The Dude network monitor is an application developed by the Latvian company MikroTik that can significantly improve the operation of the network environment. The application automatically scans all devices in specific subnetworks, draws and complies a network map as well as tracks services of devices and warns if some services have issues. A current version of The Dude server (when writing this article, it was the version 6.43.7 Stable) works under RouterOS only and allows monitoring the entire network infrastructure, from routers and switches to servers and virtual machines. Devices for microclimate monitoring of server rooms and remote controlling of the power supply (IP PDU) by NetPing company can also be connected to The Dude network monitor. A connection process is explored in details here. Also, we examined the process of configuration of e-mail notifications from The Dude in our blog before. In this article, we will consider a way of expanding the functionality of The Dude for sending SMS notifications about monitoring events (SMS gateway for The Dude). To send SMS, it is possible to use the next devices by NetPing company:

• a gateway for sending and receiving SMS notifications NetPing SMS;
• a microclimate monitoring device for server rooms UniPing server solution v4/SMS;
• a device for controlling the remote power supply (IP power distribution unit) for the server equipment NetPing 8/PWR-220 v4/SMS

A feature of SMS notifications will allow IT personnel to react to network events quicker and minimize business downtime caused by the IT equipment failure. Also, a company will be able to significantly save on third-party services for sending SMS because in this case, the price of SMS will correspond to the price charged by the cell phone operator with no additional commissions.

Logically, this article is a continuation of the article "Example of Monitoring a Server Room on a Basis of OpenNMS and NetPing Devices". Within this article, a feature of configuring SMS notifications from OpenNMS using NetPing SMS (SMS gateway for OpenNMS) will be regarded. 

When network engineers and administrators work, they often need to receive notifications in any time seven days a week. What communication means can be more suitable for this than SMS? Using external SMS services critically depends on the Internet connection, but what to do if there is a need to receive notifications about Internet connection failure? USB GSM modems could solve this issue but their operation stability and often level of support are not the best. There are very few modems that can boast working 24/7 without external maintenance (manual checking, scripts or other means). In addition, it must be connected to a server or a PC for operation. In turn, this server or PC will work as an SMS gateway, which is not the simplest and not the most reliable scheme. A proper solution in this situation would be the use of NetPing SMS. It is a standalone device that is connected to the Ethernet network and working as an SMS gateway for any monitoring system, service, or any other system. In addition, it has no disadvantages described above because it works independently as it does not need an Internet connection and a computer for the operation, and the 24/7 operation is implied.

This article suggests that you have already installed and configured the OpenNMS monitoring system and it works correctly. A configuring process of Open NMS monitoring system has been described before.

Cacti is an open-source web application. The system allows building graphs using RRDtool. Cacti gathers statistical data for specific periods of time and allows representing them in a graphic view. Most often, standard templates are used to represent statistics on a processor load, memory allocation, number running processes, using incoming/outgoing traffic. Basically, Cacti is only a shell to visualize accumulated monitoring data, namely drawing graphs. In this article, we will regard a way of extending Cacti features for sending SMS notifications on monitoring events (SMS gateway for Cacti). To send SMS, it is possible to use the next devices of NetPing company:

• hardware gateway for sending and receiving SMS notifications NetPing SMS;
• device for monitoring microclimate of server rooms UniPing server solution v4/SMS;
• device for remote controlling of the power supply (IP power distribution unit) for server equipment NetPing 8/PWR-220 v4/SMS

This allows minimizing the expenses for third-party services of SMS distribution because in this case, the cost of each SMS will be equal to one specified in the plan of your mobile network operator with no additional commissions.

The need to remote monitoring of the object has always been considerably topical. Today, the market of video surveillance cameras (or closed-circuit cameras, or CCTV cameras) can offer devices for almost all needs that allow using CCTV cameras in any systems, including the systems for repeating and visualizing the information that comes from various sensors in monitoring systems. In this article, we will examine the example of connected CCTV cameras to a device for monitoring server rooms UniPing server solution v4/SMS and their configurations necessary for sending snapshots when sensors for visual evaluation of the environment triggered in a remote room. For example, after connecting a door sensor, we will be able to see a face of an individual, who opened the door. After connecting a smoke sensor, it is possible to evaluate actual smoke in the room. A leakage sensor shows a water level on the floor. There are also many other variants that are limited only by the administrator's imagination and the necessity in the monitoring.

To implement a described solution, you will need:

• a surveillance camera (CCTV camera). The main requirement towards the camera is the presence of Alarm IN inputs. A camera SNR-CI-DB30I is going to be used in the article;
• A monitoring device UniPing server solution v4/SMS (it is also possible to use any other device for monitoring or power controlling, equipped with IO lines, for example, UniPing server solution v3, UniPing v3, NetPing IO v2, NetPing 8/PWR-220 v4/SMS, NetPing 2/PWR-220 v4/SMS, NetPing 2/PWR-220 v3/ETH);
• Any sensor, the triggering of which is the basis for getting a snapshot from a camera. In the example, a door sensor is used.

It is very often that the power supply of IT infrastructure objects of small and middle offices is a bottleneck. Server rooms of small and middle companies often are not organized well, do not satisfy informational, fire, and electrical safety requirements and are limited in space. Such conditions may lead to emergency situations that are followed by downtime or, if luckily, potential risks, which can cause unnecessary anxiety about the safety of employees and business as a whole. To solve these issues, there is a range of effective practical methods to improve the operability of information equipment in small server rooms. In this article, we will examine a feature of intelligent power management of a small server group using NetPing power distribution units.

Devices for remote controlling of power supply NetPing (IP power distribution unit) can control a status of network equipment connected to them and reboot the power supply of the equipment when necessary.

In this article, the example of configuring the automatic reboot of a router connected to a NetPing 2/PWR-220 v3/ETH IP power distribution (IP PDU) unit when the Internet connection fails will be examined.

On the picture above, an approximate interaction scheme is represented: a network router with the Internet access is powered from a PWR1 socket that is controlled by a NetPing IP PDU. To test a network connection status, a NetPing IP PDU sends specific requests in the ICMP format to network resources specified in the settings. As soon as the access to the requested resources fails (i.e. they stop responding to ping), a NetPing IP PDU reboots the power supply of a router.

To implement such a scheme, there is a need to have:

• NetPing 2/PWR-220 v3/ETH power distribution unit;
• a router with the Internet access channel

A vacation time is getting closer. As any other employees, system administrators also dream about having a vacation somewhere far from their workplace. For a majority of system administrators, especially in small organizations, it is not that easy to get distracted from work even for a relatively short time. Many of them are single-handedly responsible for a status of different components of the IT infrastructure. So how an IT specialist can have a vacation being confident that a company can work the same efficiently, as usual? Before, we already examined a process of creating bots for a «Telegram» messenger in our blog. In this article, we examine one of the variants of remote controlling a power supply of the IT equipment from any location of the Earth (having the Internet access) using the integration of a «Telegram» messenger and NetPing power distribution units (IP PDUs). If necessary, an IT specialist sends a command for a socket using «Telegram». After applying a command in «Telegram», a specialist will receive a notification about a successful application of a command and a socket changes its status.

Earlier in our blog, we examined the process of creating a bot for a «Telegram» messenger that allows to receive the information from sensors and IO lines of a NetPing server room environmental monitoring unit and power distribution unit per request and automatically. In this article, we will examine the example of a practical use of these bots by adding features operating in a link with a UniPing server solution v3 server room monitoring unit to a bot that allows controlling an air conditioner in a server room in any time and in any location (having the access to the Internet).

In our example, a bot mimics clicking the buttons on a remote control of an air conditioner using URL-encoded commands that will be sent to a UniPing server solution v3 server room monitoring unit. In turn, a device sends control commands that have been previously recorded to the memory using an IR module IRC-TR v2 to an air conditioner located in a server room.

OpenNMS is a high-level platform with an open source code that is designed for making decisions for monitoring networks and network devices. By following this guideline, you will get the installation platform ready to work with NetPing server room environmental monitoring units and power distribution units, and you will learn to:

• configure monitoring NetPing units using the features of a described system;
• configure gathering readings of sensors;
• create graphic reports

By following this article, you will configure an OpenNMS monitoring system that is ready to operate. A solution is designed for network administrators, system administrators, technical support employees upper than level 1, and other people, whose job is connected to monitoring and servicing of networks and services. The system allows tracking availability, change in a response time, failures of different elements of a network infrastructure, which, in turn, allows to warn and act accordingly to decrease the risks of operability failures on networks and services in the network, as well as the expensive server equipment. In addition, using the system, it is possible to analyze the network infrastructure if there are narrow spaces and the most probable failure points.

A rotation unit for air conditioners is designed to ensure the switching mode of work in two air conditioners with a specified period of time and maintain a normal temperature mode in a room in different climatic conditions.

Using a control unit for air conditioners allows to use the lifetime of main and backup air conditioners equally by switching their roles from time to time. It also automatically switches a backup conditioner on when a main one failed or it is not powerful enough. 

As a rule, rotation and backing up are used in the rooms where there is a need to maintain a maximum allowed temperature, for example, in server rooms with a big number of expensive equipment. To implement a backup scheme, there is a need to make sure that a power of either one of both conditioners is enough to maintain operating climatic conditions. I.e. one conditioner operates while another one is on backup.

In the firmware of NetPing power distribution units it is possible to configure only weekly schedule (with several exceptions for holidays). In addition, there is a feature of switching on/switching off sockets according to the schedule but no more than four times a day. To bypass such limitation in the firmware, there is a need to organize a random schedule for controlling sockets in the firmware using the chain Google Calendar and IFTTT service, i.e. configure switching on/switching off sockets the unlimited number of times in a day, configure a random monthly and yearly schedule, get a possibility to control sockets from several devices (PC, tablet, smartphone) through a common schedule.

The same as Zabbix, Nagios, PRTG Network Monitor and others, LibreNMS is a monitoring and surveillance system for network devices and servers.

The aim of the LibreNMS project is to create a monitoring system with as simple control as possible to survey devices. A system is distributed under the GPLv3 license. A detailed information can be found on the official website of the project: http://www.librenms.org/.

Let us examine an example of the integrating LibreNMS with a UniPing server solution v4/SMS monitoring unit.

NetPing company announces the issue of an updated version of the firmware DKSF 48.4.11 for a NetPing 8/PWR-220 v4/SMS device. This firmware version contains the enhanced functionality of a device.

What have been changed in the latest version?

Nagios – is an open source program, designed for monitoring computer systems and networks, namely: monitoring, controlling the status of calculation nodes and services, and alerting system administrators in case of stopping or continuing of operation of any services.

Together with sending e-mail notifications to notify system administrators, it is possible to use SMS notifications, which increases the reaction speed to the issues that appear during the service operation. To send SMS, it is possible to use the next devices of the NetPing company:

A gas alarm AVUS-COMBI is designed to signal about exceeding specified values for pre-explosive concentrations of methane (propane) or a massive concentration of the carbon dioxide. Design features of a gas alarm allow to install it in non-explosive areas that do not contain aggressive gasses and vapors. When using a gas alarm AVUS-COMBI with devices of NetPing company, a customer gets a ready system that can be used to control the parameters of working area of residential, administrative, public, industrial premises, garages, car parks (parking lots), boiler houses and other objects of using gas. A gas alarm has one channel and can signal to switch an output relay on or to close shut-off gas valve depending on its modification. Together with the devices of the NetPing company, the gas alarm AVUS-COMBI will allow to react to the gas leakage in time by notifying via E-mail, SMS (in NetPing devices with a built-in GSM modem) and SNMP Trap.

Technical requirements for server rooms are determined by the building code 11-2-80 for buildings of "B" category, and the "Instruction on designing buildings and rooms for electronic computing machines SN 512-78".

In the section of micro-climate and noise requirements, the next is indicated:

Micro-climate monitoring of a server room and sensors of "dry contact" type can be performed for example using UniPing server solution v4/SMS. However, when the power supply is lost or the network fails, the device will not be able to send notifications to Zabbix monitoring system. To solve this problem, it is possible to send SMS notifications from sensors, connected to a UniPing server solution v4/SMS device. These notifications will be sent to NetPing SMS gateway to convert SMS to SNMP TRAP notifications with the following sending them to Zabbix monitoring system.

The sensor SWF5.1 is designed to control the presence of water and other water solutions that are non-aggressive to the elements of a sensor cable in a controlled zone. Design specifications of a sensor cable allow to install a sensor on different types of managed objects, such as tubes, flat surfaces (including metal ones). Because of a lack of contract potentials on sensitive elements, a sensor cable can be immersed in the fluid for a long time without damaging sensitive elements. When using a water leakage sensor SWF 5.1 with the devices from NetPing company, a customer receives a ready system, which can be used in all activities, where the presence of water and non-aggressive water solutions is crucial for proper functioning of the equipment and living, such as housing, air conditioning and ventilation systems, basements, Data Processing Centers (DPC), boilers, water supply and heating systems for houses and cottages (bathrooms, kitchens, heating batteries), glass facades of buildings, stock storages, etc. Thanks to having a sensor cable of a big length, a sensor can simultaneously control a fluid leakage on the vast area. A water leakage sensor SWF 5.1 together with devices of NetPing company allows to react to leakages adequately by informing via E-mail, SMS (in devices with a built-in GSM modem) and SNMP Trap.

NetPing company announces the issue of updated firmware version DKSF 48.4.8 for the device NetPing 8/PWR-220 v4/SMS. This firmware version contains error fixes, implementation of new features and improvements of the web interface design.

What has been changed in the latest version?