Adding and editing a File Content monitor

This monitor scans the specified files for a string pattern and can be used to scan log files for a known error string. It is intended for scanning text files such as logs, for example, and not binary files. For best performance, select as few files to scan as possible. Using regular expressions to specify filename and scan pattern can affect the monitor’s performance. It is imperative to create detailed regular expressions, specifically for specifying the scan pattern, in order to achieve the best results.

Note: This feature is available with WhatsUp Gold Premium, ProView, TotalView, and TotalView Plus Editions only. To update your license, visit the WhatsUp Customer Portal.

To add a new File Content active monitor:

1. From the WhatsUp Gold web interface, go to Admin > Monitors. The Monitor Library dialog appears.
2. Click the Active tab. The Active Monitor list appears.
3. Click New. The Select Active Monitor Type dialog appears.
4. Select File Content Monitor, then click OK. The New File Properties Monitor dialog appears.
5. Enter or select the appropriate information:
   • Name. Enter a unique name for the active monitor. This name displays in the Active Monitor Library.
   • Description. (Optional) Enter additional information about the monitor. This description displays next to the monitor in the Active Monitor Library.
   • Path of the folder to scan files from. The Universal Naming Convention (UNC) file path WhatsUp Gold uses to access the folder.
6. Specify the method by which the monitor should scan:
   • Scan all files. Select this option to configure the monitor to scan all accessible files.
   • Scan files with names matching the following wildcard/regular expression. Select either wildcard or regular from the list, then enter all or part of a file name for which the monitor should search.

   Note: Wildcards expressions can be used to filter your file search results. For example, to list all text files with .txt extension, you would use: *.txt
   
   Or, to find all text files named file_1.txt, file_2.txt, you would use: file?.txt
   
   For these examples, the * wildcard is used for matching multiple characters and the ? wildcard is used for matching a single character.

   • Timeout (seconds). Enter the length of time WhatsUp Gold attempts to connect. When the time you enter is exceeded without connecting, a timeout occurs and WhatsUp Gold stops trying to connect. This is considered a failed connection. The timeout can not be configured greater than 60 seconds.
   • Ignore Timeout Error. Enable this option to ignore any timeout errors encountered when scanning files.
7. Configure the following scan settings:
   • Pattern to scan. Enter the literal string or regular expression for which the monitor should search.

     Important: Only single line expressions are supported.

   • Pattern is a literal string. Select this option if the pattern you entered is a literal string and the monitor should search the pattern without attempting to interpret anything entered as a regular expression.
   • Perform case sensitive comparison. Select this option to ensure the monitor considers upper and lower case characters as entered.
   • Scan entire file contents. Select this option to search an entire file for the pattern.
   • Scan only the content added to the file since the last poll. Select this option to limit the search to only new information in a file.

   Note: If the Scan only the content added to the file since the last poll option is selected, WhatsUp Gold tracks the offset within the file reached during scanning, then picks up from that point during the next scan. This is not necessarily the end of the file as a timeout could result in not reaching the end of the file. If a file scanned is deleted, then re-created with new content, then one of two things can happen: If the recreated file is smaller than the last scanned offset for that file, WhatsUp Gold start scanning from the beginning of the file. Or, if the recreated file is the same size or larger than the last scanned offset, then WhatsUp Gold picks up the scanning from the last scanned offset.

   Important: Ipswitch recommends creating any associated actions to the file content monitor itself as opposed to a target device to which the monitor is applied. Applying actions to a file content monitored device when this scan method is selected can cause the monitor to report a failure followed by subsequent success each time the device is polled after a change is made to the scanned file(s).

8. Specify the number of instances of the pattern the monitor must find to report as either up or down.
9. Click OK to save changes.

To edit an existing File Content active monitor:

1. From the WhatsUp Gold web interface, go to Admin > Monitors. The Monitor Library dialog appears.
2. Click the Active tab. The Active Monitor list appears.
3. Select the target File Content monitor.
4. Click Edit. The Edit File Content Monitor dialog appears.
5. Modify the configuration settings described previously as needed.
6. Click OK to save changes.

See Also Using Premium active monitors Adding and editing an APC UPS Monitor Monitoring mail servers Monitoring Microsoft Exchange 2003 servers Monitoring a Microsoft Exchange Server Adding and editing a Fan Monitor Adding and editing a File Properties monitor Adding and editing a Folder Monitor Adding and editing an FTP Monitor Adding and editing an HTTP Content Monitor Adding and editing a JMX active monitor Adding and editing a Network Statistics Monitor Adding and editing a PowerShell active monitor Adding and editing a Printer Monitor Adding and editing a Process Monitor Adding and editing a SQL Query active monitor Adding and editing a SQL Server 2000 monitor Adding and editing an SSL Certificate monitor Adding and editing a Temperature Monitor Adding and editing a VoIP Monitor Adding and editing a WMI Formatted active monitor Adding and Editing a WMI Monitor Assigning active monitors Removing and deleting active monitors About critical active monitors Group and Device active monitor reports