PRTG Manual: Windows System Uptime Sensor
The Windows System Uptime sensor monitors the uptime of a Windows system via Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) or Windows performance counters, as configured in the Windows Compatibility Options of the parent device.
For a detailed list and descriptions of the channels that this sensor can show, see section Channel List.
- Dutch: Windows Systeem Uptime
- French: Windows temps disponible du système
- German: Windows-Systemlaufzeit
- Japanese: Windows システムアップタイム
- Portuguese: Tempo de atividade do sistema Windows
- Russian: Время бесперебойной работы системы Windows
- Simplified Chinese: Windows 系统正常运行时间
- Spanish: Tiempo activo del sistema Windows
Consider the following remarks and requirements for this sensor:
Remark |
Description |
---|---|
Performance impact |
This sensor has a high performance impact. |
Windows version |
This sensor requires at least Windows Server 2008 R2 on the probe system (on every cluster node, if on a cluster probe). WoW64 must be installed on target systems that run Windows Server 2016. This allows 32-bit applications to be run on 64-bit systems. This is necessary because the PRTG probe service only runs with 32-bit support. Without it, WMI sensors do not work. |
Remote Registry Windows service |
This sensor requires that the Remote Registry Windows service runs on the target system. If this service does not run, a connection via performance counters is not possible. However, WMI connections might still work. To enable the service, log in to the respective system and open the services manager (for example, via services.msc). In the list, find the respective service and set its Start Type to Automatic. |
WoW64 |
This sensor requires WoW64 (Windows 32-bit on Windows 64-bit) for target systems that run Windows Server 2016. |
Credentials |
This sensor requires credentials for Windows systems. We recommend that you use Windows domain credentials. If you use local credentials, make sure that the same Windows user accounts (with the same user name and password) exist on both the probe system and the target system. Otherwise, a connection via performance counters is not possible. However, WMI connections might still work. |
IPv6 |
This sensor supports IPv6. |
Hosted probe |
You cannot add this sensor to the hosted probe of a PRTG Hosted Monitor instance. If you want to use this sensor, add it to a remote probe device. |
Hybrid Approach: Performance Counters and WMI
By default, this sensor uses WMI to request monitoring data. You can change the default behavior to a hybrid approach in the Windows Compatibility Options of the parent device's settings on which you create this sensor: if you choose this option, the sensor first tries to query data via Windows performance counters and uses WMI as a fallback if performance counters are not available. When running in fallback mode, the sensor tries to connect via performance counters again after 24 hours.
Sensors that use the WMI protocol have a high impact on the system performance. Try to stay below 200 WMI sensors per probe. Above this number, consider using multiple remote probes for load balancing.
For a general introduction to the technology behind WMI, see section Monitoring via WMI.
The sensor has the following default tags that are automatically predefined in the sensor's settings when you add the sensor:
- wmiuptimesensor
For more information about basic sensor settings, see section Sensor Settings.
Setting |
Description |
---|---|
Result Handling |
Define what PRTG does with the sensor result:
In a cluster, PRTG stores the result in the PRTG data directory of the master node. |
Setting |
Description |
---|---|
Primary Channel |
Select a channel from the list to define it as the primary channel. In the device tree, PRTG displays the last value of the primary channel 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 below a channel gauge on the sensor's Overview tab. |
Graph Type |
Define how this sensor shows different channels:
|
Stack Unit |
This setting is only visible if you select Stack channels on top of each other above. Select a unit from the list. PRTG stacks all channels with this unit 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 these settings are inherited from objects that are higher in the hierarchy. We recommend that you change them centrally in the root group settings if necessary. To change a setting for this object only, click under the corresponding setting name to disable the inheritance and to display its options.
For more information, see section Inheritance of Settings.
Which channels the sensor actually shows might depend on the target device, the available components, and the sensor setup.
Channel |
Description |
---|---|
Downtime |
In the channel table on the Overview tab, this channel never shows any values. PRTG uses this channel in graphs and reports to show the amount of time in which the sensor was in the Down status. |
System Uptime |
The uptime This channel is the primary channel by default. |
KNOWLEDGE BASE
What security features does PRTG include?
My Windows sensors do not work when using direct performance counter access. What can I do?