Step 4: Grafana Dashboards
Create comprehensive Grafana dashboards to visualize O-RAN telemetry for NOC operations, compliance monitoring, and performance analysis.
Dashboard Overview
Build three specialized dashboards:
- O-RAN Operations Dashboard — Real-time NOC view with KPIs
- PTP Compliance Dashboard — 5G timing compliance monitoring
- Network Performance Dashboard — Capacity planning and optimization
Dashboard 1: O-RAN Operations (NOC View)
Real-time operational dashboard for network operations center:
JSON Configuration
{
"dashboard": {
"id": null,
"title": "O-RAN Edge Operations Dashboard",
"description": "Real-time O-RAN DU telemetry for NOC operations",
"tags": ["oran", "telco", "noc", "operations"],
"timezone": "browser",
"refresh": "30s",
"time": {
"from": "now-1h",
"to": "now"
},
"panels": [
{
"id": 1,
"title": "Network Health Overview",
"type": "stat",
"gridPos": {"h": 6, "w": 8, "x": 0, "y": 0},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "count(oran_ptp_compliance_score > 90)",
"legendFormat": "Compliant Sites",
"refId": "A"
},
{
"expr": "count(oran_ptp_compliance_score)",
"legendFormat": "Total Sites",
"refId": "B"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"color": {"mode": "thresholds"},
"thresholds": {
"steps": [
{"color": "red", "value": 0},
{"color": "yellow", "value": 80},
{"color": "green", "value": 95}
]
},
"unit": "short"
}
},
"options": {
"reduceOptions": {
"values": false,
"calcs": ["lastNotNull"],
"fields": ""
},
"orientation": "auto",
"textMode": "auto",
"colorMode": "background"
}
},
{
"id": 2,
"title": "PTP Timing Compliance",
"type": "gauge",
"gridPos": {"h": 6, "w": 8, "x": 8, "y": 0},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "avg(oran_ptp_compliance_score)",
"legendFormat": "Network Average",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"color": {"mode": "thresholds"},
"thresholds": {
"mode": "absolute",
"steps": [
{"color": "red", "value": 0},
{"color": "yellow", "value": 70},
{"color": "green", "value": 90}
]
},
"unit": "percent",
"min": 0,
"max": 100
}
},
"options": {
"reduceOptions": {
"values": false,
"calcs": ["lastNotNull"]
},
"orientation": "auto",
"showThresholdLabels": false,
"showThresholdMarkers": true
}
},
{
"id": 3,
"title": "Critical Alerts",
"type": "table",
"gridPos": {"h": 6, "w": 8, "x": 16, "y": 0},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "oran_ptp_compliance_score{ptp_compliance=\"critical\"} < 50",
"format": "table",
"legendFormat": "{{du_id}} - {{cell_id}}",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"custom": {
"align": "auto",
"displayMode": "list",
"filterable": true
},
"color": {"mode": "thresholds"},
"thresholds": {
"steps": [
{"color": "transparent", "value": 0},
{"color": "red", "value": 1}
]
}
}
},
"options": {
"showHeader": true,
"sortBy": [{"desc": true, "displayName": "Value"}]
},
"transformations": [
{
"id": "organize",
"options": {
"excludeByName": {"Time": true},
"indexByName": {
"du_id": 0,
"cell_id": 1,
"Value": 2
},
"renameByName": {
"du_id": "DU ID",
"cell_id": "Cell ID",
"Value": "Compliance Score"
}
}
}
]
},
{
"id": 4,
"title": "PRB Utilization Heatmap",
"type": "heatmap",
"gridPos": {"h": 8, "w": 12, "x": 0, "y": 6},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "oran_prb_utilization_percent{direction=\"downlink\"}",
"legendFormat": "{{du_id}}-{{cell_id}}",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"custom": {
"hideFrom": {
"legend": false,
"tooltip": false,
"vis": false
},
"scaleDistribution": {"type": "linear"}
},
"color": {
"mode": "continuous-GrYlRd",
"steps": 256
},
"unit": "percent"
}
},
"options": {
"calculate": true,
"calculation": {"xBuckets": {"mode": "count", "value": "50"}},
"cellGap": 2,
"cellValues": {"unit": "percent"},
"color": {
"exponent": 0.5,
"fill": "dark-orange",
"mode": "spectrum",
"reverse": false,
"scheme": "Oranges",
"steps": 64
},
"exemplars": {"color": "rgba(255,0,255,0.7)"},
"filterValues": {"le": 1e-9},
"legend": {"show": false},
"rowsFrame": {"layout": "auto"},
"tooltip": {"show": true, "yHistogram": false},
"yAxis": {
"axisPlacement": "left",
"reverse": false,
"unit": "short"
}
}
},
{
"id": 5,
"title": "CPU Utilization by Site",
"type": "timeseries",
"gridPos": {"h": 8, "w": 12, "x": 12, "y": 6},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "oran_cpu_utilization_percent",
"legendFormat": "{{du_id}} ({{region}})",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"color": {"mode": "palette-classic"},
"custom": {
"axisPlacement": "auto",
"barAlignment": 0,
"drawStyle": "line",
"fillOpacity": 10,
"gradientMode": "none",
"hideFrom": {
"legend": false,
"tooltip": false,
"vis": false
},
"lineInterpolation": "smooth",
"lineWidth": 2,
"pointSize": 5,
"scaleDistribution": {"type": "linear"},
"showPoints": "never",
"spanNulls": false,
"stacking": {"group": "A", "mode": "none"},
"thresholdsStyle": {"mode": "line"}
},
"thresholds": {
"mode": "absolute",
"steps": [
{"color": "green", "value": null},
{"color": "yellow", "value": 70},
{"color": "red", "value": 90}
]
},
"unit": "percent"
}
},
"options": {
"legend": {
"calcs": ["mean", "max"],
"displayMode": "table",
"placement": "bottom"
},
"tooltip": {"mode": "multi", "sort": "desc"}
}
},
{
"id": 6,
"title": "RF Quality Distribution",
"type": "piechart",
"gridPos": {"h": 6, "w": 8, "x": 0, "y": 14},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "count by (rsrp_quality) (oran_rf_health_score)",
"legendFormat": "{{rsrp_quality}}",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"color": {"mode": "palette-classic"},
"custom": {
"hideFrom": {
"legend": false,
"tooltip": false,
"vis": false
}
},
"unit": "short"
},
"overrides": [
{
"matcher": {"id": "byName", "options": "excellent"},
"properties": [{"id": "color", "value": {"mode": "fixed", "fixedColor": "green"}}]
},
{
"matcher": {"id": "byName", "options": "poor"},
"properties": [{"id": "color", "value": {"mode": "fixed", "fixedColor": "red"}}]
}
]
},
"options": {
"reduceOptions": {
"values": false,
"calcs": ["lastNotNull"],
"fields": ""
},
"pieType": "pie",
"tooltip": {"mode": "single", "sort": "none"},
"legend": {
"displayMode": "table",
"placement": "right",
"values": ["percent"]
}
}
},
{
"id": 7,
"title": "Congestion Forecast",
"type": "timeseries",
"gridPos": {"h": 6, "w": 16, "x": 8, "y": 14},
"targets": [
{
"expr": "predict_linear(oran_prb_utilization_percent{direction=\"downlink\"}[30m], 3600)",
"legendFormat": "Predicted DL PRB % (+1h)",
"refId": "A"
},
{
"expr": "oran_prb_utilization_percent{direction=\"downlink\"}",
"legendFormat": "Current DL PRB %",
"refId": "B"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"color": {"mode": "palette-classic"},
"custom": {
"axisPlacement": "auto",
"drawStyle": "line",
"lineWidth": 2,
"fillOpacity": 20,
"gradientMode": "opacity"
},
"thresholds": {
"mode": "absolute",
"steps": [
{"color": "transparent", "value": null},
{"color": "yellow", "value": 80},
{"color": "red", "value": 95}
]
},
"unit": "percent"
}
},
"options": {
"legend": {"displayMode": "table", "placement": "bottom"},
"tooltip": {"mode": "multi", "sort": "desc"}
}
}
]
}
}
Dashboard 2: PTP Compliance Monitoring
Specialized dashboard for 5G timing compliance:
Key Panels
{
"dashboard": {
"title": "O-RAN PTP Timing Compliance",
"description": "5G precision timing protocol compliance monitoring",
"panels": [
{
"id": 1,
"title": "PTP Offset Distribution",
"type": "histogram",
"targets": [
{
"expr": "histogram_quantile(0.95, rate(oran_ptp_offset_nanoseconds_bucket[5m]))",
"legendFormat": "95th percentile",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"custom": {"bucketSize": 50},
"unit": "ns",
"color": {"mode": "continuous-GrYlRd"}
}
}
},
{
"id": 2,
"title": "Compliance Violations (Last 24h)",
"type": "table",
"targets": [
{
"expr": "increase(oran_ptp_violations_total[24h])",
"format": "table",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"transformations": [
{
"id": "groupBy",
"options": {
"fields": {
"du_id": {"aggregation": ["distinctCount"], "operation": "groupby"},
"severity": {"aggregation": ["last"], "operation": "groupby"},
"Value": {"aggregation": ["sum"], "operation": "aggregate"}
}
}
}
]
},
{
"id": 3,
"title": "PTP Master Clock Health",
"type": "stat",
"targets": [
{
"expr": "oran_ptp_master_reachable",
"legendFormat": "Master Reachable",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"color": {"mode": "thresholds"},
"thresholds": {
"steps": [
{"color": "red", "value": 0},
{"color": "green", "value": 1}
]
},
"mappings": [
{"options": {"0": {"text": "Unreachable"}}, "type": "value"},
{"options": {"1": {"text": "Healthy"}}, "type": "value"}
]
}
}
}
]
}
}
Dashboard 3: Network Performance Analytics
Advanced analytics dashboard for capacity planning:
Performance Panels
{
"dashboard": {
"title": "O-RAN Network Performance Analytics",
"panels": [
{
"id": 1,
"title": "Spectral Efficiency Trend",
"type": "timeseries",
"targets": [
{
"expr": "avg by (cell_id) (oran_spectral_efficiency_dl)",
"legendFormat": "{{cell_id}} Efficiency",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"unit": "bps/Hz",
"custom": {
"drawStyle": "line",
"lineWidth": 2,
"fillOpacity": 10
}
}
}
},
{
"id": 2,
"title": "Capacity Headroom by Region",
"type": "bargauge",
"targets": [
{
"expr": "avg by (region) (oran_capacity_headroom_percent)",
"legendFormat": "{{region}}",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"unit": "percent",
"thresholds": {
"steps": [
{"color": "red", "value": 0},
{"color": "yellow", "value": 20},
{"color": "green", "value": 50}
]
}
}
}
},
{
"id": 3,
"title": "Coverage Quality Matrix",
"type": "heatmap",
"targets": [
{
"expr": "oran_rf_health_score",
"format": "time_series",
"refId": "A"
}
],
"fieldConfig": {
"defaults": {
"custom": {
"hideFrom": {"legend": false, "tooltip": false, "vis": false}
},
"color": {"mode": "continuous-GrYlRd"}
}
}
}
]
}
}
Alert Rules
Configure Prometheus alerting rules for proactive monitoring:
# alerts/oran-alerts.yml
groups:
- name: oran_ptp_compliance
rules:
- alert: PTPComplianceCritical
expr: oran_ptp_compliance_score < 50
for: 2m
labels:
severity: critical
service: oran_timing
annotations:
summary: "PTP compliance critical on {{$labels.du_id}}"
description: "PTP compliance score is {{$value}}% on DU {{$labels.du_id}}, cell {{$labels.cell_id}}"
- alert: PTPOffsetHigh
expr: abs(oran_ptp_offset_nanoseconds) > 1000
for: 1m
labels:
severity: warning
service: oran_timing
annotations:
summary: "High PTP offset detected"
description: "PTP offset is {{$value}}ns on {{$labels.du_id}}"
- name: oran_capacity
rules:
- alert: PRBUtilizationHigh
expr: oran_prb_utilization_percent{direction="downlink"} > 90
for: 5m
labels:
severity: warning
service: oran_capacity
annotations:
summary: "High PRB utilization on {{$labels.du_id}}"
description: "DL PRB utilization is {{$value}}% on cell {{$labels.cell_id}}"
- alert: CongestedCellPredicted
expr: predict_linear(oran_prb_utilization_percent{direction="downlink"}[30m], 3600) > 95
for: 10m
labels:
severity: warning
service: oran_capacity
annotations:
summary: "Cell congestion predicted in 1 hour"
description: "PRB utilization on {{$labels.cell_id}} predicted to reach {{$value}}%"
- name: oran_rf_quality
rules:
- alert: RFQualityDegraded
expr: oran_rf_health_score < 40
for: 3m
labels:
severity: warning
service: oran_rf
annotations:
summary: "RF quality degraded on {{$labels.du_id}}"
description: "RF health score is {{$value}} on cell {{$labels.cell_id}}"
Dashboard Import Script
Automate dashboard deployment:
#!/bin/bash
# scripts/import-dashboards.sh
GRAFANA_URL="http://grafana:3000"
GRAFANA_TOKEN="your-api-token"
# Import O-RAN Operations Dashboard
curl -X POST \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ${GRAFANA_TOKEN}" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @dashboards/oran-operations.json \
"${GRAFANA_URL}/api/dashboards/db"
# Import PTP Compliance Dashboard
curl -X POST \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ${GRAFANA_TOKEN}" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @dashboards/oran-ptp-compliance.json \
"${GRAFANA_URL}/api/dashboards/db"
# Import Performance Analytics Dashboard
curl -X POST \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ${GRAFANA_TOKEN}" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d @dashboards/oran-performance.json \
"${GRAFANA_URL}/api/dashboards/db"
echo "Dashboards imported successfully"
Dashboard Variables
Configure template variables for dynamic filtering:
{
"templating": {
"list": [
{
"name": "region",
"type": "query",
"query": "label_values(oran_ptp_compliance_score, region)",
"refresh": 2,
"includeAll": true,
"allValue": ".*"
},
{
"name": "du_id",
"type": "query",
"query": "label_values(oran_ptp_compliance_score{region=~\"$region\"}, du_id)",
"refresh": 2,
"includeAll": true,
"multi": true
},
{
"name": "time_range",
"type": "custom",
"options": [
{"text": "Last 15 minutes", "value": "15m"},
{"text": "Last hour", "value": "1h"},
{"text": "Last 6 hours", "value": "6h"},
{"text": "Last 24 hours", "value": "24h"}
],
"current": {"text": "Last hour", "value": "1h"}
}
]
}
}
Next Steps
With Grafana dashboards providing real-time visibility, proceed to Parquet storage and Cloudera integration for long-term analytics capabilities.