monitor windows server from CactiEZ

[viraltus]

Hi all Cacti Users,

I am using CactiEZ for 2 month and I am quite noob.

Thanks to your help I have installed Advanced Ping v2.1 with success.

Now I am here to ask how I can monitor windows servers trough CactiEZ.
I Have tried to use the wmi installed in CactiEZ without any luck.

Is there a way to do so or I have to install Cacti on a windows server?
Thanks a lot for the answer!

[BSOD2600]

Try installing snmp on windows for starters. Monitoring stuff via WMI from Linux isn't an easy task nor very efficient.

[viraltus]

Thanks a lot for the answer.

With your suggestion I would install something else on the server. I don't know if it is totally a good idea.

There is some document/book to learn from?

You say that is not efficient on linux, the bad efficiency is on the monitor machine or on the server to be monitored?

Maybe is better to install a cacti monitoring on a windows machine and use WMI?

Maybe use some other monitoring?

Thanks a lot for the answer.
I have a lot to learn

[BSOD2600]

Why are you set on monitoring with WMI instead of snmp?

[viraltus]

My boss ask me if I can do so with WMI and without installing anything on windows servers. He told me that some commercial product do so and if I can do so too.

I think that he is scared about the possibility to break some Windows equilibrium and fall into a lot of problems.

So here is my question. If you say that is not a good idea I would be really ok but I have to argument this with my boss.

There is some documentation to learn from?

I have a lot to learn in monitoring.
Thanks a lot for the answer!

[BSOD2600]

do you realize microsoft provides an snmp agent for windows?

every wmi call requires authentication, which drastically increases the polling time. Various linux 'hacks' to poll wmi from windows require hardcoding in a user/pass, which is also a bad security idea.

anyways, search the forum for linux wmi... there are lots of posts/solutions.

[viraltus]

I didn't realize that snmp agent is made by Microsoft.
As I say I am quite noob in monitoring and I have to learn a lot.

Sorry for the silly question with snmp monitoring I could also monitor services?

I will search some document to learn from.

Thanks a lot for your answer!

[BSOD2600]

Yes, service statuses are exposed via snmp. I'd recommend also looking into the thold plugin.

[viraltus]

Ok, thanks a lot for the answers
I will work on.
Have a nice day