> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.honeycomb.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Triggers

> Get real-time alerts when your data crosses defined thresholds. Use Triggers to detect issues, monitor system health, and respond to anomalies before they impact users.

export const HnyIcon = ({alias, path, size = 16, iconColor}) => {
  const iconMap = {
    "home": "house.svg",
    "marker": "caretFilledDown.svg",
    "show-marker-options": "chatTextLeft.svg",
    "download": "arrowLineDown.svg",
    "trace-waterfall": "trace.svg",
    "show-query-details": "listDashes.svg",
    "table": "table.svg",
    "log-lines": "logLines.svg",
    "chart": "chartLine.svg",
    "show-settings": "gear.svg",
    "add": "plus.svg",
    "remove": "delete.svg",
    "persist": "caretDown.svg",
    "close": "close.svg",
    "copy": "copy.svg",
    "zoom-in": "magnifyingGlassPlus.svg",
    "zoom-out": "magnifyingGlassMinus.svg",
    "color-assignment": "drop.svg",
    "drag": "dots-six-vertical.svg",
    "drawer": "drawer.svg",
    "show-actions": "dotsThree.svg",
    "edit": "pencil.svg",
    "delete": "trash.svg",
    "move": "arrowsOutCardinal.svg",
    "show-legend": "circleInfo.svg",
    "usage-ok": "usageGood.svg",
    "usage-warning": "usageWarning.svg",
    "usage-danger": "usageDanger.svg",
    "open-query-builder": "query.svg",
    "home-menu": "house.svg",
    "query-menu": "query.svg",
    "boards-menu": "board.svg",
    "triggers-menu": "bell.svg",
    "slos-menu": "handshake.svg",
    "service-map-menu": "serviceMap.svg",
    "history-menu": "clockCounterClockwise.svg",
    "manage-data-menu": "cube.svg",
    "usage-menu": "usageGood.svg",
    "show-details": "dotsThreeVertical.svg",
    "resize-handle": "board-panel-resize-handle.png",
    "standard-dataset": "cube.svg",
    "trace-dataset": "cubeChat.svg",
    "all-datasets": "linkedSquares.svg",
    "share": "arrowBentRight.svg",
    "run-in-query-builder": "arrowSquareUpRight.svg",
    "link": "link.svg",
    "text": "text.svg",
    "receive": "arrowLineDown.svg",
    "process": "lightning.svg",
    "sample": "drop.svg",
    "send": "arrowLineUp.svg",
    "submit": "arrowUp.svg",
    "canvas-menu": "sparkle.svg",
    "canvas": "sparkle.svg",
    "private": "lockKey.svg",
    "shared": "people.svg",
    "expand": "caretDown.svg",
    "previous": "caretLeft.svg",
    "next": "caretRight.svg"
  };
  const iconBasePath = "/_assets/icons/";
  const iconPath = path || (alias ? `${iconBasePath}${iconMap[alias]}` : undefined);
  return <span className="hny-icon" style={{
    display: "inline-block",
    width: `${size}px`,
    height: `${size}px`,
    maskImage: `url(${iconPath})`,
    maskSize: "contain",
    maskRepeat: "no-repeat",
    maskPosition: "center",
    WebkitMaskImage: `url(${iconPath})`,
    WebkitMaskSize: "contain",
    WebkitMaskRepeat: "no-repeat",
    WebkitMaskPosition: "center",
    backgroundColor: iconColor || "var(--hny-icon-color)",
    verticalAlign: "middle"
  }} />;
};

export const CalloutLearn = ({children}) => {
  return <Callout icon="brain-circuit" color="#8B5CF6">
      {children}
    </Callout>;
};

<Badge className="hny-badge-beta" stroke>Beta</Badge>

Get notified when your data crosses critical thresholds.

## What is a Trigger?

Triggers let you receive notifications when your Honeycomb data crosses thresholds that you define.
They help you detect issues, monitor system health, and respond quickly to anomalies before they impact users.

You can configure triggers on any graph generated by a Honeycomb query, giving you flexibility to reduce false positives caused by known errors.

<Tip>
  To learn about guidelines for using SLOs and Triggers for alerting, visit [Guidelines for SLOs and Trigger Alerts](/get-started/best-practices/alerts/).
</Tip>

<CalloutLearn>
  For more structured learning, check out the [Triggers](https://academy.honeycomb.io/app/courses/a9febf06-6691-49c9-b466-3639a586767e) course from Honeycomb Academy.
</CalloutLearn>

## How Triggers Work

Triggers let you define conditions on your data and automatically notify you when those conditions are met.

### Duration and Frequency

Each Trigger monitors data over a set duration and runs at a defined frequency.

* **Duration**: Time window of data the trigger evaluates.
* **Frequency**: How often the trigger runs.

For example, a trigger with a duration of 5 minutes and a frequency of 2 minutes will check the last 5 minutes of data every 2 minutes.

### Notification Methods

When a trigger fires, it alerts you via the configured method(s).
Supported methods include:

* [PagerDuty](/notify/pagerduty/)
* [Slack](/notify/slack/)
* [Microsoft Teams](/notify/microsoft-teams/)
* [Webhooks](/notify/webhooks/)
* Email

Notifications include a direct link to the triggering graph, so you can see current status and quickly jump into investigation.

### Tags

Tags help you stay organized as your Team creates more Triggers.
Use them to group related Triggers by project, team, service, or any other category that fits your workflow.

Tags make it easier to filter and find the Triggers you need, especially in shared or busy environments.
Because they're flexible and customizable, you can organize Triggers in the way that works best for you.

### Limits and Upgrades

By default, users have two triggers available across all environments.
Upgrade to a [Pro or Enterprise plan](https://www.honeycomb.io/pricing) to increase your number of available Triggers.

## Common Use Cases

Teams use Triggers for a variety of monitoring purposes:

| Use Case                    | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
| --------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Lambda cost spikes          | Detect sudden increases in usage or billing. Track the cost of Lambda queries and alert when they exceed a defined "normal" range.                                                                                                                               |
| Database connection limits  | Prevent service interruptions. Determine your database connection limit, and alert when database connection counts approach or exceed that saturation threshold.                                                                                                 |
| Kubernetes component status | Monitor Kubernetes components. For example, monitor pod startup failures or delays that indicate deployment or infrastructure issues.                                                                                                                            |
| High login activity         | Identify unusual spikes in login attempts, helping identify security threats such as credential stuffing or brute-force attacks. Determine what qualifies as a high number of login attempts in your environment and alert when activity exceeds that threshold. |
| Internal operations check   | Confirm that critical operations, like CronJobs, ran successfully. Alert if the operation is missing or failed.                                                                                                                                                  |

## What's Next?

<Card title="Create a Trigger" href="/notify/triggers/create/">
  Create a trigger, define recipients, and activate a trigger using the Honeycomb UI.
</Card>

<Card title="Modify Triggers" href="/notify/triggers/modify/">
  Edit and delete triggers using the Honeycomb UI.
</Card>

<Card title="Trigger Examples" href="/notify/triggers/examples/">
  Explore examples of trigger notifications, which you can use as inspiration for defining and configuring your own triggers.
</Card>