Fresh from KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2025 in Atlanta, I wanted to share one open-source find that stood out during the event: Gonzo, a lightweight terminal UI (TUI) built in Go for real-time log analysis.
As someone who spends a lot of time debugging Kubernetes clusters, cloud workloads, and application logs, I’m always on the lookout for tools that fit naturally into the terminal workflow. Gonzo does exactly that with no bloated dashboards and no vendor dependencies. Just a fast and interactive way to make sense of log streams. Here’s what I learned from trying it out at the ControlTheory booth and why I think it’s worth adding to your toolkit.
The Everyday Challenge with Logs
In modern environments (especially Kubernetes, containers, or microservices), logs come fast and in high volume. You end up tailing files, piping kubectl logs, or jumping between tools to spot patterns, severity spikes, or recurring issues. Traditional methods work, but they often feel manual and time-consuming.
Gonzo addresses this by bringing a clean, interactive dashboard directly into your terminal. It’s heavily inspired by k9s (same familiar navigation), but purpose-built for logs with real-time visualizations and smart filtering.
The project is fully open source under the MIT license and available here:
https://github.com/control-theory/gonzo
(Already over 2.3k stars and active community contributions.)
What Makes Gonzo Stand Out
Here are the practical features that impressed me most during hands-on testing:
- Interactive 2×2 Dashboard – Live log stream on one panel, severity distribution chart, word frequency heatmap, and timeline view. Everything updates in real time as logs flow in.
- Kubernetes-Native Support – Stream logs directly from pods or namespaces with easy filtering.
- Flexible Input – Pipe from stdin (kubectl logs -f | gonzo), tail files, read multiple logs, or even receive via OpenTelemetry OTLP.
- Visualizations – Color-coded severity, pattern detection, and a heatmap for spotting bursts of errors or warnings.
- Navigation & Usability – Vim-style keys, mouse support, global pause (Spacebar), fullscreen modes, and quick modals for log details.
- Optional AI Layer – Connect to local models (Ollama) or OpenAI-compatible APIs for automatic pattern summaries and anomaly highlights—works offline if preferred.
- Themes & Customization – 11+ built-in skins (Dracula, Nord, Monokai, etc.) and YAML-based custom themes.
Also Read: Smarter DevOps with Kite: AI Meets Kubernetes
Installation couldn’t be more straightforward:
# Via Go go install github.com/control-theory/gonzo/cmd/gonzo@latest # Or Homebrew (macOS/Linux) brew install gonzoThen try it out:
kubectl logs -f deployment/my-app | gonzo # Or tail a file gonzo -f /var/log/app.log --followHere’s what the main dashboard looks like in action:
The heatmap view helps visualize severity trends over time:
And the stats modal provides a deep dive into any selected log entry:
Why This Tool Matters for Developers and Ops Teams
Gonzo feels refreshing because it stays out of your way while giving you powerful insights. It runs locally with no external services required (unless you opt for AI features), and the codebase is clean and well-documented—perfect for forking or contributing.
At KubeCon, developers I spoke with agreed: tools like this empower individual engineers to debug faster without waiting on centralized observability platforms. Whether you’re troubleshooting in production, developing locally, or experimenting with OpenTelemetry, Gonzo slots right in.
Try It Yourself
If you work with logs daily, especially in Kubernetes, cloud-native, or DevOps environments, install Gonzo and pipe in some real data. You’ll likely find it becomes part of your daily workflow quickly.
Star the repo if you find it useful, and consider contributing to open-source projects that thrive with community support.
Have you tried Gonzo yet? What’s your favorite terminal tool for logs or observability? Share in the comments below.
Stay tuned for more practical tech insights on cloud computing, DevOps, AI tools, and open-source projects.
