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RRDtool

OpenSource industry standard (time series data: logging and graphing system)

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 25, 2026
Entity authorityQ1049812
Source-derived summary

RRDtool (round-robin database tool) is a data logging and graphing system for time series data such as network bandwidth, temperatures, and CPU load. The data is stored in a circular buffer-based database, thus the system storage footprint remains constant over time.

It also includes tools to extract round-robin data in a graphical format, for which it was originally intended.

Bindings exist for several programming languages, including Perl, Python, Ruby, Tcl, PHP and Lua. There is an independent full Java implementation called rrd4j.

General data storage

RRDtool assumes time-variable data in intervals of a certain length. This interval, usually named the step, is specified upon creation of an RRD file and cannot be changed afterwards. Because data may not always be available at just the right time, RRDtool will automatically interpolate any submitted data to fit its internal time steps.

The value for a specific step, after interpolation, is named a primary data point (PDP). Multiple PDPs may be consolidated according to a consolidation function (CF) to form a consolidated data point (CDP).

Editorial summary

“RRDtool” enters the record as openSource industry standard (time series data: logging and graphing system). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what RRDtool, OpenSource and industry can confirm, complicate or overturn.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current 172-word lead offers orientation but no explicit four-digit date, so chronology should not be assumed. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its strongest next move is a source search built around RRDtool, OpenSource and industry.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

“RRDtool” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, RRDtool, OpenSource and industry provides the most credible route into that argument.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1049812. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “RRDtool”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow RRDtool primary sources, RRDtool archive and RRDtool research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “RRDtool”?
  2. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
  3. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from RRDtool” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.