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feat: Explicitly define include/exclude attributes for views #4951

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feat: Explicitly define exclude attributes for metrics
thompson-tomo Mar 17, 2026
184fd74
Update CHANGELOG.md
thompson-tomo Mar 17, 2026
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Update api.md
thompson-tomo Mar 17, 2026
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thompson-tomo Mar 17, 2026
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thompson-tomo Mar 18, 2026
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thompson-tomo Mar 18, 2026
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4 changes: 4 additions & 0 deletions CHANGELOG.md
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Expand Up @@ -18,6 +18,10 @@ release.

- Add development `maxExportBatchSize` parameter to Periodic exporting MetricReader.
([#4895](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-specification/pull/4895))
- Add development `exclude_attribute_keys` parameter to Stream Configuration.
([#4951](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-specification/pull/4951))
- Add development `Exclude_Attributes` parameter to Instrument Advisory.
([#4951](https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-specification/pull/4951))

### Logs

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9 changes: 9 additions & 0 deletions specification/metrics/api.md
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Expand Up @@ -276,6 +276,15 @@ Applies to all instrument types.
`Attributes` (a list of [attribute keys](../common/README.md#attribute)) is
the recommended set of attribute keys to be used for the resulting metrics.

##### Instrument advisory parameter: `Exclude_Attributes`
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@cijothomas cijothomas Mar 17, 2026

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don't need this in the API/advisory. if something should not be used, then instrumentation can not provide it at all.

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@thompson-tomo thompson-tomo Mar 17, 2026

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Wouldn't opt-in/deprecated attributes reside in this advisory? That way if stream config doesn't specify included/excluded attributes the advisory can be used to exclude them with 0 zero config.

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@cijothomas cijothomas Mar 17, 2026

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Opt-in attributes are not emitted by instrumentation (because SDK respects it) by default — they only appear when the user explicitly opts in via Views. So there's nothing to exclude in the zero-config case.

For exclude_attributes, the instrumentation library itself should stop emitting them (or the semantic conventions should guide the migration). The fix belongs at the instrumentation layer, not as an SDK-side exclude hint.

The existing Attributes (include) advisory already covers the zero-config story: the instrumentation author lists the recommended attribute keys, and anything not on that list is implicitly not recommended.


**Status**: [Development](../document-status.md)

Applies to all instrument types.

`Exclude_Attributes` (a list of [attribute keys](../common/README.md#attribute)) is
the recommended set of attribute keys to not be used for the resulting metrics.

#### Synchronous and Asynchronous instruments

Instruments are categorized on whether they are synchronous or
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13 changes: 11 additions & 2 deletions specification/metrics/sdk.md
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Expand Up @@ -375,13 +375,22 @@ The SDK MUST accept the following stream configuration parameters:
parameter configured on the instrument instead. If the `Attributes`
advisory parameter is absent, all attributes MUST be kept.

Additionally, implementations SHOULD support configuring an exclude-list of
attribute keys. The exclude-list contains attribute keys that identify the
* `exlude_attribute_keys`: This is, at a minimum, an exclude-list of attribute keys for
measurements captured in the metric stream.
The exclude-list contains attribute keys that identify the
attributes that MUST be excluded, all other attributes MUST be kept. If an
attribute key is both included and excluded, the SDK MAY fail fast in
accordance with initialization [error handling
principles](../error-handling.md#basic-error-handling-principles).

Users can provide `exclude_attribute_keys`, but it is up to their discretion.
Therefore, the stream configuration parameter needs to be structured to
accept `exclude_attribute_keys`, but MUST NOT obligate a user to provide them.
If the user does not provide any value, the SDK SHOULD use
the [`Exclude Attributes`](./api.md#instrument-advisory-parameters) advisory
parameter configured on the instrument instead. If the `Exclude Attributes`
advisory parameter is absent, all attributes MUST be kept.

* `aggregation`: The name of an [aggregation](#aggregation) function to use in
aggregating the metric stream data.

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