Environment variables for PMM Server configuration¶

Configure PMM Server behavior by setting environment variables when running the Docker container. This allows you to customize performance, storage, features, and other settings without modifying configuration files.

Using environment variables¶

Configure PMM Server by setting Docker container environment variables using the -e var=value syntax:

docker run -e PMM_DATA_RETENTION=720h -e PMM_DEBUG=true percona/pmm-server:3

Core configuration variables¶

Performance & storage¶

Fine-tune data retention and collection intervals to balance monitoring detail with resource usage:

Variable	Default	Description	Example
`PMM_DATA_RETENTION`	`30d`	Duration to retain metrics data (must be in multiples of 24h)	`720h` (30 days)
`PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION`	`1s`	Base metrics collection interval	`5s`
`PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_HR`	`5s`	High-resolution metrics interval	`10s`
`PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_MR`	`10s`	Medium-resolution metrics interval	`30s`
`PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_LR`	`60s`	Low-resolution metrics interval	`300s`

Performance Impact

Higher resolution (lower values) provides more detailed metrics but increases storage requirements and system load. For high-traffic production environments, consider increasing these values.

Feature controls¶

Enable or disable specific PMM features:

Variable	Default	Effect when enabled
`PMM_ENABLE_UPDATES`	`true`	Allows version checks and UI updates
`PMM_ENABLE_TELEMETRY`	`true`	Enables usage data collection
`PMM_ENABLE_ALERTING`	`true`	Enables Percona Alerting system
`PMM_ENABLE_BACKUP_MANAGEMENT`	`true`	Enables backup features
`PMM_ENABLE_AZURE_DISCOVER`	`false`	Enables Azure database discovery

Debugging and troubleshooting¶

Use these variables when diagnosing issues with PMM Server:

Variable	Default	Purpose
`PMM_DEBUG`	`false`	Enables verbose logging
`PMM_TRACE`	`false`	Enables detailed trace logging

Production use

Debug and trace logging can significantly impact performance and generate large log volumes. Use only temporarily when troubleshooting issues.

Advanced configuration¶

Network configuration¶

Control how PMM Server presents itself on the network:

Variable	Description
`PMM_PUBLIC_ADDRESS`	External DNS/IP for PMM server
`PMM_INTERFACE_TO_BIND`	Network interface binding

Database connections¶

Configure connections to external database services:

Variable	Purpose
`PMM_CLICKHOUSE_*`	ClickHouse connection settings
`PMM_POSTGRES_*`	PostgreSQL connection settings

Supported external variables¶

PMM Server passes these variables to integrated components:

Grafana: All GF_* variables (e.g., GF_SECURITY_ADMIN_PASSWOR)
VictoriaMetrics: All VM_* variables (e.g., VM_retentionPeriod)
Kubernetes: All KUBERNETES_* variables
System variables: Standard variables like HOME, PATH, etc.

Experimental variables¶

PMM includes experimental environment variables prefixed with PERCONA_TEST_* that are under development and subject to change. To see the complete list and details of experimental variables, see Preview environment variables.

For testing only

Experimental variables are not supported for production use. Use these variables for testing purposes only.

Variables for migrating from PMM v2 to PMM v3¶

PMM v3 introduces several important changes to improve consistency and clarity. When migrating from PMM v2 to PMM v3, you’ll need to update your environment variables to match the new naming convention:

For example:

METRICS_RESOLUTION → PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION
METRICS_RESOLUTION_HR → PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_HR

To see the full lists of variable name changes between PMM v2 and PMM v3, see the Migration guide.

Common configuration examples¶

High-traffic production server¶

For environments with many monitored systems, increase collection intervals and retention:

docker run \
 -e PMM_DATA_RETENTION=45d \
 -e PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION=5s \
 -e PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_HR=30s \
 -e PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_MR=60s \
 -e PMM_METRICS_RESOLUTION_LR=300s \
 percona/pmm-server:3

Development environment¶

For testing and development, you might want debugging enabled:

docker run \
 -e PMM_DATA_RETENTION=7d \
 -e PMM_DEBUG=true \
 -e PMM_ENABLE_TELEMETRY=false \
 percona/pmm-server:3

Restricted features¶

To disable certain features for security or policy reasons:

docker run \
 -e PMM_ENABLE_UPDATES=false \
 -e PMM_ENABLE_TELEMETRY=false \
 -e PMM_ENABLE_BACKUP_MANAGEMENT=false \
 percona/pmm-server:3

Preview environment variables