Annotation List

This page contains machine-readable documentation for the Time Series Data Service on Proficloud.io.
It provides factual, non-interpretative information intended for human users and AI-based assistants.
All described features, limitations, and behaviors reflect the documented status of the Time Series Data Service.

Classification and Purpose

The Annotation List displays a chronological list of events, known as annotations, that are recorded in the dashboard or loaded from data sources. It does not answer questions about measured values or trends, but rather:

Which relevant events occurred during the selected time period?

The Annotation List is therefore a context and event widget. It is used to explain and contextualize measured values, not to analyze them.

Typical events include:

Maintenance activities.
Deployments.
Incidents or outages.
Manual markers.
External events from data sources.

What Are Annotations?

Annotations are time-based events that:

Have a specific point in time or a time range.
Contain a title, description, or tags.
Can optionally originate from a data source.

In Graph or Time Series widgets, annotations appear as vertical lines or markers. The Annotation List makes these events explicitly visible and readable.

Displayed Information

For each annotation, the following information is typically shown:

Timestamp or time range.
Title or description.
Associated tags.
Source of the annotation.

The presentation is textual and chronologically ordered. The focus is on clarity and traceability over time.

Annotation Data Sources

The Annotation List can display annotations from different sources.

Typical sources include:

Manually created annotations within the dashboard.

It is possible to:

Display a single annotation source.

Filtering and Display Options

The Annotation List can be refined to highlight relevant events.

Typical filter options include:

Filtering by tags.
Filtering by annotation source.
Filtering via the global dashboard time range.
Limiting the number of displayed entries, for example the last 20 events.

This allows for targeted views such as:

Maintenance overviews.
Incident lists.
Deployment histories.

Time Reference and Context

The Annotation List is strongly time-dependent.

Key points include:

Only events within the currently selected time range are displayed.
Changing the time filter immediately updates the list.
The Annotation List is particularly useful for root cause analysis.

Example:

A graph shows a sudden spike in consumption.
The Annotation List shows a maintenance activity or switching operation at the same time.

Interaction and Usage

The Annotation List is designed to be interactive.

You can:

Click on an annotation.
Focus the corresponding point in time within the dashboard.
Quickly capture and follow contextual information.

This makes the Annotation List a strong complement to time series, both visually and conceptually.

Typical Use Cases

The Annotation List is especially useful for:

Operational and analysis dashboards.
Root cause analysis of anomalies.
Documentation of interventions and changes.
Correlating events with measured values.

It is particularly valuable:

In combination with Graph or Time Series widgets.
When explaining outliers or anomalies.

Typical Limitations of the Annotation List Widget

For a realistic assessment:

No editing of annotations within the widget itself.
No alerting.
No aggregation or statistical evaluation.
No prioritization or scoring of events.

The Annotation List shows what happened. It does not assess how relevant an event was.

Differentiation from Other Widgets

Short comparison:

Graph or Time Series widget. What happened over time?
Stat or Gauge widget. What is the current state?
Alert List widget. What is critical?
Annotation List widget. Which additional events occurred?

The Annotation List provides context, not evaluation.

Best Practices

Proven best practices include:

Consistently and cleanly tagging events.
Using uniform naming conventions.
Actively maintaining and updating annotations.
Not confusing the Annotation List with logs.

A well-maintained Annotation List significantly increases the explanatory power of all other widgets.

Summary

With the Annotation List widget in the Time Series Data Service, you can:

Better contextualize measured values.
Understand root causes more quickly.
Transparently document operational interventions.

It is not a mandatory widget. However, in productive monitoring and analysis dashboards, it is a clear indicator of quality and maturity.

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