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Exense Step REST API

Connector dependencies​

The following monitoring connectors will be installed when you install the Exense Step REST API connector through the Configuration > Connectors > Monitoring Connectors menu:

Pack assets​

Templates​

The Monitoring Connector Exense Step REST API brings a host template:

  • App-Exense-Step-Restapi-custom

The connector brings the following service templates (sorted by the host template they are attached to):

No service by default.

Discovery rules​

Service discovery​

Rule nameDescription
App-Exense-Step-Plans-Restapi-Plan-NameDiscover and monitor each plan individually.
App-Exense-Step-Plans-Restapi-Tenant-NameDiscover tenants and monitor each tenant's plans in one service.

More information about discovering services automatically is available on the dedicated page and in the following chapter.

Collected metrics & status​

Here is the list of services for this connector, detailing all metrics and statuses linked to each service.

NameUnit
plans.detected.countcount
plans~plan.executions.detected.countcount
plans~plan.executions.failed.percentage%
plans~plan.execution.last.secondss
plans~plan.running.duration.secondss
plan-execution-statusN/A
plan-execution-statusN/A

Prerequisites​

  • The Centreon poller must have network access to the Exense Step server: Make sure the REST API is manually accessible using curl or a web browser.
http://<step-host>:<port>/step/rest

  • Verify that the Centreon poller can authenticate with the API. The account used must have read permissions on the following resources:

    • Plans
    • Tenants (if multi-tenancy is enabled)

  • If you encounter any issues, you can manually check API access using the centreon-engine user with the following curl command:

curl -u user:pass http://<step-host>:<port>/step/rest/plans

Installing the monitoring connector​

Pack​

  1. If the platform uses an online license, you can skip the package installation instruction below as it is not required to have the connector displayed within the Configuration > Connectors > Monitoring Connectors menu. If the platform uses an offline license, install the package on the central server with the command corresponding to the operating system's package manager:
dnf install centreon-pack-applications-exense-step-restapi
  1. Whatever the license type (online or offline), install the Exense Step REST API connector through the Configuration > Connectors > Monitoring Connectors menu.

Plugin​

Since Centreon 22.04, you can benefit from the 'Automatic plugin installation' feature. When this feature is enabled, you can skip the installation part below.

You still have to manually install the plugin on the poller(s) when:

  • Automatic plugin installation is turned off
  • You want to run a discovery job from a poller that doesn't monitor any resource of this kind yet

More information in the Installing the plugin section.

Use the commands below according to your operating system's package manager:

dnf install centreon-plugin-Applications-Exense-Step-Restapi

Using the monitoring connector​

Using a host template provided by the connector​

  1. Log into Centreon and add a new host through Configuration > Hosts.
  2. Fill in the Name, Alias & IP Address/DNS fields according to your resource's settings.
  3. Apply the App-Exense-Step-Restapi-custom template to the host. A list of macros appears. Macros allow you to define how the connector will connect to the resource, and to customize the connector's behavior.
  4. Fill in the macros you want. Some macros are mandatory.
MacroDescriptionDefault valueMandatory
APIUSERNAMESet API usernameUSERNAME
APIPASSWORDSet API passwordPASSWORDX
APITOKENUse token authenticationTOKEN
APIPROTOSpecify https if needed (default: 'https')https
APIPORTAPI port (default: 443)443
APITIMEOUTSet HTTP timeout
APIEXTRAOPTIONSAny extra option you may want to add to every command (a --verbose flag for example). All options are listed here.
  1. Deploy the configuration. The host appears in the list of hosts, and on the Resources Status page. The command that is sent by the connector is displayed in the details panel of the host: it shows the values of the macros.

Using a service template provided by the connector​

  1. If you have used a host template and checked Create Services linked to the Template too, the services linked to the template have been created automatically, using the corresponding service templates. Otherwise, create manually the services you want and apply a service template to them.
  2. Fill in the macros you want (e.g. to change the thresholds for the alerts). Some macros are mandatory (see the table below).
MacroDescriptionDefault valueMandatory
TENANTNAMECheck plan of a tenant (default: '[All]')
FILTERPLANIDFilter plans by plan ID
FILTERPLANNAMEFilter plans by plan name
FILTERENVIRONMENTFilter plan executions by environment name
SINCETIMEPERIODTime period to get plans executions information (in seconds. default: 86400)
ONLYLASTEXECUTIONCheck only last plan execution
TIMEZONEDefine timezone for start/end plan execution time (default is 'UTC')
STATUSFAILEDExpression to define status failed (default: '%{result} =~ /technical_error|failed|interrupted/i')
UNKNOWNPLANEXECUTIONSTATUSSet unknown threshold for last plan execution status. You can use the following variables: %{status}, %{planName}
WARNINGPLANEXECUTIONLASTThresholds
CRITICALPLANEXECUTIONLASTThresholds
WARNINGPLANEXECUTIONSDETECTEDThresholds
CRITICALPLANEXECUTIONSDETECTEDThresholds
WARNINGPLANEXECUTIONSFAILEDPRCTThresholds
CRITICALPLANEXECUTIONSFAILEDPRCTThresholds
WARNINGPLANEXECUTIONSTATUSSet warning threshold for last plan execution status. You can use the following variables: %{status}, %{planName}
CRITICALPLANEXECUTIONSTATUSSet critical threshold for last plan execution status. You can use the following variables: %{status}, %{planName}
WARNINGPLANRUNNINGDURATIONThresholds
CRITICALPLANRUNNINGDURATIONThresholds
WARNINGPLANSDETECTEDThresholds
CRITICALPLANSDETECTEDThresholds
EXTRAOPTIONSAny extra option you may want to add to the command (a --verbose flag for example). All options are listed here.--verbose
  1. Deploy the configuration. The service appears in the list of services, and on the Resources Status page. The command that is sent by the connector is displayed in the details panel of the service: it shows the values of the macros.

How to check in the CLI that the configuration is OK and what are the main options for?​

Once the plugin is installed, log into your Centreon poller's CLI using the centreon-engine user account (su - centreon-engine). Test that the connector is able to monitor a resource using a command like this one (replace the sample values by yours):

/usr/lib/centreon/plugins/centreon_exense_step_restapi.pl \
	--plugin=apps::exense::step::restapi::plugin \
	--custommode=api \
	--mode=plans \
	--hostname='10.0.0.1' \
	--port='443' \
	--proto='https' \
	--token='TOKEN' \
	--api-username='USERNAME' \
	--api-password='PASSWORD' \
	--timeout=''  \
	--tenant-name='' \
	--filter-plan-id='' \
	--filter-plan-name='' \
	--filter-environment='' \
	--since-timeperiod='' \
	--only-last-execution='' \
	--timezone='' \
	--status-failed='' \
	--unknown-plan-execution-status='' \
	--warning-plan-execution-status='' \
	--critical-plan-execution-status='' \
	--warning-plans-detected='' \
	--critical-plans-detected='' \
	--warning-plan-executions-detected='' \
	--critical-plan-executions-detected='' \
	--warning-plan-executions-failed-prct='' \
	--critical-plan-executions-failed-prct='' \
	--warning-plan-execution-last='' \
	--critical-plan-execution-last='' \
	--warning-plan-running-duration='' \
	--critical-plan-running-duration=''

The expected command output is shown below:

OK: detected: 14004 number of plan executions detected: 27141 number of failed executions: 52904 % last execution 48712 running duration 88986 executions are ok | 'plans.detected.count'=14004;;;0; 'plans~plan.executions.detected.count'=27141;;;0; 'plans~plan.executions.failed.percentage'=52904%;;;0;100 'plans~plan.execution.last.seconds'=48712s;;;; 'plans~plan.running.duration.seconds'=88986s;;;;

Troubleshooting​

Please find the troubleshooting documentation for the API-based plugins in this chapter.

Available modes​

In most cases, a mode corresponds to a service template. The mode appears in the execution command for the connector. In the Centreon interface, you don't need to specify a mode explicitly: its use is implied when you apply a service template. However, you will need to specify the correct mode for the template if you want to test the execution command for the connector in your terminal.

All available modes can be displayed by adding the --list-mode parameter to the command:

/usr/lib/centreon/plugins/centreon_exense_step_restapi.pl \
	--plugin=apps::exense::step::restapi::plugin \
	--list-mode

The plugin brings the following modes:

ModeLinked service template
list-plans [code]Used for service discovery
list-tenants [code]Used for service discovery
plans [code]App-Exense-Step-Plans-Restapi-custom

Available options​

Modes options​

All available options for each service template are listed below:

OptionDescription
--filter-countersOnly display some counters (regexp can be used). Example to check SSL connections only : --filter-counters='^xxxx|yyyy$'
--tenant-nameCheck plan of a tenant (default: '[All]').
--filter-plan-idFilter plans by plan ID.
--filter-plan-nameFilter plans by plan name.
--filter-environmentFilter plan executions by environment name.
--since-timeperiodTime period to get plans executions information (in seconds. default: 86400).
--only-last-executionCheck only last plan execution.
--timezoneDefine timezone for start/end plan execution time (default is 'UTC').
--status-failedExpression to define status failed (default: '%{result} =~ /technical_error|failed|interrupted/i').
--unknown-plan-execution-statusSet unknown threshold for last plan execution status. You can use the following variables: %{status}, %{planName}
--warning-plan-execution-statusSet warning threshold for last plan execution status. You can use the following variables: %{status}, %{planName}
--critical-plan-execution-statusSet critical threshold for last plan execution status. You can use the following variables: %{status}, %{planName}
--warning-plans-detectedThresholds.
--critical-plans-detectedThresholds.
--warning-plan-executions-detectedThresholds.
--critical-plan-executions-detectedThresholds.
--warning-plan-executions-failed-prctThresholds.
--critical-plan-executions-failed-prctThresholds.
--warning-plan-execution-lastThresholds.
--critical-plan-execution-lastThresholds.
--warning-plan-running-durationThresholds.
--critical-plan-running-durationThresholds.
--modeDefine the mode in which you want the plugin to be executed (see --list-mode).
--dyn-modeSpecify a mode with the module's path (advanced).
--list-modeList all available modes.
--mode-versionCheck minimal version of mode. If not, unknown error.
--versionReturn the version of the plugin.
--custommodeWhen a plugin offers several ways (CLI, library, etc.) to get information the desired one must be defined with this option.
--list-custommodeList all available custom modes.
--multipleMultiple custom mode objects. This may be required by some specific modes (advanced).
--pass-managerDefine the password manager you want to use. Supported managers are: environment, file, keepass, hashicorpvault and teampass.
--verboseDisplay extended status information (long output).
--debugDisplay debug messages.
--filter-perfdataFilter perfdata that match the regexp. Example: adding --filter-perfdata='avg' will remove all metrics that do not contain 'avg' from performance data.
--filter-perfdata-advFilter perfdata based on a "if" condition using the following variables: label, value, unit, warning, critical, min, max. Variables must be written either %{variable} or %(variable). Example: adding --filter-perfdata-adv='not (%(value) == 0 and %(max) eq "")' will remove all metrics whose value equals 0 and that don't have a maximum value.
--explode-perfdata-maxCreate a new metric for each metric that comes with a maximum limit. The new metric will be named identically with a '_max' suffix. Example: it will split 'used_prct'=26.93%;0:80;0:90;0;100 into 'used_prct'=26.93%;0:80;0:90;0;100 'used_prct_max'=100%;;;;
--change-perfdata --extend-perfdataChange or extend perfdata. Syntax: --extend-perfdata=searchlabel,newlabel,target[,[<new-unit-of-mesure>],[min],[max]] Common examples: =over 4 Convert storage free perfdata into used: --change-perfdata='free,used,invert()' Convert storage free perfdata into used: --change-perfdata='used,free,invert()' Scale traffic values automatically: --change-perfdata='traffic,,scale(auto)' Scale traffic values in Mbps: --change-perfdata='traffic_in,,scale(Mbps),mbps' Change traffic values in percent: --change-perfdata='traffic_in,,percent()' =back
--extend-perfdata-groupAdd new aggregated metrics (min, max, average or sum) for groups of metrics defined by a regex match on the metrics' names. Syntax: --extend-perfdata-group=regex,<names-of-new-metrics>,calculation[,[<new-unit-of-mesure>],[min],[max]] regex: regular expression <names-of-new-metrics>: how the new metrics' names are composed (can use $1, $2... for groups defined by () in regex). calculation: how the values of the new metrics should be calculated <new-unit-of-mesure> (optional): unit of measure for the new metrics min (optional): lowest value the metrics can reach max (optional): highest value the metrics can reach Common examples: =over 4 Sum wrong packets from all interfaces (with interface need --units-errors=absolute): --extend-perfdata-group=',packets_wrong,sum(packets_(discard|error)_(in|out))' Sum traffic by interface: --extend-perfdata-group='traffic_in_(.*),traffic_$1,sum(traffic_(in|out)_$1)' =back
--change-short-output --change-long-outputModify the short/long output that is returned by the plugin. Syntax: --change-short-output=patternreplacementmodifier Most commonly used modifiers are i (case insensitive) and g (replace all occurrences). Example: adding --change-short-output='OKUpgi' will replace all occurrences of 'OK', 'ok', 'Ok' or 'oK' with 'Up'
--change-exitReplace an exit code with one of your choice. Example: adding --change-exit=unknown=critical will result in a CRITICAL state instead of an UNKNOWN state.
--change-output-advReplace short output and exit code based on a "if" condition using the following variables: short_output, exit_code. Variables must be written either %{variable} or %(variable). Example: adding --change-output-adv='%(short_ouput) =~ /UNKNOWN: No daemon/,OK: No daemon,OK' will change the following specific UNKNOWN result to an OK result.
--range-perfdataRewrite the ranges displayed in the perfdata. Accepted values: 0: nothing is changed. 1: if the lower value of the range is equal to 0, it is removed. 2: remove the thresholds from the perfdata.
--filter-uomMask the units when they don't match the given regular expression.
--opt-exitReplace the exit code in case of an execution error (i.e. wrong option provided, SSH connection refused, timeout, etc). Default: unknown.
--output-ignore-perfdataRemove all the metrics from the service. The service will still have a status and an output.
--output-ignore-labelRemove the status label ("OK:", "WARNING:", "UNKNOWN:", CRITICAL:") from the beginning of the output. Example: 'OK: Ram Total:...' will become 'Ram Total:...'
--output-xmlReturn the output in XML format (to send to an XML API).
--output-jsonReturn the output in JSON format (to send to a JSON API).
--output-openmetricsReturn the output in OpenMetrics format (to send to a tool expecting this format).
--output-fileWrite output in file (can be combined with JSON, XML and OpenMetrics options). Example: --output-file=/tmp/output.txt will write the output in /tmp/output.txt.
--disco-formatApplies only to modes beginning with 'list-'. Returns the list of available macros to configure a service discovery rule (formatted in XML).
--disco-showApplies only to modes beginning with 'list-'. Returns the list of discovered objects (formatted in XML) for service discovery.
--float-precisionDefine the float precision for thresholds (default: 8).
--source-encodingDefine the character encoding of the response sent by the monitored resource Default: 'UTF-8'. =head1 DESCRIPTION B<output>. =cut
--http-peer-addrSet the address you want to connect to. Useful if hostname is only a vhost, to avoid IP resolution.
--proxyurlProxy URL. Example: http://my.proxy:3128
--proxypacProxy pac file (can be a URL or a local file).
--insecureAccept insecure SSL connections.
--http-backendPerl library to use for HTTP transactions. Possible values are: lwp (default) and curl.
--memcachedMemcached server to use (only one server).
--redis-serverRedis server to use (only one server). Syntax: address[:port]
--redis-attributeSet Redis Options (--redis-attribute="cnx_timeout=5").
--redis-dbSet Redis database index.
--failback-fileFall back on a local file if Redis connection fails.
--memexpirationTime to keep data in seconds (default: 86400).
--statefile-dirDefine the cache directory (default: '/var/lib/centreon/centplugins').
--statefile-suffixDefine a suffix to customize the statefile name (default: '').
--statefile-concat-cwdIf used with the '--statefile-dir' option, the latter's value will be used as a sub-directory of the current working directory. Useful on Windows when the plugin is compiled, as the file system and permissions are different from Linux.
--statefile-formatDefine the format used to store the cache. Available formats: 'dumper', 'storable', 'json' (default).
--statefile-keyDefine the key to encrypt/decrypt the cache.
--statefile-cipherDefine the cipher algorithm to encrypt the cache (default: 'AES').
--hostnameAPI hostname.
--portAPI port (default: 443)
--protoSpecify https if needed (default: 'https')
--tokenUse token authentication.
--api-usernameSet API username
--api-passwordSet API password
--timeoutSet HTTP timeout

All available options for a given mode can be displayed by adding the --help parameter to the command:

/usr/lib/centreon/plugins/centreon_exense_step_restapi.pl \
	--plugin=apps::exense::step::restapi::plugin \
	--custommode=api \
	--help