What is multicloud application visibility and how do you close hybrid observability gaps?

This webinar examines why traditional monitoring tools fail to identify blind spots across hybrid multicloud environments and how fragmented tool sprawl dramatically increases outage costs. Using the F5 Application Delivery and Security Platform (ADSP), you will discover how to improve visibility, strengthen resilience, and expand protection across all of your environments. We explore how to unify performance telemetry, proactively simulate end-user transactions with synthetic monitoring, uncover uncataloged shadow APIs, and leverage AI-guided operations to reduce mean time to resolution (MTTR).

Webinar summary

• The observability blind spot: Standard application delivery controller (ADC) health checks only monitor the link between the ADC and the origin server. They are blind to external internet routing disruptions, public DNS latency, and third-party API dependencies.
• Comprehensive synthetic telemetry: Proactively simulate global user journeys using F5 Distributed Cloud Synthetic Monitoring to break connection latency down into distinct, measurable stages: DNS resolution, TCP handshake, TLS negotiation, and first-byte HTTP payload receipt.
• Continuous API attack surface mapping: F5 Distributed Cloud Services automatically discover and catalog all live API endpoints, generating color-coded visual API trees and risk scores to expose undocumented shadow and zombie APIs.
• AI-guided operational assistance: Telemetry gathered from on-premises BIG-IP systems and cloud deployments is correlated through F5 Insight and analyzed by the F5 AI Assistant to surface critical events, detect anomalies, and suggest guided remediation workflows.

Why is application visibility harder in hybrid multicloud environments?

Application visibility is harder because organizations rely on fragmented, environment-specific monitoring stacks that create operational silos and obscure the true end-to-end user experience.

Data from F5’s 2026 State of Application Strategy Report shows that 93% of organizations now operate applications across hybrid multicloud environments. This operational reality causes severe "tool sprawl," where NetOps, SecOps, and DevOps teams manage separate, disconnected monitoring dashboards that seldom share telemetry.

When an application experiences degradation, teams struggle to answer basic diagnostic questions like "Why is this application slow?" because traditional application delivery controllers are blind to external internet routing disruptions, public DNS latency, and unmapped third-party API dependencies. This visibility gap drastically increases mean time to resolution (MTTR) and operational overhead. Furthermore, as APIs now account for the vast majority of web traffic, operating without automated discovery leaves critical "shadow" endpoints completely unmonitored—creating an unsustainable security risk in the age of rapid zero-day exploitation.

How does synthetic monitoring pinpoint performance and latency bottlenecks?

Synthetic monitoring pinpoints bottlenecks by breaking client-to-application communication down into sequential, stage-by-stage latency measurements from points of presence worldwide.

Traditional monitoring only validates that the backend origin pool is healthy from the perspective of the local ADC. If an external user experiences high latency, traditional tools cannot determine whether the fault lies with the local application, public DNS, or an intermediate ISP.

F5 Distributed Cloud Synthetic Monitoring executes periodic synthetic tests from global regional edges and measures each step of the connection pipeline:

By isolating these four phases, engineering teams immediately know whether to dispatch a network engineer, contact an external DNS provider, or assign an application developer to fix code-level slowdowns.

How does API discovery uncover undocumented shadow and zombie APIs?

F5 Distributed Cloud API Discovery continuously analyzes live application traffic passing through your controllers and automatically maps observed endpoints against your documented schema.

Because APIs now account for the vast majority of all web traffic, securing the API perimeter is impossible without an accurate, real-time inventory. In fast-moving DevOps pipelines, developers regularly push new API endpoints that bypass formal documentation (shadow APIs) or leave deprecated versions active after modern services launch (zombie APIs).

F5 Distributed Cloud API Discovery solves this by providing:

• Automated schema comparison: Ingests official Swagger or OpenAPI files and flags every undocumented endpoint serving live requests.
• Visual API tree graphs: Displays your entire API estate in an interactive, hierarchical tree, clearly distinguishing documented, undocumented, and vulnerable endpoints.
• Contextual risk scoring: Calculates automated risk scores based on observed parameters, data sensitivity (such as exposed PII), and external threat exposure to help SecOps prioritize remediation.

How does F5 Insight translate telemetry into actionable operational guidance?

F5 Insight for ADSP correlates telemetry across your BIG-IP fleet and modern deployments to generate clear operational narratives and AI-guided remediation workflows, moving beyond static metrics to active problem resolution.

Modern operations teams face acute staffing shortages and alert fatigue. F5 Insight addresses this through a structured, three-stage operational workflow:

• See: Collects real-time telemetry from across your physical and virtual BIG-IP devices, providing a unified view of application traffic health.
• Understand: Applies machine learning models to detect behavioral anomalies, translating raw diagnostic logs into human-readable operational narratives.
• Act: Integrates with the F5 AI Assistant to deliver guided remediation steps. Teams can query actionable configuration recommendations and best-practice blueprints using natural language.

Conclusion: Achieving end-to-end multicloud observability

True application visibility requires moving beyond siloed, environment-specific dashboards toward an integrated, end-to-end observability strategy. By complementing your existing application delivery architecture with F5 Distributed Cloud Services, you can eliminate operational blind spots, map your complete API attack surface, and resolve performance bottlenecks long before they affect your end users.

Resources

Explore related ebooks and companion sessions to secure and optimize your hybrid multicloud environment:

• Download the ebook Unify and protect your digital estate in the AI era to discover how to simplify, scale, and secure application delivery across hybrid multicloud environments.
• On-demand session: Discover how to modernize your infrastructure while preserving complete on-premises data custody in Extend application delivery with SaaS-based capabilities.
• On-demand session: Learn upstream mitigation strategies against volumetric DDoS and automated threat traffic in Strengthen application security with SaaS-delivered services.
• On-demand session: Learn how to build zero-trust, disaster-resistant infrastructures using globally distributed secondary DNS in Improve application resilience with SaaS-delivered services.