sentry-python-sdk

All Skills > SDK Setup > Python SDK

Sentry Python SDK

Opinionated wizard that scans your Python project and guides you through complete Sentry setup.

Invoke This Skill When

• User asks to "add Sentry to Python" or "setup Sentry" in a Python app
• User wants error monitoring, tracing, profiling, logging, metrics, or crons in Python
• User mentions sentry-sdk, sentry_sdk, or Sentry + any Python framework
• User wants to monitor Django views, Flask routes, FastAPI endpoints, Celery tasks, or scheduled jobs

Note: SDK versions and APIs below reflect Sentry docs at time of writing (sentry-sdk 2.x). Always verify against docs.sentry.io/platforms/python/ before implementing.

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Phase 1: Detect

Run these commands to understand the project before making recommendations:

# Check existing Sentry
grep -i sentry requirements.txt pyproject.toml setup.cfg setup.py 2>/dev/null

# Detect web framework
grep -rE "django|flask|fastapi|starlette|aiohttp|tornado|quart|falcon|sanic|bottle" \
  requirements.txt pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null

# Detect task queues
grep -rE "celery|rq|huey|arq|dramatiq" requirements.txt pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null

# Detect logging libraries
grep -E "loguru" requirements.txt pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null

# Detect AI libraries
grep -rE "openai|anthropic|langchain|huggingface|google-genai|pydantic-ai|litellm" \
  requirements.txt pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null

# Detect schedulers / crons
grep -rE "celery|apscheduler|schedule|crontab" requirements.txt pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null

# OpenTelemetry tracing — check for SDK + instrumentations
grep -rE "opentelemetry-sdk|opentelemetry-instrumentation|opentelemetry-distro" \
  requirements.txt pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null
grep -rn "TracerProvider\|trace\.get_tracer\|start_as_current_span" \
  --include="*.py" 2>/dev/null | head -5

# Check for companion frontend
ls frontend/ web/ client/ ui/ static/ templates/ 2>/dev/null

What to note:

• Is sentry-sdk already in requirements? If yes, check if sentry_sdk.init() is present — may just need feature config.
• Which framework? (Determines where to place sentry_sdk.init().)
• Which task queue? (Celery needs dual-process init; RQ needs a settings file.)
• AI libraries? (OpenAI, Anthropic, LangChain are auto-instrumented.)
• OpenTelemetry tracing? (Use OTLP path instead of native tracing.)
• Companion frontend? (Triggers Phase 4 cross-link.)

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Phase 2: Recommend

Based on what you found, present a concrete proposal. Don't ask open-ended questions — lead with a recommendation:

Route from OTel detection:

• OTel tracing detected (opentelemetry-sdk / opentelemetry-distro in requirements, or TracerProvider in source) → use OTLP path: OTLPIntegration(); do not set traces_sample_rate; Sentry links errors to OTel traces automatically

Always recommended (core coverage):

• ✅ Error Monitoring — captures unhandled exceptions, supports ExceptionGroup (Python 3.11+)
• ✅ Logging — Python logging stdlib auto-captured; enhanced if Loguru detected

Recommend when detected:

• ✅ Tracing — HTTP framework detected (Django/Flask/FastAPI/etc.)
• ✅ AI Monitoring — OpenAI/Anthropic/LangChain/etc. detected (auto-instrumented, zero config)
• ⚡ Profiling — production apps where performance matters; not available with OTLP path
• ⚡ Crons — Celery Beat, APScheduler, or cron patterns detected
• ⚡ Metrics — business KPIs, SLO tracking

Recommendation matrix:

OTel tracing detected: "I see OpenTelemetry tracing in the project. I recommend Sentry's OTLP integration for tracing (via your existing OTel setup) + Error Monitoring + Sentry Logging [+ Metrics/Crons/AI Monitoring if applicable]. Shall I proceed?"

No OTel: "I recommend Error Monitoring + Tracing [+ Logging if applicable]. Want Profiling, Crons, or AI Monitoring too?"

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Phase 3: Guide

Install

# Core SDK (always required)
pip install sentry-sdk

# Optional extras (install only what matches detected framework):
pip install "sentry-sdk[django]"
pip install "sentry-sdk[flask]"
pip install "sentry-sdk[fastapi]"
pip install "sentry-sdk[celery]"
pip install "sentry-sdk[aiohttp]"
pip install "sentry-sdk[tornado]"

# Multiple extras:
pip install "sentry-sdk[django,celery]"

Extras are optional — plain sentry-sdk works for all frameworks. Extras install complementary packages.

Quick Start — Recommended Init

Full init enabling the most features with sensible defaults. Place before any app/framework code:

import sentry_sdk

sentry_sdk.init(
    dsn=os.environ["SENTRY_DSN"],
    environment=os.environ.get("SENTRY_ENVIRONMENT", "production"),
    release=os.environ.get("SENTRY_RELEASE"),   # e.g. "myapp@1.0.0"
    send_default_pii=True,

    # Tracing (lower to 0.1–0.2 in high-traffic production)
    traces_sample_rate=1.0,

    # Profiling — continuous, tied to active spans
    profile_session_sample_rate=1.0,
    profile_lifecycle="trace",

    # Structured logs (SDK ≥ 2.35.0)
    enable_logs=True,
)

Where to Initialize Per Framework

Django example (settings.py):

import sentry_sdk

sentry_sdk.init(
    dsn=os.environ["SENTRY_DSN"],
    send_default_pii=True,
    traces_sample_rate=1.0,
    profile_session_sample_rate=1.0,
    profile_lifecycle="trace",
    enable_logs=True,
)

# rest of Django settings...
INSTALLED_APPS = [...]

FastAPI example (main.py):

import sentry_sdk

sentry_sdk.init(
    dsn=os.environ["SENTRY_DSN"],
    send_default_pii=True,
    traces_sample_rate=1.0,
    profile_session_sample_rate=1.0,
    profile_lifecycle="trace",
    enable_logs=True,
)

from fastapi import FastAPI
app = FastAPI()

Auto-Enabled vs Explicit Integrations

Most integrations activate automatically when their package is installed — no integrations=[...] needed:

For Each Agreed Feature

Walk through features one at a time. Load the reference, follow its steps, verify before moving on:

For each feature: Read ${SKILL_ROOT}/references/<feature>.md, follow steps exactly, verify it works.

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Configuration Reference

Key sentry_sdk.init() Options

OTLPIntegration Options (pass to constructor)

Environment Variables

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Verification

Test that Sentry is receiving events:

# Trigger a real error event — check dashboard within seconds
division_by_zero = 1 / 0

Or for a non-crashing check:

sentry_sdk.capture_message("Sentry Python SDK test")

If nothing appears:

1. Set debug=True in sentry_sdk.init() — prints SDK internals to stdout
2. Verify the DSN is correct
3. Check SENTRY_DSN env var is set in the running process
4. For Celery/RQ: ensure init runs in the worker process, not just the calling process

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Phase 4: Cross-Link

After completing Python setup, check for a companion frontend missing Sentry:

ls frontend/ web/ client/ ui/ 2>/dev/null
cat frontend/package.json web/package.json client/package.json 2>/dev/null \
  | grep -E '"react"|"svelte"|"vue"|"next"|"nuxt"'

If a frontend exists without Sentry, suggest the matching skill:

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Troubleshooting