📊 AlmaLinux Network Monitoring with Zabbix Complete Setup Guide

Ready to gain complete visibility into your network infrastructure? 🚀 Zabbix is the ultimate enterprise monitoring solution that transforms raw network data into actionable insights! This comprehensive guide will help you build a powerful monitoring system on AlmaLinux that watches over every device, service, and metric in your environment! ✨

Think of Zabbix as your network’s guardian angel - constantly watching, alerting you to problems before they become disasters, and providing beautiful dashboards that tell the story of your infrastructure! 👁️‍🗨️

🤔 Why Use Zabbix for Network Monitoring?

Zabbix provides unmatched monitoring capabilities for enterprise environments! 🌟

Essential Benefits:

• 📈 Comprehensive Metrics - Monitor everything from CPU to custom applications
• ⚡ Real-time Alerting - Instant notifications when issues arise
• 📊 Beautiful Dashboards - Visualize your infrastructure with stunning graphs
• 🔧 Auto-discovery - Automatically find and monitor new devices
• 📱 Multi-platform Support - Monitor Linux, Windows, network devices, and more
• 🌐 Distributed Monitoring - Scale across multiple locations and networks
• 🔌 Extensible - Custom scripts, templates, and integrations
• 💾 Historical Data - Long-term trending and capacity planning
• 🚨 Intelligent Alerting - Reduce false positives with smart correlations
• 🔒 Enterprise Security - Role-based access and encrypted communications

🎯 What You Need Before Starting

Let’s ensure you’re ready for this comprehensive monitoring setup! ✅

System Requirements:

• ✅ AlmaLinux 8 or 9 (fresh installation recommended)
• ✅ Minimum 4GB RAM (8GB+ for large environments)
• ✅ 50GB+ disk space for database and logs
• ✅ Static IP address for monitoring server
• ✅ Network access to devices you want to monitor
• ✅ Root/sudo access for installation
• ✅ Basic understanding of networking concepts

Infrastructure Prerequisites:

• ✅ Database server (MySQL/PostgreSQL) or will install locally
• ✅ Web server for Zabbix frontend
• ✅ SNMP access to network devices (switches, routers)
• ✅ SSH access to Linux servers for monitoring
• ✅ Firewall rules configured for monitoring traffic

What We’ll Monitor:

• ✅ Server performance (CPU, memory, disk, network)
• ✅ Network devices (switches, routers, firewalls)
• ✅ Services and applications
• ✅ Website availability and performance
• ✅ Database performance and availability
• ✅ Custom metrics and business KPIs

📝 Step 1: System Preparation and Database Setup

Let’s prepare our AlmaLinux system for Zabbix installation with proper database configuration!

# Update system packages
sudo dnf update -y

# Install essential packages and repositories
sudo dnf install -y \
    wget \
    curl \
    vim \
    net-tools \
    epel-release \
    dnf-utils

# Install Zabbix repository
sudo rpm -Uvh https://repo.zabbix.com/zabbix/6.4/rhel/9/x86_64/zabbix-release-6.4-1.el9.noarch.rpm
sudo dnf clean all

Install and Configure MySQL Database:

# Install MySQL server
sudo dnf install -y mysql-server

# Start and enable MySQL
sudo systemctl enable mysqld
sudo systemctl start mysqld

# Secure MySQL installation
sudo mysql_secure_installation

# Connect to MySQL and create Zabbix database
sudo mysql -u root -p << 'EOF'
CREATE DATABASE zabbix CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_bin;
CREATE USER 'zabbix'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'zabbix_password_here';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON zabbix.* TO 'zabbix'@'localhost';
SET GLOBAL log_bin_trust_function_creators = 1;
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;
EOF

Optimize MySQL for Zabbix:

# Create optimized MySQL configuration for Zabbix
sudo tee /etc/mysql/mysql.conf.d/zabbix.cnf << 'EOF'
[mysqld]
# Zabbix optimizations
innodb_buffer_pool_size = 1G
innodb_log_file_size = 256M
innodb_flush_method = O_DIRECT
innodb_flush_log_at_trx_commit = 2

# Character set
character-set-server = utf8mb4
collation-server = utf8mb4_bin

# Performance
max_connections = 200
query_cache_type = 1
query_cache_size = 256M
tmp_table_size = 256M
max_heap_table_size = 256M

# Timeouts
wait_timeout = 28800
interactive_timeout = 28800

# Logging
slow_query_log = 1
slow_query_log_file = /var/log/mysql/slow.log
long_query_time = 2
EOF

# Restart MySQL to apply changes
sudo systemctl restart mysqld

🔧 Step 2: Install Zabbix Server and Frontend

Let’s install the complete Zabbix monitoring stack!

# Install Zabbix server, frontend, and agent
sudo dnf install -y \
    zabbix-server-mysql \
    zabbix-web-mysql \
    zabbix-apache-conf \
    zabbix-sql-scripts \
    zabbix-selinux-policy \
    zabbix-agent2

# Import initial schema and data
sudo zcat /usr/share/zabbix-sql-scripts/mysql/server.sql.gz | mysql --default-character-set=utf8mb4 -uzabbix -p zabbix

# Reset the log_bin_trust_function_creators option
mysql -u root -p -e "SET GLOBAL log_bin_trust_function_creators = 0;"

Configure Zabbix Server:

# Edit Zabbix server configuration
sudo tee /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf << 'EOF'
# Zabbix Server Configuration

# Database settings
DBHost=localhost
DBName=zabbix
DBUser=zabbix
DBPassword=zabbix_password_here
DBPort=3306

# Server settings
ListenPort=10051
SourceIP=
LogFile=/var/log/zabbix/zabbix_server.log
LogFileSize=100
LogSlowQueries=3000
PidFile=/var/run/zabbix/zabbix_server.pid

# Performance tuning
StartPollers=30
StartIPMIPollers=10
StartPollersUnreachable=5
StartTrappers=15
StartPingers=5
StartDiscoverers=5
StartHTTPPollers=5
StartTimers=2
StartEscalators=2
StartAlerters=5

# Cache settings
CacheSize=128M
HistoryCacheSize=64M
HistoryIndexCacheSize=32M
TrendCacheSize=32M
ValueCacheSize=128M

# Timeout settings
Timeout=30
TrapperTimeout=300
UnreachablePeriod=45
UnavailableDelay=60
UnreachableDelay=15

# Housekeeping
HousekeepingFrequency=1
MaxHousekeeperDelete=5000

# Network settings
StartDBSyncers=4
DBTLSConnect=
DBTLSCAFile=
DBTLSCertFile=
DBTLSKeyFile=
DBTLSCipher=
DBTLSCipher13=

# SNMP settings
SNMPTrapperFile=/var/log/snmptrapd/snmptrapd.log
StartSNMPTrapper=1

# Load modules
LoadModulePath=/usr/lib64/zabbix/modules
LoadModule=

# TLS settings
TLSCAFile=
TLSCRLFile=
TLSCertFile=
TLSKeyFile=
EOF

# Set proper permissions
sudo chown zabbix:zabbix /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf
sudo chmod 600 /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf

Configure Zabbix Frontend:

# Configure PHP for Zabbix
sudo tee /etc/php.d/99-zabbix.ini << 'EOF'
; Zabbix PHP configuration
max_execution_time = 300
memory_limit = 256M
post_max_size = 32M
upload_max_filesize = 16M
max_input_time = 300
max_input_vars = 10000
date.timezone = "UTC"

; Session settings
session.auto_start = off
session.use_strict_mode = on
session.use_cookies = on
session.use_only_cookies = on
session.cookie_httponly = on
session.cookie_secure = on
session.gc_maxlifetime = 1440
EOF

# Configure Apache for Zabbix
sudo tee /etc/httpd/conf.d/zabbix.conf << 'EOF'
# Zabbix Apache Configuration
Alias /zabbix /usr/share/zabbix

<Directory "/usr/share/zabbix">
    Options FollowSymLinks
    AllowOverride None
    Require all granted

    <IfModule mod_php.c>
        php_value max_execution_time 300
        php_value memory_limit 256M
        php_value post_max_size 32M
        php_value upload_max_filesize 16M
        php_value max_input_time 300
        php_value max_input_vars 10000
        php_value date.timezone "UTC"
        php_value always_populate_raw_post_data -1
    </IfModule>
</Directory>

<Directory "/usr/share/zabbix/conf">
    Require all denied
</Directory>

<Directory "/usr/share/zabbix/app">
    Require all denied
</Directory>

<Directory "/usr/share/zabbix/include">
    Require all denied
</Directory>

<Directory "/usr/share/zabbix/local">
    Require all denied
</Directory>
EOF

# Enable and start services
sudo systemctl enable httpd php-fpm
sudo systemctl start httpd php-fpm

🌟 Step 3: Start Services and Complete Web Setup

Let’s start all Zabbix services and complete the web-based configuration!

# Start and enable Zabbix services
sudo systemctl enable zabbix-server zabbix-agent2
sudo systemctl start zabbix-server zabbix-agent2

# Check service status
sudo systemctl status zabbix-server
sudo systemctl status zabbix-agent2

# Check Zabbix server logs
sudo tail -f /var/log/zabbix/zabbix_server.log

Configure Firewall:

# Open firewall ports for Zabbix
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=10050/tcp  # Zabbix agent
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=10051/tcp  # Zabbix server
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=http    # Web interface
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=https   # SSL web interface
sudo firewall-cmd --reload

# Verify open ports
sudo firewall-cmd --list-all

Complete Web Setup:

echo "🌐 Zabbix web interface is now available at:"
echo "   http://$(hostname -I | awk '{print $1}')/zabbix"
echo ""
echo "📋 Web setup configuration:"
echo "   Database type: MySQL"
echo "   Database host: localhost"
echo "   Database port: 3306"
echo "   Database name: zabbix"
echo "   Database user: zabbix"
echo "   Database password: zabbix_password_here"
echo ""
echo "🔑 Default login credentials:"
echo "   Username: Admin"
echo "   Password: zabbix"
echo ""
echo "⚠️  Remember to change the default password after login!"

✅ Step 4: Configure Zabbix Agent and Monitoring

Let’s configure the Zabbix agent and set up basic monitoring!

Configure Zabbix Agent:

# Configure Zabbix agent
sudo tee /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.conf << 'EOF'
# Zabbix Agent Configuration

# Server settings
Server=127.0.0.1
ServerActive=127.0.0.1
Hostname=zabbix-server

# Agent settings
ListenPort=10050
ListenIP=0.0.0.0
SourceIP=

# Logging
LogFile=/var/log/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.log
LogFileSize=100
DebugLevel=3

# Performance
BufferSend=5
BufferSize=100
MaxLinesPerSecond=20

# Timeout settings
Timeout=30

# Security
AllowRoot=0
User=zabbix

# Include additional configuration files
Include=/etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.d/*.conf

# Plugins
Plugins.Log.MaxLinesPerSecond=20
Plugins.SystemRun=1

# User parameters
UserParameter=custom.cpu.util,cat /proc/loadavg | awk '{print $1}'
UserParameter=custom.memory.util,free -m | awk 'NR==2{printf "%.1f", $3*100/$2 }'
UserParameter=custom.disk.util[*],df -h $1 | awk 'NR==2 {print $5}' | sed 's/%//'
EOF

# Restart agent to apply changes
sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2
sudo systemctl status zabbix-agent2

Create Custom Monitoring Scripts:

# Create custom monitoring scripts directory
sudo mkdir -p /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts

# Create system monitoring script
sudo tee /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/system-monitor.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
# Custom System Monitoring Script

case "$1" in
    "cpu_temp")
        # Get CPU temperature (if available)
        if [ -f /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone0/temp ]; then
            temp=$(cat /sys/class/thermal/thermal_zone0/temp)
            echo "scale=1; $temp/1000" | bc
        else
            echo "0"
        fi
        ;;
    "disk_iops")
        # Get disk I/O operations per second
        iostat -x 1 2 | tail -1 | awk '{print $4+$5}'
        ;;
    "network_errors")
        # Get network error count
        cat /proc/net/dev | grep -E "(eth0|ens|enp)" | awk -F: '{print $2}' | awk '{print $3+$7}'
        ;;
    "process_count")
        # Get running process count
        ps aux | wc -l
        ;;
    "zombie_processes")
        # Get zombie process count
        ps aux | awk '$8 ~ /^Z/ { count++ } END { print count+0 }'
        ;;
    "memory_swap_used")
        # Get swap usage percentage
        free | awk '/^Swap:/ { if($2 > 0) print ($3/$2)*100; else print 0 }'
        ;;
    *)
        echo "Usage: $0 {cpu_temp|disk_iops|network_errors|process_count|zombie_processes|memory_swap_used}"
        exit 1
        ;;
esac
EOF

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/system-monitor.sh

# Add custom parameters to agent
sudo tee /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.d/custom-params.conf << 'EOF'
# Custom monitoring parameters
UserParameter=custom.system[*],/usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/system-monitor.sh $1
UserParameter=custom.service.status[*],systemctl is-active $1 | grep -c "active"
UserParameter=custom.port.check[*],netstat -tuln | grep -c ":$1 "
UserParameter=custom.file.size[*],stat -c%s $1 2>/dev/null || echo 0
UserParameter=custom.file.age[*],echo $(($(date +%s) - $(stat -c%Y $1 2>/dev/null || echo $(date +%s))))
UserParameter=custom.log.error[*],grep -c "ERROR" $1 2>/dev/null || echo 0
EOF

sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2

🛡️ Step 5: Advanced Monitoring Configuration

Let’s set up advanced monitoring for different types of infrastructure!

SNMP Monitoring Setup:

# Install SNMP tools
sudo dnf install -y net-snmp net-snmp-utils

# Configure SNMP for monitoring network devices
sudo tee /etc/snmp/snmpd.conf << 'EOF'
# SNMP Configuration for Zabbix

# Community strings (change these!)
rocommunity public localhost
rocommunity zabbix-monitor 192.168.1.0/24

# System information
syslocation "Server Room"
syscontact "[email protected]"
sysname "Zabbix SNMP Server"

# Security
agentSecName internal
rouser internal
createUser internal MD5 "authpassword" DES "encryptionpassword"

# MIBs
view systemonly included .1.3.6.1.2.1.1
view systemonly included .1.3.6.1.2.1.25.1
access MyROGroup "" any noauth exact systemonly none none

# Process monitoring
proc sshd
proc httpd
proc mysqld
proc zabbix_server
proc zabbix_agentd

# Disk monitoring
disk / 10000

# Load monitoring
load 12 10 5
EOF

sudo systemctl enable snmpd
sudo systemctl start snmpd

# Test SNMP
snmpwalk -v2c -c public localhost system

Database Monitoring Setup:

# Create MySQL monitoring user
mysql -u root -p << 'EOF'
CREATE USER 'zabbix_monitor'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'monitor_password';
GRANT PROCESS, REPLICATION CLIENT, SELECT ON *.* TO 'zabbix_monitor'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;
EOF

# Create database monitoring script
sudo tee /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/mysql-monitor.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
# MySQL Monitoring Script

MYSQL_USER="zabbix_monitor"
MYSQL_PASS="monitor_password"

case "$1" in
    "connections")
        mysql -u$MYSQL_USER -p$MYSQL_PASS -e "SHOW STATUS LIKE 'Threads_connected';" | tail -1 | awk '{print $2}'
        ;;
    "queries_per_second")
        mysql -u$MYSQL_USER -p$MYSQL_PASS -e "SHOW STATUS LIKE 'Queries';" | tail -1 | awk '{print $2}'
        ;;
    "slow_queries")
        mysql -u$MYSQL_USER -p$MYSQL_PASS -e "SHOW STATUS LIKE 'Slow_queries';" | tail -1 | awk '{print $2}'
        ;;
    "innodb_buffer_pool_hit_ratio")
        mysql -u$MYSQL_USER -p$MYSQL_PASS -e "
        SELECT ROUND((1 - (Innodb_buffer_pool_reads / Innodb_buffer_pool_read_requests)) * 100, 2) as hit_ratio
        FROM (
            SELECT variable_value as Innodb_buffer_pool_reads FROM information_schema.global_status WHERE variable_name = 'Innodb_buffer_pool_reads'
        ) t1,
        (
            SELECT variable_value as Innodb_buffer_pool_read_requests FROM information_schema.global_status WHERE variable_name = 'Innodb_buffer_pool_read_requests'
        ) t2;" | tail -1
        ;;
    *)
        echo "Usage: $0 {connections|queries_per_second|slow_queries|innodb_buffer_pool_hit_ratio}"
        ;;
esac
EOF

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/mysql-monitor.sh

# Add MySQL monitoring parameters
echo "UserParameter=mysql.monitor[*],/usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/mysql-monitor.sh \$1" | sudo tee -a /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.d/custom-params.conf

Web Service Monitoring:

# Create web service monitoring script
sudo tee /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/web-monitor.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
# Web Service Monitoring Script

URL="$1"
TIMEOUT="${2:-10}"

case "$3" in
    "response_time")
        curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{time_total}" --max-time $TIMEOUT "$URL" 2>/dev/null || echo "0"
        ;;
    "http_code")
        curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" --max-time $TIMEOUT "$URL" 2>/dev/null || echo "0"
        ;;
    "response_size")
        curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{size_download}" --max-time $TIMEOUT "$URL" 2>/dev/null || echo "0"
        ;;
    "ssl_cert_days")
        echo | openssl s_client -servername "$URL" -connect "$URL:443" 2>/dev/null | \
        openssl x509 -noout -dates | grep notAfter | cut -d= -f2 | \
        xargs -I {} date -d "{}" +%s | \
        awk -v now=$(date +%s) '{print int(($1-now)/86400)}'
        ;;
    *)
        echo "Usage: $0 <URL> <timeout> {response_time|http_code|response_size|ssl_cert_days}"
        ;;
esac
EOF

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/web-monitor.sh

# Add web monitoring parameters
echo "UserParameter=web.monitor[*],/usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/web-monitor.sh \$1 \$2 \$3" | sudo tee -a /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.d/custom-params.conf

sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2

🎮 Quick Examples - Monitoring Templates and Dashboards

Let’s create practical monitoring examples! 🚀

Example 1: Complete Server Monitoring Template

# Create server monitoring template export
cat > server-monitoring-template.xml << 'EOF'
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<zabbix_export>
    <version>6.4</version>
    <date>2025-09-18T00:00:00Z</date>
    <groups>
        <group>
            <uuid>7df96b18c230490a9a0a9e2307295160</uuid>
            <name>Templates/Operating systems</name>
        </group>
    </groups>
    <templates>
        <template>
            <uuid>10001000100010001000100010001000</uuid>
            <template>AlmaLinux Server Advanced</template>
            <name>AlmaLinux Server Advanced Monitoring</name>
            <description>Advanced monitoring template for AlmaLinux servers</description>
            <groups>
                <group>
                    <name>Templates/Operating systems</name>
                </group>
            </groups>
            <items>
                <item>
                    <uuid>20002000200020002000200020002000</uuid>
                    <name>CPU Temperature</name>
                    <type>ZABBIX_ACTIVE</type>
                    <key>custom.system[cpu_temp]</key>
                    <delay>60s</delay>
                    <value_type>FLOAT</value_type>
                    <units>°C</units>
                    <description>Current CPU temperature</description>
                </item>
                <item>
                    <uuid>20002000200020002000200020002001</uuid>
                    <name>Disk IOPS</name>
                    <type>ZABBIX_ACTIVE</type>
                    <key>custom.system[disk_iops]</key>
                    <delay>60s</delay>
                    <value_type>FLOAT</value_type>
                    <units>ops</units>
                    <description>Disk I/O operations per second</description>
                </item>
                <item>
                    <uuid>20002000200020002000200020002002</uuid>
                    <name>Zombie Processes</name>
                    <type>ZABBIX_ACTIVE</type>
                    <key>custom.system[zombie_processes]</key>
                    <delay>300s</delay>
                    <value_type>UNSIGNED</value_type>
                    <description>Number of zombie processes</description>
                </item>
            </items>
            <triggers>
                <trigger>
                    <uuid>30003000300030003000300030003000</uuid>
                    <expression>last(/AlmaLinux Server Advanced/custom.system[cpu_temp])&gt;80</expression>
                    <name>High CPU temperature on {HOST.NAME}</name>
                    <priority>WARNING</priority>
                    <description>CPU temperature is above 80°C</description>
                </trigger>
                <trigger>
                    <uuid>30003000300030003000300030003001</uuid>
                    <expression>last(/AlmaLinux Server Advanced/custom.system[zombie_processes])&gt;5</expression>
                    <name>High number of zombie processes on {HOST.NAME}</name>
                    <priority>WARNING</priority>
                    <description>Too many zombie processes detected</description>
                </trigger>
            </triggers>
        </template>
    </templates>
</zabbix_export>
EOF

echo "📋 Server monitoring template created: server-monitoring-template.xml"
echo "   Import this template in Zabbix web interface:"
echo "   Configuration → Templates → Import"

Example 2: Automated Discovery Rules

# Create network discovery script
sudo tee /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/network-discovery.py << 'EOF'
#!/usr/bin/env python3
"""
Network Discovery Script for Zabbix
Discovers network devices using SNMP
"""

import json
import subprocess
import ipaddress
import sys

def discover_network_devices(network_range="192.168.1.0/24", community="public"):
    """Discover SNMP-enabled devices on the network"""
    devices = []

    try:
        network = ipaddress.IPv4Network(network_range, strict=False)

        for ip in network.hosts():
            ip_str = str(ip)

            # Try SNMP walk to detect device
            try:
                cmd = ["snmpwalk", "-v2c", "-c", community, "-t", "2", "-r", "1",
                       ip_str, "1.3.6.1.2.1.1.1.0"]
                result = subprocess.run(cmd, capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=5)

                if result.returncode == 0 and result.stdout:
                    # Get system description
                    sysDescr = result.stdout.strip().split('=')[1].strip() if '=' in result.stdout else "Unknown Device"

                    # Get hostname via SNMP
                    cmd_name = ["snmpwalk", "-v2c", "-c", community, "-t", "2", "-r", "1",
                                ip_str, "1.3.6.1.2.1.1.5.0"]
                    name_result = subprocess.run(cmd_name, capture_output=True, text=True, timeout=5)

                    hostname = ip_str
                    if name_result.returncode == 0 and name_result.stdout:
                        hostname = name_result.stdout.strip().split('=')[1].strip().strip('"') if '=' in name_result.stdout else ip_str

                    devices.append({
                        "{#SNMP_DEVICE_IP}": ip_str,
                        "{#SNMP_DEVICE_NAME}": hostname,
                        "{#SNMP_DEVICE_DESC}": sysDescr,
                        "{#SNMP_COMMUNITY}": community
                    })

            except (subprocess.TimeoutExpired, subprocess.CalledProcessError):
                continue

    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error during discovery: {e}", file=sys.stderr)

    return {"data": devices}

if __name__ == "__main__":
    # Get network range from command line or use default
    network_range = sys.argv[1] if len(sys.argv) > 1 else "192.168.1.0/24"
    community = sys.argv[2] if len(sys.argv) > 2 else "public"

    result = discover_network_devices(network_range, community)
    print(json.dumps(result, indent=2))
EOF

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/network-discovery.py

# Add discovery parameter
echo "UserParameter=network.discovery[*],/usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/network-discovery.py \$1 \$2" | sudo tee -a /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.d/custom-params.conf

sudo systemctl restart zabbix-agent2

# Test discovery
/usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/network-discovery.py "192.168.1.0/24" "public"

Example 3: Performance Dashboard Creation

# Create dashboard export script
cat > create-performance-dashboard.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
# Performance Dashboard Creation Script

echo "📊 Creating Zabbix Performance Dashboard..."

# Dashboard configuration (JSON format for import)
cat > performance-dashboard.json << 'DASHBOARD_EOF'
{
    "dashboard": {
        "uuid": "40004000400040004000400040004000",
        "name": "AlmaLinux Performance Dashboard",
        "display_period": 30,
        "auto_start": 1,
        "pages": [
            {
                "name": "System Overview",
                "widgets": [
                    {
                        "type": "graph",
                        "name": "CPU Utilization",
                        "x": 0,
                        "y": 0,
                        "width": 12,
                        "height": 5,
                        "fields": [
                            {
                                "type": "INTEGER",
                                "name": "source_type",
                                "value": 0
                            },
                            {
                                "type": "GRAPH",
                                "name": "graphid",
                                "value": {
                                    "name": "CPU utilization",
                                    "host": "Zabbix server"
                                }
                            }
                        ]
                    },
                    {
                        "type": "graph",
                        "name": "Memory Usage",
                        "x": 12,
                        "y": 0,
                        "width": 12,
                        "height": 5,
                        "fields": [
                            {
                                "type": "INTEGER",
                                "name": "source_type",
                                "value": 0
                            },
                            {
                                "type": "GRAPH",
                                "name": "graphid",
                                "value": {
                                    "name": "Memory usage",
                                    "host": "Zabbix server"
                                }
                            }
                        ]
                    },
                    {
                        "type": "graph",
                        "name": "Network Traffic",
                        "x": 0,
                        "y": 5,
                        "width": 12,
                        "height": 5,
                        "fields": [
                            {
                                "type": "INTEGER",
                                "name": "source_type",
                                "value": 0
                            },
                            {
                                "type": "GRAPH",
                                "name": "graphid",
                                "value": {
                                    "name": "Network traffic",
                                    "host": "Zabbix server"
                                }
                            }
                        ]
                    },
                    {
                        "type": "graph",
                        "name": "Disk I/O",
                        "x": 12,
                        "y": 5,
                        "width": 12,
                        "height": 5,
                        "fields": [
                            {
                                "type": "INTEGER",
                                "name": "source_type",
                                "value": 0
                            },
                            {
                                "type": "GRAPH",
                                "name": "graphid",
                                "value": {
                                    "name": "Disk I/O",
                                    "host": "Zabbix server"
                                }
                            }
                        ]
                    }
                ]
            }
        ]
    }
}
DASHBOARD_EOF

echo "✅ Performance dashboard configuration created!"
echo "📁 File: performance-dashboard.json"
echo ""
echo "📋 To import this dashboard:"
echo "1. Go to Monitoring → Dashboards in Zabbix web interface"
echo "2. Click 'Import' button"
echo "3. Upload the performance-dashboard.json file"
echo "4. Configure host mappings as needed"
EOF

chmod +x create-performance-dashboard.sh
./create-performance-dashboard.sh

🚨 Fix Common Zabbix Problems

Even monitoring experts face challenges! Here are solutions to common issues: 💪

Problem 1: Zabbix Server Won’t Start

# Symptoms: Zabbix server fails to start or crashes
# Solution: Check database connection and configuration

# Check Zabbix server logs
sudo tail -f /var/log/zabbix/zabbix_server.log

# Test database connection
mysql -u zabbix -p zabbix -e "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM hosts;"

# Check configuration syntax
sudo zabbix_server -c /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf -t

# Verify file permissions
sudo chown -R zabbix:zabbix /var/log/zabbix
sudo chown -R zabbix:zabbix /var/run/zabbix

# Check system resources
free -h
df -h

# Restart with debugging
sudo systemctl stop zabbix-server
sudo -u zabbix zabbix_server -c /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf -f

Problem 2: Agent Connection Issues

# Symptoms: Hosts showing as unavailable or unreachable
# Solution: Debug network connectivity and agent configuration

# Test agent connectivity from server
zabbix_get -s AGENT_IP -k agent.ping

# Check agent logs
sudo tail -f /var/log/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.log

# Test network connectivity
telnet AGENT_IP 10050

# Check firewall rules
sudo firewall-cmd --list-all
sudo iptables -L -n | grep 10050

# Verify agent configuration
sudo zabbix_agent2 -c /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.conf -t

# Test specific items
zabbix_get -s AGENT_IP -k system.cpu.load[all,avg1]
zabbix_get -s AGENT_IP -k vm.memory.size[available]

Problem 3: Web Interface Performance Issues

# Symptoms: Slow web interface, timeouts, blank pages
# Solution: Optimize PHP and database configuration

# Check PHP error logs
sudo tail -f /var/log/httpd/error_log

# Optimize PHP settings
sudo tee -a /etc/php.d/99-zabbix.ini << 'EOF'
max_execution_time = 600
memory_limit = 512M
max_input_time = 600
opcache.enable = 1
opcache.memory_consumption = 256
opcache.max_accelerated_files = 20000
opcache.revalidate_freq = 60
EOF

# Optimize MySQL for Zabbix
sudo tee -a /etc/my.cnf << 'EOF'
[mysqld]
tmp_table_size = 512M
max_heap_table_size = 512M
join_buffer_size = 4M
sort_buffer_size = 8M
read_buffer_size = 2M
read_rnd_buffer_size = 16M
innodb_buffer_pool_size = 2G
EOF

# Clear PHP opcache
sudo systemctl restart php-fpm httpd

# Check database performance
mysql -u root -p -e "SHOW PROCESSLIST;"
mysql -u root -p -e "SHOW ENGINE INNODB STATUS\G" | grep -A 20 "LATEST DETECTED DEADLOCK"

Problem 4: High Database Growth

# Symptoms: Database size growing too quickly
# Solution: Configure proper housekeeping and data retention

# Check database size
mysql -u root -p -e "
SELECT
    table_schema AS 'Database',
    ROUND(SUM(data_length + index_length) / 1024 / 1024 / 1024, 2) AS 'Size (GB)'
FROM information_schema.tables
WHERE table_schema = 'zabbix'
GROUP BY table_schema;"

# Check large tables
mysql -u root -p -e "
SELECT
    table_name AS 'Table',
    ROUND(((data_length + index_length) / 1024 / 1024 / 1024), 2) AS 'Size (GB)'
FROM information_schema.TABLES
WHERE table_schema = 'zabbix'
ORDER BY (data_length + index_length) DESC
LIMIT 10;"

# Configure housekeeping
sudo sed -i 's/# HousekeepingFrequency=1/HousekeepingFrequency=1/' /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf
sudo sed -i 's/# MaxHousekeeperDelete=5000/MaxHousekeeperDelete=10000/' /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf

# Manual cleanup (be careful!)
mysql -u root -p zabbix << 'EOF'
-- Delete old history (older than 30 days)
DELETE FROM history WHERE clock < UNIX_TIMESTAMP(DATE_SUB(NOW(), INTERVAL 30 DAY));
DELETE FROM history_uint WHERE clock < UNIX_TIMESTAMP(DATE_SUB(NOW(), INTERVAL 30 DAY));

-- Delete old trends (older than 1 year)
DELETE FROM trends WHERE clock < UNIX_TIMESTAMP(DATE_SUB(NOW(), INTERVAL 1 YEAR));
DELETE FROM trends_uint WHERE clock < UNIX_TIMESTAMP(DATE_SUB(NOW(), INTERVAL 1 YEAR));

-- Optimize tables
OPTIMIZE TABLE history;
OPTIMIZE TABLE history_uint;
OPTIMIZE TABLE trends;
OPTIMIZE TABLE trends_uint;
EOF

sudo systemctl restart zabbix-server

Problem 5: Missing Data or Gaps in Graphs

# Symptoms: Graphs showing gaps or no data collection
# Solution: Debug data collection and item configuration

# Check item status in database
mysql -u zabbix -p zabbix -e "
SELECT h.host, i.name, i.key_, i.status, i.error
FROM items i
JOIN hosts h ON i.hostid = h.hostid
WHERE i.status = 1 OR i.error != ''
ORDER BY h.host, i.name;"

# Test item collection manually
zabbix_get -s HOST_IP -k ITEM_KEY

# Check poller processes
grep -i "poller" /var/log/zabbix/zabbix_server.log | tail -20

# Increase poller processes if needed
sudo sed -i 's/StartPollers=5/StartPollers=20/' /etc/zabbix/zabbix_server.conf

# Check host availability
mysql -u zabbix -p zabbix -e "
SELECT host, available, error
FROM hosts
WHERE status = 0
ORDER BY host;"

# Force item update
mysql -u zabbix -p zabbix -e "
UPDATE items SET nextcheck = 0 WHERE hostid = HOST_ID AND key_ = 'ITEM_KEY';"

sudo systemctl restart zabbix-server

📋 Zabbix Commands Summary

Here’s your quick reference for Zabbix operations! ⚡

💡 Pro Tips for Monitoring Excellence

Want to become a Zabbix monitoring ninja? Here are expert secrets! 🥷

Tip 1: Advanced Alerting with Webhooks

# Create Slack webhook integration
sudo tee /usr/lib/zabbix/alertscripts/slack-webhook.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
# Slack Webhook Integration for Zabbix

WEBHOOK_URL="YOUR_SLACK_WEBHOOK_URL"
SUBJECT="$1"
MESSAGE="$2"
SEVERITY="$3"

# Choose emoji based on severity
case "$SEVERITY" in
    "0") EMOJI=":information_source:" ;;  # Not classified
    "1") EMOJI=":information_source:" ;;  # Information
    "2") EMOJI=":warning:" ;;             # Warning
    "3") EMOJI=":warning:" ;;             # Average
    "4") EMOJI=":exclamation:" ;;         # High
    "5") EMOJI=":rotating_light:" ;;      # Disaster
    *) EMOJI=":question:" ;;
esac

# Send message to Slack
curl -X POST -H 'Content-type: application/json' \
    --data "{\"text\":\"$EMOJI *$SUBJECT*\n$MESSAGE\"}" \
    "$WEBHOOK_URL"
EOF

sudo chmod +x /usr/lib/zabbix/alertscripts/slack-webhook.sh
sudo chown zabbix:zabbix /usr/lib/zabbix/alertscripts/slack-webhook.sh

Tip 2: Custom API Monitoring

# Create API endpoint monitoring
sudo tee /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/api-monitor.py << 'EOF'
#!/usr/bin/env python3
"""
Advanced API Monitoring Script
Monitors REST API endpoints with detailed metrics
"""

import requests
import json
import time
import sys
from urllib.parse import urlparse

def monitor_api(url, timeout=10, expected_status=200):
    """Monitor API endpoint and return detailed metrics"""

    metrics = {
        'status': 0,
        'response_time': 0,
        'response_size': 0,
        'status_code': 0,
        'ssl_days': 0
    }

    try:
        start_time = time.time()
        response = requests.get(url, timeout=timeout, verify=True)
        end_time = time.time()

        metrics['response_time'] = round((end_time - start_time) * 1000, 2)  # ms
        metrics['status_code'] = response.status_code
        metrics['response_size'] = len(response.content)
        metrics['status'] = 1 if response.status_code == expected_status else 0

        # Check SSL certificate expiry for HTTPS URLs
        if url.startswith('https://'):
            try:
                import ssl
                import socket
                from datetime import datetime

                hostname = urlparse(url).hostname
                context = ssl.create_default_context()

                with socket.create_connection((hostname, 443), timeout=timeout) as sock:
                    with context.wrap_socket(sock, server_hostname=hostname) as ssock:
                        cert = ssock.getpeercert()
                        expire_date = datetime.strptime(cert['notAfter'], '%b %d %H:%M:%S %Y %Z')
                        days_left = (expire_date - datetime.now()).days
                        metrics['ssl_days'] = days_left

            except Exception as ssl_error:
                print(f"SSL check error: {ssl_error}", file=sys.stderr)

    except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e:
        print(f"Request error: {e}", file=sys.stderr)
        metrics['status'] = 0

    except Exception as e:
        print(f"General error: {e}", file=sys.stderr)
        metrics['status'] = 0

    return metrics

if __name__ == "__main__":
    if len(sys.argv) < 3:
        print("Usage: api-monitor.py <URL> <metric>")
        print("Metrics: status, response_time, response_size, status_code, ssl_days")
        sys.exit(1)

    url = sys.argv[1]
    metric = sys.argv[2]
    timeout = int(sys.argv[3]) if len(sys.argv) > 3 else 10

    metrics = monitor_api(url, timeout)

    if metric in metrics:
        print(metrics[metric])
    else:
        print("0")
EOF

sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/api-monitor.py

# Add API monitoring parameters
echo "UserParameter=api.monitor[*],/usr/local/bin/zabbix-scripts/api-monitor.py \$1 \$2 \$3" | sudo tee -a /etc/zabbix/zabbix_agent2.d/custom-params.conf

🏆 What You’ve Accomplished - Monitoring Mastery!

Congratulations! You’ve built a comprehensive monitoring system with Zabbix on AlmaLinux! 🎉 Let’s celebrate your monitoring achievements:

📊 Complete Monitoring Infrastructure:

• ✅ Enterprise-grade Zabbix server with optimized database
• ✅ Advanced agent configuration with custom monitoring scripts
• ✅ SNMP monitoring for network devices and infrastructure
• ✅ Database performance monitoring with custom metrics
• ✅ Web service monitoring with SSL certificate tracking
• ✅ Automated network discovery and device detection
• ✅ Custom templates for comprehensive server monitoring
• ✅ Performance dashboards with real-time visualization

💪 Professional Monitoring Skills Gained:

• ✅ Enterprise monitoring platform deployment and configuration
• ✅ Custom metric development and script creation
• ✅ SNMP monitoring and network device management
• ✅ Database performance monitoring and optimization
• ✅ Alert configuration and notification automation
• ✅ Dashboard creation and data visualization
• ✅ Troubleshooting and performance tuning
• ✅ Monitoring best practices and industry standards

🎯 Production-Ready Features:

• ✅ Scalable architecture supporting thousands of devices
• ✅ Intelligent alerting with customizable thresholds
• ✅ Historical data retention and trending analysis
• ✅ Role-based access control and security features
• ✅ API integration for automation and custom applications
• ✅ High availability and disaster recovery capabilities

🎯 Why This Monitoring Setup Matters

Your AlmaLinux Zabbix monitoring system is now an enterprise-grade observability platform! 🌟

Real-World Impact:

• 👁️ Complete Visibility - Monitor every aspect of your infrastructure
• ⚡ Proactive Problem Detection - Fix issues before they impact users
• 💰 Cost Optimization - Identify resource waste and optimize usage
• 📈 Capacity Planning - Make data-driven infrastructure decisions
• 🛡️ Enhanced Security - Detect anomalies and security threats
• 📊 Performance Optimization - Identify and resolve bottlenecks
• 🔄 Automated Response - React to issues without human intervention
• 📋 Compliance Reporting - Meet regulatory and audit requirements
• 👥 Team Collaboration - Shared visibility across operations teams
• 🚀 Business Intelligence - Transform monitoring data into business insights

You’re not just monitoring systems - you’re building intelligence into your infrastructure! Whether you’re managing a small business network or enterprise data centers, your Zabbix platform provides the insight needed to maintain peak performance and reliability! 🌈

Your infrastructure is now under constant watchful protection! ⭐ Happy monitoring! 🙌