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Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers to Beta#5020

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lmolkova merged 8 commits intoopen-telemetry:mainfrom
pellared:beta-env-var-car
Apr 16, 2026
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Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers to Beta#5020
lmolkova merged 8 commits intoopen-telemetry:mainfrom
pellared:beta-env-var-car

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@pellared pellared commented Apr 13, 2026 •
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Towards stabilization of "environment variables as context propagation carriers".

According to my review, the Java and Go implementations are already spec compliant. The rest need some little improvements related to normalization.

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carlosalberto commented Apr 13, 2026

Any reason for this to be a draft?

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pellared commented Apr 14, 2026

Any reason for this to be a draft?

I had no time to write the description 😉
Now it is ready for review.

@pellared pellared marked this pull request as ready for review April 14, 2026 06:49
@pellared pellared requested review from a team as code owners April 14, 2026 06:49
@pellared pellared changed the title Update status of environment variables as context propagation carriers to Beta Chanage Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers document status to Beta Apr 14, 2026
@pellared pellared changed the title Chanage Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers document status to Beta Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers document status to Beta Apr 14, 2026
@pellared pellared changed the title Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers document status to Beta Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers to Beta Apr 14, 2026
@pellared pellared mentioned this pull request Apr 16, 2026
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@lmolkova lmolkova added this pull request to the merge queue Apr 16, 2026
Merged via the queue into open-telemetry:main with commit 49ef085 Apr 16, 2026
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pull Bot pushed a commit to MC-MAGA/opentelemetry-specification that referenced this pull request Apr 20, 2026
@carlosalberto @jack-berg
Release 1.56 (open-telemetry#5029)
50149c2 
### Context

- Align environment variable context propagation name restrictions with
POSIX.1-2024
  and define normalization behavior.

([open-telemetry#4944](open-telemetry#4944))
- Decouple the responsibilities of the environment variable propagation
carrier.

([open-telemetry#4961](open-telemetry#4961))
- Remove misleading implementation approach the environment variable
propagation.

([open-telemetry#5003](open-telemetry#5003))
- Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers document
status to Beta.

([open-telemetry#5020](open-telemetry#5020))

### Traces

- Stabilize Tracer `enabled` operation

([open-telemetry#4941](open-telemetry#4941))
- Stabilize `AlwaysRecord` sampler.

([open-telemetry#4934](open-telemetry#4934))

### Metrics

- Add development `maxExportBatchSize` parameter to Periodic exporting
MetricReader.

([open-telemetry#4895](open-telemetry#4895))

### Logs

- Add event to span event bridge.

([open-telemetry#5006](open-telemetry#5006))

### Resource

- Clarify that a Resource describes the observed entity, not the
component
  that technically emits telemetry.

([open-telemetry#4905](open-telemetry#4905))

### Compatibility

- Deprecate OpenTracing compatibility requirements in the specification.

([open-telemetry#4938](open-telemetry#4938))
- Stabilize sections of Prometheus and OpenMetrics Compatibility.
- Stabilize Prometheus Classic Histogram to OTLP Explicit Histogram
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4874](open-telemetry#4874))
  - Stabilize Prometheus Timestamp and Start timestamp transformation.

([open-telemetry#4953](open-telemetry#4953))
- Clarify Prometheus Native Histogram to OTLP Exponential Histogram
conversion,
add conversion rules for Native Histograms with Custom Buckets (NHCB) to
OTLP
    Histogram.

([open-telemetry#4898](open-telemetry#4898))
  - Stabilize Prometheus Dropped Types transformation.

([open-telemetry#4952](open-telemetry#4952))
- Stabilize OpenTelemetry Attributes to Prometheus labels
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4963](open-telemetry#4963))
- Stabilize Prometheus Exemplar to OpenTelemetry Exemplar
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4962](open-telemetry#4962))
  - Stabilize Prometheus Metadata transformation.

([open-telemetry#4954](open-telemetry#4954))
- Stabilize OpenTelemetry Metric Metadata to Prometheus metric metadata.

([open-telemetry#4966](open-telemetry#4966))
- Stabilize OpenTelemetry Exemplar to Prometheus Exemplar
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4964](open-telemetry#4964))
- Stabilize sections of Prometheus Metrics Exporter.
  - Stabilize host configuration.

([open-telemetry#5025](open-telemetry#5025))

### SDK Configuration

- Declarative configuration: add in-development guidance for exposing
the
  effective `Resource` returned by `Create`.

([open-telemetry#4949](open-telemetry#4949))
- Require spec changes to consider declarative config schema

([open-telemetry#4916](open-telemetry#4916))
- Add strict YAML parsing guidance to configuration supplementary
guidelines.

([open-telemetry#4878](open-telemetry#4878))

### OTEPs

- Process Context: Sharing Resource Attributes with External Readers.

([open-telemetry#4719](open-telemetry#4719))
- Support multiple Resources within an SDK.

([open-telemetry#4665](open-telemetry#4665))

---------

Co-authored-by: Jack Berg <34418638+jack-berg@users.noreply.github.com>
hilmarf pushed a commit to apeirora/opentelemetry-specification that referenced this pull request Apr 22, 2026
@pellared @carlosalberto @hilmarf
Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers to Beta (o…
c9fe71d 
…pen-telemetry#5020)

Towards stabilization of "environment variables as context propagation
carriers".

According to my review, the Java and Go implementations are already spec
compliant. The rest need some little improvements related to
normalization.

---------

Co-authored-by: Carlos Alberto Cortez <calberto.cortez@gmail.com>
hilmarf pushed a commit to apeirora/opentelemetry-specification that referenced this pull request Apr 22, 2026
@carlosalberto @jack-berg @hilmarf
Release 1.56 (open-telemetry#5029)
68fba8a 
### Context

- Align environment variable context propagation name restrictions with
POSIX.1-2024
  and define normalization behavior.

([open-telemetry#4944](open-telemetry#4944))
- Decouple the responsibilities of the environment variable propagation
carrier.

([open-telemetry#4961](open-telemetry#4961))
- Remove misleading implementation approach the environment variable
propagation.

([open-telemetry#5003](open-telemetry#5003))
- Change Environment Variables as Context Propagation Carriers document
status to Beta.

([open-telemetry#5020](open-telemetry#5020))

### Traces

- Stabilize Tracer `enabled` operation

([open-telemetry#4941](open-telemetry#4941))
- Stabilize `AlwaysRecord` sampler.

([open-telemetry#4934](open-telemetry#4934))

### Metrics

- Add development `maxExportBatchSize` parameter to Periodic exporting
MetricReader.

([open-telemetry#4895](open-telemetry#4895))

### Logs

- Add event to span event bridge.

([open-telemetry#5006](open-telemetry#5006))

### Resource

- Clarify that a Resource describes the observed entity, not the
component
  that technically emits telemetry.

([open-telemetry#4905](open-telemetry#4905))

### Compatibility

- Deprecate OpenTracing compatibility requirements in the specification.

([open-telemetry#4938](open-telemetry#4938))
- Stabilize sections of Prometheus and OpenMetrics Compatibility.
- Stabilize Prometheus Classic Histogram to OTLP Explicit Histogram
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4874](open-telemetry#4874))
  - Stabilize Prometheus Timestamp and Start timestamp transformation.

([open-telemetry#4953](open-telemetry#4953))
- Clarify Prometheus Native Histogram to OTLP Exponential Histogram
conversion,
add conversion rules for Native Histograms with Custom Buckets (NHCB) to
OTLP
    Histogram.

([open-telemetry#4898](open-telemetry#4898))
  - Stabilize Prometheus Dropped Types transformation.

([open-telemetry#4952](open-telemetry#4952))
- Stabilize OpenTelemetry Attributes to Prometheus labels
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4963](open-telemetry#4963))
- Stabilize Prometheus Exemplar to OpenTelemetry Exemplar
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4962](open-telemetry#4962))
  - Stabilize Prometheus Metadata transformation.

([open-telemetry#4954](open-telemetry#4954))
- Stabilize OpenTelemetry Metric Metadata to Prometheus metric metadata.

([open-telemetry#4966](open-telemetry#4966))
- Stabilize OpenTelemetry Exemplar to Prometheus Exemplar
transformation.

([open-telemetry#4964](open-telemetry#4964))
- Stabilize sections of Prometheus Metrics Exporter.
  - Stabilize host configuration.

([open-telemetry#5025](open-telemetry#5025))

### SDK Configuration

- Declarative configuration: add in-development guidance for exposing
the
  effective `Resource` returned by `Create`.

([open-telemetry#4949](open-telemetry#4949))
- Require spec changes to consider declarative config schema

([open-telemetry#4916](open-telemetry#4916))
- Add strict YAML parsing guidance to configuration supplementary
guidelines.

([open-telemetry#4878](open-telemetry#4878))

### OTEPs

- Process Context: Sharing Resource Attributes with External Readers.

([open-telemetry#4719](open-telemetry#4719))
- Support multiple Resources within an SDK.

([open-telemetry#4665](open-telemetry#4665))

---------

Co-authored-by: Jack Berg <34418638+jack-berg@users.noreply.github.com>
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@lmolkova lmolkova lmolkova approved these changes

@dashpole dashpole dashpole approved these changes

@reyang reyang reyang approved these changes

@jack-berg jack-berg jack-berg approved these changes

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@pellared @carlosalberto @lmolkova @dashpole @reyang @jack-berg