PRTG Manual: Amazon CloudWatch RDS Sensor
The Amazon CloudWatch RDS sensor monitors the performance of the Amazon Cloud service Relational Database Service (RDS).
The sensor can show the following:
- CPU Utilization
- CPU Credit Usage and CPU Credit Balance
- Memory Usage
- Database I/O
- Network I/O
- Storage information
See Supported Metrics for a list of data that this sensor can potentially show in dedicated channels.
Which channels the sensor actually shows might depend on the monitored device and the sensor setup.
- Requires access rights for CloudWatch queries. For details, see the Knowledge Base: How do I define access rights for Amazon CloudWatch queries?
- Requires .NET 4.7.2 or higher on the probe system.
- Define Credentials for Amazon CloudWatch in settings that are higher in the Object Hierarchy, for example, in the parent device settings.
- The minimum scanning interval for this sensor is 15 minutes.
- Configure notification triggers with a latency of 0 seconds to receive all notifications for this sensor ([...] for at least 0 seconds).
- This sensor will only show those channels for which it receives data from Amazon. You can check the availability of data in your CloudWatch Console on the AWS website. To know which channels are possible for the various services of this Amazon CloudWatch sensor, see the manual section Supported Metrics. If the sensor does not receive data from Amazon for more than 6 hours, it will go into error status.
- To know which dimensions you can monitor, see the manual section Supported Dimensions.
- Amazon will charge you (a small amount) for each "Amazon CloudWatch API Request" query the sensor sends to the Amazon servers. Depending on the service, each Amazon CloudWatch sensor sends about 10 to 30 requests with each scanning interval. Last time we checked the Amazon price list, they charged max. US$ 0.014 per 1,000 requests (depending on your region).
For details, see the Knowledge Base: How much does Amazon charge for using the CloudWatch API?
Currently, this sensor type is in beta status. The methods of operating can change at any time, as well as the available settings. Do not expect that all functions will work properly, or that this sensor works as expected at all. Be aware that this type of sensor can be removed again from PRTG at any time.
Requirement: Access Rights for Amazon CloudWatch Queries
The AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) account that you use with the Amazon CloudWatch sensor needs specific rights to query any metrics.
For details, see the Knowledge Base: How do I define access rights for Amazon CloudWatch queries?
This sensor type requires the Microsoft .NET Framework version 4.7.2 or later to be installed on the computer running the PRTG probe, either on the local system (on every node, if on a cluster probe), or on the system running the remote probe. If the framework is missing, you cannot create this sensor.
For more information, see the Knowledge Base: Which .NET version does PRTG require?
The Add Sensor dialog appears when you manually add a new sensor to a device. It only shows the setting fields that are required for creating the sensor. Therefore, you will not see all setting fields in this dialog. You can change (nearly) all settings in the sensor's Settings tab later.
PRTG looks for available instances.
This can take up to several minutes.
Select which service instance(s) you want to monitor. PRTG creates one sensor for each instance you choose in the Add Sensor dialog. The settings you choose will be valid for all sensors that you create when you finish this dialog.
The following settings for this sensor differ in the Add Sensor dialog in comparison to the sensor's Settings tab.
Amazon CloudWatch Specific |
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Services |
Select the Engines or Database Instances you want to add a sensor for. You see a list with the names of all items that are available to monitor. Add check marks in front of the respective lines to select the desired items. PRTG creates one sensor for each selection. You can also use the check box in the table head to select and deselect all items. To better find what you want to monitor, especially in large tables, use the search function in the upper-right corner. |
On the details page of a sensor, click the Settings tab to change its settings.
Usually, a sensor connects to the IP Address or DNS Name of the parent device where you created this sensor. See the Device Settings for details. For some sensor types, you can define the monitoring target explicitly in the sensor settings. See below for details on available settings.
Basic Sensor Settings |
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Sensor Name |
Enter a meaningful name to identify the sensor. By default, PRTG shows this name in the device tree, as well as in alarms, logs, notifications, reports, maps, libraries, and tickets. |
Parent Tags |
Shows Tags that this sensor inherits from its parent device, group, and probe. This setting is shown for your information only and cannot be changed here. |
Tags |
Enter one or more Tags, separated by spaces or commas. You can use tags to group sensors and use tag–filtered views later on. Tags are not case sensitive. We recommend that you use the default value. You can add additional tags to the sensor if you like. Other tags are automatically inherited from objects further up in the device tree. These are visible above as Parent Tags.
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Priority |
Select a priority for the sensor. This setting determines where the sensor is placed in sensor lists. Top priority is at the top of a list. Choose from one star (low priority) to five stars (top priority). |
Amazon CloudWatch Specific |
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Region |
Shows the region in which the monitored AWS instance runs. It is one of the following regions:
Once a sensor is created, you cannot change this value. It is shown for reference purposes only. If you need to change this, please add the sensor anew.
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Description |
Shows the description of the AWS service instance that this sensor monitors. Once a sensor is created, you cannot change this value. It is shown for reference purposes only. If you need to change this, please add the sensor anew. |
ID |
Shows the ID of the AWS instance that this sensor monitors. Once a sensor is created, you cannot change this value. It is shown for reference purposes only. If you need to change this, please add the sensor anew. |
Result Handling |
Define what PRTG will do with the sensor results. Choose between:
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Sensor Display |
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Primary Channel |
Select a channel from the list to define it as the primary channel. In the device tree, the last value of the primary channel will always be displayed below the sensor's name. The available options depend on what channels are available for this sensor.
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Graph Type |
Define how different channels will be shown for this sensor.
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Stack Unit |
This setting is only available if stacked graphs are selected above. Choose a unit from the list. All channels with this unit will be stacked on top of each other. By default, you cannot exclude single channels from stacking if they use the selected unit. However, there is an advanced procedure to do so. |
By default, all following settings are inherited from objects higher in the hierarchy and should be changed there, if necessary. Often, best practice is to change them centrally in the Root group's settings, see section Inheritance of Settings for more information. To change a setting only for this object, disable inheritance by clicking the button next to inherit from under the corresponding setting name. You will then see the options described below.
Scanning Interval |
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Click |
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Scanning Interval |
Select a scanning interval (seconds, minutes, or hours) from the list. The scanning interval determines the time the sensor waits between two scans. You can change the available intervals in the system administration on PRTG on premises installations. |
If a Sensor Query Fails |
Define the number of scanning intervals that a sensor has time to reach and check a device again in case a sensor query fails. The sensor can try to re-reach and check a device several times, depending on the option you select here, before it will be set to a Down status. This helps you avoid false alarms if the monitored device has only temporary issues. For previous scanning intervals with failed requests, the sensor will show a Warning status. Choose between:
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This sensor type has a fixed minimum scanning interval for performance reasons. You cannot run the sensor in shorter intervals than this minimum interval. Consequently, shorter scanning intervals as defined in System Administration—Monitoring are not available for this sensor.
For Amazon CloudWatch sensors, the minimum scanning interval is 15 minutes.
Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window |
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Schedule |
Select a schedule from the list. Schedules can be used to monitor for a certain time span (days, hours) every week. With the period list option it is also possible to pause monitoring for a specific time span. You can create new schedules and edit existing ones in the account settings.
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Maintenance Window |
Specify if you want to set up a one-time maintenance window. During a "maintenance window" period, this object and all child objects will not be monitored. They will be in a Paused status instead. Choose between:
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Maintenance Begins |
This field is only visible if you enabled the maintenance window above. Use the date time picker to enter the start date and time of the maintenance window. |
Maintenance Ends |
This field is only visible if you enabled the maintenance window above. Use the date time picker to enter the end date and time of the maintenance window. |
Dependency Type |
Define a dependency type. Dependencies can be used to pause monitoring for an object depending on the status of another. You can choose between:
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Dependency |
This field is only visible if the Select object option is enabled above. Click on the reading-glasses and use the object selector to choose an object on which the current sensor will depend. |
Dependency Delay (Sec.) |
Define a time span in seconds for a dependency delay. After the master object for this dependency goes back to Up status, PRTG will start monitoring the depending objects after this extra delayed. This can help to avoid false alarms, for example, after a server restart, by giving systems more time for all services to start up. Please enter an integer value.
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Access Rights |
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Click |
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User Group Access |
Define which user group(s) will have access to the object you're editing. A table with user groups and types of access rights is shown. It contains all user groups from your setup. For each user group, you can choose from the following access rights:
You can create new user groups in the System Administration—User Groups settings. To automatically set all objects further down in the hierarchy to inherit this object's access rights, set a check mark for the Revert children's access rights to inherited option.
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Channel Unit Configuration |
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Click |
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Channel Unit Types |
For each type of sensor channel, define the unit in which data is displayed. If defined on probe, group, or device level, these settings can be inherited to all sensors underneath. You can set units for the following channel types (if available):
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Amazon CloudWatch Metrics |
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Relational Database Service (RDS) |
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Amazon CloudWatch Dimensions |
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Relational Database Service (RDS) |
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Supported Regions and Their Codes
Supported Regions and Codes |
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Region |
Code |
US East (Northern Virginia) |
us-east-1 |
US East (Ohio) |
us-east-2 |
US West (Northern California) |
us-west-1 |
US West (Oregon) |
us-west-2 |
Canada (Central) |
ca-central-1 |
EU (Frankfurt) |
eu-central-1 |
EU (Ireland) |
eu-west-1 |
EU (London) |
eu-west-2 |
EU (Paris) |
eu-west-3 |
Asia Pacific (Tokyo) |
ap-northeast-1 |
Asia Pacific (Seoul) |
ap-northeast-2 |
Asia Pacific (Osaka-Local) |
ap-northeast-3 |
Asia Pacific (Singapore) |
ap-southeast-1 |
Asia Pacific (Sydney) |
ap-southeast-2 |
Asia Pacific (Mumbai) |
ap-south-1 |
South America (São Paulo) |
sa-east-1 |
Knowledge Base: How do I define access rights for Amazon CloudWatch queries?
Knowledge Base: How much does Amazon charge for using the CloudWatch API?
Knowledge Base: Which .NET version does PRTG require?
To change display settings, spike filter, and limits, switch to the sensor's Overview tab and click the gear icon of a specific channel. For detailed information, see the Sensor Channel Settings section.
Click the Notification Triggers tab to change notification triggers. For detailed information, see the Sensor Notification Triggers Settings section.
For more general information about settings, see the Object Settings section.
For information about sensor settings, see the following sections: