What happens to the value received for a GAUGE metric with respect to sample rates in DogStatsD?

The value received for a GAUGE metric in DogStatsD is kept as is, meaning that when you send a gauge value, it is reported exactly as specified, without any modification or adjustment based on sample rates.

GAUGE metrics are intended to represent a single value at a specific point in time, such as temperature or memory usage. This means they should accurately reflect the current state of the measured entity. The sample rate concept typically applies to counters where only a subset of generated metrics is sent to the Datadog backend to reduce the volume of data and optimize performance. However, for GAUGE metrics, every value is accepted at the exact value provided, ensuring that the gauge reflects the true metric without any alterations. This is pivotal for maintaining accuracy in monitoring and assessing system performance and behavior.