User Guide

Website

The nep-website provides basic features to monitor availability of HTTP/HTTPS Sites and, in case of an HTTPS Site, the validity and expiration of its SSL Certificate. This package comes also with a basic decription of a generic Web Server, allowing to automatically build all the related Website HO and their parent-child relationships. Although the model implemented by this package is not strictly required, it allows to easily manage complex structures, where multiple Web Sites are hosted by different Web Servers, and all of them are exposed by one or more Load Balancers.

Minimum supported environment

This package can be installed on systems running the software described below. Systems with equivalent components are also suitable for installation.

Required software

Requirements

NetEye

Version 4.26+

NetEye modules

Core

Package requirements

Service and Host Template shipped with package nep-dummy-package require the following nep:

  • nep-common

If the NetEye deployments that will receive Package nep-common is a clustered environment, additional preparations must be done.

Setup instructions

If all requirements are met, you can now install this package. To manually set up the nep-dummy-package package, just use nep-setup utility to install it.

nep-setup install nep-website

Web Sites model

The basic idea behind the model used by nep-website is based on three main points:

  • A Web Site can be hosted by two Web Servers or more

  • A Web Server can host two or more different Web Sites

  • A Load Balancer (be it hardware or software) can be basically modeled just like a Web Server

This leads to the necessity of using just two main objects: one that models a Web Site and another that models the basic aspects of a Web Server. It is possible for a NetEye Administrator to build all the required objects manually, but this can lead to a series of inconsistencies and difficulties. So, a basic set of Automations can enforce some rules and create all the required Web Sites in a standard way. Therefore, it is possible to use objects from this NEP in two different ways:

  • Manually create the Web Sites objects: this approach is useful if you want to monitor the general availability of a Web Site without taking into account the structure of the Service itself

  • Manually create the Web Server objects, fill them with the URL of the hosted sites and leave all to the Automations

Because, from a Servicing point of view, a Load Balancer can be seen as a Web Server that hosts one or more Web Sites, it is possible to monitor the availability of a Web Site through a Load Balancer by modeling the Load Balancer itself as a Web Server. Because the Host Name of a Load Balancer is surely different from the Names of all the Web Servers behind it, this will never interfere with the monitoring of all the Web Servers. Of course, there will be no parent-child relations between the Web Site exposed by the Load Balancer and the Web Sites that are behind it.

Available Objects

This section contains a description of all the Objects from this package that can be used to build your own monitoring environment.

Director Objects

Director Objects are Objects created (or imported) into Icinga Director. This package contains the following Director Objects:

Host Templates

The following Host Templates can be used to freely create Host Objects. Remember: do not edit these Host Templates because they will be restored/updated at the next NEP package update.

Host Template name

Description

nx-ht-webserver

Provides the general configuration of a Web Server and the list ot Web Sites he hosts

nx-ht-webserver-website

Describe a generic HTTP/HTTPS Web Site

Service Templates

The following Service Templates can be used to freely create Service Objects, Service Apply Rules or Service Sets. Remember to not edit these Service Templates because they will be restored/updated at the next NEP Package update.

Template name

Run on Agent

Description

nx-st-agentless-http

No

Tests the availability of an URL as well as the contents of the HTTP Response, while measuring its response time

nx-st-agentless-http-only

No

Performs the same tests of nx-st-agentless-http but forces the use of HTTP Protocol

nx-st-agentless-https-only

No

Performs the same tests of nx-st-agentless-http but forces the use of HTTPS Protocol

Service Sets

The following Service Sets can be used to freely monitor Host Objects. Remember to not edit these Service Sets because they will be restored/updated at the next NEP Package update.

Service Set name

Description

nx-ss-website-certificate-status

Tests availability and validity of the SSL Certificate of an HTTPS Web Site

nx-ss-website-http-status

Tests the status of the HTTP Version of an HTTPS Website

Icinga2 Objects

Icinga2 Objects are Objects provided directly using Icinga2 Configuration files. This package contains the following Icinga2 Objects:

Automations

The following Automations can be used to populate and maintain the monitored Host Objects.

Type

Automation Name

Description

Import source

nx-is-webserver-websites

Get all the available Web Sites defined using the Web Server HT

Sync rule

nx-sr-webserver-websites

Enables monitoring of all Web Sites identified by IS nx-is-webserver-websites

Logic of the Automations: Web Sites are created with specific constraints:

  • The name of the HO contains both the URL of the Web Site and the name of the Web Server hosting it; this allows for the same Web Site to be hosted by different Web Servers and still be monitored properly

  • Settings for the Web Site are replicated from the Web Server hosting it

  • Parent for the Web Site is the Web Server hosting it

Sync Rule nx-sr-webserver-websites uses the Update Policy Ignore. This implies:

  • When the hosting Web Site is updated, the related Web Sites are not updated

  • When the Automation runs again, changes on the related Web Sites are not reverted to their original

This has been done to allow an easier management of all Web Site Host Objects. In case you want to update a Web Site HO using automation, just delete it and run the automation.

Package’s objects list

Object Type

Object Name

Do not edit

Containing File

Director Command

nx-c-http

No

baskets/import/nep-website-02-command.json

Director Command

nx-c-http-only

No

baskets/import/nep-website-02-command.json

Director Command

nx-c-https-only

No

baskets/import/nep-website-02-command.json

Director Command

nx-c-websitealive

No

baskets/import/nep-website-02-command.json

Director Data List

[NX] HTTP Authentication methods List

No

baskets/import/nep-website-01-datalist.json

Director Data List

[NX] HTTP Redirect Actions List

No

baskets/import/nep-website-01-datalist.json

Director Host Template

nx-ht-status-http

No

baskets/import/nep-website-03-host.json

Director Host Template

nx-ht-virtual-webserver

No

baskets/import/nep-website-03-host.json

Director Host Template

nx-ht-virtual-website

No

baskets/import/nep-website-03-host.json

Director Host Template

nx-ht-webserver

No

baskets/import/nep-website-03-host.json

Director Host Template

nx-ht-webserver-website

No

baskets/import/nep-website-03-host.json

Director Import Source

nx-is-webserver-websites

No

baskets/import/nep-website-06-automation.json

Director Service Set

nx-ss-website-certificate-status

No

baskets/import/nep-website-05-serviceset.json

Director Service Set

nx-ss-website-http-status

No

baskets/import/nep-website-05-serviceset.json

Director Service Template

nx-st-agentless-http-base

No

baskets/import/nep-website-04-service.json

Director Service Template

nx-st-agentless-http

No

baskets/import/nep-website-04-service.json

Director Service Template

nx-st-agentless-http-only

No

baskets/import/nep-website-04-service.json

Director Service Template

nx-st-agentless-https-only

No

baskets/import/nep-website-04-service.json

Director Sync Rule

nx-sr-webserver-websites

No

baskets/import/nep-website-06-automation.json