Use the information in the following sections to help you monitor the infrastructure and common operations for System Center 2012 Configuration Manager.

To monitor infrastructure and operations in Configuration Manager, use the Monitoring workspace in the Configuration Manager console.

Note
The exception to this location is Migration, which is monitored directly in the Migration node in the Administration workspace. For more information, see Monitor Migration Activity in the Migration Workspace.

In addition to using the Configuration Manager console for monitoring, you can use the Configuration Manager reports, or view Configuration Manager log files for Configuration Manager components. For information about reports, see Reporting in Configuration Manager. For information about log files, see About Configuration Manager Log Files.

When you monitor sites, look for signs that indicate problems that require you to take action. For example:

To minimize the risk of a site failure, if monitoring tasks reveal any signs of problems, investigate the source of the problem and repair it as soon as possible.

Use the information in the following sections to help you monitor the infrastructure and common operations for Configuration Manager.

Monitor Infrastructure for Configuration Manager

Configuration Manager provides several methods to monitor the status and operations of your hierarchy. You can check system status of sites throughout the hierarchy, monitor intersite replication from a site hierarchy or geographical view, monitor replication links between sites for database replication, and use the Replication Link Analyzer tool to remediate replication issues.

About the Site Hierarchy Node

The Site Hierarchy node of the Monitoring workspace provides you with an overview of your Configuration Manager hierarchy and intersite links. You can use two views:

  • Hierarchy Diagram: This view displays your hierarchy as a topology map that has been simplified to show only vital information.

  • Geographical View: This view displays your sites on a geographical map showing site locations that you configure.

Use the Site Hierarchy node to monitor the health of each site and the intersite replication links and their relationship to external factors, such as a geographical location.

Because site status and intersite link status replicate as site data and not global data, when you connect your Configuration Manager console to a child primary site, you cannot view the site or link status for other primary sites or their child secondary sites. For example, in a multi-primary site hierarchy, when your Configuration Manager console connects to a primary site, you can view the status of child secondary sites, the primary site, and the central administration site, but you cannot see the status for other nodes of the hierarchy below the central administration site.

Use the Configure Settings command to control how the site hierarchy display renders. Configurations to the Site Hierarchy node that you make when your Configuration Manager console is connected to one site are replicated to all other sites.

Hierarchy Diagram

Geographical View

How to Monitor Database Replication Links and Replication Status

In addition to high level details that are accessible from the Site Hierarchy node in the Monitoring workspace, beginning with Configuration Manager SP1 you can monitor details for database replication when you use the Database Replication node in the Monitoring workspace. From the Database Replication you can monitor the status of replication links between sites, and the initialization details and replication details for replication groups at the site to which your Configuration Manager console is connected.

Tip
Although a Database Replication node also appears under the Hierarchy Configuration node in the Administration workspace, you cannot view the replication status for database replication links from that location.

Replication Link Status

Replication Status

About the Replication Link Analyzer

Configuration Manager includes Replication Link Analyzer which you use to analyze and repair replication issues. You can use Replication Link Analyzer to remediate replication link failures when replication has failed and when replication stops working but has not yet been reported as failed. Replication Link Analyzer can be used to remediate replication issues between the following computers in the Configuration Manager hierarchy (the direction of the replication failure does not matter):

  • Between a site server and the site database server.

  • Between a sites site database server and another sites site database computer (intersite replication).

You can run Replication Link Analyzer in either the Configuration Manager console or at a command prompt:

  • To run in the Configuration Manager console: In the Monitoring workspace, click the Database Replication node, select the replication link that you want to analyze, and then in the Database Replication group on the Home tab, select Replication Link Analyzer.

  • To run at a command prompt, type the following command: %path%\Microsoft Configuration Manager\AdminConsole\bin\Microsoft.ConfigurationManager.ReplicationLinkAnalyzer.Wizard.exe <source site server FQDN> <destination site server FQDN>

When you run Replication Link Analyzer, it detects problems by using a series of diagnostic rules and checks. When the tool runs, you can view the problems that the tool identifies. When instructions to resolve an issue are known, they are displayed. If Replication Link Analyzer can automatically remediate a problem, you are presented with that option. When Replication Link Analyzer finishes, it saves the results in the following XML-based report and a log file on the desktop of the user who runs the tool:

  • ReplicationAnalysis.xml

  • ReplicationLinkAnalysis.log

When Replication Link Analyzer runs, it stops the following services while it remediates some problems, and restarts these services when remediation is complete:

  • SMS_SITE_COMPONENT_MANAGER

  • SMS_EXECUTIVE

If Replication Link Analyzer fails to complete remediation, review the site server and restart these services if they are stopped.

Successful and unsuccessful investigation and remediation actions are logged to provide additional details that are not presented in the tool interface.

Prerequisites to use the Replication Link Analyzer

Procedures for Monitoring Database Replication

Use the following procedures to monitor database replication in Configuration Manager.

To monitor high-level site-to-site database replication status

To monitor the replication status for a replication link

Monitor System Status for Configuration Manager

System status in Configuration Manager provides an overview of the general operations of sites and site server operations of your hierarchy. It can reveal operational problems for site system servers or components, and you can use the system status to review specific details for different Configuration Manager operations. You monitor system status from the System Status node of the Monitoring workspace in the Configuration Manager console.

Most Configuration Manager site system roles and components generate status messages. Status messages details are logged in each components operational log, but are also submitted to the site database where they are summarized and presented in a general rollup of each component or site systems health. These status message rollups provide information details for regular operations and warnings and error details. You can configure the thresholds at which warnings or errors are triggered and fine-tune the system to ensure rollup information ignores known issues that are not relevant to you while calling attention to actual problems on servers or for component operations that you might want to investigate.

System status is replicated to other sites in a hierarchy as site data, not global data. This means you can only see the status for the site to which your Configuration Manager console connects, and any child sites below that site. Therefore, consider connecting your Configuration Manager console to the top-level site of your hierarchy when you view system status.

Use the following table to identify the different system status views and when to use each one.

Node More information

Site Status

Use this node to view a rollup of the status of each site system to review the health of each site system server. Site system health is determined by thresholds that you configure for each site in the Site System Status Summarizer.

You can view status messages for each site system, set thresholds for status messages, and manage the operation of the components on site systems by using the Configuration Manager Service Manager.

Component Status

Use this node to view a rollup of the status of each Configuration Manager component to review the component’s operational health. Component health is determined by thresholds that you configure for each site in the Component Status Summarizer.

You can view status messages for each component, set thresholds for status messages, and manage the operation of components by using the Configuration Manager Service Manager.

Conflicting Records

Use this node to view status messages about clients that might have conflicting records.

Configuration Manager uses the hardware ID to attempt to identify clients that might be duplicates and alert you to the conflicting records. For example, if you have to reinstall a computer, the hardware ID would be the same, but the GUID that Configuration Manager uses might be changed.

Status Message Queries

Use this node to query status messages for specific events and related details. You can use status message queries to find the status messages related to specific events.

You can often use status message queries to identify when a specific component, operation, or Configuration Manager object was modified, and the account that was used to make the modification. For example, you can run the built-in query for Collections Created, Modified, or Deleted to identify when a specific collection was created, and the user account used to create the collection.

Manage Site Status and Component Status

View Status Messages

Monitor Management Tasks for Configuration Manager

Configuration Manager provides built-in monitoring from within the Configuration Manager console. You can monitor many tasks including those related to software updates, power management, and the deployment of content throughout your hierarchy.

Use the information in the following table to help you monitor common Configuration Manager tasks.

Monitoring task More information

Alerts

See Monitor Alerts in Configuration Manager.

Compliance Settings

See How to Monitor for Compliance Settings in Configuration Manager.

Content Deployment

For general information about monitoring content, see the Monitor Content section in the Operations and Maintenance for Content Management in Configuration Manager topic.

For information about monitoring specific types of content deployment:

Endpoint Protection

See How to Monitor Endpoint Protection in Configuration Manager.

Out of Band Management

See How to Monitor Out of Band Management in Configuration Manager.

Monitor Power Management

See How to Monitor and Plan for Power Management in Configuration Manager.

Monitor Software Metering

See How to Monitor Software Metering in Configuration Manager.

Monitor Software Updates

See the Monitor Software Updates section in the Operations and Maintenance for Software Updates in Configuration Manager topic.

Monitor Alerts in Configuration Manager

Alerts are generated by Configuration Manager when a specific condition occurs. Typically, alerts are generated when an error occurs that you must resolve. However, alerts are also generated to warn you that a condition exists so that you can continue to monitor the situation.

You can view alerts in the Alerts node of the Monitoring workspace. Alerts have one of the following alert states:

  • Never triggered: The condition of the alert has not been met.

  • Active: The condition of the alert is met.

  • Canceled: The condition of an active alert is no longer met. This state indicates that the condition that caused the alert is now resolved.

  • Postponed: An administrative user has configured Configuration Manager to evaluate the state of the alert at a later time.

  • Disabled: The alert has been disabled by an administrative user. When an alert is in this state, Configuration Manager does not update the alert even if the state of the alert changes.

You can take one of the following actions when Configuration Manager generates an alert:

  • Resolve the condition that caused the alert, for example, you resolve a network issue or a configuration issue that generated the alert. After Configuration Manager detects that the issue no longer exists, the alert state changes to Cancel.

  • If the alert is a known issue, you can postpone the alert for a specific length of time. At that time, Configuration Manager updates the alert to its current state.

    You can postpone an alert only when it is active.

  • You can edit the Comment of an alert so that other administrative users can see that you are aware of the alert. For example, in the comment you can identify how to resolve the condition, provide information about the current status of the condition, or explain why you postponed the alert.

For more information about how to manage alerts, see Configuring Alerts in Configuration Manager.

See Also