sentry-known-pitfalls

name	sentry-known-pitfalls
description	Identify and fix common Sentry SDK pitfalls that cause silent data loss, cost overruns, and missed alerts. Covers 10 anti-patterns with fix code. Use when auditing Sentry config, debugging missing events, or reviewing SDK setup. Trigger: "sentry pitfalls", "sentry anti-patterns", "sentry mistakes", "why are sentry events missing".
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Edit, Grep, Glob, Bash(node:*), Bash(npm:*), Bash(npx:*), Bash(grep:*), Bash(find:*)
version	1.51.0
license	MIT
author	Jeremy Longshore <[e-mail]>
tags	["saas","sentry","anti-patterns","troubleshooting","best-practices","sdk","configuration"]
compatibility	Designed for Claude Code, also compatible with Codex and OpenClaw

Sentry Known Pitfalls

Overview

Ten production-grade Sentry SDK anti-patterns that silently break error tracking, inflate costs, or leave teams blind to failures. Each pitfall includes the broken pattern, root cause, and production-ready fix.

For extended code samples and audit scripts, see configuration pitfalls, error capture pitfalls, SDK initialization pitfalls, integration pitfalls, and monitoring pitfalls.

Prerequisites

• Active Sentry project with @sentry/node >= 8.x or @sentry/browser >= 8.x
• Access to the codebase containing Sentry.init() configuration
• Environment variable management (.env, secrets manager, or CI/CD vars)

Instructions

Step 1: Scan for Existing Pitfalls

# Hardcoded DSNs (Pitfall 1)
grep -rn "ingest\.sentry\.io" --include="*.ts" --include="*.js" src/

# 100% sample rates (Pitfall 2)
grep -rn "sampleRate.*1\.0" --include="*.ts" --include="*.js" src/

# Missing flush calls (Pitfall 3)
grep -rn "Sentry\.flush\|Sentry\.close" --include="*.ts" --include="*.js" src/

# Wrong SDK imports (Pitfall 8)
grep -rn "@sentry/node" --include="*.tsx" --include="*.jsx" src/

Step 2: Pitfall 1 — Hardcoding DSN in Source Code

DSN in source ships in client bundles and cannot be rotated without a deploy. Attackers flood your project with garbage events.

// WRONG
Sentry.init({
  dsn: 'https://[e-mail]/7890123',
});

// RIGHT — environment variable
.({ : process.. });