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Squasher Collector is the small service that sends infrastructure metrics to Squasher. It is a purpose-built Rust service that sends OpenTelemetry data. The Linux setup collects CPU, memory, disk, filesystem, load, network, paging, system uptime, process counts, and Collector health. Docker container resource metrics are optional. It does not collect process command lines, environment variables, application logs, or eBPF data. You can use squasher infra as the short form of squasher infrastructure.

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Fast path

The complete setup is one preview, one reviewed install, and one data check:
Add --containers to plan, render, and verify when you need Docker metrics. The install bundle contains no API key. The root install process writes the key to a mode 0600 environment file and does not print it.

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Preview the setup

Preview does not write files or change the host:
Coding agents can use strict JSON input and inspect the current schema:
Unknown fields and unsafe identity values are rejected before any write.

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Render and review

The new directory contains:
  • manifest.json with file hashes, modes, and collector identity
  • config.yaml with host and optional Docker receivers
  • install.sh with pinned static amd64 and arm64 binaries and checksums
  • README.md with install and verification commands
The rendered bundle contains no API key. The command refuses to overwrite an existing directory.

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Install

Review the files, then pass the project API key only to the root install process:
The installer supports Debian, Ubuntu, and RPM-based Linux on amd64 and arm64. It installs the static Rust Squasher Collector as a systemd service. The default service limits are 64 MiB of memory and 10% of one CPU. Docker mode requires /var/run/docker.sock and adds the collector user to the Docker group. These values are safety ceilings, not reserved resources. MemoryHigh=32M asks the system to reclaim memory before use reaches the hard MemoryMax=64M stop. CPUQuota=10% limits sustained use to one tenth of one CPU. The normal host-only process is expected to stay well below these ceilings. The limits do not add a separate infrastructure charge.

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Verify real data

After one collection interval, verify the expected series through the Squasher API:
The JSON result is healthy or incomplete. It checks CPU, memory, filesystem, optional Docker metrics, and fresh Collector self-health. This proves that the service is active and that Squasher can read the data after ingestion. An incomplete result includes the exact missing signal and local recovery commands.

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Check and remove the Collector

status reports the local process state, memory, and CPU time. doctor checks the service, Rust engine, configuration, secret permissions, resource ceilings, dedicated user, and Docker socket access. Run it with sudo so it can validate the protected configuration without showing the secret. verify is the remote end-to-end data check. Uninstall only removes a service that has the Squasher managed marker. It also removes the dedicated Rust collector binary.

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eBPF and application signals

The Collector does not use eBPF. eBPF agents can create application traces and network telemetry without code changes, but they need kernel support and extra Linux capabilities. That is a different scope from low-overhead host and Docker resource collection. Use a Squasher SDK or an OpenTelemetry integration for application logs and traces. The default infrastructure install stays unprivileged when Docker mode is off.

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Kubernetes

Use the Kubernetes integration for a DaemonSet, Kubernetes metadata, pod logs, and kubelet metrics. The infrastructure CLI currently renders the Linux systemd target only.

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Agent handoff