Installing the Monitoring Station

Upgrade

Proceed to the appropriate section depending on your Monitoring Station platform:

Installing on Windows

On Windows, the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Monitoring Station is installed using a graphical installer that guides you through the steps of the installation process.

1. Ensure you are logged in to the Monitoring Station system as the local administrator.
   Uptime Infrastructure Monitor may not function properly if the Monitoring Station is installed when you are logged in as a domain or non-local administrator.
2. Double-click the executable installer:
   uptime-<version#>-windows.exe
3. On the introduction screen, click Next.
4. On the License Agreement screen, carefully read all of the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor end-user license agreement, then click the accept check box, and click Next.
5. Select the installation size that most closely matches your monitored deployment. 
   Your selection determines how Uptime Infrastructure Monitor's underlying configuration is configured (for example, the MySQL buffer pool size and open connections cap). These parameters can be changed to match a different selection after installation.
6. Accept or modify the default install location for the Monitoring Station files (C:\Program Files\uptime software\uptime), then click Next.
   This is the location of the core Uptime Infrastructure Monitor components (i.e., the Data Collector and Web server), as well as the Controller; the DataStore location is set in the next step.
7. Accept or modify the default install location for the DataStore (C:\Program Files\uptime software\uptime\datastore), then click Next.
   Because the DataStore can grow very large (in excess of 100 GB), you can install the DataStore on another file system if you are monitoring a large number of systems and retaining data for extended periods.
8. On the Configuration Options page, in the Web Server Settings section, optionally configure the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Web server: 
   
   • Web Server Name 
     The hostname of the system through which users will access the Web server's user interface. This name is written to the <installDirectory>\apache\conf\httpd.conf file, which contains configuration information for the Web server used by Uptime Infrastructure Monitor.
   • Web Server Port 
     The port through which the Web server for the Monitoring Station will listen for requests. The port number is written to the httpd.conf file.
9. Configure the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Controller Settings:
   
   • Controller Port 
     This is the port through which the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Controller actively listens for API calls. This port number is written to the <installDirectory>\controller\etc\jetty-ssl.xml file.
   • SSL Distinguished Name
   • SSL Passphrase 
     Provide keystore information so that the install process can generate the issuer for the Controller's self-signed certificate. This information includes a distinguished name and passphrase. By default, the distinguished name is the Controller hostname, which is a mandatory attribute; make this as complete as needed (e.g., CN=hostname,O=Organization,OU=ITServices,ST=California,C=US). The passphrase must be at least six characters long.
10. In the DataStore Settings section, optionally configure the Database Port through which the DataStore will listen for requests.
    The port number is written to the uptime.conf file
11. Select the Start menu location and user access option, then click Next.
12. Click Next to begin the installation.
    The installation process will take several minutes.
13. When the software is installed, click Finish.
    The following occurs:
    
    • the Web server and DataStore services are started
    • the DataStore is populated with default data
    • the Data Collector is started
    • the Controller service is left in a stopped state
    • the Monitoring Station user interface is launched in your default browser
14. Proceed to the Post-Installation Tasks section.

Installing on Linux

On Linux, the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Monitoring Station installer is a console application.

1. Ensure you have logged in to the Monitoring Station system as root.

2. Type the following command:
   sh uptime-<version>-linux.bin 
   It can take up to several minutes for the components of the installer to be extracted from the .bin file.

3. On the Introduction page, press Enter to continue.

4. On the License Agreement page, carefully read all of the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor end-user license agreement. Press Enter to scroll through the agreement.
5. At the DO YOU ACCEPT THE TERMS OF THIS LICENSE AGREEMENT? (Y/N) prompt, type y and press Enter.

6. Choose Install Folder: Accept the default install directory for the Monitoring Station files (/usr/local/uptime) or enter a new, absolute path, then press Enter.
   This is the location of the core Uptime Infrastructure Monitor components (i.e., the Data Collector and Web server), as well as the Controller; the DataStore location is set in the next step.

   The uptime user account must be able to access the specified directory.

7. Choose DataStore Path: Accept the default install directory for the DataStore (/usr/local/uptime/datastore) or enter a new, absolute path, then press Enter.
   Because the DataStore can grow very large (in excess of 100 GB), you can install the DataStore on another file system if you are monitoring a large number of systems and retaining data for extended periods.

8. Choose Configuration Size: Select the installation size that most closely matches your monitored deployment.
   Your selection determines how Uptime Infrastructure Monitor's underlying configuration is configured (for example, the MySQL buffer pool size and open connections cap). These parameters can be changed to match a different selection after installation.

9. DataStore Port: Accept the default DataStore port (3308) or enter a new one, the press Enter.
   This is the port through which the DataStore will listen for requests. The port number is written to the uptime.conf file.
10. Web Server Name: Accept the default hostname for Uptime Infrastructure Monitor's Web server component or enter a new one, then press Enter.
    This is the name of the system through which users will access the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Web interface. This name is written to the <installDirectory>/apache/conf/httpd.conf file, which contains configuration information for the Web server used by Uptime Infrastructure Monitor.
11. Web Server Port: Accept the default Web server port (9999) or enter a new one, then press Enter.
    This is the port through which the Web server will listen for requests. The port number is written to the httpd.conf file.
12. Uptime Controller Port: Accept the default Uptime Controller port (9997) or enter a new one, then press Enter.
    This is the port through which the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Controller listens for API calls. The port number is written to the <installDirectory>/controller/etc/jetty-ssl.xml file.
13. Keystore Configuration: Provide keystore information so that the install process can generate the issuer for the Controller's self-signed certificate.
    
    1. Distinguished Name: Accept the default distinguished name (the hostname of the installation system) or enter a new one, then press Enter.
       Only the common name (CN) attribute is required, but you can make the name as complete as needed (e.g., CN=hostname, O=Organization, OU=ITServices, ST=California, C=US).
    2. Keystore Password: Enter and confirm a password.
       This password must be at least 6 characters long.
14. Pre-Installation Summary: Review the configured options, then press Enter.
    The installation process will take several minutes.
15. When the installation is complete, press Enter.
    The following occurs:
    
    • the Web server and DataStore are started
    • the DataStore is populated with default data
    • the Data Collector is started
    • the Controller service is left in a stopped state
16. Press Enter again to exit the installer.
17. Proceed to the Post-Installation Tasks section.

Post-Installation Tasks

After installing the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Monitoring Station, you will need to do the following:

• set up the administrator account and SMTP server when you first log in
• install the license for Uptime Infrastructure Monitor
• add systems
• add users

Set Up the Administrator Account and SMTP Server

Once the Monitoring Station is installed, connect to it using the hostname and port defined during the installation process: http://<hostname>:<port>

The first user to log into Uptime Infrastructure Monitor should be the system administrator. The administrator account has the default user name admin, and at first login, you will have to set the password and email address for this administrator account. To set up the administrator account, do the following:

1. Access the Monitoring Station in a supported Web browser:
   http://<hostname>:<port> 
   Where <hostname> is the name or IP address of the system that is running the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Monitoring Station. For example:
   http://localhost:9999
2. At the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor login screen, enter the password for the administrator in the Password field.
3. Re-enter the password in the Confirm Password field.
4. Enter an appropriate address in the Administrator's Email field.
5. Enter your SMTP hostname in the SMTP Server field.
   Uptime Infrastructure Monitor needs this information configured immediately in order to send alerts. You can modify this information after installation (see SMTP Server for more information).
6. Click the Login button.
   You have set up Uptime Infrastructure Monitor's main administrator account.     

Install a License to Use Uptime Infrastructure Monitor

See License Information for more information.

Add Systems

The fastest way to begin monitoring your infrastructure is to use Auto Discovery to efficiently assemble a monitored inventory.

Afterward, you can fine-tune your monitored inventory. See Managing Your Infrastructure for more information.

Add Users

You will need to create user roles (e.g., for administration, alert investigation, and report access) and assign individual users or user groups to them. See User Management for more information.

Secure the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor Virtual Appliance

If you have installed Uptime Infrastructure Monitor as a virtual appliance, the default user ID and password used to access the virtual OS is root and uptime, respectively. This level of access is required for system-level Uptime Infrastructure Monitor tasks such as custom scripting, debugging, and working with the database. For security purposes, it is strongly recommended that you change the default root-level password provided for the Uptime Infrastructure Monitor virtual appliance OS.

Secure the Uptime Controller

If you are planning to use the Uptime Controller, there are further steps to consider. See Controller Security for more information.