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This guide walks you through setting up Application Performance Monitoring (APM) on a Next.js application. These instructions can also be found on the Installation page in your Middleware Account. View example code here.

Prerequisites

1

Infra Agent

Infrastructure Agent (Infra Agent). To install the Infra Agent, see our Installation Guide.
Although the Infra Agent is not required for the Next.js APM, we recommend installing it for improved performance.
2

Next.js Version

Next.js version 13.4 or above. Check your Next.js version with the following command:
Shell
3

OpenTelemetry Version

@opentelemetry/api package version >= v1.3.0 and < v1.5.0:
Shell

Install

Step 1: Install Next.js APM Package

Run the following command in your terminal:
Shell

Step 2: Modify Config File

Add the following code to your next.config.js file:
Next.js

Step 3: Container Variables

Applications running in a container require an additional environment variable. If your application is not running in a container, move to Step 4.

Docker

Add the following environment variable to your application:
Shell
The DOCKER_BRIDGE_GATEWAY_ADDRESS is the IP address of the gateway between the Docker host and bridge network. This is 172.17.0.1 by default. Learn more about Docker bridge networking here

Kubernetes

Add the following environment variable to your application deployment YAML file:
Shell
For Kubernetes clusters, add the following environment variable to your application:
Shell

Step 4: Create Instrumentation File

  1. Create a custom instrumentation.ts (or .js) file in your project root directory or inside the src folder
The instrumentation.ts file must be located at the root of your project unless you are using the src directory. If you are using the src directory, ensure the instrumentation.ts file is placed within the src directory, alongside the pages and app directories.
  1. Synchronize your instrumentation filename if you are using the pagesExtension config option to add suffixes
Example: If you use pagesExtension: ['ts'], the instrumentation file should be named instrumentation.ts.
  1. Add the below code snippet depending on your current setup:
Next.js

Step 5: Enable Logging

Ingest custom logs by using the following functions based on desired log severity levels:
Next.js

Step 6: Deploy your Project

If you’re looking to set up a sample Next.js project with API routes, you can use the following command in your terminal: npx create-next-app@latest --example api-routes

Continuous Profiling

Continuous profiling captures real-time performance insights from your application to enable rapid identification of resource allocation, bottlenecks, and more. Navigate to the Continuous Profiling section to learn more about using Continuous Profiling with the Next.js APM.
Need assistance or want to learn more about Middleware? Contact us at support[at]middleware.io.