Manually trigger actions on monitored host in front of an alarm

General
1

HI,

I was wondering if there wasn’t the possibility, in the face of an alarm on a certain monitored host, to manually launch an action.

The idea would be for example to monitor which Linux VMs need an update and, if necessary, to launch it directly from the Check_MK interface.

Thank you,
Matteo

2

Hi Matteo,

there are two parts to answering this: CAN this be done with Checkmk? And SHOULD this be done with Checkmk?

On the first: Yes, there is a lot you can do. Take a look at “custom icons and actions” here: Host and service views
You could, for example, SSH directly into a host with one click from Checkmk and do stuff there. Or launch some kind of script etc.

On the second: This is for you to decide. There are good reasons why we always say “Monitoring shouldn’t configure”. This is why Checkmk does not include a lot of features that allow you to “do stuff” on / to a monitored host. But you can poke holes into this principle in many ways, using the custom actions, alert handlers, etc. It’s for you and your organization to decide whether the added convenience is worth the potential risks you’re adding (security, breaking something, …) .

HTH
Elias

1 Like
3

Hi Elias,

thanks for the very interesting and comprehensive answer!

I configured direct access with one click via ssh as you suggested. Having a quick and direct way to access the problem is very helpful!

Good day,
Matteo

1 Like