Ratehttprequeststotal5m

Ratehttprequeststotal5m is a metrics identifier used in application monitoring to represent the rate of HTTP requests over a five-minute window. It describes a derivative of a request counter that has been smoothed over time, and it is commonly exposed by web services for collection by monitoring systems.

The underlying data typically comes from a counter named http_requests_total that increments with every incoming HTTP request. The rate over five minutes is calculated as the derivative of that counter across the window. In many stacks, rate_http_requests_total[5m] yields a per-second rate, meaning the average number of requests per second during the last five minutes. To estimate the total requests in that window, the per-second rate can be multiplied by 300 seconds.

Interpreting the metric involves assessing traffic volume and patterns. Higher values indicate heavier traffic, while sudden spikes can signal bursts or potential anomalies. A stable, moderate rate suggests consistent load, whereas a decreasing rate may indicate declining usage or issues. Operators use this metric for real-time alerting, capacity planning, and auto-scaling decisions.

Instrumentation and usage require exposing a counter such as http_requests_total and configuring the monitoring system to scrape or pull data at regular intervals. Visualization often shows the rate over time to reveal trends, while dashboards may present both the instantaneous rate and the estimated total requests within the window.

Limitations include dependency on sampling and scrape intervals, potential counter resets, and data quality issues. Different systems may name or structure the metric slightly differently, such as rate_http_requests_total_5m or ratehttprequeststotal5m, but the underlying concept remains the same.

See also: http_requests_total, rate, Prometheus rate function, time-series monitoring.