Learn about API-based cloud monitoring in this 18-minute conference talk that addresses common monitoring challenges in sovereign cloud environments. Discover how StackMon simplifies cloud monitoring by implementing scenario measurements through modular Ansible playbooks, focusing on collecting performance data directly at the API level. Follow along as speakers Artem Goncharov and Nils Magnus explain the project's evolution, deployment process in cloud environments, and its practical application in sovereign cloud stacks based on OpenStack. Gain insights into how StackMon overcomes traditional monitoring pitfalls like excessive complexity and synthetic metrics by using straightforward components that administrators can easily understand and implement.