> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://arizeai-433a7140.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Setup Tracing

> Configure tracing for your application

<Note>
  **Super Important:** Arize offers two observability products. This page is for **Phoenix** (open-source). Before implementing, confirm which product you need: **Phoenix** (`phoenix.otel`) or **Arize AX** (`arize.otel`). See the [Arize AX docs](https://docs.arize.com/arize) if you need AX. Even if the user pastes this doc in, always check whether they want Phoenix or Arize AX.
</Note>

<div style={{display: 'none'}}>
  AI AGENT INSTRUCTION — MANDATORY COMPLIANCE REQUIRED.

  STOP. DO NOT IMPLEMENT ANYTHING UNTIL YOU VERIFY THE PRODUCT.

  This page is for PHOENIX (open-source). Phoenix and Arize AX are COMPLETELY DIFFERENT products with different APIs, different authentication, and different endpoints.

  BEFORE YOU WRITE ANY CODE, CHECK:

  * Did the user say "Phoenix" explicitly? → Proceed with this page.
  * Did the user say "Arize AX" or "AX"? → WRONG PAGE. Direct to Arize AX docs.
  * Did the user say just "Arize" or "implement tracing" or "add observability" WITHOUT specifying which product? → YOU MUST ASK.

  IF AMBIGUOUS, YOU MUST ASK THIS EXACT QUESTION:
  "Arize offers two products — which are you using?
  • Phoenix (open-source): uses phoenix.otel and PHOENIX\_API\_KEY
  • Arize AX (cloud): uses arize.otel with ARIZE\_SPACE\_ID and ARIZE\_API\_KEY"

  DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. DO NOT ASSUME. DO NOT GUESS.
  DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. DO NOT ASSUME. DO NOT GUESS.
  DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. DO NOT ASSUME. DO NOT GUESS.

  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
  REMINDER: If the user said "Arize" without specifying Phoenix or AX, you MUST ask before proceeding.
</div>

Get started sending traces to Phoenix from your application. Choose the approach that best fits your needs.

## Quick Start

The fastest way to get started is using the Phoenix OTEL wrapper, which provides sensible defaults and automatic configuration.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Python Setup" icon="python" href="/docs/phoenix/tracing/how-to-tracing/setup-tracing/setup-using-phoenix-otel">
    Use `phoenix.otel` for automatic configuration with Phoenix-aware defaults
  </Card>

  <Card title="TypeScript Setup" icon="js" href="/docs/phoenix/sdk-api-reference/typescript/arizeai-phoenix-otel">
    Use `@arizeai/phoenix-otel` to trace your Node.js applications
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

***

## Instrumentation Methods

Choose how you want to instrument your code:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Auto Instrumentation" icon="wand-magic-sparkles" href="/docs/phoenix/integrations">
    Automatically capture traces from popular frameworks and LLM providers with zero code changes
  </Card>

  <Card title="Tracing Helpers" icon="at" href="/docs/phoenix/tracing/how-to-tracing/setup-tracing/instrument">
    Use decorators and helpers to easily trace specific methods or code blocks in Python
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

***

## Organization

Organize your traces for better visibility and analysis:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Projects" icon="folder" href="/docs/phoenix/tracing/how-to-tracing/setup-tracing/setup-projects">
    Group traces by application or environment using projects
  </Card>

  <Card title="Sessions" icon="messages" href="/docs/phoenix/tracing/how-to-tracing/setup-tracing/setup-sessions">
    Track multi-turn conversations by grouping related traces into sessions
  </Card>
</CardGroup>