How to collect DynamoDB metrics

This article discusses the process of collecting native DynamoDB metrics using Amazon CloudWatch. It outlines three methods to access these metrics: through the AWS Management Console, via the command-line interface (CLI), and by integrating with a monitoring tool that uses the CloudWatch API. The first method involves navigating the console, selecting desired metrics, and setting up alerts for when metric thresholds are crossed. The second method requires installing the AWS CLI and running queries to retrieve specific metrics. The third method involves using dedicated monitoring tools that can integrate with CloudWatch via its API, allowing for more advanced functionality such as dynamic slicing, aggregation, and filtering of metrics on any attribute. In Part 3 of this series, strategies used by Medium's engineering team to monitor DynamoDB are discussed.