Atera Devices

Atera Device Monitoring

Overview

Atera device monitors extend monitoring capabilities beyond agent-based endpoints to include network devices, services, and applications. These agentless monitors use HTTP, SNMP, and TCP protocols to check availability and gather metrics.

Monitor Types

HTTP Monitors

Monitor web services and applications via HTTP/HTTPS requests.

Feature	Description
Protocol	HTTP or HTTPS
Methods	GET, POST, HEAD
Validation	Status code, response content
Authentication	Basic, custom headers
Use Cases	Websites, APIs, web apps

SNMP Monitors

Monitor network devices using Simple Network Management Protocol.

Feature	Description
Versions	SNMP v1, v2c, v3
Operations	GET, GETNEXT, WALK
Data Types	OIDs, MIBs, counters
Use Cases	Routers, switches, firewalls, printers

TCP Monitors

Monitor service availability via TCP port connectivity.

Feature	Description
Protocol	TCP
Check Type	Port open/closed
Response	Connection success/timeout
Use Cases	Custom services, databases, mail servers

Device Monitor Fields

Common Fields

Field	Type	Description
DeviceID	int	Unique device identifier
CustomerID	int	Associated customer ID
CustomerName	string	Customer display name
DeviceName	string	Monitor display name
DeviceType	string	HTTP, SNMP, TCP
Hostname	string	Target host/IP address
Online	boolean	Current status
LastSeen	datetime	Last successful check
CreatedOn	datetime	Monitor creation date

HTTP-Specific Fields

Field	Type	Description
URL	string	Full URL to monitor
Port	int	HTTP port (default 80/443)
CheckCertificateExpiration	boolean	Monitor SSL cert
CheckCertificateRevocation	boolean	Check cert revocation
Username	string	Basic auth username
Password	string	Basic auth password
ResponseText	string	Expected response content
ResponseCode	int	Expected HTTP status

SNMP-Specific Fields (v1/v2c)

Field	Type	Description
Port	int	SNMP port (default 161)
Community	string	SNMP community string
OID	string	Object identifier to query
Threshold	string	Alert threshold
ThresholdComparison	string	Comparison operator

SNMP v3-Specific Fields

Field	Type	Description
Username	string	SNMPv3 username
AuthProtocol	string	MD5, SHA, SHA256, SHA384, SHA512
AuthPassword	string	Authentication password
PrivProtocol	string	DES, AES, AES192, AES256
PrivPassword	string	Privacy password
ContextName	string	SNMPv3 context

TCP-Specific Fields

Field	Type	Description
Port	int	TCP port to check
Timeout	int	Connection timeout (ms)

API Patterns

List Generic Devices (Paginated)

GET /api/v3/devices/generic?page=1&itemsInPage=50
X-API-KEY: {api_key}

Response:

{
  "items": [
    {
      "DeviceID": 55555,
      "CustomerID": 12345,
      "CustomerName": "Acme Corporation",
      "DeviceName": "Core Router",
      "DeviceType": "SNMP",
      "Hostname": "192.168.1.1",
      "Online": true,
      "LastSeen": "2024-02-15T14:30:00Z"
    }
  ],
  "totalItems": 25,
  "page": 1,
  "itemsInPage": 50,
  "totalPages": 1
}

Create HTTP Monitor

POST /api/v3/devices/http
X-API-KEY: {api_key}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "CustomerID": 12345,
  "DeviceName": "Website Monitor",
  "Hostname": "www.acme.com",
  "URL": "https://www.acme.com/health",
  "Port": 443,
  "CheckCertificateExpiration": true,
  "ResponseCode": 200,
  "ResponseText": "OK"
}

Response:

{
  "ActionID": 55556,
  "DeviceID": 55556
}

Create SNMP v1/v2c Monitor

POST /api/v3/devices/snmp
X-API-KEY: {api_key}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "CustomerID": 12345,
  "DeviceName": "Core Router",
  "Hostname": "192.168.1.1",
  "Port": 161,
  "Community": "public",
  "OID": "1.3.6.1.2.1.1.3.0",
  "Threshold": "1000",
  "ThresholdComparison": ">"
}

Create SNMP v3 Monitor

POST /api/v3/devices/snmpv3
X-API-KEY: {api_key}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "CustomerID": 12345,
  "DeviceName": "Firewall",
  "Hostname": "192.168.1.254",
  "Port": 161,
  "Username": "snmpuser",
  "AuthProtocol": "SHA256",
  "AuthPassword": "authpass123",
  "PrivProtocol": "AES256",
  "PrivPassword": "privpass123",
  "OID": "1.3.6.1.4.1.9.9.109.1.1.1.1.3.1",
  "Threshold": "80",
  "ThresholdComparison": ">"
}

Create TCP Monitor

POST /api/v3/devices/tcp
X-API-KEY: {api_key}
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "CustomerID": 12345,
  "DeviceName": "Database Server",
  "Hostname": "db.acme.local",
  "Port": 1433,
  "Timeout": 5000
}

Delete Device Monitor

DELETE /api/v3/devices/{deviceType}/{deviceId}
X-API-KEY: {api_key}

Device types: http, snmp, snmpv3, tcp, generic

Common SNMP OIDs

System Information

OID	Description
1.3.6.1.2.1.1.1.0	System description
1.3.6.1.2.1.1.3.0	System uptime
1.3.6.1.2.1.1.5.0	System name
1.3.6.1.2.1.1.6.0	System location

Interface Statistics

OID	Description
1.3.6.1.2.1.2.2.1.2	Interface description
1.3.6.1.2.1.2.2.1.8	Interface operational status
1.3.6.1.2.1.2.2.1.10	Bytes in
1.3.6.1.2.1.2.2.1.16	Bytes out

CPU and Memory

OID	Description
1.3.6.1.4.1.9.9.109.1.1.1.1.3	Cisco CPU 5 min avg
1.3.6.1.4.1.2021.10.1.3.1	Linux 1 min load avg
1.3.6.1.4.1.2021.4.6.0	Linux available RAM

Storage

OID	Description
1.3.6.1.2.1.25.2.3.1.5	Storage size
1.3.6.1.2.1.25.2.3.1.6	Storage used

Common TCP Ports

Port	Service	Monitor Name
21	FTP	FTP Server
22	SSH	SSH Access
25	SMTP	Mail Server (SMTP)
53	DNS	DNS Server
80	HTTP	Web Server
110	POP3	Mail Server (POP3)
143	IMAP	Mail Server (IMAP)
443	HTTPS	Secure Web Server
445	SMB	File Sharing
1433	MSSQL	SQL Server
3306	MySQL	MySQL Server
3389	RDP	Remote Desktop
5432	PostgreSQL	PostgreSQL
5900	VNC	VNC Server

Monitoring Best Practices

HTTP Monitors

1. Use dedicated health endpoints - /health or /status
2. Check SSL certificates - Enable cert expiration alerts
3. Validate response content - Don't just check status codes
4. Set reasonable timeouts - 10-30 seconds typical
5. Monitor critical paths - Login, API endpoints

SNMP Monitors

1. Use SNMPv3 when possible - Better security
2. Change default community strings - Never use "public"
3. Monitor interface status - Not just availability
4. Set appropriate thresholds - Based on baseline
5. Use meaningful OIDs - Document what you monitor

TCP Monitors

1. Monitor service ports - Not just ICMP ping
2. Use appropriate timeouts - Account for latency
3. Monitor critical services - Databases, mail, etc.
4. Document port purposes - Future reference

Error Handling

Common API Errors

Code	Message	Resolution
400	Invalid device ID	Verify device exists
400	Invalid hostname	Check host/IP format
401	Unauthorized	Check API key
403	Forbidden	Verify permissions
404	Device not found	Confirm device ID
429	Rate limited	Wait and retry (700 req/min)

Monitor Configuration Errors

Error	Cause	Resolution
Host unreachable	Network issue	Verify connectivity
SNMP timeout	Wrong community	Check SNMP config
Certificate error	Invalid/expired cert	Update certificate
Port closed	Service not running	Start service

Alerting Configuration

Threshold Types

Comparison	Usage
>	Above threshold (CPU > 90%)
<	Below threshold (disk free < 10%)
=	Exact match
!=	Not equal

Alert Intervals

Setting	Recommendation
Check interval	1-5 minutes
Alert after	2-3 failures
Recovery after	2-3 successes

Related Skills

• Atera Alerts - Device monitor alerts
• Atera Agents - Agent-based monitoring
• Atera Customers - Customer device associations
• Atera API Patterns - Authentication and pagination