Ubuntu Server Monitoring for Improved Uptime

When it comes to server monitoring tools, Ubuntu is one of the most popular Linux distributions out there. Starting as a desktop focused distribution, it soon found its place as a server operating system. In the eyes of some users, it presented a better way to get a Debian-based Linux distribution with a more consistent and predictable release schedule. Ubuntu is also a common distribution to see in virtual appliances and cloud applications due to its simple nature and great support options.

Choosing your Ubuntu server monitoring method

 Ubuntu server monitoring with Opsview can be done through two methods, agented or agentless. Each approach has a different set of pros and cons, and choosing between the two is a matter of looking at what data you would like to return from the server. If you want to collect very specific metrics, agented might be the best option for you. We’ll work through installing the agent in this article.

Our standard checks are consistent across the board no matter kind you use for Linux monitoring. We do this using the same set of plugins across each agent and the same host templates. Agents are available here. 

Once this agent is installed, you should be able to apply the “OS - Base Unix Agent” service group and start seeing the data you can collect from your Ubuntu server. This will give you a great start with your Ubuntu server monitoring. 

If you want to look at agentless monitoring, this is achieved via SNMP polling and you will need to configure the SNMPD on your host by following these instructions: 

1. Install SNMP

#sudo apt-get install snmpd

2. Create a backup of the default snmpd.conf file

#sudo mv /etc/snmp/snmpd.conf /etc/snmp/snmpd.conf.bak

3. Create a blank /etc/snmp/snmpd.conf file with the following information (customize for your environment)

sudo nano /etc/snmp/snmpd.comf
rocommunity public
syslocation “Ubuntu Host"
syscontact Admin@company

4. Modify /etc/default/snmpd

Change from:
# snmpd options (use syslog, close stdin/out/err).
SNMPDOPTS='-Lsd -Lf /dev/null -u snmp -I -smux -p /var/run/snmpd.pid 127.0.0.1'

To:
# snmpd options (use syslog, close stdin/out/err).
#SNMPDOPTS='-Lsd -Lf /dev/null -u snmp -I -smux -p /var/run/snmpd.pid 127.0.0.1'
SNMPDOPTS='-Lsd -Lf /dev/null -u snmp -I -smux -p /var/run/snmpd.pid -c /etc/snmp/snmpd.conf'

5. Restart the SNMP daemon

#sudo /etc/init.d/snmpd restart

You then just need to add the host into Opsview and apply the “OS - Unix Agentless” service group and you’ll be agentlessly monitoring your Ubuntu server.

Opsview offers a simple and dynamic way to monitor your operating system infrastructure with comprehensive alerting and dashboarding functions that will allow you to visualize the performance of your Ubuntu server.