::note

The claimed_id is separate from the Machine GUID. It uniquely identifies the connection between the Agent and Cloud, while the Machine GUID identifies the node itself.

:::

For detailed explanations of all identity types and their relationships, see Node Identities.

Regenerate Claiming Token

You may need to revoke your previous Claiming Token and generate a new one for security reasons.

:::note

Only Administrators of a Space in Netdata Cloud can regenerate Claim Tokens.

:::

Steps:

1. Navigate to any screen containing the Connection command
2. Click the "Regenerate token" button. This action invalidates your previous token and generates a new one

Troubleshooting

Check Connection Status

If you're having trouble connecting a node, this may be because the ACLK cannot connect to Cloud.

Method 1: Web Interface

With the Netdata Agent running, visit http://NODE:19999/api/v3/info in your browser, replacing NODE with the IP address or hostname of your Agent. The returned JSON contains a section called cloud with helpful information to diagnose any issues you might be having with the ACLK or connection process.

Method 2: Command Line

You can also run sudo netdatacli aclk-state to get some diagnostic information about ACLK:

ACLK Available: Yes
ACLK Implementation: Next Generation
New Cloud Protocol Support: Yes
Claimed: Yes
Claimed Id: 53aa76c2-8af5-448f-849a-b16872cc4ba1
Online: Yes
Used Cloud Protocol: New

Use these keys and the information below to troubleshoot the ACLK.

Common Issues

kickstart: unsupported Netdata installation

Problem: If you run the kickstart script and get the following error Existing install appears to be handled manually or through the system package manager. you most probably installed Netdata using an unsupported package.

Solution: Check our installation section to find the proper way of installing Netdata on your system.

kickstart: Failed to write new machine GUID

Problem: You might encounter this error if you run the Netdata kickstart script without sufficient permissions:

Failed to write new machine GUID. Please make sure you have rights to write to /var/lib/netdata/registry/netdata.public.unique.id.

Solution: To resolve this issue, you have two options:

1. Run the script with root privileges.
2. Run the script with the user that runs the Netdata Agent.

Connecting to Cloud on older distributions (Ubuntu 14.04, Debian 8, CentOS 6)

Problem: If you're running an older Linux distribution or one that has reached EOL, such as Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, Debian 8, or CentOS 6, your Agent may not be able to securely connect to Netdata Cloud due to an outdated version of OpenSSL. These old versions of OpenSSL cannot perform hostname validation, which helps securely encrypt SSL connections.

Solution: We recommend you reinstall Netdata with a static build, which uses an up-to-date version of OpenSSL with hostname validation enabled.

:::warning

If you choose to continue using the outdated version of OpenSSL, your node will still connect to Netdata Cloud, but with hostname verification disabled. Without verification, your Netdata Cloud connection could be vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks.

:::