Traces

MCP operation trace records

Ultra records a trace record for every MCP operation. Traces capture the full lifecycle of a request — what was called, what arguments were sent, what came back, and how long it took.

Trace Record Structure

Each trace record contains:

Field	Type	Description
id	string	Unique record identifier
trace_id	string	OpenTelemetry trace ID (shared across related operations)
span_id	string	OpenTelemetry span ID (unique to this operation)
parent_span_id	string	Parent span for nested operations
operation	string	Operation type (see below)
upstream	string	Name of the upstream server that handled the request
name	string	Tool, resource, or prompt name
request	JSON	Full request payload
response	JSON	Full response payload
status	string	"success" or "error"
error	string	Error message (if status is error)
duration	duration	How long the operation took (nanoseconds)
timestamp	datetime	When the operation occurred
metadata	map	Additional key-value metadata

Multi-Tenant Fields

When connected to Ultra Hub, traces also include:

Field	Description
workspace_id	Workspace this gateway belongs to
gateway_id	This gateway’s unique identifier

Operation Types

Type	Description
tool_call	An MCP tool was invoked
resource_read	An MCP resource was read
prompt_get	An MCP prompt was retrieved
tool_list	Client listed available tools
resource_list	Client listed available resources
prompt_list	Client listed available prompts

Querying Traces

Traces are stored locally and can be queried through the dashboard.

Dashboard

ultra dashboard

The dashboard at http://localhost:8080 provides:

• A list of all traces, sorted by timestamp
• Filtering by operation type, upstream server, status, and time range
• Full request/response payload inspection for each trace
• Duration and status breakdown

Aggregate Statistics

Aggregate statistics are computed over your traces:

• Total requests — Count of all operations
• Success/error counts — How many succeeded vs failed
• Average duration — Mean operation time
• Requests by type — Breakdown by operation type
• Requests by server — Breakdown by upstream server

OpenTelemetry Compatibility

Trace IDs and span IDs follow the W3C Trace Context specification, making Ultra traces compatible with any OpenTelemetry-compatible backend. See OTLP Export for configuration.