An Introduction to IPSentry

IPSentry is an Internet tool, first developed in 1996 that will continually monitor all your Internet and intranet TCP/IP network servers 24/7, ensuring your email servers, Web sites, FTP servers, news servers, and any other TCP/IP-based services are active and responding.

IPSentry works by polling the devices you have specified at set intervals (defined by the operator). When problems are detected or a device fails, IPSentry will notify you via any number of different methods, including pager notification, email, audible alert, beeper, syslog or a configurable "launch external application" option. It is also possible to set up an alerting schedule for a variety of notification actions. Reports are displayed in html format.

IPSentry Functionality

IPSentry is quick and easy to install as it runs from a single machine and does not require agents or software to be installed on the devices to be monitored. IPSentry will perform TCP/IP network monitoring, monitoring computers and devices, NT System services and network drives, and, with a comprehensive set of add-ins available, it can for instance evaluate MRTG statistics and alert on threshold values, monitor ODBC Database connectivity and script results, SMTP to POP3 mail paths, event logging or temperature monitoring.

An interesting feature is the ability to set up reverse alerts, ie. to notify you when something is up as opposed to down.

Operating Systems Supported by IPSentry

IPSentry runs on Windows 98, NT, 2000 and XP.

IPSentry Interopability

RGE offer a free documentation package that provides a skeleton project to allow developers to create proprietary add-in components. In addition, there are a wide variety of add-ins available for the IPSentry site, SNMP Device Monitor, ODBC Database Monitor, MRTG and Sensatronics IT Temperature Monitor amongst others. The IT Temperature Monitor add-in provides you with the ability to monitor various temperature sensing units, and set your own parameters and notifications.

IPSentry Versions and Pricing

IPSentry is available in single, site or enterprise versions and is priced from £85 (from OPENXTRA) for a single licence or $395 for a site licence.

Some add-ins developed by RGE Inc are free (including the IT Temperature Monitor Model E add-in) and others are priced from $25.

Conclusion

If you’re not bothered by a lack of interface, and don’t really require sophisticated graphical functions, IPSentry is a good product for anyone interested in monitoring whether or not an IP service (Web, e-mail, etc.) is still up and running. RGE’s pick ’n’ mix add-ins means you purchase the functionality you require and not a host of functions you’re not interested in.

RGE Inc also provide technical support free of charge via email and plenty of knowledge base on-line help and howtos on the website.

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About the Author

Annie Raynor Annie Raynor, Bsc(Hons), possesses extensive experience in IT marketing and PR, particularly in the field of network management. In 2003 she joined OPENXTRA as Marketing and Business Development Manager, part of her remit being to raise OPENXTRA’s profile and assist in its growth.