Checks
Monitoring in Avantra is performed by execution of the so-called Checks performed by Avantra Agent and Avantra Server.
The list of executed Checks varies depending on the System Type:
- Physical Server
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For a Physical Server, it is basically verified if the server is available, and the most important operating system conditions are checked.
All Checks for a Physical Server are executed by Avantra Agent installed on the Physical Server itself.
- Virtual Cluster Server
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For a Virtual Cluster Server, the main focus is to detect cluster switches. This Check is performed on all Physical Servers that may run the Virtual Cluster Server.
- SAP Instance
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For an SAP Instance there are different types of connection checks depending on the instance type, and also some checks for the health conditions of the application server, first of all in the Java area.
All Checks for an SAP Instance are executed by Avantra Agent installed on the Physical Server hosting the SAP Instance, either directly or via a Virtual Cluster Server.
- SAP System
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For an SAP System, there are basically three groups of checks:
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Verification of the health status of the Database instance, like different space consumption checks for the Database itself and the transaction logs and backup checks. The Database-dependent SAP System checks are executed on the host running the Database instance.
From a monitoring perspective, the Database Checks of a Database instance are considered SAP System Checks. -
Database-independent health conditions, like the status of the updater, output request errors, short dumps, aborted jobs, etc. All Database-independent SAP System Checks are executed on the host running the SAP Instance identified as “central”, i.e. the Central or Central+Java SAP Instance, or one chosen by Avantra (for Java-only systems or ASCS installations).
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Specific Checks for certain types of SAP applications, like SAP BW/BI, SAP XI/PI.
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- Stand-alone Database
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For stand-alone Databases, the same Checks are executed as for Database instances of an SAP System.
Every check provides a Check Result under consideration of the results of the Root Cause Analysis.
Checks are executed in different Check Cycles, and the list of checks executed depends on the System Type. The Check Cycles are:
Basic |
The Basic Check Cycle is scheduled by Avantra Agent every 5 minutes (by default). During the Basic Check Cycle all Checks for Physical Servers, Virtual Cluster Servers, SAP Instances, and Databases are executed. Checks executed in the Basic Check Cycle are part of the RealTime Monitoring. |
Medium |
The Medium Check Cycle is scheduled by Avantra Agent every 10 minutes (by default). During the Medium Check Cycle, all checks for SAP PI/XI are executed. Checks executed in the Medium Check Cycle are part of the RealTime Monitoring. |
Full, Daily |
The Full Check Cycle (or Daily Check Cycle) is scheduled by Avantra Agent every 24 hours. As the name indicates, the Checks executed during this Check Cycle are the so-called Daily Checks. |
Avantra Checks inherently provide a Root Cause Analysis and they also make use of Trend Analysis and Forecasting.
Some Checks are executed by Avantra Server on demand. These are, first of all, the Composite Checks and the Business Services.
There is an option for {_Check Confirmation}, and history is kept for both RealTime Monitoring and Daily Checks.
Every Avantra Check belongs to one of the following categories:
Static |
Static Checks are executed on every System of a given System Type. For instance, Avantra Agent verifies the CPU usage of every Physical Server. |
Dynamic |
Dynamic Checks are only executed if a System fulfills certain conditions. For instance, Avantra Agent executes SAP BW/BI related Checks only for SAP BW/BI systems. |
Custom |
This category comprises all the Checks that are only executed if they are explicitly configured, like Custom Checks, Composite Checks, and Business Services. |
Check Selectors
A Check Selector is a logical grouping of Checks within Avantra. They define a group of Checks to be used in RealTime Monitoring, Notifications, and Business Services.
A Check Selector can group either RealTime Monitoring Checks, Daily Checks, or both. The group of Checks to select from the Check Selector can be defined by attributes as defined by you.
Is also possible to limit the selected Checks to a well-defined set of Monitored Systems using Check Selectors.
Check Results
Every single check has a particular check result after being executed. The result is composed of two parts: the check status and the check message. While the check message is some free text (and in a very few cases can even be empty), e.g. WARNING — 'xyz' is used by 35.1%, the check result in any case is one of the following:
Everything is working as expected. |
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Either a warning threshold has been exceeded, or a system condition was met that should be followed up, but is not an error condition. In some cases, checks that cannot be performed — although they are supposed to — also report a warning result. |
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Either a critical threshold has been exceeded, or an erroneous system condition was met. In some cases, checks that cannot be performed — although they are supposed to — also report a critical result. |
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The check result cannot be determined. In most cases, this check result is an effect of the Root Cause Analysis. |
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The check has been disabled intentionally, or the check is not executed on the system (within Daily Checks). |
Disabling and Enabling Checks
In some situations you might want to disable a particular Check, for example, you may want to disable backup checks if an SAP System is not backed up at all.
You can do this either in a Parameter Set (as described in Defining Parameter Sets) or on a per-System level (as described in Adding, Modifying & Deleting Monitoring Parameters).
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Using a scheduled Parameter Set allows you to run certain Checks at certain periods of time only. |
Given the hierarchy of Monitoring Parameters and the option to override settings on a System level, the effective setting will be computed like this:
By default, every Check is enabled by default. Assume you define a Parameter Set that disables Check A, and you define a second Parameter Set with a higher priority, that disables Check B but does not touch Check A. After processing both Parameter Sets, Checks A and B are disabled.
Now assume you want to enable Check A again, but only for certain periods of time. In this case, you can create a Parameter Set with an even higher priority, but in this case, you have to explicitly enable Check A again.
That means there is a difference between not disabling a Check and explicitly enabling a Check. In the first case, any lower priority setting remains, in the second case it will be overridden.
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Select the appropriate System. Choose , or , or , or , or , or .
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Push the Open button and switch to the Moni. Params. tab.
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Select the Check Execution tab on the left-hand side.
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Push the Add button. Select the Check in question, either Select directly from the drop-down list or Describe by choosing the Check category first to restrict the available Check names.
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Set the Execution to Disabled in order to disable the Check for this System or set it to Enabled in order to re-enable a Check that has been disabled by a Parameter Set.
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Push the Create button to finish.
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Follow the description in Parameter Set.
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In the Parameters tab, choose Check Execution from the left-hand side.
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Push the Add button. Select the Check in question, either Select directly from the drop-down list or Describe by choosing the Check category first to restrict the available Check names.
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Set the Execution to Disabled in order to disable the Check for this System or set it to Enabled in order to re-enable a Check that has been disabled by a Parameter Set with a lower priority.
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Push the Apply button to finish.
Checks Execution Types
Daily Checks
In addition to RealTime Monitoring, Avantra also checks certain system conditions of an SAP System or a Database only once per day. Among these, there are, for example, Checks for a backup (which you usually perform once a day only) and others. We call this kind of checks Daily Checks. They are also referred to as Full Checks.
You may want to skip the execution of Daily Checks on the weekends using Monitoring Parameter RunDailyCheckOnWE.
You can also restrict the Daily Checks details to those parts that are relevant for you using the SAP System or Database Monitoring Parameter RelevantDailyCheckDetails.
Real-time Monitoring Checks
The main purpose of system monitoring is to periodically check the systems' health conditions and to report critical conditions to an administrator immediately. This is what many system monitoring applications do, and so does Avantra. And since this reporting shall happen immediately, we call this kind of monitoring RealTime Monitoring.
Checks Types
Custom Checks
Monitoring can be extended by the so-called Custom Checks. Custom Checks are provided in order to:
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monitor the SAP R/3 system log, your specific SAP Jobs, or certain SAP transaction run-times
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execute your own ABAP reports as Avantra Checks
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verify uploads to your SAP BW/BI systems
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verify RFC destinations
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integrate with the JMX (Java Management Extensions) monitoring tree of either the managed SAP System or any other Java Application Server
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monitor processes or services (on Microsoft Windows operating systems) and dedicated filesystems
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monitor file interfaces or check network response times
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monitor Web sites, including basic authentication, form handling, certificate expiration, and response
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deploy and run your own scripts or programs as Avantra Checks (sort of plug-ins)
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monitor arbitrary log files and the Microsoft Windows EventLog for certain patterns
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integrate with and configure the SAP CCMS, either a single monitoring tree element or a whole monitoring tree
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monitor Disk I/O and Network I/O
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verify the values of profile parameters, the status of Java components, and the active ABAP and Java users in an SAP System
Similar to the Monitoring Parameter Sets, Custom Checks can be defined for a Dynamic Group or a Static Group of Systems.
Many of the Custom Checks listed above are also capable of tracking and recording the so-called Service Availability. Custom Checks — as the name indicates — need to be manually configured.
Composite Checks
A Composite Check is a Check that is composed of one or (usually) more other Checks. This can be either built-in Checks, Custom Checks, or other Composite Checks. Roughly speaking, a Composite Check is an evaluation rule that determines a Check Result based on the Check Results of its input Checks.
Similar to Custom Checks, Composite Checks can be defined for a Static Group or a Dynamic Group of Systems. The evaluation of the Check Result is performed by Avantra Server.
Composite Checks also record Availability Data. The SystemAlive Check is an example of a built-in Composite Check (which cannot be modified).
External Checks
Externally Managed Checks are Checks within Avantra that have their Check Result pushed from an external source by means of the Web Service.
There are two different incarnations of Externally Managed Checks: External Status and External Event. An External Status is created once and must be updated periodically, at least every 90 minutes. An External Event is created once and lives within Avantra for a period of time defined during its creation (by default 60 minutes). It is removed automatically afterwards.
Like usual Checks, Externally Managed Checks can be used within the Notifications.
Manual Checks
You can define Daily Check details to be performed manually by an administrator. Manual Daily Check Types are created with check status Unknown. The check status must be changed by the administrator performing the check before the whole Daily Check record can be confirmed.
If you specify a Database type, the Check will only be created in Daily Checks of SAP Systems running on top of the corresponding Database, or of Daily Checks running on the corresponding Database.
Perform the following steps:
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Select from the top-level menu and switch to the Customizing tab.
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Select from the page menu.
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Fill in a Name and select the DBMS Type.
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Push the Update Manual Daily Check Type button.