Alive monitoring is a method used to check whether a target node is running or stopped, and is essential for monitoring systems and networks. Alive monitoring can be said to be the most basic monitoring method.

In this article, we will provide an overview of aliveness monitoring, the reasons for its implementation, main monitoring methods such as methods using ping, and tools to make monitoring more efficient.

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Overview of life-and-death monitoring

First, I would like to introduce an overview of life-and-death monitoring and the reasons for implementing it.

What is Alive Monitoring (Ping Monitoring)?

Alive monitoring refers to efforts to periodically check whether networks, servers, etc. are operating.

Alive monitoring involves checking communication with servers and networks, and confirming that there is a response to understand the operating status. Since the Ping command is generally used, alive monitoring is sometimes called Ping monitoring.

In alive monitoring, the only thing to be monitored is whether the monitored object is operating or not.

In general, it does not cover aspects such as whether the application is performing appropriate processing or whether processing results can be provided to the user without delay. Checking these aspects involves implementing other monitoring methods, such as application monitoring (APM) and front-end monitoring.

Reasons for carrying out life-and-death monitoring

By performing life-or-death monitoring, you can confirm whether or not a problem has occurred. If there is no response from the server or network when performing life-or-death monitoring, you can recognize that some kind of trouble has occurred.

Understanding the operating status of a system is one of the basics of system operation monitoring. When operating websites, business systems, etc., life-and-death monitoring is an essential effort.

On the other hand, life-and-death monitoring can also be considered the first step in system operation monitoring. Alive monitoring can only recognize situations where the system is not operating properly.

If we detect a problem through life-or-death monitoring, we will check to find out more specifically what kind of failure is occurring and what is the cause. Specifically, based on the information obtained from log monitoring, process monitoring, resource monitoring, etc., we will be able to understand in more detail the operating status of the system and investigate the causes of failures, and take measures accordingly. Masu.

Points to note when monitoring life and death

Since alive monitoring only determines whether the network or server is operating, it is necessary to take into account that even if no problems are found in alive monitoring, it does not necessarily mean that the system is operating normally. there is.

For example, a server might be running out of CPU resources, making your application slow and unable to provide a good experience to your users. There may also be cases where normal processing is not performed due to an application error. Such situations should be detected using other monitoring techniques, such as resource monitoring or log monitoring.

Subject to be monitored for life and death

Alive monitoring is mainly performed on servers, storage, and network equipment.

Regarding servers, not only the physical server equipment but also the virtual machines and containers installed within the server equipment are monitored. In addition, we may monitor the web server individually for each port. Regarding network devices, aliveness monitoring will be carried out targeting routers, switches, Wi-Fi access points, etc. Other equipment such as surveillance cameras and digital signage should also be subject to life-or-death monitoring.

Main methods of life-and-death monitoring

Below, we will introduce a specific method for carrying out life-or-death monitoring.

Ping monitoring

In many cases, life monitoring is performed using a command called ping.

Ping is a command program that can request a response from a device with a specific IP address on an IP network. Ping is widely used as an easy-to-use program due to its high convenience of being able to easily check communication with a target.

Ping complies with the ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) protocol defined in the TCP/IP protocol suite. Since the processing is not dependent on a specific vendor, it can be used as a standard regardless of the product vendor. Typical devices are programmed to respond to pings.

When you make a ping request to the specified IP address, you can receive a response if the device or server to which that IP address is set is operating normally.

At that time, the response includes the round trip time (the total time taken from sending the packet to the destination until receiving the response), packet loss rate, etc. If there is no response, a message such as “Request timed out” or “Host Unreachable” will be output. In this case, communication with the target is not possible.

It is important to note that even if there is no response, it does not necessarily mean that the target is stopped.

Ping requests are naturally made through the network, so if the network equipment between the request and the target is down or disconnected, the request itself will not be able to reach the target in the first place.

Monitoring by watchdog

For devices whose ping has been stopped for security reasons, a watchdog may be used to monitor the device’s aliveness.

Watchdog is a word that means “guard dog.” By installing a watchdog on the monitored device, it will periodically send packets to the reporting destination, just like a watchdog. If this packet is interrupted, it is assumed that something is wrong with the device.

Note that methods such as Ping, in which the monitoring side makes inquiries to the monitored device, are called “active monitoring,” and methods, such as watchdog, in which the monitored device sends information to the monitored device, are called “passive monitoring.” Sometimes.

port monitoring

In particular, when monitoring web servers, life-or-death monitoring is performed on ports.

A port is a socket that is set to distribute communications exchanged over IP to multiple applications. For example, port 80 is used for HTTP communication, and port 143 is used for IMAP, which is used for email. By specifying a port for communication, you can communicate with each application in a specific manner.

By performing alive monitoring on these ports, you can check the operating status at the level of the application corresponding to each port. For example, if you check connectivity to port 80 and there is no response, there is a possibility that some kind of problem has occurred in HTTP communication and your company’s website cannot be viewed.

Ping, mentioned above, is a program that operates on the network layer, so it cannot be used for port monitoring. Port monitoring is performed using the TCP protocol or UDP protocol that operates on the transport layer. Specifically, this is done using the Traceroute command.

How to conduct life-and-death monitoring

Next, we will introduce specific methods for carrying out life-or-death monitoring.

Perform manually

The most basic way to perform life-or-death monitoring is to manually execute a ping command or other command.

If the number of servers or network devices to be monitored is small, it is possible to perform this manually. In this case, one of the operational tasks is to periodically execute the Ping command, or visually check the operating status of a website.

This method is not impossible if there are only a few things to be monitored, but as the number of things to be monitored increases, it becomes difficult to do it manually. In that case, you may want to consider using the tools described below.

Use monitoring tools

One possible way to automate life-and-death monitoring is to introduce operational monitoring tools.

Alive monitoring can be performed automatically by setting the IP address of the server or network device to be monitored, the frequency of monitoring, etc. on the tool.

By introducing tools, you can not only automate life-and-death monitoring, but also streamline the entire monitoring process. Since it is not often that monitoring involves only alive monitoring, it can be said that the use of tools is effective from the perspective of streamlining other monitoring tasks as well.

With general tools, it is also possible to set up an alert to be raised if a response is not obtained during life monitoring. This allows you to recognize when an abnormality has occurred even if you are not constantly monitoring monitoring results.

Utilize agency services

If you find it difficult to monitor in-house due to lack of resources or skills, you may consider using a monitoring agency service.

This type of agency service is called a “MSP (Managed Service Provider)” and allows you to outsource your company’s overall management, including operation, maintenance, and monitoring.

However, the disadvantage of using an agency service is that it incurs a certain cost and that your company does not accumulate know-how. Nowadays, systems are recognized as the core of business, so we recommend that you carefully consider whether to outsource operational monitoring tasks.

What is LogicMonitor that realizes integrated monitoring?

In particular, as the scale of your company’s systems grows, building an efficient monitoring system becomes important in reducing workload and quickly responding to failures.

In this situation, you should consider adopting a monitoring tool that is effective in improving the efficiency of monitoring operations and reducing MTTR (Mean Time To Repair).

LogicMonitor, a SaaS-type IT integrated operation monitoring service, can centrally monitor all targets such as servers, networks, middleware, and applications. In addition to life-or-death monitoring, it supports a variety of monitoring items such as hardware monitoring, process monitoring, network monitoring, and log monitoring.

LogicMonitor has monitoring templates that support over 2,500 types of servers, network devices, OS, and middleware. By using these, you can efficiently implement operational design even when performing monitoring work for the first time.

In recent years, there has been a shift from on-premises to public cloud, and LogicMonitor can support both on-premises and cloud. Even if your company has various IT assets, you can centrally monitor them.

For more information about LogicMonitor, please also see the service documentation here.

summary

In this article, we have provided an overview of life-and-death monitoring, the main implementation methods, and tools to streamline monitoring operations, including life-and-death monitoring.

Especially in recent years, the importance of IT systems in business has increased. Under these circumstances, it is necessary to efficiently implement monitoring operations, including life-and-death monitoring, while ensuring stable system operation. Utilizing appropriate monitoring tools will help ensure stable system operation.

Tiny chips to be placed deep in the brain are no longer just dreams in science fiction movies, but are very close to becoming a part of the real world. Speaking any language fluently with your thoughts, unlimited access to information, taking your creativity to the top, constantly monitoring your health, strengthening your memory and many other amazing abilities.

In this article, we try to offer a look at these revolutionary changes that may be possible with the neurotechnology of the future. Are you ready to open the doors of this innovative world and discover how brain chips can transform human life?

1. Speak any language as if it were your native language

Future neurotechnology will radically change language learning and communication through brain chips. Imagine if a small chip would allow you to speak any language fluently, like your native language. This technology will offer not only translation but also the ability to understand nuances and cultural contexts.

 Indiana University’s Brainoware system combines real brain cells with a chip, achieving success in areas such as voice recognition and math problems. However, these studies are still unclear about the information processing and learning capacity of laboratory-grown mini-brain structures.

The revolution expected from Elon Musk’s Neuralink is to enable paraplegic individuals to communicate with computers with brain-computer interface chips. Musk claims that human languages ​​could be replaced by a single universal language within 5-10 years. This can make communication more effective, but it is also essential to consider ethical and psychological implications.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University question the profound effects of this technology on humanity and the nature of meaning, and emphasize that the long-term consequences should be considered.

2. Carry a library in your brain

Brain chips have the power to transform the learning and information access methods of the future. This innovation could revolutionize traditional education methods by providing direct access to vast libraries of knowledge. Purdue University research shows that this technology works on artificial neural networks similar to the human brain, but much faster and more energy efficient, using biologically inspired algorithms. Neuralink aims to democratize brain-machine interfaces, establishing bi-directional communication between neurons and external devices and enabling a wide range of applications.

 As part of the European Human Brain Project, researchers from the universities of Heidelberg and Bern managed to train spiking neural networks for deep learning with high efficiency using the BrainScaleS-2 neuromorphic platform. This platform can process information a thousand times faster than the human brain, while consuming much less energy than traditional computer systems, which makes a significant contribution to its integration into large systems.

3. Creativity and problem-solving skills

The chips to be placed in your brain will not only increase your data processing ability, but also take your creativity to a new dimension. Thanks to neurotechnology, you will be able to draw from a wider pool of inspiration and ideas. This will allow you to perform complex calculations and analyses at unprecedented speed.

More accurate brain activity recording and analysis will improve your creative thinking and problem-solving strategies. From your daily life to your professional fields, this technology will revolutionize your capacity to generate new ideas and solve complex problems. This innovation, which will push the limits of creativity and finding solutions to problems, may be the new way to step into the future.

4. Personalized health monitoring and improvement

Future neurotechnology will revolutionize your life with personalized health monitoring and improvement. Chips placed in your body will save lives by constantly monitoring your health status, identifying possible health problems in advance and recommending diet and lifestyle changes to prevent them. Going even further, these chips will be able to communicate directly with medical professionals.

Epidermal wearable biosensors can measure the amount of physical effort and exercise efficiency through sweat analysis, while distinguishing between healthy and unhealthy states by monitoring body movements. EEG technology, on the other hand, can monitor athletes’ performance and mental state and evaluate their focus and performance under stress.

A study in Nature Medicine shows how wearable sensors can be used to predict personalized clinical laboratory measurements. These sensors are placed under the skin, continuously monitoring health and providing personalized health recommendations. This technology will revolutionize the field of healthcare and lead us to a healthier and more conscious future.

5. Super memory and information management

The boundaries of neurotechnology are constantly expanding, especially with brain chips. The latest research in this field will allow you to better understand and intervene in brain activities. One of the most exciting aspects of these developments is the potential increase of human memory and information processing capacity. Forgetfulness can become history and information can dance at your fingertips.

Your abilities such as solving complex problems, situational awareness and concentration will take a huge leap forward. However, the ethical and social risks that these technologies may bring should not be ignored. The potential of this technology pushes the limits of our imagination and promises hope for the future.

6. Amazing virtual and augmented reality experiences

In the field of virtual and augmented reality, the revolutionary development of brain-computer interfaces (BCI) points to a future that makes the real and virtual world indistinguishable. Companies are working on systems that make it possible to navigate the virtual world with thoughts. For example, EyeMynd and Neurable are developing thought-controlled virtual reality systems, while Elon Musk’s Neuralink aims to connect brain electrodes to the digital world.

 These technologies will increase the depth of AR/VR experiences, offering experiences where you will not be able to perceive the difference between the real and virtual worlds. Especially in the field of rehabilitation and neuroplasticity (the structuring and adaptation of the brain with new information), BCI systems can reshape the brain by converting brain signals into computer commands. These innovations can revolutionize a wide range of fields, from education to entertainment, from professional simulations to daily life practices.

7. Time management and productivity increase

Brain-computer interfaces will redefine time management and productivity. This revolutionary neurotechnology will improve your learning, memory and physical performance through the integration of your brain with computers. Current research points to the potential of this technology to improve attention, memory and learning, improve mood and enhance communication.

 Current systems convert brain signals into computer commands, promoting brain plasticity (learning flexibility), accelerating decision-making and problem-solving abilities. These advances are improving learning capabilities in education, increasing productivity in the workplace, and enabling everyday devices with brain control.

 BCI technology enables people to overcome challenges and maximize their potential, enabling them to accomplish complex tasks with less effort. This innovative approach has the potential to shape the business and education world of the future and radically change life.

What is modernization?

Modernization is a word that literally means “modernization,” but especially in the context of IT, it refers to updating the infrastructure environment such as the hardware and software of outdated business systems to maintain and strengthen a company’s competitiveness. It represents an initiative.

Modernization is an effort to update so-called “legacy systems” and develop efficient systems with the latest architecture. Legacy systems tend to have high maintenance costs, and often have architectures that lack mobility, such as requiring time to modify.

Operating and maintaining legacy systems is a huge burden for companies. In recent years, the issue of companies being overwhelmed with maintaining legacy systems and unable to secure financial and human resources for new investments has become an issue.

Background of the need for modernization

Why is modernization needed now? Below, I will summarize two points: cost and mobility.

Reduce IT maintenance costs

The first example is in the context of reducing IT maintenance costs. As pointed out in the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry’s DX Report*, approximately 80% of the IT costs paid by companies are spent on continuing existing business. Currently, this cost is a heavy burden for companies.

As the costs required for so-called run-the-business operations remain high, many companies do not have the capacity to invest in new investments, which is hindering Japanese companies from increasing their international competitiveness.

Ensuring mobility for DX promotion

Modernization is also necessary in the context of promoting DX. In order to promote DX, it is necessary to link data from existing systems and add functions to the system, but in general, the cost of renovating legacy systems is high and it takes time.

This is due to the complexity of legacy systems that have been operated and modified over many years. Even with simple fixes, there are various problems, such as the scope of impact being large, the cost of verification being high, and the lack of human resources capable of grasping the contents of complex systems.

Data utilization is also important in promoting DX, but in companies with a long history, useful data is often already hidden in legacy systems. On the other hand, data in legacy systems is not sufficiently standardized and requires name matching, and data formats and coding systems vary depending on the system. Modernization will also be an effective method for utilizing this data.

Against the backdrop of these challenges, the current situation is that companies are placing an emphasis on modernization.

How to proceed with modernization

So how should we proceed with modernization? Here, we will introduce the following four steps.

• Concept formulation
• Target system/priority analysis
• Choosing a migration method
• Architecture selection

Concept formulation

Modernizing individual systems individually will not lead to overall optimization. When implementing modernization, the first point is to create an overall concept.

Specifically, an enterprise-wide IT architecture needs to be defined. For example, one idea might be to use the cloud as a common platform to build an authentication environment, DWH, data lake, etc., while defining the contents of individual business applications for each system.

Utilizing data is the most important point in promoting DX. It is necessary to take full advantage of data governance when modernizing each system, taking into account so-called data governance aspects such as centralized data management methods and security aspects.

Target system/priority analysis

Modernization requires a certain amount of investment. It is not practical to migrate all of your company’s systems to the latest architecture. Therefore, it is necessary to prioritize the existing systems and then assemble the implementation order.

The key to setting priorities is to set and organize your considerations. For example, by analyzing existing systems on the axis of “frequency of use” and “frequency of modification,” the degree of importance can be determined.

Systems that are “infrequently used and infrequently modified” have a low priority for modernization, and in some cases, you may want to consider abolishing them. Additionally, for systems that are “frequently used but infrequently repaired,” you can choose to extend their lifespan as much as possible. On the other hand, for systems that are frequently used and repaired, early modernization can significantly reduce maintenance costs.

In addition, if there are areas that you would like to prioritize as part of your business strategy or processes that you would like to implement DX, we will take those into consideration in your priorities. Although it is not used often at present, if it is an area that you want to focus on as a business in the future, it will be a high priority.

Choosing a migration method

There are various options for migrating existing systems. Specifically, the details are as follows.

From these options, it is effective to categorize them into patterns based on the usage status of the existing system, whether there are any issues, business conditions, etc. For example, if the system is scheduled to be reviewed or reformed to promote DX, etc., choose rearchitecture or repurchase. On the other hand, for systems that are not frequently repaired and are of low importance, a temporary lift and shift may be an option.

Architecture selection

Especially when updating an existing system through re-architecture, it is necessary to consider the architecture after the update. For efficient modernization, it is effective to use cloud services such as SaaS and PaaS. By utilizing these, it is possible to develop quickly to keep up with the business environment and new initiatives of competitors.

As a cloud-first, one idea is to set criteria for making decisions, such as choosing SaaS first if SaaS is available, using IaaS if it is not available, and using on-premises only if it is absolutely necessary to build an on-premises environment.

For applications that are a source of competitive advantage or a differentiating factor, we will also consider developing modern architectures on IaaS. On the other hand, for functions that have similar needs in each system, such as workflow, authentication, and archive functions, it is an option to use them as common services as described above.

Points to note when modernizing

Here are some things to keep in mind when modernizing.

Introducing a common platform is important

A key point in modernization initiatives is the consideration of common infrastructure. Traditionally, system development has often been individually optimized, leading to various problems such as frequent system coordination, suboptimal function placement, and duplication of functions and data.

By standardizing systems as much as possible on a common basis, a company can aim for an overall optimal system. As we have introduced so far, building a common cloud environment and providing common functions are also effective methods. Other possibilities include standardizing company-wide operations by introducing ERP, building a common data infrastructure by introducing DWH/data lake, and providing an environment that users can use such as BI, RPA, and low-code development platforms.

Additionally, it would be effective to introduce a common platform for system operations, such as a centralized operation monitoring tool and DR platform.

Review of business operations was also carried out in parallel.

When modernizing, there are many cases where system-side responses alone are insufficient. In particular, when introducing a system using SaaS or packages, it is essential to review your business operations. If you force customization without reviewing your business, the issue of “maintenance costs remaining high” will not be resolved.

In parallel with modernization, business operations should also be reviewed.

Beware of operational complexity during transition period

Due to cost and resource considerations, it is difficult to modernize all systems in one step. Therefore, companies will have to deal with a transition period.

Particular attention should be paid to the complexity of operational management. In addition to operational management of existing on-premises systems, it is also necessary to support operational management of newly added cloud environment systems.

In this way, there is a problem in that during transition periods, the burden on the operational department tends to increase. In order to respond to this situation, you should consider automating operational tasks, utilizing AIOps, and introducing operational management tools that are compatible with both on-premises and cloud computing as operational DX.

What is LogicMonitor that realizes operational DX?

In the transition period of modernization and the standardization of company-wide IT infrastructure, an integrated IT operations management tool that is compatible with all environments is required in order to efficiently proceed with operations management operations.

LogicMonitor is a SaaS-type IT integrated operation monitoring service. Centrally realizes operational monitoring of various systems, whether on-premises or in the cloud. 3,000 types of monitoring templates are available, covering various IT layers such as servers, networks, storage, OS, and containers.

LogicMonitor can be used as a tool to promote modernization and streamline increasingly complex operational tasks. LogicMonitor will be an effective option for proceeding with operational DX.

summary

In this article, we provided an overview of modernization and how to proceed with it. Although promoting modernization is necessary for companies, it is also necessary to consider the complexity of operations during the transition period. As you move forward with modernization, you should also consider operational improvements.