PRTG Manual: Windows Scheduled Task Sensor
This Sensor Type Is Deprecated! |
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This sensor type is deprecated. We provide the documentation in this section for your information only. We removed this sensor type from PRTG with version 16.x.25 (expected in May 2016). Your sensor will then stop monitoring and show a Down status. See the following article for details and possible alternatives for deprecated sensors: Knowledge Base: The PRTG Sensor Cleanup |
The Windows Scheduled Task sensor monitors the time of the last run of a scheduled task. If a task was never run, the sensor shows an error.
It shows the following:
- Time since the last run of the specified task
- The corresponding exit code
Windows Scheduled Task Sensor
Click here to enlarge: http://media.paessler.com/prtg-screenshots/windows_scheduled_task.png
- Requires .NET 4.0 or higher to be installed on the probe system. Note: If the sensor shows the error PE087, additionally install .NET 3.5 on the probe system.
- Requires that the Remote Registry Windows service runs on both the probe and the target system.
- Requires Windows credentials in the parent device settings.
- For this sensor type, we recommend that you run the PRTG probe on Windows 2012 R2 or later.
- You can define limits (in seconds) in the channel settings for LastRun to set the sensor into a Warning or Down status if the last run of the task was too long ago.
- This sensor can have a high impact on the performance of your monitoring system. Use it with care. We recommend that you use no more than 50 sensors of this sensor type on each probe.
This sensor type requires the Microsoft .NET Framework to be installed on the probe system (on every cluster node, if on a cluster probe). If the framework is missing, you cannot create this sensor.
Required .NET version (with latest updates): .NET 4.0 (Client Profile is sufficient), .NET 4.5, or .NET 4.6.
For more information, see the Knowledge Base: Which .NET version does PRTG require?
Requirement: Remote Registry Service
For this sensor to work, ensure that the RemoteRegistry "Remote Registry" Windows service runs on both the probe system and the target machine.
To enable the service, log in to the respective computer and open the services manager (for example, via services.msc). In the list, find the respective service and set its Start Type to Automatic.
Requirement: Windows Credentials
Requires Windows credentials in the settings of the parent device. Preferably, use Windows domain credentials.
If you use local credentials, make sure that the same Windows user accounts (with the same username and password) exist on both the probe system and the target computer. Otherwise, the sensor cannot correctly connect.
Requirement: Monitored Systems
Note: We recommend that you run the PRTG probe on Windows 2012 R2 or later.
Microsoft implemented two versions of scheduled tasks, V1 and V2. Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 create scheduled tasks V1 by default. Later Windows versions can create and read both versions.
- If the probe system (either on the core server or a remote probe) runs on one of these early Windows versions, you are not able to monitor scheduled tasks of V2. In this case, create the tasks on the monitored machines compatible with "Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, or Windows 2000" if there is a newer Windows version installed. Note: These Windows versions are not officially supported by PRTG. See section System Requirements.
- If the probe system (either on the core server or a remote probe) runs on Windows Vista or later, you can monitor scheduled tasks of both V1 and V2 (i.e. from all Windows versions).
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 do not see all setting fields in this dialog. You can change (nearly) all settings in the sensor's Settings tab later.
Select the scheduled tasks that you want to monitor. PRTG creates one sensor for each task that you select in the Add Sensor dialog.
The settings you select are 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.
Sensor Settings |
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Task Name |
You see a list with the names of all items that you can monitor. Add check marks in front of the respective lines to select the desired items. You can also use the check box in the table header to select all items or cancel the selection. PRTG creates one sensor for each selection. If there are no scheduled tasks found in the Windows Task Scheduler on the target device, you see a corresponding message. Note: If a task name changes after you created a sensor for it, add the sensor anew. |
Click the Settings tab of a sensor to change its settings.
Usually, a sensor connects to the IP Address or DNS Name of the parent device on which you created the sensor. See the device settings for details. For some sensors, you can explicitly define the monitoring target in the sensor settings. See below for details on available settings.
Setting |
Description |
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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. Confirm each tag with the Spacebar key, a comma, or the Enter key. You can use tags to group objects and use tag-filtered views later on. Tags are not case-sensitive. Tags are automatically inherited. You can add additional tags to the sensor. There are default tags that are automatically predefined in a sensor's settings when you add a sensor. It is not possible to enter tags with a leading plus (+) or minus (-) sign, nor tags with parentheses (()) or angle brackets (<>). |
Priority |
Select a priority for the sensor. This setting determines where the sensor is placed in sensor lists. A sensor with a top priority is at the top of a list. Choose from one star (low priority) to five stars (top priority). |
Sensor Settings |
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Ignore Status Codes |
Define exit codes of the monitored task which are not processed by the sensor. If the external program returns one of these values, they are converted into the code 0. Enter a comma separated list of exit codes or leave this field empty. |
Name |
Shows the name of the task that this sensor monitors. Once you have created the sensor, you cannot change this value. It is shown for reference purposes only. If you need to change this value, add the sensor anew. |
If Value Changes |
Define what the sensor does when the sensor value changes:
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Setting |
Description |
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Sensor Result |
Define what PRTG does with the sensor results:
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Setting |
Description |
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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 is always displayed below the sensor's name. The available options depend on what channels are available for this sensor. You can set a different primary channel later by clicking the pin symbol of a channel on the sensor's Overview tab. |
Graph Type |
Define how different channels are shown for this sensor:
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Stack Unit |
This field is only visible if you enable Stack channels on top of each other as Graph Type. Select a unit from the list. All channels with this unit are 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 of the following settings are inherited from objects that are higher in the hierarchy and should be changed there if necessary. Often, best practice is to change them centrally in the root group settings. For more information, see section Inheritance of Settings. To change a setting for this object only, disable inheritance by clicking the button next to inherit from under the corresponding setting name. You then see the options described below.
Click to interrupt the inheritance. See section Inheritance of Settings for more information.
Setting |
Description |
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Scanning Interval |
Select a scanning interval (seconds, minutes, or hours). The scanning interval determines the amount of time that 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 the sensor has time to reach and check a device again in case a sensor query fails. Depending on the option that you select, the sensor can try to reach and check a device again several times before the sensor shows a Down status. This can avoid false alarms if the monitored device only has temporary issues. For previous scanning intervals with failed requests, the sensor shows a Warning status. Choose from:
Sensors that monitor via Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) always wait at least one scanning interval before they show a Down status. It is not possible to immediately set a WMI sensor to a Down status, so the first option does not apply to these sensors. All other options can apply. If you define error limits for a sensor's channels, the sensor immediately shows a Down status. No "wait" option applies. If a channel uses lookup values, the sensor immediately shows a Down status. No "wait" options apply. |
Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window
You cannot interrupt the inheritance for schedules, dependencies, and maintenance windows. The corresponding settings from the parent objects are always active. However, you can define additional settings here. They are active at the same time as the parent objects' settings.
Setting |
Description |
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Schedule |
Select a schedule from the list. Schedules can be used to monitor for a certain time span (days or hours) every week. You can create schedules, edit schedules, or pause monitoring for a specific time span. For more information, see section Account Settings—Schedules. Schedules are generally inherited. New schedules are added to schedules that you already set up, so all schedules are active at the same time. |
Maintenance Window |
Specify if you want to set up a one-time maintenance window. During a maintenance window, the selected object and all child objects are not monitored. They are in a Paused status instead. Choose between:
To terminate an active maintenance window before the defined end date, change the time entry in Maintenance Ends to a date in the past. |
Maintenance Begins |
This field is only visible if you enable Set up a one-time 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 enable Set up a one-time 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. You can use dependencies to pause monitoring for an object depending on the status of a different object. You can choose from:
To test your dependencies, select Simulate Error Status from the context menu of an object that other objects depend on. A few seconds later, all dependent objects are paused. You can check all dependencies under Devices | Dependencies in the main menu bar. |
Dependency |
This field is only visible if you enable Select a sensor above. Click the Search button and use the object selector to select a sensor on which the current object will depend. |
Dependency Delay (Sec.) |
This field is only visible if you enable Select a sensor above. Define a time span in seconds for dependency delay. After the master sensor for this dependency comes back to an Up status, monitoring of the dependent objects is additionally delayed by the defined time span. This can prevent false alarms, for example, after a server restart, by giving systems more time for all services to start up. Enter an integer value. This setting is not available if you set this sensor to Use parent or to be the Master sensor for parent. In this case, define delays in the parent device settings or in its parent group settings. |
Click to interrupt the inheritance. See section Inheritance of Settings for more information.
Setting |
Description |
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User Group Access |
Define the user groups that have access to the object. You see a table with user groups and group access rights. The table contains all user groups in your setup. For each user group, you can choose from the following group access rights:
To automatically set all child objects to inherit this object's access rights, enable the Revert children's access rights to inherited option. For more details on access rights, see section Access Rights Management. |
Click to interrupt the inheritance. See section Inheritance of Settings for more information.
Setting |
Description |
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Channel Unit Types |
For each type of 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):
Custom channel types can be set on sensor level only. |
Knowledge Base: Which .NET version does PRTG require?
To change display settings, spike filtering, and limits, switch to the sensor's Overview tab and click the gear icon of a specific channel. For detailed information, see section Sensor Channel Settings.
Click the Notification Triggers tab to change notification triggers. For detailed information, see section Sensor Notification Triggers Settings.
For more general information about settings, see section Object Settings.
For information about sensor settings, see the following sections: