Why choose PRTG Windows process monitoring
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- Challenges of Windows process monitoring without PRTG
- 3 reasons why to choose PRTG for Windows process monitoring
- How PRTG works as a Windows process monitor
- What Windows process monitoring looks like in PRTG
- 3 advantages of using our Windows process monitoring tool PRTG
- Windows process monitoring: FAQ
PRTG makes Windows process monitoring easy
Custom alerts and data visualization make it easy to monitor, identify, and prevent issues with monitoring Windows processes.
Challenges of Windows process monitoring without PRTG
No unified monitoring available
A single application for Windows can run dozens of processes and for each process, you can keep an eye on several different metrics. Constantly monitoring such a large number of processes requires a lot of time, particularly if you need to log in to each Windows device separately to view the data you need because there is no unified monitoring available.
Lack of technical specialists
With many open-source monitoring tools, for example, special technical knowledge is required in order to set up the software, collect monitoring data, combine data from different sources, and view and analyze it in a convenient way. Often, companies face a shortage of employees who can perform such tasks in the long run.
Difficulties with data analysis
Technical specialists can collect a lot of raw data about the operation of Windows processes but might not be able to read and analyze it correctly. The problem is that the data is often not prepared in a structured and easy-to-read way, which also makes it difficult to get to the root cause of an issue if processes do not work as they should.
3 reasons why to choose PRTG for Windows process monitoring
Monitor Windows processes quickly & easily
You can install and configure Paessler PRTG in minutes. Its automatic network discovery feature discovers all Windows devices and processes in your IT infrastructure and automatically adds them to your monitoring setup. What’s more: PRTG has a simple and intuitive user interface that makes it easy to learn how to use it, even for people that have no deep technical knowledge.
View all collected data in one centralized system
You don't need to monitor the performance indicators of different Windows processes manually – PRTG collects monitoring data from various sources and stores and visualizes it in a central system. You can view all your Windows process data in a single pane of glass via charts, graphs, and dashboards that you can easily customize using our built-in drag-and-drop editor.
Store & analyze live data and historical data
PRTG monitors Windows processes in real time so that you can always keep an eye on live monitoring data. In addition, you can store and analyze historical monitoring data. This allows you to track changes in the operation of processes that occur over time and under different loads and predict their operation in the future for better capacity planning.
How PRTG works as a Windows process monitor
How PRTG defines sensors
In PRTG, “sensors” are the basic monitoring elements. One sensor usually monitors one measured value in your network, e.g. the traffic of a switch port, the CPU load of a server, the free space of a disk drive. On average you need about 5-10 sensors per device or one sensor per switch port.
Use preconfigured PRTG sensors
For each Windows process you want to monitor, you can use a preconfigured Windows Process sensor. It allows you to monitor processes in the Windows system through WMI or Windows performance counters.
By default, the Windows Process sensor uses WMI to obtain monitoring data. You can change this behavior to use a hybrid approach. In this case, the sensor will first request data via Windows performance counters and if these are not available, it will use WMI as a fallback.
Monitor various Windows process metrics
With PRTG, you can keep an eye on many different Windows process components. The list of metrics may vary depending on the device, the available components, and the sensor but generally, you can monitor the following parameters:
- The average & total CPU usage (of the process instance)
- The number of handles
- The number of instances
- The number of threads
Customize your sensors as required
You can customize the Windows Process sensor to suit your needs. For example, you can:
- Save the last sensor result
- Select the main sensor channel
- Set the scanning interval
- Set access rights to the sensor
- Set warning and error thresholds
Create your own sensors for PRTG
No matter if you want to monitor your Windows services, systems, and processes or any other systems, applications, services, or devices – in addition to the built-in PRTG sensors, you can create your own sensors for any scenario.
PRTG provides custom scripts to create the right sensor for your needs, allowing you to monitor processes in a way that's convenient for you. Or you check out our PRTG Sensor Hub, where you can find Paessler community scripts for various purposes.
Easily find the source of the problem with our Windows process monitoring solution PRTG
Real-time alerts and custom notifications make it easy to solve issues with Windows process monitoring.
PRTG is compatible with all major vendors, products, and systems
What Windows process monitoring looks like in PRTG
Diagnose network issues by continuously monitoring your Windows processes. Show performance indicators in real time and visualize data in graphic maps & dashboards to identify problems more easily. Gain the visibility you need to troubleshoot issues with Windows processes.
3 advantages of using our Windows process monitoring tool PRTG
Access monitoring data from anywhere
With PRTG, you can access your monitoring data via a highly interactive, fast, and powerful web interface as well as a flexible desktop application.
There are also free PRTG mobile apps for iOS and Android, with which you can view your monitoring data and receive automatic notifications anywhere and anytime.
Be confident in the security of your data
PRTG securely protects your monitoring data from unauthorized access. To do this, it uses secure protocols for data transmission, encrypted passwords, and the latest technologies to protect against various types of cyber-attacks, for example.
In addition, you can manage access rights for each user account and each group so that no one has access to data they shouldn’t see.
Create flexible, customizable reports
PRTG offers a large list of preconfigured report templates that you can use to view monitoring data for a day, a month, or any time period you choose.
It is possible to edit templates and ready-made reports, configure the report generation period, select the required sensors, create reports on demand, or set a schedule for automatic report generation.
Your Windows process monitor at a glance – even on the go
Set up PRTG in minutes and use it on almost any mobile device.
PRTG makes Windows process monitoring easy
Custom alerts and data visualization make it easy to monitor, identify, and prevent issues with monitoring Windows processes.
Create innovative solutions with Paessler’s partners
Partnering with innovative vendors, Paessler unleashes synergies to create
new and additional benefits for joined customers.
KnowledgeRiver
Combining their tools to a powerful solution for advanced analysis and automation, KnowledgeRiver and Paessler enable IT teams to ensure best performance for their infrastructure and networks.
Start Windows process monitoring with PRTG and see how it can make your network more reliable and your job easier.
“Easy to implement and configure with good technical support.”
R. v. S., ICT Manager at Heinen & Hopman Eng BV
We asked: would you recommend PRTG?
Over 95% of our customers say yes!
Paessler conducted trials in over 600 IT departments worldwide to tune its network monitoring software closer to the needs of sysadmins.
The result of the survey: over 95% of the participants would recommend PRTG – or already have.
Easily find the source of the problem with our Windows process monitoring solution PRTG
Real-time alerts and custom notifications make it easy to solve issues with Windows process monitoring.
Windows process monitoring: FAQ
1. What is a Windows process?
A Windows process is the active (executable) part of a Windows program. It is created during the execution of the program, exists for a limited period of time, and ends immediately after specific actions have been performed.
A program can run dozens of different processes which again can use many system resources that might negatively affect system performance. Therefore, it is important to make sure that the processes are working smoothly and that they release the occupied resources immediately after completing their specific tasks.
2. What is Windows process monitoring?
Windows process monitoring is the continuous evaluation of various parameters of a Windows process to assess how well it performs its functions and whether it is working at all. For example, you can track the number of system resources used by a process, whether a process is active, and more.
Windows process monitoring allows you to identify bottlenecks in the program's operation, detect malfunctions in advance before they lead to program failures, find the root causes of issues, and eliminate them.
3. What is a Windows process monitoring tool?
A Windows process monitoring tool is software that allows you to automate the management and monitoring of Windows process operations. It provides an opportunity to collect, store, and analyze performance indicators of the process over a defined period of time.
If you use a Windows process monitoring tool, you do not need to manually monitor many different operating parameters of various processes. Instead, the tool continuously monitors all relevant process metrics and automatically notifies you if a process is about to fail.
4. What are the benefits of using a process monitor for Windows?
- Increasing the performance of the system: A monitoring tool can notify you about any problems in the operation of a Windows process, which allows you to quickly eliminate them and ensure the stable and reliable operation of the system.
- Effective planning of system resources: With Windows process monitoring, you can analyze the number of system resources that a program needs when performing various functions, which allows you to effectively plan and allocate resources.
- Improving customer satisfaction: Windows process monitoring allows you to detect and eliminate errors in the operation of programs before customers become aware of them. This makes it possible to improve the quality of the software product and increase customer satisfaction.
5. What is a sensor in PRTG?
PRTG: The multi-tool for sysadmins
Adapt PRTG individually and dynamically to your needs and rely on a strong API:- HTTP API: Access monitoring data and manipulate monitoring objects via HTTP requests
- Custom sensors: Create your own PRTG sensors for customized monitoring
- Custom notifications: Create your own notifications and send action triggers to external systems
- REST Custom sensor: Monitor almost everything that provides data in XML or JSON format
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Start Windows process monitoring with PRTG and see how it can make your network more reliable and your job easier.
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