Uptime Monitors

What are Uptime Monitors?

Uptime monitors continuously check the availability and performance of your websites, web services, APIs, servers, and specific ports. They automatically detect when your services go down and alert you immediately, helping you maintain optimal uptime and provide better service to your users.

How to Access Uptime Monitors

You can access your uptime monitors in several ways:

• From the main dashboard, click on the Monitors section
• Use the sidebar navigation menu and select Monitors
• Go directly to /monitors from your dashboard

Types of Monitors Available

Website Monitor

Monitors the availability of websites and web pages by checking HTTP/HTTPS responses.

• Target: Full URL (e.g., https://example.com)
• What it checks: HTTP status codes, response time, page content
• Use case: Monitoring your main website, landing pages, web applications

Ping Monitor

Uses ICMP ping to check if a server is reachable and responding.

• Target: IP address or domain name (e.g., example.com or 192.168.1.1)
• What it checks: Basic network connectivity and response time
• Use case: Monitoring servers, network devices, basic connectivity

Port Monitor

Checks if a specific port on a server is open and accepting connections.

• Target: IP address or domain name with port number
• What it checks: Port availability and connection response time
• Use case: Monitoring database servers, mail servers, custom applications

Creating a New Monitor

Step 1: Navigate to Monitor Creation

1. Go to your Monitors page
2. Click the "Create Monitor" button
3. You'll be taken to the monitor creation form

Step 2: Basic Monitor Settings

• Name: Give your monitor a descriptive name (e.g., "Main Website", "Database Server")
• Type: Select the monitor type (Website, Ping, or Port)
• Target: Enter the URL, domain, or IP address to monitor
• Port: (For port monitors) Specify the port number

Step 3: Advanced Settings

Check Interval

How often the monitor will check your target:

• 30 seconds: Most frequent checking (premium plans)
• 1 minute: High-frequency monitoring
• 5 minutes: Standard monitoring
• 10-60 minutes: Less frequent checking for stable services

Request Settings (Website Monitors)

• Request Method: GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, HEAD, PATCH
• Request Headers: Custom headers (e.g., authentication tokens)
• Request Body: Data to send with POST/PUT requests
• User Agent: Custom user agent string
• Timeout: Maximum time to wait for response (5-30 seconds)

Response Validation

• Expected Status Code: HTTP status codes that indicate success (default: 200)
• Response Body Contains: Text that must be present in the response
• Response Body Does Not Contain: Text that should not be in the response

Step 4: Notification Settings

Choose which notification handlers will be alerted when this monitor fails:

• Select from your configured notification handlers
• You can choose multiple notification methods
• Different notifications can be sent for "down" and "up" events

Step 5: Project Assignment (Optional)

Assign the monitor to a project for better organization:

• Select an existing project from the dropdown
• Projects help group related monitors together
• Useful for organizing by client, application, or service type

Monitor States and Status

Monitor States

• 🟢 Up: Monitor is responding normally
• 🔴 Down: Monitor has failed and is not responding
• ⚪ Paused: Monitor is temporarily disabled
• 🟡 Pending: Waiting for first check or processing

Monitor Statistics

For each monitor, you can view:

• Uptime Percentage: Overall availability percentage
• Average Response Time: Average time for responses
• Total Checks: Number of monitoring checks performed
• Last Check: When the monitor was last checked
• Next Check: When the next check is scheduled

Managing Your Monitors

Viewing Monitor Details

1. Click on any monitor name from your monitors list
2. View detailed statistics, response times, and uptime graphs
3. See recent check logs and any incidents
4. Access monitor settings and configuration

Editing a Monitor

1. Go to the monitor details page
2. Click the "Edit" button
3. Modify any settings as needed
4. Save your changes

Pausing/Resuming Monitors

• Pause: Temporarily stop checking without deleting the monitor
• Resume: Restart checking for a paused monitor
• Use case: During maintenance windows or scheduled downtime

Deleting Monitors

1. Go to your monitors list
2. Click the three-dot menu next to the monitor
3. Select "Delete"
4. Confirm the deletion

Warning: Deleting a monitor permanently removes all its data and history.

Understanding Monitor Logs

Accessing Logs

1. Click on a monitor from your list
2. Navigate to the "Logs" section
3. View detailed check results and response data

Log Information

Each log entry contains:

• Timestamp: When the check was performed
• Status: Success or failure
• Response Time: How long the check took
• Status Code: HTTP response code (for website monitors)
• Error Details: Specific error information if the check failed
• Ping Server: Which monitoring server performed the check

What to Expect

First Check

• New monitors perform their first check within a few minutes
• Initial status may show as "Pending" until the first check completes
• You'll receive notifications based on your configured settings

Ongoing Monitoring

• Monitors run automatically according to your check interval
• Notifications are sent when status changes (up to down, down to up)
• Data is collected and stored for reporting and analysis

Alerts and Notifications

• Down Alert: Sent immediately when a monitor fails
• Up Alert: Sent when a monitor recovers
• Multiple Failures: System waits for confirmation before alerting to avoid false positives

Common Issues and Troubleshooting

Monitor Shows as Down But Site is Working

• Check your target URL: Ensure it's exactly correct including protocol (http/https)
• Verify expected status code: Your site might return a different code than 200
• Check for redirects: Some sites redirect and return 301/302 codes
• Review response content: Your page content might have changed

High Response Times

• Server location: Response times vary based on geographic distance
• Server performance: Slow response might indicate server issues
• Network issues: Temporary network congestion can affect times
• Timeout settings: Increase timeout if your service legitimately takes longer

False Alerts

• Adjust sensitivity: Increase the number of failed checks before alerting
• Check multiple locations: Use multiple ping servers to verify failures
• Review notification settings: Ensure you're only getting alerts you need

Missing Notifications

• Check notification handlers: Verify they're properly configured and enabled
• Test integrations: Use the test feature to ensure notifications work
• Review monitor settings: Confirm notifications are enabled for the monitor
• Check spam/junk folders: Email notifications might be filtered

Best Practices

Monitor Configuration

• Use descriptive names that clearly identify what's being monitored
• Set appropriate check intervals based on service criticality
• Configure proper timeout values for your services
• Use projects to organize related monitors

Notification Management

• Don't over-notify - choose appropriate team members for each service
• Use different notification methods for different severity levels
• Test your notification handlers regularly
• Consider escalation procedures for critical services

Monitoring Strategy

• Monitor your most critical services more frequently
• Include both external-facing and internal services
• Monitor key user journeys, not just homepages
• Consider monitoring from multiple geographic locations

Tips for Success

• Start simple: Begin with basic website monitoring and gradually add more complex checks
• Monitor key endpoints: Don't just monitor your homepage - include login pages, APIs, and critical functionality
• Use meaningful names: "Main Website" is better than "Monitor 1"
• Set realistic expectations: Perfect 100% uptime is rare - focus on trending improvements
• Review regularly: Periodically check your monitors are still relevant and properly configured
• Document dependencies: Use monitor names and projects to reflect service dependencies
• Plan for maintenance: Pause monitors during planned maintenance to avoid false alerts