Server Density Beta Update #3 – Server Snapshots

Following customer feedback, we have just pushed out a new release of our server monitoring application, Server Density. This version includes many tweaks and one major new feature – Server Snapshots.

A common problem for sysadmins is dealing with high resource usage events, particularly in relation to high load. The problem is that often, by the time you have been notified and logged into the server, the event will have fixed itself or the server might even have died. This makes it more difficult to diagnose and troubleshoot the cause. Server Snapshots are designed to act a tool for your diagnostics by recording the process list for each data sample the SD agent takes (every 60 seconds). For each date point on the graphs, you can click to view the state of the server at that moment in time – CPU load, memory usage and a breakdown of all the processes running.

Just click on the graph at the point you want to view the snapshot.

We have updated the demo video on our product website and have embedded it below. If you skip to 2:08 you can see the Server Snapshots feature in use. Alternatively, a large screenshot can be viewed here.

This new feature is available right now but you need to update your sd-agent. The process for doing this is the same as installing – stop the current agent, download the new one, extract and start it again. If you overwrite your config.cfg file then you will need to add the 2 values back in. Instructions, as always, are on the agent page for each of your servers (the ‘Agent’ link on the server list).

Due to the large quantity of data this feature generates, we plan to retain data for 30 days after it is collected. After that time has expired, the data process list data will be cleared. You will still be able to view data for all the other metrics (CPU load, memory usage, process count, etc), just the process list will no longer be available. We plan to constantly review the time limit during our beta feedback sessions with users to make sure that we’re keeping data for a useful period of time. Once the beta is over, storing data for indefinite periods of time will be one of the advantages of purchasing the version to install on your own servers instead of hosted by us.

We have also doubled the number of platforms that we test the agent on to ensure full compatibility with as many systems as possible. The full list can be found in the FAQ.

Other changes in this release include:

• Automatic updater in sd-agent. This is a new command option to allow you to download the latest updates when they are released. The command is python agent.py update.
• sd-agent now posts back using JSON instead of just HTTP POST variables. This allows us more flexibility in the future for structured data. It will also make it easier for you to use the postback to send data using your own code, something that will be documented and supported in the future.
• sd-agent now has more extensive error handling to reduce the chances of it crashing.
• Various tweaks and changes to the interface and text within the application to make things clearer and look better.

If you have any comments, feedback or problems, don’t hesitate to get in touch.