Use this guide when an instrumented application runs as a Linux service and exports to a Collector or trace proxy reachable from the host.

Configure the endpoint

For a host-based trace-proxy setup, the product setup documentation uses the proxy server address with gRPC port 9090 or HTTP port 8082. Replace the example with the hostname, address, protocol, and port supplied for your deployment:

OTEL_SERVICE_NAME=orders-api
OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT=<redacted URL><trace-proxy-host>:8082
OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_PROTOCOL=http/protobuf

For OTLP/gRPC, use the configured gRPC endpoint and the protocol value supported by the selected SDK. If a Collector is the application-facing receiver, use the Collector endpoint instead.

Set service configuration

Place non-secret exporter settings in the application’s service configuration or a root-owned environment file. Reference that file from the service manager, restrict its permissions, and restart the service after changing its environment. Store credentials separately in an approved secret provider; do not add them to shell history, logs, or a checked-in file.

Verify

Confirm the service is running with the new settings, the host can resolve and reach the endpoint, and the exporter reports successful exports. Then follow Verify Trace Ingestion.