TraceKit Node.js SDK Setup

When To Use

Use this skill when the user asks to:

• Add TraceKit to a Node.js or TypeScript application
• Add observability or APM to a Node.js service
• Instrument an Express, Fastify, or NestJS app with distributed tracing
• Configure TraceKit API keys in a Node.js project
• Debug production Node.js services with live breakpoints
• Set up code monitoring in a Node.js app

Non-Negotiable Rules

1. Never hardcode API keys in code. Always use process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY.
2. Always call tracekit.init() before registering routes — middleware and route handlers must come after initialization.
3. Always include a verification step confirming traces appear in https://app.tracekit.dev/traces.
4. Always enable code monitoring (enableCodeMonitoring: true) — it is TraceKit's differentiator.

Detection

Before applying this skill, detect the project type:

1. Check for package.json — confirms this is a Node.js project.
2. Detect framework by scanning package.json dependencies:
   • "express" in dependencies => Express framework (use Express branch)
   • "fastify" in dependencies => Fastify framework (use Fastify branch)
   • "@nestjs/core" in dependencies => NestJS framework (use NestJS branch)
3. Check for TypeScript: Look for tsconfig.json or "typescript" in devDependencies. Use TypeScript snippets if present.
4. Only ask the user if multiple frameworks are detected or if package.json is missing.

Step 1: Environment Setup

Set the TRACEKIT_API_KEY environment variable. This is the only required secret.

Add to your .env file:

TRACEKIT_API_KEY=ctxio_your_api_key_here

The OTLP endpoint is hardcoded in the SDK init — no need to configure it separately.

Where to get your API key:

1. Log in to TraceKit
2. Go to API Keys page
3. Generate a new key (starts with ctxio_)

Do not commit real API keys. Use .env files, deployment secret managers, or CI variables.

Step 2: Install SDK

npm install @tracekit/node-apm

Or with Yarn:

yarn add @tracekit/node-apm

This installs the TraceKit Node.js APM package with built-in OpenTelemetry support, framework middleware, and code monitoring.

Step 3: Initialize TraceKit

Add initialization to your application entry point, before any route or middleware registration.

TypeScript

import * as tracekit from '@tracekit/node-apm';

// Initialize TraceKit — MUST be before routes
tracekit.init({
  apiKey: process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY!,
  serviceName: 'my-node-service',
  endpoint: 'https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces',
  enableCodeMonitoring: true,
});

JavaScript (CommonJS)

const tracekit = require('@tracekit/node-apm');

// Initialize TraceKit — MUST be before routes
tracekit.init({
  apiKey: process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY,
  serviceName: 'my-node-service',
  endpoint: 'https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces',
  enableCodeMonitoring: true,
});

Key points:

• serviceName should match your service's logical name (e.g., "api-gateway", "user-service")
• enableCodeMonitoring: true enables live breakpoints and snapshots in production
• Call tracekit.init() at the very top of your entry file, before importing route modules when possible

Step 4: Framework Integration

Choose the branch matching your framework. Apply one of the following.

Branch A: Express

import express from 'express';
import * as tracekit from '@tracekit/node-apm';

// Initialize TraceKit (before routes!)
tracekit.init({
  apiKey: process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY!,
  serviceName: 'my-express-app',
  endpoint: 'https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces',
  enableCodeMonitoring: true,
});

const app = express();

// Add TraceKit middleware (before routes!)
app.use(tracekit.middleware());

// Your routes — automatically traced
app.get('/api/users', (req, res) => {
  res.json({ users: ['alice', 'bob'] });
});

app.listen(3000, () => {
  console.log('Server running on port 3000');
});

Order matters: tracekit.init() then tracekit.middleware() then route definitions.

Branch B: Fastify

import Fastify from 'fastify';
import * as tracekit from '@tracekit/node-apm';

// Initialize TraceKit (before routes!)
tracekit.init({
  apiKey: process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY!,
  serviceName: 'my-fastify-app',
  endpoint: 'https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces',
  enableCodeMonitoring: true,
});

const fastify = Fastify();

// Register TraceKit plugin (before routes!)
fastify.register(tracekit.fastifyPlugin());

// Your routes — automatically traced
fastify.get('/api/users', async (request, reply) => {
  return { users: ['alice', 'bob'] };
});

fastify.listen({ port: 3000 });

Order matters: tracekit.init() then fastify.register(tracekit.fastifyPlugin()) then route definitions.

Branch C: NestJS

NestJS uses a module-based approach. Import TracekitModule in your root AppModule:

// app.module.ts
import { Module } from '@nestjs/common';
import { TracekitModule } from '@tracekit/node-apm/nestjs';
import { UsersModule } from './users/users.module';

@Module({
  imports: [
    TracekitModule.forRoot({
      apiKey: process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY!,
      serviceName: 'my-nestjs-app',
      endpoint: 'https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces',
      enableCodeMonitoring: true,
    }),
    UsersModule,
  ],
})
export class AppModule {}

The TracekitModule automatically registers a global interceptor that traces all HTTP requests. No additional middleware needed.

Async configuration (using ConfigService):

// app.module.ts
import { Module } from '@nestjs/common';
import { ConfigModule, ConfigService } from '@nestjs/config';
import { TracekitModule } from '@tracekit/node-apm/nestjs';

@Module({
  imports: [
    ConfigModule.forRoot(),
    TracekitModule.forRootAsync({
      inject: [ConfigService],
      useFactory: (config: ConfigService) => ({
        apiKey: config.get('TRACEKIT_API_KEY')!,
        serviceName: config.get('APP_NAME', 'my-app'),
        endpoint: 'https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces',
        enableCodeMonitoring: true,
      }),
    }),
  ],
})
export class AppModule {}

Step 5: Error Capture

Capture errors explicitly in catch blocks:

import { getClient } from '@tracekit/node-apm';

try {
  await someOperation();
} catch (err) {
  const client = getClient();
  client.captureException(err as Error);
  // handle the error...
}

For adding context to traces, use manual spans:

import { getClient } from '@tracekit/node-apm';

app.post('/api/orders', async (req, res) => {
  const client = getClient();

  const span = client.startSpan('process-order', null, {
    'order.id': req.body.orderId,
    'user.id': req.user?.id,
  });

  try {
    const result = await processOrder(req.body);
    span.end();
    res.json(result);
  } catch (err) {
    client.captureException(err as Error);
    span.end();
    res.status(500).json({ error: 'Processing failed' });
  }
});

Step 5b: Snapshot Capture (Code Monitoring)

For programmatic snapshots, use the SnapshotClient directly — do not call through the SDK wrapper. The SDK uses stack inspection internally to identify the call site. Adding extra layers shifts the frame and causes snapshots to report the wrong source location.

Create a thin wrapper module (e.g., src/lib/breakpoints.ts):

import * as tracekit from '@tracekit/node-apm';

let snapshotClient: tracekit.SnapshotClient | null = null;

export function init(sdk: tracekit.SDK): void {
  snapshotClient = sdk.snapshotClient();
}

export function capture(name: string, data: Record<string, unknown>): void {
  if (!snapshotClient) return;
  snapshotClient.checkAndCapture(name, data);
}

Initialize after SDK setup:

import * as breakpoints from './lib/breakpoints';
breakpoints.init(sdk);

Use at call sites:

import { capture } from './lib/breakpoints';

capture('payment-failed', { orderId: order.id, error: String(err) });

See the tracekit-code-monitoring skill for the full pattern across all languages.

Step 6: Verification

After integrating, verify traces are flowing:

1. Start your application with TRACEKIT_API_KEY set in the environment.
2. Hit your endpoints 3-5 times — e.g., curl http://localhost:3000/api/users.
3. Open https://app.tracekit.dev/traces.
4. Confirm new spans and your service name appear within 30-60 seconds.

If traces do not appear, see Troubleshooting below.

Troubleshooting

Traces not appearing in dashboard

• Check TRACEKIT_API_KEY: Ensure the env var is set in the runtime environment. Print it: console.log(process.env.TRACEKIT_API_KEY).
• Check outbound access: Your service must reach https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces. Verify with: curl -X POST https://app.tracekit.dev/v1/traces (expect 401 — means the endpoint is reachable).
• Check init order: tracekit.init() must be called before registering routes and middleware. If init happens after routes, requests are not traced.

Init order wrong

Symptoms: Server starts fine but no traces appear despite traffic.

Fix: Move tracekit.init() to the very top of your entry file (src/index.ts, src/server.ts, or main.ts), before importing route modules or creating the Express/Fastify app.

Missing environment variable

Symptoms: undefined API key warning on startup, or traces are rejected by the backend.

Fix: Ensure TRACEKIT_API_KEY is set in your .env file and loaded (e.g., via dotenv), Docker Compose, or deployment config.

NestJS module not registered

Symptoms: NestJS app starts but no traces appear.

Fix: Ensure TracekitModule.forRoot(...) is in the imports array of your root AppModule, not a feature module.

Service name collisions

Symptoms: Traces appear under the wrong service in the dashboard.

Fix: Use a unique serviceName per deployed service. Avoid generic names like "app" or "server".

Next Steps

Once your Node.js app is traced, consider:

• Code Monitoring — Set live breakpoints and capture snapshots in production without redeploying (already enabled via enableCodeMonitoring: true)
• Distributed Tracing — Connect traces across multiple services for full request visibility
• Frontend Observability — Add @tracekit/browser to your frontend for end-to-end trace correlation

References

• Node.js SDK docs: https://app.tracekit.dev/docs/languages/nodejs
• TraceKit docs root: https://app.tracekit.dev/docs
• Dashboard: https://app.tracekit.dev
• Quick start: https://app.tracekit.dev/docs/quickstart