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n. / Tracing basics
Auto-instrumentation
Definition
Auto-instrumentation is tracing that is switched on by a library or an import instead of by writing span code yourself. It patches known clients, such as model provider SDKs, and records their calls for you.
In more detail
It is the fastest way to get a first trace, and it captures details such as model, tokens and latency without extra code. The limit is that it only knows about libraries it supports, so your own functions and custom tools still need manual spans to show up with sensible names.
Example
You add one setup line at the top of your app. From then on, every call made through your model provider's SDK appears as a span with its model and token counts.
Related terms
