diff --git a/.chloggen/nginx-beta-featuregate.yaml b/.chloggen/nginx-beta-featuregate.yaml
new file mode 100755
index 000000000000..f9a3e60058b2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.chloggen/nginx-beta-featuregate.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+# Use this changelog template to create an entry for release notes.
+# If your change doesn't affect end users, such as a test fix or a tooling change,
+# you should instead start your pull request title with [chore] or use the "Skip Changelog" label.
+
+# One of 'breaking', 'deprecation', 'new_component', 'enhancement', 'bug_fix'
+change_type: breaking
+
+# The name of the component, or a single word describing the area of concern, (e.g. filelogreceiver)
+component: nginxreceiver
+
+# A brief description of the change.  Surround your text with quotes ("") if it needs to start with a backtick (`).
+note: Bump 'receiver.nginx.emitConnectionsCurrentAsSum' featuregate to beta (enabled by default)
+
+# Mandatory: One or more tracking issues related to the change. You can use the PR number here if no issue exists.
+issues: [4326]
+
+# (Optional) One or more lines of additional information to render under the primary note.
+# These lines will be padded with 2 spaces and then inserted directly into the document.
+# Use pipe (|) for multiline entries.
+subtext:
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/documentation.md b/receiver/nginxreceiver/documentation.md
index 737d181fd87f..6cb26b8f49f3 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/documentation.md
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/documentation.md
@@ -24,9 +24,9 @@ The total number of accepted client connections
 
 The current number of nginx connections by state
 
-| Unit | Metric Type | Value Type |
-| ---- | ----------- | ---------- |
-| connections | Gauge | Int |
+| Unit | Metric Type | Value Type | Aggregation Temporality | Monotonic |
+| ---- | ----------- | ---------- | ----------------------- | --------- |
+| connections | Sum | Int | Cumulative | false |
 
 #### Attributes
 
@@ -52,11 +52,11 @@ Total number of requests made to the server since it started
 
 ### temp.connections_current
 
-Temporary placeholder for new version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.
+Temporary placeholder for old version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.
 
-| Unit | Metric Type | Value Type | Aggregation Temporality | Monotonic |
-| ---- | ----------- | ---------- | ----------------------- | --------- |
-| connections | Sum | Int | Cumulative | false |
+| Unit | Metric Type | Value Type |
+| ---- | ----------- | ---------- |
+| connections | Gauge | Int |
 
 #### Attributes
 
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/factory.go b/receiver/nginxreceiver/factory.go
index a999b9fdc453..b9b83b39f798 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/factory.go
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/factory.go
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ const (
 
 var connectorsAsSumGate = featuregate.GlobalRegistry().MustRegister(
 	connectionsAsSum,
-	featuregate.StageAlpha,
+	featuregate.StageBeta,
 	featuregate.WithRegisterDescription("When enabled, the receiver will emit the 'nginx.connections_current' metric as a nonmonotonic sum, rather than a gauge."),
 	featuregate.WithRegisterReferenceURL("https://github.com/open-telemetry/opentelemetry-collector-contrib/issues/4326"),
 	featuregate.WithRegisterFromVersion("v0.78.0"),
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics.go b/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics.go
index 6053be37ffeb..f3d88852be96 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics.go
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics.go
@@ -107,15 +107,17 @@ func (m *metricNginxConnectionsCurrent) init() {
 	m.data.SetName("nginx.connections_current")
 	m.data.SetDescription("The current number of nginx connections by state")
 	m.data.SetUnit("connections")
-	m.data.SetEmptyGauge()
-	m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().EnsureCapacity(m.capacity)
+	m.data.SetEmptySum()
+	m.data.Sum().SetIsMonotonic(false)
+	m.data.Sum().SetAggregationTemporality(pmetric.AggregationTemporalityCumulative)
+	m.data.Sum().DataPoints().EnsureCapacity(m.capacity)
 }
 
 func (m *metricNginxConnectionsCurrent) recordDataPoint(start pcommon.Timestamp, ts pcommon.Timestamp, val int64, stateAttributeValue string) {
 	if !m.config.Enabled {
 		return
 	}
-	dp := m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().AppendEmpty()
+	dp := m.data.Sum().DataPoints().AppendEmpty()
 	dp.SetStartTimestamp(start)
 	dp.SetTimestamp(ts)
 	dp.SetIntValue(val)
@@ -124,14 +126,14 @@ func (m *metricNginxConnectionsCurrent) recordDataPoint(start pcommon.Timestamp,
 
 // updateCapacity saves max length of data point slices that will be used for the slice capacity.
 func (m *metricNginxConnectionsCurrent) updateCapacity() {
-	if m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().Len() > m.capacity {
-		m.capacity = m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().Len()
+	if m.data.Sum().DataPoints().Len() > m.capacity {
+		m.capacity = m.data.Sum().DataPoints().Len()
 	}
 }
 
 // emit appends recorded metric data to a metrics slice and prepares it for recording another set of data points.
 func (m *metricNginxConnectionsCurrent) emit(metrics pmetric.MetricSlice) {
-	if m.config.Enabled && m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().Len() > 0 {
+	if m.config.Enabled && m.data.Sum().DataPoints().Len() > 0 {
 		m.updateCapacity()
 		m.data.MoveTo(metrics.AppendEmpty())
 		m.init()
@@ -258,19 +260,17 @@ type metricTempConnectionsCurrent struct {
 // init fills temp.connections_current metric with initial data.
 func (m *metricTempConnectionsCurrent) init() {
 	m.data.SetName("temp.connections_current")
-	m.data.SetDescription("Temporary placeholder for new version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.")
+	m.data.SetDescription("Temporary placeholder for old version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.")
 	m.data.SetUnit("connections")
-	m.data.SetEmptySum()
-	m.data.Sum().SetIsMonotonic(false)
-	m.data.Sum().SetAggregationTemporality(pmetric.AggregationTemporalityCumulative)
-	m.data.Sum().DataPoints().EnsureCapacity(m.capacity)
+	m.data.SetEmptyGauge()
+	m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().EnsureCapacity(m.capacity)
 }
 
 func (m *metricTempConnectionsCurrent) recordDataPoint(start pcommon.Timestamp, ts pcommon.Timestamp, val int64, stateAttributeValue string) {
 	if !m.config.Enabled {
 		return
 	}
-	dp := m.data.Sum().DataPoints().AppendEmpty()
+	dp := m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().AppendEmpty()
 	dp.SetStartTimestamp(start)
 	dp.SetTimestamp(ts)
 	dp.SetIntValue(val)
@@ -279,14 +279,14 @@ func (m *metricTempConnectionsCurrent) recordDataPoint(start pcommon.Timestamp,
 
 // updateCapacity saves max length of data point slices that will be used for the slice capacity.
 func (m *metricTempConnectionsCurrent) updateCapacity() {
-	if m.data.Sum().DataPoints().Len() > m.capacity {
-		m.capacity = m.data.Sum().DataPoints().Len()
+	if m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().Len() > m.capacity {
+		m.capacity = m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().Len()
 	}
 }
 
 // emit appends recorded metric data to a metrics slice and prepares it for recording another set of data points.
 func (m *metricTempConnectionsCurrent) emit(metrics pmetric.MetricSlice) {
-	if m.config.Enabled && m.data.Sum().DataPoints().Len() > 0 {
+	if m.config.Enabled && m.data.Gauge().DataPoints().Len() > 0 {
 		m.updateCapacity()
 		m.data.MoveTo(metrics.AppendEmpty())
 		m.init()
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics_test.go b/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics_test.go
index 5ecaf1639429..0b33b59cc177 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics_test.go
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/generated_metrics_test.go
@@ -116,11 +116,13 @@ func TestMetricsBuilder(t *testing.T) {
 				case "nginx.connections_current":
 					assert.False(t, validatedMetrics["nginx.connections_current"], "Found a duplicate in the metrics slice: nginx.connections_current")
 					validatedMetrics["nginx.connections_current"] = true
-					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.MetricTypeGauge, ms.At(i).Type())
-					assert.Equal(t, 1, ms.At(i).Gauge().DataPoints().Len())
+					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.MetricTypeSum, ms.At(i).Type())
+					assert.Equal(t, 1, ms.At(i).Sum().DataPoints().Len())
 					assert.Equal(t, "The current number of nginx connections by state", ms.At(i).Description())
 					assert.Equal(t, "connections", ms.At(i).Unit())
-					dp := ms.At(i).Gauge().DataPoints().At(0)
+					assert.Equal(t, false, ms.At(i).Sum().IsMonotonic())
+					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.AggregationTemporalityCumulative, ms.At(i).Sum().AggregationTemporality())
+					dp := ms.At(i).Sum().DataPoints().At(0)
 					assert.Equal(t, start, dp.StartTimestamp())
 					assert.Equal(t, ts, dp.Timestamp())
 					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.NumberDataPointValueTypeInt, dp.ValueType())
@@ -159,13 +161,11 @@ func TestMetricsBuilder(t *testing.T) {
 				case "temp.connections_current":
 					assert.False(t, validatedMetrics["temp.connections_current"], "Found a duplicate in the metrics slice: temp.connections_current")
 					validatedMetrics["temp.connections_current"] = true
-					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.MetricTypeSum, ms.At(i).Type())
-					assert.Equal(t, 1, ms.At(i).Sum().DataPoints().Len())
-					assert.Equal(t, "Temporary placeholder for new version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.", ms.At(i).Description())
+					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.MetricTypeGauge, ms.At(i).Type())
+					assert.Equal(t, 1, ms.At(i).Gauge().DataPoints().Len())
+					assert.Equal(t, "Temporary placeholder for old version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.", ms.At(i).Description())
 					assert.Equal(t, "connections", ms.At(i).Unit())
-					assert.Equal(t, false, ms.At(i).Sum().IsMonotonic())
-					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.AggregationTemporalityCumulative, ms.At(i).Sum().AggregationTemporality())
-					dp := ms.At(i).Sum().DataPoints().At(0)
+					dp := ms.At(i).Gauge().DataPoints().At(0)
 					assert.Equal(t, start, dp.StartTimestamp())
 					assert.Equal(t, ts, dp.Timestamp())
 					assert.Equal(t, pmetric.NumberDataPointValueTypeInt, dp.ValueType())
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/temporary_metrics.go b/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/temporary_metrics.go
index 0ea684cd3501..ea84845a3569 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/temporary_metrics.go
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/internal/metadata/temporary_metrics.go
@@ -2,8 +2,8 @@
 
 package metadata
 
-// WithCurrentConnectionsAsSum sets the current connections metric as a sum.
-func WithCurrentConnectionsAsSum() metricBuilderOption {
+// WithCurrentConnectionsAsGauge sets the current connections metric as a gauge.
+func WithCurrentConnectionsAsGauge() metricBuilderOption {
 	return func(mb *MetricsBuilder) {
 		if mb.metricNginxConnectionsCurrent.config.Enabled {
 			mb.metricNginxConnectionsCurrent.config.Enabled = false
@@ -14,9 +14,9 @@ func WithCurrentConnectionsAsSum() metricBuilderOption {
 	}
 }
 
-// WithCurrentConnectionsAsSumDisabled disables the current connections metric as a sum.
+// WithCurrentConnectionsAsGaugeDisabled disables the current connections metric as a gauge.
 // This is necessary because the metric must be enabled by default in order to be able to apply the other option.
-func WithCurrentConnectionsAsSumDisabled() metricBuilderOption {
+func WithCurrentConnectionsAsGaugeDisabled() metricBuilderOption {
 	return func(mb *MetricsBuilder) {
 		mb.metricTempConnectionsCurrent.config.Enabled = false
 	}
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/metadata.yaml b/receiver/nginxreceiver/metadata.yaml
index ff9b00126154..b74cb1a21ba4 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/metadata.yaml
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/metadata.yaml
@@ -44,23 +44,21 @@ metrics:
       monotonic: true
       aggregation: cumulative
     attributes: []
-
-# Old version of metric, to be enabled when featuregate is stable
   nginx.connections_current:
     enabled: true
     description: The current number of nginx connections by state
     unit: connections
-    gauge:
+    sum:
       value_type: int
+      monotonic: false
+      aggregation: cumulative
     attributes: [state]
 
-# New version of metric, to be enabled when featuregate is stable
+# Old version of metric, to be removed when featuregate is stable
   temp.connections_current:
     enabled: true # must be enabled by default in order to apply necessary MetricBuilder option
-    description: Temporary placeholder for new version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.
+    description: Temporary placeholder for old version of nginx.connections_current. See featuregate 'nginx.connections_as_sum'.
     unit: connections
-    sum:
+    gauge:
       value_type: int
-      monotonic: false
-      aggregation: cumulative
     attributes: [state]
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper.go b/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper.go
index 6074ce5098ac..c5b8b575f8de 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper.go
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper.go
@@ -33,9 +33,9 @@ func newNginxScraper(
 ) *nginxScraper {
 	var mb *metadata.MetricsBuilder
 	if connectorsAsSumGate.IsEnabled() {
-		mb = metadata.NewMetricsBuilder(cfg.MetricsBuilderConfig, settings, metadata.WithCurrentConnectionsAsSum())
+		mb = metadata.NewMetricsBuilder(cfg.MetricsBuilderConfig, settings, metadata.WithCurrentConnectionsAsGaugeDisabled())
 	} else {
-		mb = metadata.NewMetricsBuilder(cfg.MetricsBuilderConfig, settings, metadata.WithCurrentConnectionsAsSumDisabled())
+		mb = metadata.NewMetricsBuilder(cfg.MetricsBuilderConfig, settings, metadata.WithCurrentConnectionsAsGauge())
 	}
 	return &nginxScraper{
 		settings: settings.TelemetrySettings,
@@ -78,15 +78,15 @@ func (r *nginxScraper) scrape(context.Context) (pmetric.Metrics, error) {
 	r.mb.RecordNginxConnectionsHandledDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Handled)
 
 	if connectorsAsSumGate.IsEnabled() {
-		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Active, metadata.AttributeStateActive)
-		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Reading, metadata.AttributeStateReading)
-		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Writing, metadata.AttributeStateWriting)
-		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Waiting, metadata.AttributeStateWaiting)
-	} else {
 		r.mb.RecordNginxConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Active, metadata.AttributeStateActive)
 		r.mb.RecordNginxConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Reading, metadata.AttributeStateReading)
 		r.mb.RecordNginxConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Writing, metadata.AttributeStateWriting)
 		r.mb.RecordNginxConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Waiting, metadata.AttributeStateWaiting)
+	} else {
+		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Active, metadata.AttributeStateActive)
+		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Reading, metadata.AttributeStateReading)
+		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Writing, metadata.AttributeStateWriting)
+		r.mb.RecordTempConnectionsCurrentDataPoint(now, stats.Connections.Waiting, metadata.AttributeStateWaiting)
 	}
 
 	return r.mb.Emit(), nil
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper_test.go b/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper_test.go
index 2a7ebce149ab..ba5ad5509560 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper_test.go
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/scraper_test.go
@@ -41,21 +41,22 @@ func TestScraper(t *testing.T) {
 	expectedMetrics, err := golden.ReadMetrics(expectedFile)
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
-	require.NoError(t, pmetrictest.CompareMetrics(expectedMetrics, actualMetrics, pmetrictest.IgnoreStartTimestamp(),
+	require.NoError(t, pmetrictest.CompareMetrics(expectedMetrics, actualMetrics,
+		pmetrictest.IgnoreStartTimestamp(),
 		pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricDataPointsOrder(),
-		pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricDataPointsOrder(),
-		pmetrictest.IgnoreTimestamp()))
+		pmetrictest.IgnoreTimestamp(),
+		pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricsOrder()))
 }
 
-func TestScraperWithConnectionsAsSum(t *testing.T) {
+func TestScraperWithConnectionsAsGauge(t *testing.T) {
 	nginxMock := newMockServer(t)
 	cfg := createDefaultConfig().(*Config)
 	cfg.Endpoint = nginxMock.URL + "/status"
 	require.NoError(t, component.ValidateConfig(cfg))
 
-	require.NoError(t, featuregate.GlobalRegistry().Set(connectionsAsSum, true))
+	require.NoError(t, featuregate.GlobalRegistry().Set(connectionsAsSum, false))
 	defer func() {
-		require.NoError(t, featuregate.GlobalRegistry().Set(connectionsAsSum, false))
+		require.NoError(t, featuregate.GlobalRegistry().Set(connectionsAsSum, true))
 	}()
 
 	scraper := newNginxScraper(receivertest.NewNopCreateSettings(), cfg)
@@ -66,14 +67,15 @@ func TestScraperWithConnectionsAsSum(t *testing.T) {
 	actualMetrics, err := scraper.scrape(context.Background())
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
-	expectedFile := filepath.Join("testdata", "scraper", "expected_with_connections_as_sum.yaml")
+	expectedFile := filepath.Join("testdata", "scraper", "expected_with_connections_as_gauge.yaml")
 	expectedMetrics, err := golden.ReadMetrics(expectedFile)
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
-	require.NoError(t, pmetrictest.CompareMetrics(expectedMetrics, actualMetrics, pmetrictest.IgnoreStartTimestamp(),
-		pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricDataPointsOrder(),
+	require.NoError(t, pmetrictest.CompareMetrics(expectedMetrics, actualMetrics,
+		pmetrictest.IgnoreStartTimestamp(),
 		pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricDataPointsOrder(),
-		pmetrictest.IgnoreTimestamp(), pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricsOrder()))
+		pmetrictest.IgnoreTimestamp(),
+		pmetrictest.IgnoreMetricsOrder()))
 }
 
 func TestScraperError(t *testing.T) {
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/integration/expected.yaml b/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/integration/expected.yaml
index ecf0ec5405c9..9c5bc3463b5a 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/integration/expected.yaml
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/integration/expected.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@ resourceMetrics:
               isMonotonic: true
             unit: connections
           - description: The current number of nginx connections by state
-            gauge:
+            sum:
+              aggregationTemporality: 2
               dataPoints:
                 - asInt: "1"
                   attributes:
@@ -38,6 +39,7 @@ resourceMetrics:
                       value:
                         stringValue: waiting
                   timeUnixNano: "1643729289485220000"
+              isMonotonic: false
             name: nginx.connections_current
             unit: connections
           - description: The total number of handled connections. Generally, the parameter value is the same as nginx.connections_accepted unless some resource limits have been reached (for example, the worker_connections limit).
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected.yaml b/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected.yaml
index 0d523ba95e6c..b56d0becda04 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected.yaml
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected.yaml
@@ -12,7 +12,9 @@ resourceMetrics:
               isMonotonic: true
             unit: connections
           - description: The current number of nginx connections by state
-            gauge:
+            name: nginx.connections_current
+            sum:
+              aggregationTemporality: 2
               dataPoints:
                 - asInt: "291"
                   attributes:
@@ -38,7 +40,6 @@ resourceMetrics:
                       value:
                         stringValue: writing
                   timeUnixNano: "1638471548185885000"
-            name: nginx.connections_current
             unit: connections
           - description: The total number of handled connections. Generally, the parameter value is the same as nginx.connections_accepted unless some resource limits have been reached (for example, the worker_connections limit).
             name: nginx.connections_handled
diff --git a/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected_with_connections_as_sum.yaml b/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected_with_connections_as_gauge.yaml
similarity index 97%
rename from receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected_with_connections_as_sum.yaml
rename to receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected_with_connections_as_gauge.yaml
index b56d0becda04..0d523ba95e6c 100644
--- a/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected_with_connections_as_sum.yaml
+++ b/receiver/nginxreceiver/testdata/scraper/expected_with_connections_as_gauge.yaml
@@ -12,9 +12,7 @@ resourceMetrics:
               isMonotonic: true
             unit: connections
           - description: The current number of nginx connections by state
-            name: nginx.connections_current
-            sum:
-              aggregationTemporality: 2
+            gauge:
               dataPoints:
                 - asInt: "291"
                   attributes:
@@ -40,6 +38,7 @@ resourceMetrics:
                       value:
                         stringValue: writing
                   timeUnixNano: "1638471548185885000"
+            name: nginx.connections_current
             unit: connections
           - description: The total number of handled connections. Generally, the parameter value is the same as nginx.connections_accepted unless some resource limits have been reached (for example, the worker_connections limit).
             name: nginx.connections_handled