Using the OpenTelemetry Datadog Receiver

Overview

The OpenTelemetry Datadog Receiver allows you to receive metrics from Datadog Agents without modifying your applications. It's especially handy when exploring Datadog alternatives without reinstrumenting your apps. This is useful for:

Gradual migration: Continue using Datadog Agent while migrating to OpenTelemetry** DogStatsD metrics**: Receive custom DogStatsD metrics without changing application code

This approach is a bridge solution. For long-term use, we recommend migrating to native OpenTelemetry instrumentation for better integration and standardization.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

OpenTelemetry Collectorinstalled and runningDatadog Agent installed (if forwarding from existing agents)- Access to modify configuration files and environment variables

• Network connectivity between Datadog Agent and OpenTelemetry Collector

Step 1: Configure the Datadog Receiver

Add the Datadog receiver to your OpenTelemetry Collector configuration to accept Datadog Agent traffic.

Add to your otel-collector-config.yaml:

receivers:
  datadog:
    endpoint: 0.0.0.0:8125
    read_timeout: 60s

This configures the receiver to:

• Listen on all interfaces ( 0.0.0.0

) on port8125

(default Datadog DogStatsD port) - Wait up to 60 seconds for data before timing out

Step 2: Configure the Exporter

You can skip this step if you followed the steps in OpenTelemetry Collector Installation to configure the OpenTelemetry Collector.

Set up the OTLP exporter to send data to SigNoz:

exporters:
  otlp:
    endpoint: ingest.<region>.signoz.cloud:443
    headers:
      signoz-ingestion-key: <your-ingestion-key>
    tls:
      insecure: false

Replace:

<region>

: YourSigNoz Cloud region<your-ingestion-key>

: Your SigNozingestion key

Step 3: Update the Pipelines

Integrate the Datadog receiver into your pipelines:

service:
  pipelines:
    metrics:
      receivers: [datadog, otlp]
      processors: [batch]
      exporters: [otlp]

Step 4: Configure the Datadog Agent

Configure your Datadog Agent to forward data to the OpenTelemetry Collector.

Option A: Forward to Both SigNoz and Datadog

If you want to send data to both SigNoz (via OTel Collector) and Datadog during migration:

Using environment variable:

DD_ADDITIONAL_ENDPOINTS='{"http://<OTEL_COLLECTOR_HOST>:8125": ["signoz"]}'

Or update datadog.yaml:

additional_endpoints:
  "http://<OTEL_COLLECTOR_HOST>:8125":
    - "signoz"

Replace <OTEL_COLLECTOR_HOST>

with the hostname or IP where your OTel Collector is running (e.g., localhost

, otel-collector.default.svc.cluster.local

).

Option B: Forward Only to SigNoz

To send data exclusively to SigNoz (stop sending to Datadog):

Using environment variable:

DD_DD_URL=http://<OTEL_COLLECTOR_HOST>:8125

Or update datadog.yaml:

dd_url: http://<OTEL_COLLECTOR_HOST>:8125

Step 5: Restart Services

After making configuration changes:

Restart the OpenTelemetry Collector

Restart the Datadog Agent

Validate

Verify data is flowing through the Datadog receiver to SigNoz:

Verify in SigNoz:- Navigate to Metrics to see DogStatsD metrics - Check that metrics match your Datadog data

• Navigate to Compare with Datadog:- Verify the same metrics appear in both platforms

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting

Connection refused errors

If the Datadog Agent can't connect to the OTel Collector:

Check port binding: Verify the Collector is listening on port 8125:

netstat -tlnp | grep 8125

Check firewall: Ensure port 8125 is open between Agent and Collector.** Verify endpoint**: Confirm the Agent is configured with the correct Collector address.

No data appearing in SigNoz

Check Collector logs: Look for errors in the OTel Collector logs.** Verify pipeline configuration**: Ensure thedatadog

receiver is listed in the appropriate pipeline(s).

Metrics not appearing

Check metric type: The Datadog receiver may not support all metric types.** Verify DogStatsD configuration**: Ensure DogStatsD is properly configured in both Agent and Collector.** Check metric names**: Metrics may be renamed during translation to OTel format.

Limitations

Be aware of these limitations when using the Datadog receiver:

Not all features supported: Some Datadog-specific features may not translate to OpenTelemetry** Metric types**: Some Datadog metric types may be converted differently** Performance**: Adding a hop (DD Agent → OTel Collector → SigNoz) adds latency

Next Steps

The Datadog receiver is a bridge solution. For long-term benefits, consider migrating to native OpenTelemetry:

source & further reading

signoz.io — original article JBoss & WildFly OpenTelemetry Setup Guide Java & Spring Boot OpenTelemetry Setup Guide Auto-instrumentation of Python applications with OpenTelemetry