# Host **Status**: [Experimental](../../document-status.md) **type:** `host` **Description:** A host is defined as a general computing instance. | Attribute | Type | Description | Examples | Requirement Level | |---|---|---|---|---| | `host.id` | string | Unique host ID. For Cloud, this must be the instance_id assigned by the cloud provider. For non-containerized Linux systems, the `machine-id` located in `/etc/machine-id` or `/var/lib/dbus/machine-id` may be used. | `fdbf79e8af94cb7f9e8df36789187052` | Recommended | | `host.name` | string | Name of the host. On Unix systems, it may contain what the hostname command returns, or the fully qualified hostname, or another name specified by the user. | `opentelemetry-test` | Recommended | | `host.type` | string | Type of host. For Cloud, this must be the machine type. | `n1-standard-1` | Recommended | | `host.arch` | string | The CPU architecture the host system is running on. | `amd64` | Recommended | | `host.image.name` | string | Name of the VM image or OS install the host was instantiated from. | `infra-ami-eks-worker-node-7d4ec78312`; `CentOS-8-x86_64-1905` | Recommended | | `host.image.id` | string | VM image ID. For Cloud, this value is from the provider. | `ami-07b06b442921831e5` | Recommended | | `host.image.version` | string | The version string of the VM image as defined in [Version Attributes](README.md#version-attributes). | `0.1` | Recommended | `host.arch` has the following list of well-known values. If one of them applies, then the respective value MUST be used, otherwise a custom value MAY be used. | Value | Description | |---|---| | `amd64` | AMD64 | | `arm32` | ARM32 | | `arm64` | ARM64 | | `ia64` | Itanium | | `ppc32` | 32-bit PowerPC | | `ppc64` | 64-bit PowerPC | | `s390x` | IBM z/Architecture | | `x86` | 32-bit x86 |