Windows RDS MSSQL monitoring with NRDOT

Preview

We're still working on this feature, but we'd love for you to try it out!

This feature is currently provided as part of a preview pursuant to our pre-release policies.

Set up Microsoft SQL Server monitoring using the NRDOT collector on Windows environments to monitor AWS RDS for SQL Server instances.

Based on your RDS SQL Server security configuration, you can choose from three authentication methods to connect the NRDOT Collector to your RDS instance:

Prerequisites

Ensure your environment meets our compatibility and prerequisites.

Setup the NRDOT Collector

Install the NRDOT Collector on an EC2 Windows instance or a local Windows machine that can connect to your RDS SQL Server instance.

Important

For RDS monitoring, install the NRDOT Collector on an EC2 instance in the same VPC as your RDS instance for optimal network connectivity and lower latency.

Download and install the NRDOT Collector using PowerShell:
```
[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = 'tls12, tls'; $NRDOT_VERSION = (Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "https://api.github.com/repos/newrelic/nrdot-collector-releases/releases/latest").tag_name; $WebClient = New-Object System.Net.WebClient; $WebClient.Headers.Add("User-Agent", "Mozilla/5.0"); $WebClient.DownloadFile("https://github.com/newrelic/nrdot-collector-releases/releases/download/$NRDOT_VERSION/nrdot-collector_${NRDOT_VERSION}_windows_x64.msi", "$env:TEMP\nrdot-collector.msi"); Start-Process msiexec.exe -ArgumentList "/i `"$env:TEMP\nrdot-collector.msi`" /qn /norestart /L*V `"$env:TEMP\nrdot_install.log`"" -Wait; Get-Service nrdot-collector -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
```
Ensure your security group allows inbound connections from the NRDOT Collector host to your RDS instance on port 1433 (or your custom port).

Configure database user

Connect to your RDS SQL Server instance using SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) or sqlcmd with your admin credentials.

Run the following script to create the newrelic monitoring user with appropriate permissions:

USE [master];
GO
CREATE LOGIN [newrelic] WITH PASSWORD = '<PASSWORD>';
GO

GRANT VIEW SERVER STATE TO [newrelic];
GRANT VIEW ANY DEFINITION TO [newrelic];
GRANT VIEW ANY DATABASE TO [newrelic];
GO

DECLARE @name SYSNAME;
DECLARE db_cursor CURSOR READ_ONLY FORWARD_ONLY FOR
SELECT [name]
FROM [master].[sys].[databases]
WHERE [name] NOT IN ('master', 'msdb', 'model', 'rdsadmin', 'distribution')
AND [state] = 0;
OPEN db_cursor;
FETCH NEXT FROM db_cursor INTO @name;
WHILE @@FETCH_STATUS = 0
BEGIN
  BEGIN TRY
    EXEC('USE [' + @name + '];
    IF NOT EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM sys.database_principals WHERE name = ''newrelic'')
    BEGIN
      CREATE USER [newrelic] FOR LOGIN [newrelic];
    END;
    GRANT VIEW DATABASE STATE TO [newrelic];');
  END TRY
  BEGIN CATCH
    PRINT 'Error on ' + @name + ': ' + ERROR_MESSAGE();
  END CATCH
  FETCH NEXT FROM db_cursor INTO @name;
END
CLOSE db_cursor;
DEALLOCATE db_cursor;
GO

Tip

For RDS: Use your RDS master username (or a user with rds_superuser role) to execute these commands. The script automatically excludes the rdsadmin database which is reserved by AWS.

Configure NRDOT Collector

Select your configuration type based on your monitoring needs:

This configuration focuses on essential database monitoring with core metrics.

Tip

RDS Endpoint Format: Your RDS endpoint will be in the format: your-db-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.region.rds.amazonaws.com (e.g., mydb-instance.c9akciq32.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com). Find this in your AWS RDS Console under "Connectivity & security".

Create the configuration file. The filename must be mssql-config.yaml. Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:
```
New-Item -Path "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml" -ItemType File
```
Add the configuration content below to the mssql-config.yaml file you created in the previous step.

Enter your values below and see the configuration update in real-time:

SQL Server Username

SQL Server Password

RDS Endpoint

Server Port

New Relic OTLP Endpoint

New Relic License Key

mssql-config.yaml

1
receivers:
2
    nrsqlserver:
3
      collection_interval: 15s
4
      username: newrelic
5
      password: your_password
6
      server: mydb-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com
7
      port: 1433
8

9
      # Enable comprehensive database metrics
10
      metrics:
11
        sqlserver.database.count:
12
          enabled: true
13
        sqlserver.database.io:
14
          enabled: true
15
        sqlserver.database.latency:
16
          enabled: true
17
        sqlserver.database.operations:
18
          enabled: true
19
        sqlserver.database.tempdb.space:
20
          enabled: true
21
        sqlserver.database.tempdb.version_store.size:
22
          enabled: true
23
        sqlserver.deadlock.rate:
24
          enabled: true
25
        sqlserver.os.wait.duration:
26
          enabled: true
27
        sqlserver.processes.blocked:
28
          enabled: true
29
        sqlserver.memory.grants.pending.count:
30
          enabled: true
31
        sqlserver.database.file.size:
32
          enabled: true
33
        sqlserver.memory.area:
34
          enabled: true
35

36
      # Enable top query and query sample log collection
37
      events:
38
        db.server.query_sample:
39
          enabled: true
40
        db.server.top_query:
41
          enabled: true
42

43
      # Top query collection configuration
44
      top_query_collection:
45
        lookback_time: 60s
46
        max_query_sample_count: 1000
47
        top_query_count: 250
48
        collection_interval: 60s
49

50
      collect_full_query_text: true
51
      allowed_comment_keys:
52
        - nr_service_guid
53

54
      # Query sample collection configuration
55
      query_sample_collection:
56
        max_rows_per_query: 100
57

58
      processors:
59
        memory_limiter:
60
          check_interval: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_CHECK_INTERVAL:-1s}
61
          limit_mib:       ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_LIMIT_MIB:-200}
62
          spike_limit_mib: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_SPIKE_MIB:-50}
63

64
        batch:
65

66
      exporters:
67
        otlphttp:
68
          endpoint: https://otlp.nr-data.net
69
          headers:
70
            api-key: YOUR_LICENSE_KEY
71
          tls:
72
            insecure: false
73
          compression: gzip
74

75
      service:
76
        telemetry:
77
          metrics:
78
            level: none
79

80
        pipelines:
81
          metrics:
82
            receivers: [nrsqlserver]
83
            processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
84
            exporters: [otlphttp]
85

86
          logs:
87
            receivers: [nrsqlserver]
88
            processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
89
            exporters: [otlphttp]

This configuration provides comprehensive database monitoring with all available metrics.

Tip

RDS Endpoint Format: Your RDS endpoint uses the format: YOUR_DB_INSTANCE.YOUR_AWS_IDENTIFIER.YOUR_REGION.rds.amazonaws.com (for example, mydb-instance.c9akciq32.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com). Locate this in the AWS RDS console under Connectivity & security.

Create the configuration file. The filename must be mssql-config.yaml. Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:
```
New-Item -Path "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml" -ItemType File
```
Add the configuration content below to the mssql-config.yaml file you created in the previous step.

Enter your values below and see the configuration update in real-time:

SQL Server Username

SQL Server Password

RDS Endpoint

Server Port

New Relic OTLP Endpoint

New Relic License Key

mssql-config.yaml

1
receivers:
2
  nrsqlserver:
3
    collection_interval: 15s
4
    username: newrelic
5
    password: your_password
6
    server: mydb-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com
7
    port: 1433
8

9
    metrics:
10
      # Database
11
      sqlserver.database.count:
12
        enabled: true
13
      sqlserver.database.file.size:
14
        enabled: true
15
      sqlserver.database.io:
16
        enabled: true
17
      sqlserver.database.latency:
18
        enabled: true
19
      sqlserver.database.operations:
20
        enabled: true
21
      sqlserver.database.page_file.size:
22
        enabled: true
23
      sqlserver.database.transactions.active:
24
        enabled: true
25
      sqlserver.database.backup_or_restore.rate:
26
        enabled: true
27
      sqlserver.database.execution.errors:
28
        enabled: true
29
      sqlserver.database.full_scan.rate:
30
        enabled: true
31
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.space:
32
        enabled: true
33
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.version_store.size:
34
        enabled: true
35
      # Security / Principals
36
      sqlserver.database.principals.count:
37
        enabled: true
38
      sqlserver.database.principals.old:
39
        enabled: true
40
      sqlserver.database.principals.orphaned_users:
41
        enabled: true
42
      sqlserver.database.principals.recently_created:
43
        enabled: true
44
      sqlserver.database.role.members.count:
45
        enabled: true
46
      sqlserver.database.role.memberships.count:
47
        enabled: true
48
      sqlserver.database.role.permission.risk_level:
49
        enabled: true
50
      sqlserver.database.role.roles.count:
51
        enabled: true
52
      sqlserver.database.security.role_membership.count:
53
        enabled: true
54
      sqlserver.server.security.principal.count:
55
        enabled: true
56
      sqlserver.server.security.role_membership.count:
57
        enabled: true
58
      # Locks
59
      sqlserver.lock.by_mode.count:
60
        enabled: true
61
      sqlserver.lock.by_resource.count:
62
        enabled: true
63
      sqlserver.lock.timeout.rate:
64
        enabled: true
65
      sqlserver.lock.wait.count:
66
        enabled: true
67
      sqlserver.lock.wait.rate:
68
        enabled: true
69
      sqlserver.deadlock.rate:
70
        enabled: true
71
      # Transactions
72
      sqlserver.transaction.delay:
73
        enabled: true
74
      sqlserver.transaction.mirror_write.rate:
75
        enabled: true
76
      sqlserver.transaction.longest_running_time:
77
        enabled: true
78
      sqlserver.transaction.version_cleanup.rate:
79
        enabled: true
80
      sqlserver.transaction.version_generation.rate:
81
        enabled: true
82
      # Memory
83
      sqlserver.memory.area:
84
        enabled: true
85
      sqlserver.memory.cache.object.count:
86
        enabled: true
87
      sqlserver.memory.grants.pending.count:
88
        enabled: true
89
      sqlserver.memory.page.count:
90
        enabled: true
91
      sqlserver.memory.target:
92
        enabled: true
93
      sqlserver.memory.usage:
94
        enabled: true
95
      # OS
96
      sqlserver.os.disk.size:
97
        enabled: true
98
      sqlserver.os.memory.usage:
99
        enabled: true
100
      sqlserver.os.memory.utilization:
101
        enabled: true
102
      sqlserver.os.scheduler.runnable_tasks.count:
103
        enabled: true
104
      sqlserver.os.wait.duration:
105
        enabled: true
106
      sqlserver.os.wait.tasks.count:
107
        enabled: true
108
      # Pages / Buffer
109
      sqlserver.page.buffer_cache.hit_ratio:
110
        enabled: true
111
      sqlserver.page.buffer_cache.free_list.stalls.rate:
112
        enabled: true
113
      sqlserver.page.life_expectancy:
114
        enabled: true
115
      sqlserver.page.lookup.rate:
116
        enabled: true
117
      # Batch / Compilation
118
      sqlserver.batch.request.rate:
119
        enabled: true
120
      sqlserver.batch.sql_compilation.rate:
121
        enabled: true
122
      sqlserver.batch.sql_recompilation.rate:
123
        enabled: true
124
      sqlserver.batch.compilation.utilization:
125
        enabled: true
126
      sqlserver.batch.page_split.utilization:
127
        enabled: true
128
      sqlserver.recompilation.ratio:
129
        enabled: true
130
      sqlserver.parameterization.rate:
131
        enabled: true
132
      sqlserver.plan.execution.rate:
133
        enabled: true
134
      sqlserver.attention.rate:
135
        enabled: true
136
      # Processes / Connections
137
      sqlserver.process.count:
138
        enabled: true
139
      sqlserver.processes.blocked:
140
        enabled: true
141
      sqlserver.user.connection.count:
142
        enabled: true
143
      sqlserver.login.rate:
144
        enabled: true
145
      sqlserver.logout.rate:
146
        enabled: true
147
      # Thread Pool
148
      sqlserver.thread_pool.tasks.count:
149
        enabled: true
150
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.count:
151
        enabled: true
152
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.max:
153
        enabled: true
154
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.utilization:
155
        enabled: true
156
      # TempDB
157
      sqlserver.tempdb.allocation.wait_time.total:
158
        enabled: true
159
      sqlserver.tempdb.contention.waiters.count:
160
        enabled: true
161
      sqlserver.tempdb.data_files.count:
162
        enabled: true
163
      sqlserver.tempdb.file.size:
164
        enabled: true
165
      sqlserver.tempdb.space.usage:
166
        enabled: true
167
      # Latch
168
      sqlserver.latch.superlatch.count:
169
        enabled: true
170
      sqlserver.latch.superlatch.transition.rate:
171
        enabled: true
172
      sqlserver.latch.wait.rate:
173
        enabled: true
174
      sqlserver.latch.wait_time.avg:
175
        enabled: true
176
      sqlserver.latch.wait_time.total:
177
        enabled: true
178
      # Index
179
      sqlserver.index.search.rate:
180
        enabled: true
181
      # Resource Pool
182
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.operations:
183
        enabled: true
184
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.throttled.read.rate:
185
        enabled: true
186
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.throttled.write.rate:
187
        enabled: true
188
      # Replica / Always-On
189
      sqlserver.replica.data.rate:
190
        enabled: true
191
      # Server Properties
192
      sqlserver.computer.uptime:
193
        enabled: true
194
      sqlserver.cpu.count:
195
        enabled: true
196
      # Tables
197
      sqlserver.table.count:
198
        enabled: true
199
      # Errors
200
      sqlserver.kill_connection.error.rate:
201
        enabled: true
202

203
      events:
204
        db.server.query_sample:
205
          enabled: true
206
        db.server.top_query:
207
          enabled: true
208

209
      top_query_collection:
210
        lookback_time: 60s
211
        max_query_sample_count: 1000
212
        top_query_count: 250
213
        collection_interval: 60s
214

215
      collect_full_query_text: true
216
      allowed_comment_keys:
217
        - nr_service_guid
218

219
      query_sample_collection:
220
        max_rows_per_query: 100
221

222
  processors:
223
    memory_limiter:
224
      check_interval: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_CHECK_INTERVAL:-1s}
225
      limit_mib:       ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_LIMIT_MIB:-500}
226
      spike_limit_mib: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_SPIKE_MIB:-50}
227

228
    batch:
229

230

231
  exporters:
232
    otlphttp:
233
      endpoint: https://otlp.nr-data.net:4318
234
      headers:
235
        api-key: YOUR_LICENSE_KEY
236
      tls:
237
        insecure: false
238
      compression: gzip
239

240
  service:
241
    telemetry:
242
      metrics:
243
        level: none
244

245
    pipelines:
246
      metrics:
247
        receivers: [nrsqlserver]
248
        processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
249
        exporters: [otlphttp]
250

251
      logs:
252
        receivers: [nrsqlserver]
253
        processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
254
        exporters: [otlphttp]

Configuration parameters

The following table describes the key configuration parameters for the nrsqlserver receiver:

Parameter	Description
`username`	Enter your database username for authentication
`password`	Enter your database password for authentication
`server`	Enter your RDS SQL Server endpoint
`port`	Enter your SQL Server port number. The default value is 1433.
`endpoint`	Enter the New Relic OTLP endpoint . For more information, refer to New Relic OTLP endpoints documentation.
`licenseKey`	Enter your New Relic license key.

Tip

Note: The max_concurrent_queries option controls how many metric queries the receiver executes in parallel against SQL Server during each scrape cycle.

receivers:
  nrsqlserver:
    max_concurrent_queries: 4  # default is 4 if omitted or set to 0

Tip

Note: If you enable all available metrics, increase the limit_mib value (e.g., 1000) to prevent the memory limiter from dropping data.

Update Windows Service Registry

Update the Windows Service Registry to use the new mssql-config.yaml file.

Method 1: PowerShell

Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:

Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\nrdot-collector" -Name "ImagePath" -Value '"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe" --config "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml"'

Method 2: Command Prompt (Alternative)

If PowerShell is not available, you can use Command Prompt instead:

Open your Start Menu, type cmd
Right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator
Copy and paste this exact command into the black CMD window and hit Enter:

sc config "nrdot-collector" binPath= "\"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe\" --config \"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml\""

Validate NRDOT Collector Configuration

Validate the NRDOT Collector configuration to ensure it's correctly formatted and will work properly.

& "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe" validate --config="C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml"

Restart NRDOT collector

After updating your configuration, restart the NRDOT Collector service on your EC2 or local Windows machine:

net stop nrdot-collector
net start nrdot-collector

Tip

Always restart the NRDOT collector service after making configuration changes to ensure the new settings take effect.

(Optional) Set up APM-database correlation

To correlate your application performance with database operations, you can set up database service identification. This feature allows you to see exactly which applications are generating specific database workloads. For more information, refer to set up database service identification to get APM-database correlation in New Relic.

Important

To view database performance data in APM, both entities must be in the same New Relic account. If the entities are in different New Relic accounts, you must have access to both accounts to view the data.

(Optional) Configure secret management

The secret management feature allows you to securely manage sensitive information, such as database credentials. This helps to enhance the security of your monitoring setup by avoiding hardcoding sensitive data in configuration files. For more information, refer to secret management.

Find and use your data

Once your data is being collected, you can access comprehensive SQL Server database monitoring through New Relic's UI.

To find your SQL Server database entity in New Relic:

Go to https://one.newrelic.com > All Capabilities > Databases.
From the Entity type dropdown, select MSSQL instance, then click Apply.
Select your SQL Server database from the list of entities.

Prerequisites

Ensure your environment meets our compatibility and prerequisites.

Additional requirements for Windows Domain Authentication with RDS:

Windows domain environment with Active Directory
Domain-joined Windows EC2 instance or local machine
RDS SQL Server configured to accept Windows Authentication
Domain user account with appropriate SQL Server permissions
Security group configured to allow connections on SQL Server port (default 1433)

Enable your Microsoft SQL Server

Connect to your RDS SQL Server instance using SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) or sqlcmd with your admin credentials.

Run the following script to create a Windows domain login and grant necessary permissions:

USE master;
CREATE LOGIN [DomainName\DomainUser] FROM WINDOWS;
GRANT VIEW ANY DATABASE   TO [DomainName\DomainUser];
GRANT VIEW SERVER STATE TO [DomainName\DomainUser];
GRANT VIEW ANY DEFINITION TO [DomainName\DomainUser];
GO

Important

Replace DomainName\DomainUser with your actual domain and username (e.g., CORP\SQLMonitor).

Grant READ access privileges

Use the following statements to grant READ access privileges to the domain user across all databases:

-- Grant access to all databases (required for query monitoring and tempdb metrics)
  DECLARE @name SYSNAME;
  DECLARE db_cursor CURSOR READ_ONLY FORWARD_ONLY FOR
    SELECT [name] FROM [master].[sys].[databases]
    WHERE [name] NOT IN ('master','msdb','model','rdsadmin','distribution')
      AND [state] = 0;
  OPEN db_cursor;
  FETCH NEXT FROM db_cursor INTO @name;
  WHILE @@FETCH_STATUS = 0
  BEGIN
    BEGIN TRY
      EXEC('USE [' + @name + '];
      IF NOT EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM sys.database_principals WHERE name = ''DomainName\DomainUser'')
      BEGIN
        CREATE USER [DomainName\DomainUser] FOR LOGIN [DomainName\DomainUser];
      END;
      GRANT VIEW DATABASE STATE TO [DomainName\DomainUser];');
    END TRY
    BEGIN CATCH
      PRINT 'Error on ' + @name + ': ' + ERROR_MESSAGE();
    END CATCH
    FETCH NEXT FROM db_cursor INTO @name;
  END
  CLOSE db_cursor;
  DEALLOCATE db_cursor;
  GO

Tip

For RDS: The script automatically excludes the rdsadmin database which is reserved by AWS. Ensure you replace DomainName\DomainUser with your actual domain credentials.

Set up the NRDOT Collector

Install the NRDOT Collector on a domain-joined EC2 Windows instance or a local Windows machine that is part of the same domain and can connect to your RDS SQL Server instance.

Important

For RDS monitoring, install the NRDOT Collector on an EC2 instance in the same VPC as your RDS instance for optimal network connectivity and lower latency.

Download and install the NRDOT Collector using PowerShell:

[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = 'tls12, tls'; $NRDOT_VERSION = (Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "https://api.github.com/repos/newrelic/nrdot-collector-releases/releases/latest").tag_name; $WebClient = New-Object System.Net.WebClient; $WebClient.Headers.Add("User-Agent", "Mozilla/5.0"); $WebClient.DownloadFile("https://github.com/newrelic/nrdot-collector-releases/releases/download/$NRDOT_VERSION/nrdot-collector_${NRDOT_VERSION}_windows_x64.msi", "$env:TEMP\nrdot-collector.msi"); Start-Process msiexec.exe -ArgumentList "/i `"$env:TEMP\nrdot-collector.msi`" /qn /norestart /L*V `"$env:TEMP\nrdot_install.log`"" -Wait; Get-Service nrdot-collector -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Change Service Logon to Domain Account (Using PowerShell):

Configure the NRDOT Collector service to run as your domain user using PowerShell:

# Configure service to use domain account
# The space after obj= and password= is required syntax for sc.exe
sc.exe config "nrdot-collector" obj= "DomainName\DomainUser" password= "<password>"

# Restart the service
Restart-Service nrdot-collector

Verify the service identity:

Get-WmiObject Win32_Service -Filter "Name='nrdot-collector'" | Select Name, State, StartName
# Expected: StartName = DomainName\DomainUser

Important

Replace DomainName\DomainUser with your actual domain and username (e.g., CORP\SQLMonitor), and <password> with the domain user's password.

Ensure your security group allows inbound connections from the NRDOT Collector host to your RDS instance on port 1433 (or your custom port).

Configure NRDOT Collector

Select your configuration type based on your monitoring needs:

This configuration focuses on essential database monitoring with core metrics.

Tip

RDS Endpoint Format: Your RDS endpoint will be in the format: your-db-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.region.rds.amazonaws.com. Find this in your AWS RDS Console under "Connectivity & security".

Important

Windows Domain Authentication uses integrated security (Windows authentication), which uses the same configuration approach as gMSA authentication. Simply update the datasource server value to your RDS endpoint. The NRDOT service will authenticate using the domain account you configured in Step 3.

Create the configuration file. The filename must be mssql-config.yaml. Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:
```
New-Item -Path "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml" -ItemType File
```
Add the configuration content below to the mssql-config.yaml file you created in the previous step.

Use the configuration below with your RDS endpoint:

# NRDOT Collector Configuration for RDS SQL Server - Windows Domain Auth
# NRDOT Collector Configuration for SQL Server with gMSA Authentication


receivers:
  nrsqlserver:
    collection_interval: 15s
    datasource: "server=<HOSTNAME-OR-RDS-ENDPOINT>;port=1433;integrated security=true;encrypt=true;TrustServerCertificate=true;"

    # Enable comprehensive database metrics
    metrics:
      sqlserver.database.count:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.io:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.latency:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.operations:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.space:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.version_store.size:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.deadlock.rate:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.os.wait.duration:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.processes.blocked:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.memory.grants.pending.count:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.file.size:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.memory.area:
        enabled: true

    # Enable top query and query sample log collection
    events:
      db.server.query_sample:
        enabled: true
      db.server.top_query:
        enabled: true

    # Top query collection configuration
    top_query_collection:
      lookback_time: 60s
      max_query_sample_count: 1000
      top_query_count: 250
      collection_interval: 60s

    collect_full_query_text: true
    allowed_comment_keys:
      - nr_service_guid

    # Query sample collection configuration
    query_sample_collection:
      max_rows_per_query: 100

processors:
  memory_limiter:
    check_interval: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_CHECK_INTERVAL:-1s}
    limit_mib:       ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_LIMIT_MIB:-200}
    spike_limit_mib: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_SPIKE_MIB:-50}

  batch:

exporters:
  otlphttp:
    endpoint: <YOUR_NEWRELIC_OTLP_ENDPOINT>
    headers:
      api-key: <YOUR_NEWRELIC_LICENSE_KEY>
    tls:
      insecure: false
    compression: gzip

service:
  telemetry:
    metrics:
      level: none

  pipelines:
    metrics:
      receivers: [nrsqlserver]
      processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
      exporters: [otlphttp]

    logs:
      receivers: [nrsqlserver]
      processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
      exporters: [otlphttp]

Tip

Note: The max_concurrent_queries option controls how many metric queries the receiver executes in parallel against SQL Server during each scrape cycle.

receivers:
  nrsqlserver:
    max_concurrent_queries: 4  # default is 4 if omitted or set to 0

Tip

Note: If you enable all available metrics, increase the limit_mib value (e.g., 1000) to prevent the memory limiter from dropping data.

This configuration provides comprehensive database monitoring with all available metrics.

Tip

Create the configuration file. The filename must be mssql-config.yaml. Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:
```
New-Item -Path "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml" -ItemType File
```
Add the configuration content below to the mssql-config.yaml file you created in the previous step.

Enter your values below and see the configuration update in real-time:

RDS Endpoint

New Relic OTLP Endpoint

New Relic License Key

mssql-config.yaml

1
receivers:
2
  nrsqlserver:
3
    collection_interval: 15s
4
    datasource: "server=mydb-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com;port=1433;integrated security=true;encrypt=true;TrustServerCertificate=true;"
5

6
    metrics:
7
      # Database
8
      sqlserver.database.count:
9
        enabled: true
10
      sqlserver.database.file.size:
11
        enabled: true
12
      sqlserver.database.io:
13
        enabled: true
14
      sqlserver.database.latency:
15
        enabled: true
16
      sqlserver.database.operations:
17
        enabled: true
18
      sqlserver.database.page_file.size:
19
        enabled: true
20
      sqlserver.database.transactions.active:
21
        enabled: true
22
      sqlserver.database.backup_or_restore.rate:
23
        enabled: true
24
      sqlserver.database.execution.errors:
25
        enabled: true
26
      sqlserver.database.full_scan.rate:
27
        enabled: true
28
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.space:
29
        enabled: true
30
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.version_store.size:
31
        enabled: true
32
      # Security / Principals
33
      sqlserver.database.principals.count:
34
        enabled: true
35
      sqlserver.database.principals.old:
36
        enabled: true
37
      sqlserver.database.principals.orphaned_users:
38
        enabled: true
39
      sqlserver.database.principals.recently_created:
40
        enabled: true
41
      sqlserver.database.role.members.count:
42
        enabled: true
43
      sqlserver.database.role.memberships.count:
44
        enabled: true
45
      sqlserver.database.role.permission.risk_level:
46
        enabled: true
47
      sqlserver.database.role.roles.count:
48
        enabled: true
49
      sqlserver.database.security.role_membership.count:
50
        enabled: true
51
      sqlserver.server.security.principal.count:
52
        enabled: true
53
      sqlserver.server.security.role_membership.count:
54
        enabled: true
55
      # Locks
56
      sqlserver.lock.by_mode.count:
57
        enabled: true
58
      sqlserver.lock.by_resource.count:
59
        enabled: true
60
      sqlserver.lock.timeout.rate:
61
        enabled: true
62
      sqlserver.lock.wait.count:
63
        enabled: true
64
      sqlserver.lock.wait.rate:
65
        enabled: true
66
      sqlserver.deadlock.rate:
67
        enabled: true
68
      # Transactions
69
      sqlserver.transaction.delay:
70
        enabled: true
71
      sqlserver.transaction.mirror_write.rate:
72
        enabled: true
73
      sqlserver.transaction.longest_running_time:
74
        enabled: true
75
      sqlserver.transaction.version_cleanup.rate:
76
        enabled: true
77
      sqlserver.transaction.version_generation.rate:
78
        enabled: true
79
      # Memory
80
      sqlserver.memory.area:
81
        enabled: true
82
      sqlserver.memory.cache.object.count:
83
        enabled: true
84
      sqlserver.memory.grants.pending.count:
85
        enabled: true
86
      sqlserver.memory.page.count:
87
        enabled: true
88
      sqlserver.memory.target:
89
        enabled: true
90
      sqlserver.memory.usage:
91
        enabled: true
92
      # OS
93
      sqlserver.os.disk.size:
94
        enabled: true
95
      sqlserver.os.memory.usage:
96
        enabled: true
97
      sqlserver.os.memory.utilization:
98
        enabled: true
99
      sqlserver.os.scheduler.runnable_tasks.count:
100
        enabled: true
101
      sqlserver.os.wait.duration:
102
        enabled: true
103
      sqlserver.os.wait.tasks.count:
104
        enabled: true
105
      # Pages / Buffer
106
      sqlserver.page.buffer_cache.hit_ratio:
107
        enabled: true
108
      sqlserver.page.buffer_cache.free_list.stalls.rate:
109
        enabled: true
110
      sqlserver.page.life_expectancy:
111
        enabled: true
112
      sqlserver.page.lookup.rate:
113
        enabled: true
114
      # Batch / Compilation
115
      sqlserver.batch.request.rate:
116
        enabled: true
117
      sqlserver.batch.sql_compilation.rate:
118
        enabled: true
119
      sqlserver.batch.sql_recompilation.rate:
120
        enabled: true
121
      sqlserver.batch.compilation.utilization:
122
        enabled: true
123
      sqlserver.batch.page_split.utilization:
124
        enabled: true
125
      sqlserver.recompilation.ratio:
126
        enabled: true
127
      sqlserver.parameterization.rate:
128
        enabled: true
129
      sqlserver.plan.execution.rate:
130
        enabled: true
131
      sqlserver.attention.rate:
132
        enabled: true
133
      # Processes / Connections
134
      sqlserver.process.count:
135
        enabled: true
136
      sqlserver.processes.blocked:
137
        enabled: true
138
      sqlserver.user.connection.count:
139
        enabled: true
140
      sqlserver.login.rate:
141
        enabled: true
142
      sqlserver.logout.rate:
143
        enabled: true
144
      # Thread Pool
145
      sqlserver.thread_pool.tasks.count:
146
        enabled: true
147
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.count:
148
        enabled: true
149
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.max:
150
        enabled: true
151
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.utilization:
152
        enabled: true
153
      # TempDB
154
      sqlserver.tempdb.allocation.wait_time.total:
155
        enabled: true
156
      sqlserver.tempdb.contention.waiters.count:
157
        enabled: true
158
      sqlserver.tempdb.data_files.count:
159
        enabled: true
160
      sqlserver.tempdb.file.size:
161
        enabled: true
162
      sqlserver.tempdb.space.usage:
163
        enabled: true
164
      # Latch
165
      sqlserver.latch.superlatch.count:
166
        enabled: true
167
      sqlserver.latch.superlatch.transition.rate:
168
        enabled: true
169
      sqlserver.latch.wait.rate:
170
        enabled: true
171
      sqlserver.latch.wait_time.avg:
172
        enabled: true
173
      sqlserver.latch.wait_time.total:
174
        enabled: true
175
      # Index
176
      sqlserver.index.search.rate:
177
        enabled: true
178
      # Resource Pool
179
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.operations:
180
        enabled: true
181
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.throttled.read.rate:
182
        enabled: true
183
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.throttled.write.rate:
184
        enabled: true
185
      # Replica / Always-On
186
      sqlserver.replica.data.rate:
187
        enabled: true
188
      # Server Properties
189
      sqlserver.computer.uptime:
190
        enabled: true
191
      sqlserver.cpu.count:
192
        enabled: true
193
      # Tables
194
      sqlserver.table.count:
195
        enabled: true
196
      # Errors
197
      sqlserver.kill_connection.error.rate:
198
        enabled: true
199

200
      events:
201
        db.server.query_sample:
202
          enabled: true
203
        db.server.top_query:
204
          enabled: true
205

206
      top_query_collection:
207
        lookback_time: 60s
208
        max_query_sample_count: 1000
209
        top_query_count: 250
210
        collection_interval: 60s
211

212
      collect_full_query_text: true
213
      allowed_comment_keys:
214
        - nr_service_guid
215

216
      query_sample_collection:
217
        max_rows_per_query: 100
218

219
  processors:
220
    memory_limiter:
221
      check_interval: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_CHECK_INTERVAL:-1s}
222
      limit_mib:       ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_LIMIT_MIB:-500}
223
      spike_limit_mib: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_SPIKE_MIB:-50}
224

225
    batch:
226

227

228
  exporters:
229
    otlphttp:
230
      endpoint: https://otlp.nr-data.net:4318
231
      headers:
232
        api-key: YOUR_LICENSE_KEY
233
      tls:
234
        insecure: false
235
      compression: gzip
236

237
  service:
238
    telemetry:
239
      metrics:
240
        level: none
241

242
    pipelines:
243
      metrics:
244
        receivers: [nrsqlserver]
245
        processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
246
        exporters: [otlphttp]
247

248
      logs:
249
        receivers: [nrsqlserver]
250
        processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
251
        exporters: [otlphttp]

Configuration parameters

The following table describes the key configuration parameters for the nrsqlserver receiver:

Parameter	Description
`server`	Enter your RDS SQL Server endpoint
`port`	Enter your SQL Server port number. The default value is 1433.
`endpoint`	Enter the New Relic OTLP endpoint (e.g., https://otlp.nr-data.net). For more information, refer to New Relic OTLP endpoints documentation.
`licenseKey`	Enter your New Relic license key.
`collection_interval`	Interval in seconds to collect database metrics. Default: 15s

Update Windows Service Registry

Update the Windows Service Registry to use the new mssql-config.yaml file.

Method 1: PowerShell

Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:

Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\nrdot-collector" -Name "ImagePath" -Value '"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe" --config "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml"'

Method 2: Command Prompt (Alternative)

If PowerShell is not available, you can use Command Prompt instead:

Open your Start Menu, type cmd
Right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator
Copy and paste this exact command into the black CMD window and hit Enter:

sc config "nrdot-collector" binPath= "\"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe\" --config \"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml\""

Validate NRDOT Collector Configuration

Validate the NRDOT Collector configuration to ensure it's correctly formatted and will work properly.

& "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe" validate --config="C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml"

Restart NRDOT collector

After updating your configuration, restart the NRDOT Collector service on your domain-joined EC2 Windows instance:

net stop nrdot-collector
net start nrdot-collector

Tip

Verify the service is running under the domain account by checking Windows Services (services.msc). The "Log On As" column should show your domain account (e.g., CORP\SQLMonitor).

(Optional) Set up APM-database correlation

Important

(Optional) Configure secret management

Find and use your data

Once your data is being collected, you can access comprehensive SQL Server database monitoring through New Relic's UI.

To find your SQL Server database entity in New Relic:

Go to https://one.newrelic.com > All Capabilities > Databases.
From the Entity type dropdown, select MSSQL instance, then click Apply.
Select your SQL Server database from the list of entities.

Prerequisites

Ensure your environment meets our compatibility and prerequisites.

Additional requirements for gMSA (Group Managed Service Account) with RDS:

Active Directory environment with gMSA support
gMSA account created and configured for SQL Server access
Domain-joined Windows EC2 instance authorized to use the gMSA account
Security group configured to allow connections on SQL Server port (default 1433)

Enable your Microsoft SQL Server

Connect to your RDS SQL Server instance and run the following SQL commands to create a login for the gMSA account and grant necessary permissions:

USE master;
CREATE LOGIN [DomainName\gMSA] FROM WINDOWS;
GRANT VIEW ANY DATABASE TO [DomainName\gMSA];
GRANT VIEW SERVER STATE TO [DomainName\gMSA];
GRANT VIEW ANY DEFINITION TO [DomainName\gMSA];

Important

Replace DomainName\gMSA with your actual domain name and gMSA account name (e.g., CORP\SQL-gMSA$). Note that gMSA accounts typically end with a $ symbol.

Grant READ access privileges

Use the following statements to grant READ access privileges to the gMSA account across all databases:

-- Grant access to all databases (required for query monitoring and tempdb metrics)
  DECLARE @name SYSNAME;
  DECLARE db_cursor CURSOR READ_ONLY FORWARD_ONLY FOR
    SELECT [name] FROM [master].[sys].[databases]
    WHERE [name] NOT IN ('master','msdb','model','rdsadmin','distribution')
    AND [state] = 0;
  OPEN db_cursor;
  FETCH NEXT FROM db_cursor INTO @name;
  WHILE @@FETCH_STATUS = 0
  BEGIN
    BEGIN TRY
      EXEC('USE [' + @name + '];
      IF NOT EXISTS (SELECT 1 FROM sys.database_principals WHERE name = ''<DOMAIN>\<gMSA_NAME>$'')
      BEGIN
        CREATE USER [<DOMAIN>\<gMSA_NAME>$] FOR LOGIN [<DOMAIN>\<gMSA_NAME>$];
      END;
      GRANT VIEW DATABASE STATE TO [<DOMAIN>\<gMSA_NAME>$];');
    END TRY
    BEGIN CATCH
      PRINT 'Error on ' + @name + ': ' + ERROR_MESSAGE();
    END CATCH
    FETCH NEXT FROM db_cursor INTO @name;
  END
  CLOSE db_cursor;
  DEALLOCATE db_cursor;
  GO

Important

Replace DomainName\gMSA with your actual domain name and gMSA account name (e.g., CORP\SQL-gMSA$). This script creates a database user for the gMSA account in all user databases, excluding system databases and RDS-specific databases.

Set up the NRDOT Collector

Install the NRDOT Collector on an EC2 Windows instance that is domain-joined and authorized to use the gMSA account.

Important

For RDS with gMSA, the NRDOT Collector must be installed on a domain-joined Windows EC2 instance that has permissions to use the gMSA account. Ensure your security group allows connections to RDS on port 1433.

Download and install the NRDOT Collector using PowerShell:

[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = 'tls12, tls'; $NRDOT_VERSION = (Invoke-RestMethod -Uri "https://api.github.com/repos/newrelic/nrdot-collector-releases/releases/latest").tag_name; $WebClient = New-Object System.Net.WebClient; $WebClient.Headers.Add("User-Agent", "Mozilla/5.0"); $WebClient.DownloadFile("https://github.com/newrelic/nrdot-collector-releases/releases/download/$NRDOT_VERSION/nrdot-collector_${NRDOT_VERSION}_windows_x64.msi", "$env:TEMP\nrdot-collector.msi"); Start-Process msiexec.exe -ArgumentList "/i `"$env:TEMP\nrdot-collector.msi`" /qn /norestart /L*V `"$env:TEMP\nrdot_install.log`"" -Wait; Get-Service nrdot-collector -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Configure NRDOT Collector Service to Run as gMSA

After installing the NRDOT Collector, configure the service to run as your gMSA account using PowerShell:

# Stop the NRDOT Collector service
Stop-Service nrdot-collector

# Configure service to use gMSA account
# Use cmd /c to avoid PowerShell treating $ as a variable
cmd /c 'sc config nrdot-collector obj= "DomainName\gMSA" password= ""'

# Verify the configuration
Get-WmiObject Win32_Service -Filter "Name='nrdot-collector'" | Select Name, StartName

# Start the NRDOT Collector service 
Start-Service nrdot-collector

Important

Replace DomainName\gMSA with your actual domain and gMSA account name (e.g., CORP\SQL-gMSA$). Note the empty password - gMSA accounts don't require passwords.

Configure NRDOT Collector

Select your configuration type based on your monitoring needs:

This configuration focuses on essential database monitoring with core metrics.

Tip

RDS Endpoint Format: Your RDS endpoint will be in the format: your-db-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.region.rds.amazonaws.com. Find this in your AWS RDS Console under "Connectivity & security".

Important

The configuration uses Windows integrated security (gMSA). Simply update the datasource server value to your RDS endpoint.

Create the configuration file. The filename must be mssql-config.yaml. Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:
```
New-Item -Path "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml" -ItemType File
```
Add the configuration content below to the mssql-config.yaml file you created in the previous step.

Use the configuration below with your RDS endpoint:

receivers:
  nrsqlserver:
    collection_interval: 15s
    datasource: "server=<HOSTNAME-OR-RDS-ENDPOINT>;port=1433;integrated security=true;encrypt=true;TrustServerCertificate=true;"

    # Enable comprehensive database metrics
    metrics:
      sqlserver.database.count:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.io:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.latency:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.operations:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.space:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.version_store.size:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.deadlock.rate:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.os.wait.duration:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.processes.blocked:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.memory.grants.pending.count:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.database.file.size:
        enabled: true
      sqlserver.memory.area:
        enabled: true

    # Enable top query and query sample log collection
    events:
      db.server.query_sample:
        enabled: true
      db.server.top_query:
        enabled: true

    # Top query collection configuration
    top_query_collection:
      lookback_time: 60s
      max_query_sample_count: 1000
      top_query_count: 250
      collection_interval: 60s

    collect_full_query_text: true
    allowed_comment_keys:
      - nr_service_guid

    # Query sample collection configuration
    query_sample_collection:
      max_rows_per_query: 100

processors:
  memory_limiter:
    check_interval: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_CHECK_INTERVAL:-1s}
    limit_mib:       ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_LIMIT_MIB:-200}
    spike_limit_mib: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_SPIKE_MIB:-50}

  batch:

exporters:
  otlphttp:
    endpoint: <YOUR_NEWRELIC_OTLP_ENDPOINT>
    headers:
      api-key: <YOUR_NEWRELIC_LICENSE_KEY>
    tls:
      insecure: false
    compression: gzip

service:
  telemetry:
    metrics:
      level: none

  pipelines:
    metrics:
      receivers: [nrsqlserver]
      processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
      exporters: [otlphttp]

    logs:
      receivers: [nrsqlserver]
      processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
      exporters: [otlphttp]

Example with RDS endpoint: server=mydb-instance.c9akciq32.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com

This configuration provides comprehensive database monitoring with all available metrics.

Tip

Create the configuration file. The filename must be mssql-config.yaml. Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:
```
New-Item -Path "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml" -ItemType File
```
Add the configuration content below to the mssql-config.yaml file you created in the previous step.

Enter your values below and see the configuration update in real-time:

RDS Endpoint

New Relic OTLP Endpoint

New Relic License Key

mssql-config.yaml

1
receivers:
2
  nrsqlserver:
3
    collection_interval: 15s
4
    datasource: "server=mydb-instance.xxxxxxxxxxxx.us-east-1.rds.amazonaws.com;port=1433;integrated security=true;encrypt=true;TrustServerCertificate=true;"
5

6
    metrics:
7
      # Database
8
      sqlserver.database.count:
9
        enabled: true
10
      sqlserver.database.file.size:
11
        enabled: true
12
      sqlserver.database.io:
13
        enabled: true
14
      sqlserver.database.latency:
15
        enabled: true
16
      sqlserver.database.operations:
17
        enabled: true
18
      sqlserver.database.page_file.size:
19
        enabled: true
20
      sqlserver.database.transactions.active:
21
        enabled: true
22
      sqlserver.database.backup_or_restore.rate:
23
        enabled: true
24
      sqlserver.database.execution.errors:
25
        enabled: true
26
      sqlserver.database.full_scan.rate:
27
        enabled: true
28
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.space:
29
        enabled: true
30
      sqlserver.database.tempdb.version_store.size:
31
        enabled: true
32
      # Security / Principals
33
      sqlserver.database.principals.count:
34
        enabled: true
35
      sqlserver.database.principals.old:
36
        enabled: true
37
      sqlserver.database.principals.orphaned_users:
38
        enabled: true
39
      sqlserver.database.principals.recently_created:
40
        enabled: true
41
      sqlserver.database.role.members.count:
42
        enabled: true
43
      sqlserver.database.role.memberships.count:
44
        enabled: true
45
      sqlserver.database.role.permission.risk_level:
46
        enabled: true
47
      sqlserver.database.role.roles.count:
48
        enabled: true
49
      sqlserver.database.security.role_membership.count:
50
        enabled: true
51
      sqlserver.server.security.principal.count:
52
        enabled: true
53
      sqlserver.server.security.role_membership.count:
54
        enabled: true
55
      # Locks
56
      sqlserver.lock.by_mode.count:
57
        enabled: true
58
      sqlserver.lock.by_resource.count:
59
        enabled: true
60
      sqlserver.lock.timeout.rate:
61
        enabled: true
62
      sqlserver.lock.wait.count:
63
        enabled: true
64
      sqlserver.lock.wait.rate:
65
        enabled: true
66
      sqlserver.deadlock.rate:
67
        enabled: true
68
      # Transactions
69
      sqlserver.transaction.delay:
70
        enabled: true
71
      sqlserver.transaction.mirror_write.rate:
72
        enabled: true
73
      sqlserver.transaction.longest_running_time:
74
        enabled: true
75
      sqlserver.transaction.version_cleanup.rate:
76
        enabled: true
77
      sqlserver.transaction.version_generation.rate:
78
        enabled: true
79
      # Memory
80
      sqlserver.memory.area:
81
        enabled: true
82
      sqlserver.memory.cache.object.count:
83
        enabled: true
84
      sqlserver.memory.grants.pending.count:
85
        enabled: true
86
      sqlserver.memory.page.count:
87
        enabled: true
88
      sqlserver.memory.target:
89
        enabled: true
90
      sqlserver.memory.usage:
91
        enabled: true
92
      # OS
93
      sqlserver.os.disk.size:
94
        enabled: true
95
      sqlserver.os.memory.usage:
96
        enabled: true
97
      sqlserver.os.memory.utilization:
98
        enabled: true
99
      sqlserver.os.scheduler.runnable_tasks.count:
100
        enabled: true
101
      sqlserver.os.wait.duration:
102
        enabled: true
103
      sqlserver.os.wait.tasks.count:
104
        enabled: true
105
      # Pages / Buffer
106
      sqlserver.page.buffer_cache.hit_ratio:
107
        enabled: true
108
      sqlserver.page.buffer_cache.free_list.stalls.rate:
109
        enabled: true
110
      sqlserver.page.life_expectancy:
111
        enabled: true
112
      sqlserver.page.lookup.rate:
113
        enabled: true
114
      # Batch / Compilation
115
      sqlserver.batch.request.rate:
116
        enabled: true
117
      sqlserver.batch.sql_compilation.rate:
118
        enabled: true
119
      sqlserver.batch.sql_recompilation.rate:
120
        enabled: true
121
      sqlserver.batch.compilation.utilization:
122
        enabled: true
123
      sqlserver.batch.page_split.utilization:
124
        enabled: true
125
      sqlserver.recompilation.ratio:
126
        enabled: true
127
      sqlserver.parameterization.rate:
128
        enabled: true
129
      sqlserver.plan.execution.rate:
130
        enabled: true
131
      sqlserver.attention.rate:
132
        enabled: true
133
      # Processes / Connections
134
      sqlserver.process.count:
135
        enabled: true
136
      sqlserver.processes.blocked:
137
        enabled: true
138
      sqlserver.user.connection.count:
139
        enabled: true
140
      sqlserver.login.rate:
141
        enabled: true
142
      sqlserver.logout.rate:
143
        enabled: true
144
      # Thread Pool
145
      sqlserver.thread_pool.tasks.count:
146
        enabled: true
147
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.count:
148
        enabled: true
149
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.max:
150
        enabled: true
151
      sqlserver.thread_pool.workers.utilization:
152
        enabled: true
153
      # TempDB
154
      sqlserver.tempdb.allocation.wait_time.total:
155
        enabled: true
156
      sqlserver.tempdb.contention.waiters.count:
157
        enabled: true
158
      sqlserver.tempdb.data_files.count:
159
        enabled: true
160
      sqlserver.tempdb.file.size:
161
        enabled: true
162
      sqlserver.tempdb.space.usage:
163
        enabled: true
164
      # Latch
165
      sqlserver.latch.superlatch.count:
166
        enabled: true
167
      sqlserver.latch.superlatch.transition.rate:
168
        enabled: true
169
      sqlserver.latch.wait.rate:
170
        enabled: true
171
      sqlserver.latch.wait_time.avg:
172
        enabled: true
173
      sqlserver.latch.wait_time.total:
174
        enabled: true
175
      # Index
176
      sqlserver.index.search.rate:
177
        enabled: true
178
      # Resource Pool
179
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.operations:
180
        enabled: true
181
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.throttled.read.rate:
182
        enabled: true
183
      sqlserver.resource_pool.disk.throttled.write.rate:
184
        enabled: true
185
      # Replica / Always-On
186
      sqlserver.replica.data.rate:
187
        enabled: true
188
      # Server Properties
189
      sqlserver.computer.uptime:
190
        enabled: true
191
      sqlserver.cpu.count:
192
        enabled: true
193
      # Tables
194
      sqlserver.table.count:
195
        enabled: true
196
      # Errors
197
      sqlserver.kill_connection.error.rate:
198
        enabled: true
199

200
      events:
201
        db.server.query_sample:
202
          enabled: true
203
        db.server.top_query:
204
          enabled: true
205

206
      top_query_collection:
207
        lookback_time: 60s
208
        max_query_sample_count: 1000
209
        top_query_count: 250
210
        collection_interval: 60s
211

212
      collect_full_query_text: true
213
      allowed_comment_keys:
214
        - nr_service_guid
215

216
      query_sample_collection:
217
        max_rows_per_query: 100
218

219
  processors:
220
    memory_limiter:
221
      check_interval: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_CHECK_INTERVAL:-1s}
222
      limit_mib:       ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_LIMIT_MIB:-500}
223
      spike_limit_mib: ${env:NR_MEM_LIMITER_SPIKE_MIB:-50}
224

225
    batch:
226

227

228
  exporters:
229
    otlphttp:
230
      endpoint: https://otlp.nr-data.net:4318
231
      headers:
232
        api-key: YOUR_LICENSE_KEY
233
      tls:
234
        insecure: false
235
      compression: gzip
236

237
  service:
238
    telemetry:
239
      metrics:
240
        level: none
241

242
    pipelines:
243
      metrics:
244
        receivers: [nrsqlserver]
245
        processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
246
        exporters: [otlphttp]
247

248
      logs:
249
        receivers: [nrsqlserver]
250
        processors: [memory_limiter, batch]
251
        exporters: [otlphttp]

Configuration parameters

The following table describes the key configuration parameters for the nrsqlserver receiver:

Parameter	Description
`server`	Enter your RDS SQL Server endpoint
`port`	Enter your SQL Server port number. The default value is 1433.
`endpoint`	Enter the New Relic OTLP endpoint. For more information, refer to New Relic OTLP endpoints documentation.
`licenseKey`	Enter your New Relic license key.
`collection_interval`	Interval in seconds to collect database metrics. Default: 15s

Tip

Note: The max_concurrent_queries option controls how many metric queries the receiver executes in parallel against SQL Server during each scrape cycle.

receivers:
  nrsqlserver:
    max_concurrent_queries: 4  # default is 4 if omitted or set to 0

Tip

Note: If you enable all available metrics, increase the limit_mib value (e.g., 1000) to prevent the memory limiter from dropping data.

Update Windows Service Registry

Update the Windows Service Registry to use the new mssql-config.yaml file.

Method 1: PowerShell

Run the following command in PowerShell as Administrator:

Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\nrdot-collector" -Name "ImagePath" -Value '"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe" --config "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml"'

Method 2: Command Prompt (Alternative)

If PowerShell is not available, you can use Command Prompt instead:

Open your Start Menu, type cmd
Right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator
Copy and paste this exact command into the black CMD window and hit Enter:

sc config "nrdot-collector" binPath= "\"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe\" --config \"C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml\""

Validate NRDOT Collector Configuration

Validate the NRDOT Collector configuration to ensure it's correctly formatted and will work properly.

& "C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\nrdot-collector.exe" validate --config="C:\Program Files\nrdot-collector\mssql-config.yaml"

Restart NRDOT collector

After updating your configuration, restart the NRDOT Collector service on your domain-joined EC2 Windows instance:

net stop nrdot-collector
net start nrdot-collector

Tip

Verify the service is running under the gMSA account by checking Windows Services (services.msc). The "Log On As" column should show your gMSA account (e.g., CORP\SQL-gMSA$).

(Optional) Set up APM-database correlation

Important

(Optional) Configure secret management

Find and use your data

Once your data is being collected, you can access comprehensive SQL Server database monitoring through New Relic's UI.

To find your SQL Server database entity in New Relic:

Go to https://one.newrelic.com > All Capabilities > Databases.
From the Entity type dropdown, select MSSQL instance, then click Apply.
Select your SQL Server database from the list of entities.

Next steps

After setting up Windows RDS monitoring:

Windows RDS MSSQL monitoring with NRDOT

Preview

Prerequisites .css-21sua1{background:none;border:none;width:0;padding:0;}

Setup the NRDOT Collector

Important

Configure database user

Tip

Configure NRDOT Collector

Full-feature configuration

Configuration parameters

Tip

Tip

Update Windows Service Registry

Validate NRDOT Collector Configuration

Restart NRDOT collector

Tip

(Optional) Set up APM-database correlation

Important

(Optional) Configure secret management

Find and use your data

Prerequisites

Enable your Microsoft SQL Server

Important

Grant READ access privileges

Tip

Set up the NRDOT Collector

Important

Important

Configure NRDOT Collector

Standard configuration

Full-feature configuration

Configuration parameters

Update Windows Service Registry

Validate NRDOT Collector Configuration

Restart NRDOT collector

Tip

(Optional) Set up APM-database correlation

Important

(Optional) Configure secret management

Find and use your data

Prerequisites

Enable your Microsoft SQL Server

Important

Grant READ access privileges

Important

Set up the NRDOT Collector

Important

Configure NRDOT Collector Service to Run as gMSA

Important

Configure NRDOT Collector

Standard configuration

Full-feature configuration

Configuration parameters

Tip

Tip

Update Windows Service Registry

Validate NRDOT Collector Configuration

Restart NRDOT collector

Tip

(Optional) Set up APM-database correlation

Important

(Optional) Configure secret management

Find and use your data

Next steps

Prerequisites