newrelic/newrelic-java-agent
Nov 2024 – Apr 2026
18 Months active
Languages Used
GradleJavaYAMLMarkdownPropertiesShellGroovyJSON
Technical Skills
Build AutomationBuild Script ManagementJavaJava InstrumentationAgent DevelopmentCI/CD
John Bedell
PROFILE
John Bedell
Over 18 months, contributed to the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent repository by building and refining distributed tracing, observability, and cloud integration features for Java applications. Delivered enhancements such as Azure Service Bus instrumentation, CRaC checkpoint/restore support, and robust span event handling, focusing on reliability and production readiness. Applied Java, Gradle, and YAML to implement build automation, CI/CD optimizations, and test infrastructure improvements, reducing flakiness and deployment risk. Addressed compatibility with evolving cloud and datastore environments, clarified API behavior, and maintained code quality through targeted refactoring and documentation. The work enabled more accurate telemetry, faster releases, and improved maintainability for backend systems.
Overall Statistics
Feature vs Bugs
70%Features
Repository Contributions
120Total
Bugs
17
Commits
120
Features
40
Lines of code
5,687
Activity Months18
Your Network
327 peopleWork History
April 2026
2 Commits • 2 Features
Apr 1, 2026Month: 2026-04 Concise monthly summary for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent repository focusing on business value and technical achievement: Key features delivered: - Transport API Extension: Introduced Queue as a TransportType to align the API with customer specifications, enabling customers to route messages through a queue transport option. Commit: 6d8cdc5e4869a6ad155fa6be777c7397899990fa. - Transaction Error Handling Clarification: Added inline comments to clarify the logic around ignoreErrorPriority and its impact on error tracking, improving maintainability and reducing risk of misinterpretation. Commit: 7d9752ee8193cc8c0d8461ae715daa61db55ff0c. Major bugs fixed: - No major bugs fixed this month. Focus remained on API parity, feature delivery, and code clarity to reduce future risk. (If applicable, minor stability tweaks or documentation updates were reflected in commit messages above.) Overall impact and accomplishments: - API parity with customer specifications is improved, accelerating customer adoption and integration scenarios. - Improved code readability and maintainability, enabling faster onboarding for QA and future feature work. - Lays groundwork for subsequent QA validation and deeper integration testing with transport APIs. Technologies/skills demonstrated: - Java enum extension and API design to add Queue as a new TransportType. - Clear in-code documentation and comments to elucidate error handling logic, supporting maintainability and future contributions. - Alignment with customer specifications to ensure predictable integration points and reduce rework.
2 Commits • 2 Features
Apr 1, 2026Month: 2026-04 Concise monthly summary for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent repository focusing on business value and technical achievement: Key features delivered: - Transport API Extension: Introduced Queue as a TransportType to align the API with customer specifications, enabling customers to route messages through a queue transport option. Commit: 6d8cdc5e4869a6ad155fa6be777c7397899990fa. - Transaction Error Handling Clarification: Added inline comments to clarify the logic around ignoreErrorPriority and its impact on error tracking, improving maintainability and reducing risk of misinterpretation. Commit: 7d9752ee8193cc8c0d8461ae715daa61db55ff0c. Major bugs fixed: - No major bugs fixed this month. Focus remained on API parity, feature delivery, and code clarity to reduce future risk. (If applicable, minor stability tweaks or documentation updates were reflected in commit messages above.) Overall impact and accomplishments: - API parity with customer specifications is improved, accelerating customer adoption and integration scenarios. - Improved code readability and maintainability, enabling faster onboarding for QA and future feature work. - Lays groundwork for subsequent QA validation and deeper integration testing with transport APIs. Technologies/skills demonstrated: - Java enum extension and API design to add Queue as a new TransportType. - Clear in-code documentation and comments to elucidate error handling logic, supporting maintainability and future contributions. - Alignment with customer specifications to ensure predictable integration points and reduce rework.
April 2026
March 2026
5 Commits • 2 Features
Mar 1, 2026In 2026-03, the Java agent delivered two major features that strengthen observability, reliability, and cross-agent interoperability: 1) Distributed Tracing Improvements and Clarifications (JSON config alignment across agents; clarified async flag interaction with excluding traced methods); 2) SubscriptionWrapper for Token Expiration Management and Instrumentation Enhancements (introducing the wrapper, LambdaMonoSubscriber/LambdaSubscriber instrumentation using the wrapper; license headers added). These changes improve end-to-end trace accuracy, token lifecycle reliability, and cross-team interoperability, reducing debugging time and aligning with .NET cross-agent test findings.
March 2026
5 Commits • 2 Features
Mar 1, 2026In 2026-03, the Java agent delivered two major features that strengthen observability, reliability, and cross-agent interoperability: 1) Distributed Tracing Improvements and Clarifications (JSON config alignment across agents; clarified async flag interaction with excluding traced methods); 2) SubscriptionWrapper for Token Expiration Management and Instrumentation Enhancements (introducing the wrapper, LambdaMonoSubscriber/LambdaSubscriber instrumentation using the wrapper; license headers added). These changes improve end-to-end trace accuracy, token lifecycle reliability, and cross-team interoperability, reducing debugging time and aligning with .NET cross-agent test findings.
February 2026
2 Commits • 1 Features
Feb 1, 2026February 2026: Focused on stabilizing the Java agent instrumentation build and improving Glassfish compatibility to support OpenTelemetry integration across diverse bytecode scenarios. Key outcomes include reduced verification errors, lower deployment risk, and stronger alignment with Glassfish web-core requirements for instrumentation.
2 Commits • 1 Features
Feb 1, 2026February 2026: Focused on stabilizing the Java agent instrumentation build and improving Glassfish compatibility to support OpenTelemetry integration across diverse bytecode scenarios. Key outcomes include reduced verification errors, lower deployment risk, and stronger alignment with Glassfish web-core requirements for instrumentation.
February 2026
January 2026
17 Commits • 3 Features
Jan 1, 2026January 2026 (2026-01) monthly summary for repository newrelic/newrelic-java-agent. Overview: Focused on stabilizing test infrastructure, strengthening cross-agent tracing fidelity, and tightening build controls to support reliable instrumentation delivery. Key features delivered: - Test infrastructure and flaky testing framework improvements: forked JVM tests, CI flaky-test handling, test categorization, and cleanup of test workflows to reduce flakiness and improve stability. - Cross-Agent Distributed Tracing Improvements: enhancements to cross-agent tests and data handling, including partial granularity tests, span attribute management, and metric checks to improve tracing accuracy. - Build stability: Excluded milestone Pekko releases to ensure instrumentation uses only stable releases. - CI optimization: split unit tests into separate jobs to reduce batch times and improve isolation. Major bugs fixed: - Cross-Agent tracing span re-parenting in compact mode: fixed bug and improved consistency of parent-child relationship checks. Overall impact and accomplishments: - Significantly reduced test flakiness and CI noise, enabling faster and more reliable releases. - Improved tracing accuracy and reliability across agents, leading to better customer telemetry and actionable insights. - Stable build pipelines with restricted Pekko releases, reducing integration risk. Technologies/skills demonstrated: - Java agent development and instrumentation, test infrastructure engineering, distributed tracing concepts, cross-agent data modeling, CI/CD optimizations, and build configuration management. Top business value highlights: - Faster release cycles with higher confidence in telemetry. - More stable QA and staging environments due to reliable tests. - Clearer, more accurate end-to-end tracing across distributed services.
January 2026
17 Commits • 3 Features
Jan 1, 2026January 2026 (2026-01) monthly summary for repository newrelic/newrelic-java-agent. Overview: Focused on stabilizing test infrastructure, strengthening cross-agent tracing fidelity, and tightening build controls to support reliable instrumentation delivery. Key features delivered: - Test infrastructure and flaky testing framework improvements: forked JVM tests, CI flaky-test handling, test categorization, and cleanup of test workflows to reduce flakiness and improve stability. - Cross-Agent Distributed Tracing Improvements: enhancements to cross-agent tests and data handling, including partial granularity tests, span attribute management, and metric checks to improve tracing accuracy. - Build stability: Excluded milestone Pekko releases to ensure instrumentation uses only stable releases. - CI optimization: split unit tests into separate jobs to reduce batch times and improve isolation. Major bugs fixed: - Cross-Agent tracing span re-parenting in compact mode: fixed bug and improved consistency of parent-child relationship checks. Overall impact and accomplishments: - Significantly reduced test flakiness and CI noise, enabling faster and more reliable releases. - Improved tracing accuracy and reliability across agents, leading to better customer telemetry and actionable insights. - Stable build pipelines with restricted Pekko releases, reducing integration risk. Technologies/skills demonstrated: - Java agent development and instrumentation, test infrastructure engineering, distributed tracing concepts, cross-agent data modeling, CI/CD optimizations, and build configuration management. Top business value highlights: - Faster release cycles with higher confidence in telemetry. - More stable QA and staging environments due to reliable tests. - Clearer, more accurate end-to-end tracing across distributed services.
December 2025
8 Commits • 2 Features
Dec 1, 2025December 2025 — Key deliverables and impact for newrelic-java-agent: - Key features delivered: - Cross-Process Tracing Mode Cleanup: unified span event handling by removing Cross Process Only mode; fixed NPE in cross-process root span creation; guarded adding the root span to the list only when non-null. - Observability Enhancements for Distributed Tracing: added root span attribute nr.pg and introduced a supportability metric for partial granularity type to improve observability and performance tracking. - Major bugs fixed / maintenance: - Maintenance and quality improvements: fixed SQL Trace test delta accuracy; corrected a logging typo for merged spans; added Glassfish version exclusions; aligned instrumentation verify workflow with Java 17 for build/CI stability. - Overall impact and accomplishments: - Increased stability and reliability of distributed tracing across process boundaries; enhanced observability and performance visibility; improved CI stability and Java 17 compatibility, reducing production risk and enabling smoother deployments. - Technologies / skills demonstrated: - Java, distributed tracing instrumentation, observability telemetry (root span attributes, supportability metrics), test precision, CI stability, Java 17 compatibility, build/instrumentation verification. - Business value: - Reduced MTTR for tracing issues, better diagnostics for distributed traces, and stronger CI readiness for Java 17 environments.
8 Commits • 2 Features
Dec 1, 2025December 2025 — Key deliverables and impact for newrelic-java-agent: - Key features delivered: - Cross-Process Tracing Mode Cleanup: unified span event handling by removing Cross Process Only mode; fixed NPE in cross-process root span creation; guarded adding the root span to the list only when non-null. - Observability Enhancements for Distributed Tracing: added root span attribute nr.pg and introduced a supportability metric for partial granularity type to improve observability and performance tracking. - Major bugs fixed / maintenance: - Maintenance and quality improvements: fixed SQL Trace test delta accuracy; corrected a logging typo for merged spans; added Glassfish version exclusions; aligned instrumentation verify workflow with Java 17 for build/CI stability. - Overall impact and accomplishments: - Increased stability and reliability of distributed tracing across process boundaries; enhanced observability and performance visibility; improved CI stability and Java 17 compatibility, reducing production risk and enabling smoother deployments. - Technologies / skills demonstrated: - Java, distributed tracing instrumentation, observability telemetry (root span attributes, supportability metrics), test precision, CI stability, Java 17 compatibility, build/instrumentation verification. - Business value: - Reduced MTTR for tracing issues, better diagnostics for distributed traces, and stronger CI readiness for Java 17 environments.
December 2025
November 2025
5 Commits • 1 Features
Nov 1, 2025November 2025: Delivered targeted span telemetry improvements in the New Relic Java Agent to improve data quality and debugging efficiency. Key features include partial granularity for span attributes with preserved hierarchy and LLM spans in non-COMPACT modes, enhanced observability via debug logging, and a clarified getStartTimestamp API. Also fixed floating-point precision issues in span durations and corrected start time handling to ensure reliable timing data. These changes enhance data accuracy for SLA tracking, incident analysis, and product decisions, supported by focused unit tests to prevent regressions.
November 2025
5 Commits • 1 Features
Nov 1, 2025November 2025: Delivered targeted span telemetry improvements in the New Relic Java Agent to improve data quality and debugging efficiency. Key features include partial granularity for span attributes with preserved hierarchy and LLM spans in non-COMPACT modes, enhanced observability via debug logging, and a clarified getStartTimestamp API. Also fixed floating-point precision issues in span durations and corrected start time handling to ensure reliable timing data. These changes enhance data accuracy for SLA tracking, incident analysis, and product decisions, supported by focused unit tests to prevent regressions.
October 2025
2 Commits • 1 Features
Oct 1, 2025October 2025: Focused on enhancing datastore multi-host detection flexibility and test reliability in the Java agent. Delivered configurable datastore_multihost_preference with NONE (legacy), FIRST, and LAST, improved detection logging, and strengthened test coverage for Azure App Services scenarios.
2 Commits • 1 Features
Oct 1, 2025October 2025: Focused on enhancing datastore multi-host detection flexibility and test reliability in the Java agent. Delivered configurable datastore_multihost_preference with NONE (legacy), FIRST, and LAST, improved detection logging, and strengthened test coverage for Azure App Services scenarios.
October 2025
September 2025
4 Commits • 2 Features
Sep 1, 2025Concise monthly summary for 2025-09 for repository newrelic/newrelic-java-agent: Key features delivered include release housekeeping for agent 8.25.0 and log cleanup, Redis instrumentation compatibility adjustments for Lettuce 6.x, and a robustness improvement with null handling in RPMService.toInt. These changes enhance observability, stability, and compatibility with evolving Redis clients, while maintaining release hygiene and developer experience.
September 2025
4 Commits • 2 Features
Sep 1, 2025Concise monthly summary for 2025-09 for repository newrelic/newrelic-java-agent: Key features delivered include release housekeeping for agent 8.25.0 and log cleanup, Redis instrumentation compatibility adjustments for Lettuce 6.x, and a robustness improvement with null handling in RPMService.toInt. These changes enhance observability, stability, and compatibility with evolving Redis clients, while maintaining release hygiene and developer experience.
August 2025
2 Commits • 1 Features
Aug 1, 2025Concise monthly summary for 2025-08 focusing on key accomplishments, major fixes, and business impact.
2 Commits • 1 Features
Aug 1, 2025Concise monthly summary for 2025-08 focusing on key accomplishments, major fixes, and business impact.
August 2025
July 2025
1 Commits
Jul 1, 2025Monthly work summary for 2025-07 focused on the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent repo. Delivered a targeted bug fix addressing Service Bus instrumentation null safety, reinforcing stability of distributed tracing integration and reducing potential runtime errors.
July 2025
1 Commits
Jul 1, 2025Monthly work summary for 2025-07 focused on the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent repo. Delivered a targeted bug fix addressing Service Bus instrumentation null safety, reinforcing stability of distributed tracing integration and reducing potential runtime errors.
June 2025
3 Commits • 2 Features
Jun 1, 2025June 2025 monthly summary for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent focusing on expanding observability for Azure-based workloads. Key features delivered include Azure Service Bus Instrumentation for Tracing and Monitoring and Azure App Service Utilization Detection and Reporting, enhancing end-to-end visibility across messaging and hosting environments. Major bugs fixed: none reported in the tracked items for this month; minor fixes were handled via cleanup commits. Overall impact: improved traceability of Azure Service Bus workflows, richer utilization data for Azure App Services, and a stronger foundation for capacity planning and incident response. Technologies/skills demonstrated: Java instrumentation patterns, tracing/metrics generation, header manipulation utilities, environment/vendor detection, and structured telemetry payloads for Azure."
3 Commits • 2 Features
Jun 1, 2025June 2025 monthly summary for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent focusing on expanding observability for Azure-based workloads. Key features delivered include Azure Service Bus Instrumentation for Tracing and Monitoring and Azure App Service Utilization Detection and Reporting, enhancing end-to-end visibility across messaging and hosting environments. Major bugs fixed: none reported in the tracked items for this month; minor fixes were handled via cleanup commits. Overall impact: improved traceability of Azure Service Bus workflows, richer utilization data for Azure App Services, and a stronger foundation for capacity planning and incident response. Technologies/skills demonstrated: Java instrumentation patterns, tracing/metrics generation, header manipulation utilities, environment/vendor detection, and structured telemetry payloads for Azure."
June 2025
May 2025
9 Commits • 2 Features
May 1, 2025May 2025 monthly performance summary for newrelic/newrelic-java-agent: Focused on stabilizing the build and CI pipeline while delivering critical packaging and test environment improvements that drive business value through more reliable releases and faster feedback.
May 2025
9 Commits • 2 Features
May 1, 2025May 2025 monthly performance summary for newrelic/newrelic-java-agent: Focused on stabilizing the build and CI pipeline while delivering critical packaging and test environment improvements that drive business value through more reliable releases and faster feedback.
April 2025
3 Commits • 1 Features
Apr 1, 2025April 2025: Delivered reliability and maintainability improvements to the distributed tracing capabilities of the Java agent (newrelic/newrelic-java-agent). Work focused on header parsing cleanup, clearer API renaming for tracing sampler config, and fixes to configuration assembly for sampler properties and instrumentation version compatibility. These changes reduce runtime noise, improve trace accuracy, and simplify configuration for operators and CI pipelines.
3 Commits • 1 Features
Apr 1, 2025April 2025: Delivered reliability and maintainability improvements to the distributed tracing capabilities of the Java agent (newrelic/newrelic-java-agent). Work focused on header parsing cleanup, clearer API renaming for tracing sampler config, and fixes to configuration assembly for sampler properties and instrumentation version compatibility. These changes reduce runtime noise, improve trace accuracy, and simplify configuration for operators and CI pipelines.
April 2025
March 2025
8 Commits • 3 Features
Mar 1, 2025March 2025: Delivered cross-environment CRaC resume, enhanced distributed tracing with W3C TraceParent support and granular sampling, and significantly improved observability. Fixed a critical CRaC metrics increment bug, boosting metric accuracy and monitoring reliability across environments. These efforts strengthen reliability, performance diagnostics, and cross-environment resilience for the Java agent.
March 2025
8 Commits • 3 Features
Mar 1, 2025March 2025: Delivered cross-environment CRaC resume, enhanced distributed tracing with W3C TraceParent support and granular sampling, and significantly improved observability. Fixed a critical CRaC metrics increment bug, boosting metric accuracy and monitoring reliability across environments. These efforts strengthen reliability, performance diagnostics, and cross-environment resilience for the Java agent.
February 2025
4 Commits • 1 Features
Feb 1, 2025February 2025 monthly summary for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent focused on delivering stateful, low-downtime checkpoint/restore capabilities through CRaC integration. Completed core integration, lifecycle management for HTTP client connections, and observability improvements to support reliable restarts. Included the CRaC library in shadow jars and ensured proper resource handling (e.g., closing temporary files created by class transformation). Implemented CRaC API support in Log4jLogger to gracefully shutdown and restart logging components. Added metrics and clearer logging around CRaC operations and performed code cleanup in preparation for full CRaC support. This work lays the foundation for faster recovery, reduced downtime, and improved reliability in production restarts.
4 Commits • 1 Features
Feb 1, 2025February 2025 monthly summary for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent focused on delivering stateful, low-downtime checkpoint/restore capabilities through CRaC integration. Completed core integration, lifecycle management for HTTP client connections, and observability improvements to support reliable restarts. Included the CRaC library in shadow jars and ensured proper resource handling (e.g., closing temporary files created by class transformation). Implemented CRaC API support in Log4jLogger to gracefully shutdown and restart logging components. Added metrics and clearer logging around CRaC operations and performed code cleanup in preparation for full CRaC support. This work lays the foundation for faster recovery, reduced downtime, and improved reliability in production restarts.
February 2025
January 2025
3 Commits • 1 Features
Jan 1, 2025January 2025 monthly summary for the repository newrelic/newrelic-java-agent. Focused on delivering a stable release and improving test reliability, with clear traceability of changes and demonstration of release-oriented skills. Key features delivered: - Version bump to 8.19.0 and CHANGELOG entry for 8.18.0 describing new features and fixes. Major bugs fixed: - Reverted temporary debugging changes in the test suite to restore clean test behavior: removed a commented-out conditional in GHA-Unit-Tests.yaml and a test helper method in AsyncTransactionService.java. Overall impact and accomplishments: - Stabilized CI and test suite, reducing flaky test runs and lowering risk for production deployments. - Enabled faster, safer release cycles by maintaining a clear change history and release notes for the 8.x line. Technologies/skills demonstrated: - Java and Gradle-based versioning, YAML-based CI configuration, changelog maintenance, and test hygiene. - Clear traceability of changes through commit messages and release notes.
January 2025
3 Commits • 1 Features
Jan 1, 2025January 2025 monthly summary for the repository newrelic/newrelic-java-agent. Focused on delivering a stable release and improving test reliability, with clear traceability of changes and demonstration of release-oriented skills. Key features delivered: - Version bump to 8.19.0 and CHANGELOG entry for 8.18.0 describing new features and fixes. Major bugs fixed: - Reverted temporary debugging changes in the test suite to restore clean test behavior: removed a commented-out conditional in GHA-Unit-Tests.yaml and a test helper method in AsyncTransactionService.java. Overall impact and accomplishments: - Stabilized CI and test suite, reducing flaky test runs and lowering risk for production deployments. - Enabled faster, safer release cycles by maintaining a clear change history and release notes for the 8.x line. Technologies/skills demonstrated: - Java and Gradle-based versioning, YAML-based CI configuration, changelog maintenance, and test hygiene. - Clear traceability of changes through commit messages and release notes.
December 2024
40 Commits • 14 Features
Dec 1, 2024December 2024 monthly summary for newrelic/newrelic-java-agent highlighting stability, observability, and CI reliability improvements across the repository. Delivered memory optimizations for database modules, expanded test coverage through stress testing, enhanced logging and diagnostics, and strengthened build reporting. Implemented CI workflow refinements to reduce redundant runs, improved determinism in tests, and adopted forked JVM execution to address flakiness. Fixed key reliability bugs and improved timeout handling and input validation, contributing to a more robust Java agent and faster feedback loop for downstream users.
40 Commits • 14 Features
Dec 1, 2024December 2024 monthly summary for newrelic/newrelic-java-agent highlighting stability, observability, and CI reliability improvements across the repository. Delivered memory optimizations for database modules, expanded test coverage through stress testing, enhanced logging and diagnostics, and strengthened build reporting. Implemented CI workflow refinements to reduce redundant runs, improved determinism in tests, and adopted forked JVM execution to address flakiness. Fixed key reliability bugs and improved timeout handling and input validation, contributing to a more robust Java agent and faster feedback loop for downstream users.
December 2024
November 2024
2 Commits • 1 Features
Nov 1, 2024November 2024 monthly summary focused on stabilizing Vert.x instrumentation in the Java agent for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent. Implemented targeted version gating to instrument only stable Vert.x core/web releases and excluded release candidates to reduce risk from unstable milestones. Also fixed an instrumentation gating issue by correcting the passesOnly clause, preventing incorrect passes and potential performance impact. The work improves reliability, reduces false positives, and strengthens production observability for Java applications using Vert.x.
November 2024
2 Commits • 1 Features
Nov 1, 2024November 2024 monthly summary focused on stabilizing Vert.x instrumentation in the Java agent for the newrelic/newrelic-java-agent. Implemented targeted version gating to instrument only stable Vert.x core/web releases and excluded release candidates to reduce risk from unstable milestones. Also fixed an instrumentation gating issue by correcting the passesOnly clause, preventing incorrect passes and potential performance impact. The work improves reliability, reduces false positives, and strengthens production observability for Java applications using Vert.x.
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Quality Metrics
Correctness88.0%
Maintainability88.6%
Architecture82.4%
Performance80.8%
AI Usage20.6%
Skills & Technologies
Programming Languages
GradleGroovyJSONJavaMarkdownPropertiesShellYAML
Technical Skills
API DevelopmentAPI developmentAgent DevelopmentAgent InstrumentationAnnotation ProcessingAzure Service BusBackend DevelopmentBuild AutomationBuild Script ManagementCI/CDCRaCCheckpoint/RestoreCloud IntegrationCode CleanupCode Refactoring
Repositories Contributed To
Overview of all repositories you've contributed to across your timeline