<%NUMBERING1%>.<%NUMBERING2%>.<%NUMBERING3%> PRTG Manual: Sensor Factory Sensor

Sensor Name

Enter a 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.

If the name contains angle brackets (<>), PRTG replaces them with braces ({}) for security reasons. For more information, see the Knowledge Base: What security features does PRTG include?

Parent Tags

The tags that the sensor inherits from its parent device, parent group, and parent probe.

This setting is for your information only. You cannot change it.

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.

It is not possible to enter tags with a leading plus (+) or minus (-) sign, nor tags with parentheses (()) or angle brackets (<>).

For performance reasons, it can take some minutes until you can filter for new tags that you added.

The sensor has the following default tags that are automatically predefined in the sensor's settings when you add the sensor:

• factorysensor

Priority

Select a priority for the sensor. This setting determines the position of the sensor in lists. The highest priority is at the top of a list. Choose from the lowest priority () to the highest priority ().

Channel Definition

Enter a channel definition for the Sensor Factory sensor. Using a specific syntax, you can refer to data from channels of other sensors. You can also calculate values. Enter one channel definition for each new channel that you want to add to the Sensor Factory sensor.

For more information, see section Define Channels.

Status Handling

Define the behavior of the Sensor Factory sensor if one of the source sensors is in the Down status. In this case, you can set the Sensor Factory sensor either to the Down status or to the Warning status. Choose from:

• Show down status when one or more source sensors are in the down status: If at least one source sensor that you use in a channel definition is in the Down status, the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Down status as well until all referred sensors leave this status. While the Sensor Factory sensor is in the Down status, it still shows data of all available channels.
  If a lookup definition or an error limit triggers the Down status of the source sensor, the Sensor Factory does not show the Down status. This is because the Sensor Factory should only show this status if it cannot calculate values.
• Show warning status when one or more source sensors are in the down status: If at least one source sensor that you use in a channel definition is in the Down status, the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Warning status until all referred sensors leave the Down status.
  If a lookup definition or an error limit triggers the Down status of the source sensor, the Sensor Factory does not show the Warning status. This is because the Sensor Factory sensor should only show this status if it cannot calculate values.
• Use custom formula: Define the status of the Sensor Factory sensor by adding a Status Definition below.

Status Definition

This setting is only visible if you select Use custom formula above. Define when the sensor switches to the Down status. You can use the status() function in combination with Boolean operations. For advanced users, it is also possible to calculate a status value.

For more information, see section Define Sensor Status: status() Function.

If a Source Sensor Has No Data

Choose how this Sensor Factory sensor reacts if a source sensor referred to in the channel definition does not provide any data (for example, because it is set to the Paused status or does not exist):

• Do not calculate the channels that use the sensor: For defined channels that use one or more sensors that deliver no data, no data is shown.
• Calculate the channels and use zero as source value: If a source sensor that you use in a channel definition does not deliver any data, zero values are filled in instead. The Sensor Factory sensor calculates the channel value and shows it using these zero values.

If a sensor in the channel of a Sensor Factory sensor has no data, the Sensor Factory sensor always shows the Warning status, no matter which of the above options you select.

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 below a channel gauge on the sensor's Overview tab.

Graph Type

Define how different channels are shown for this sensor:

• Show channels independently (default): Show a graph for each channel.
• Stack channels on top of each other: Stack channels on top of each other to create a multi-channel graph. This generates a graph that visualizes the different components of your total traffic.
  You cannot use this option in combination with manual Vertical Axis Scaling (available in the channel settings).

Stack Unit

This setting 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.

Example

You see a definition of two Sensor Factory sensor channels. Both use the channel() function that collects data from the channels of other sensors in your monitoring and displays them:

#1:Local Probe Health
channel(1001,0)
#2:Local Traffic Out[kbit]
channel(1004,1)

The first channel of the Sensor Factory sensor (#1) collects data from the Health channel (ID 0) of the Probe Health sensor (ID 1001) running on the probe device. The second channel (#2) collects data from the Traffic Out channel (ID 1) of a traffic sensor (ID 1004) measuring the system's local network card. Both channels are shown together in the Sensor Factory sensor's data tables and graphs.

Example
 

channel(2001,2)

This function reads the data from channel ID 2 of the source sensor with the ID 2001.
 

#1:Sample
channel(2001,2)

This full channel definition reads the data from channel ID 2 of the source sensor with the ID 2001 and displays it in the first Sensor Factory sensor channel (#1), without any additional calculations.

Example

You see a Sensor Factory sensor channel definition with calculation.

#1:Traffic Total x Minus Traffic Out y
( channel(2001,-1) - channel(1004,1) ) * 2

This full channel definition results in a Sensor Factory sensor that shows a calculation with values from two channels (channel IDs -1 and 1) of two traffic sensors (sensor IDs 2001 and 1004). The returned values are subtracted and then multiplied by two.

Examples
 

min(10,5)

This function returns 5, because this is the smaller value out of 10 and 5.
 

min( channel(2001,1),channel(2002,1) )

This function returns the minimum of the values of channel 1 of the source sensor with ID 2001 and channel 1 of the source sensor with ID 2002.

Examples
 

avg(20,10)

This function returns 15: (20+10) / 2 = 15.
 

avg( channel(2001,1),channel(2002,1) )

This function returns the average of channel 1 of the source sensor with ID 2001 and channel 1 of the source sensor with ID 2002.

Examples
 

#1:Usage Traffic In
percent(channel(2001,0),100,kilobit)
#2:Usage Traffic Out
percent(channel(2001,1),100,kilobit)

This full channel definition results in a Sensor Factory sensor that shows two channels of a traffic sensor (sensor ID 2001): Traffic in (channel ID 0) and traffic out (channel ID 1). The Sensor Factory sensor displays the values % of maximum bandwidth (100 kilobit/second).
 

#1:Ping %
percent(channel(2002,0),200)

This full channel definition results in a Sensor Factory sensor that shows the Ping Time channel (channel ID 0) of a Ping sensor (sensor ID 2002). The sensor displays the values as a percentage of 200 ms.

Examples
 

#5:Line at 100ms [ms]
100

This channel definition results in a graph that shows a horizontal line at the value of 100 on the ms scale.
 

#6:Line at 2 Mbit/s [kbit/s]
2000

This channel definition results in a graph that shows a horizontal line at the value of 2000 on the kbit/s scale.
 

#1:Ping Time
channel(2002,0)
#2:Line at 120ms [ms]
120

This full channel definition results in a Sensor Factory sensor that shows the Ping Time channel (channel ID 0) of a Ping sensor (sensor ID 2002). Additionally, the sensor graphs show a horizontal line at 120 ms.

Examples
 

status(2031) AND status(2044)

This changes the Sensor Factory sensor to the Down status if both source sensors, with IDs 2031 and 2044, are in the Down status. Otherwise the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Up status.
 

status(2031) OR status(2044)

This changes the Sensor Factory sensor to the Down status if at least one of the source sensors with ID 2031 or ID 2044 is in the Down status. Otherwise the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Up status.
 

status(2031) AND NOT status(2044)

This changes the Sensor Factory sensor to the Down status if the source sensor with ID 2031 is in the Down status, but the source sensor with ID 2044 is not in the Down status. Otherwise the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Up status.

A status() function with NOT has to be connected with AND or OR if it is combined with other status() functions:
 

status(sensorID) AND NOT status(sensorID)
status(sensorID) OR NOT status(sensorID)

( status(2031) AND status(2044) ) OR status(2051)

This changes the Sensor Factory sensor to the Down status if both the source sensor with ID 2031 and the source sensor with ID 2044 are in the Down status, or if the source sensor with ID 2051 is in the Down status. Otherwise the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Up status.

Example
 

( status(1031) + status(1032) + status(1033) + status(1034) ) >= 20000

This changes the Sensor Factory sensor to the Down status if at least any two of the source sensors with IDs 1031, 1032, 1033, or 1034 are in the Down status. Otherwise the Sensor Factory sensor shows the Up status.

[Custom]

The monitoring results from other sensors or devices. Samples for usage are:

• Show single channels of one or more sensors in one graph.
• Use the data from single channels of one or more sensors to calculate new values (for example, you can subtract, multiply, and divide).
• Create graphs with data from other sensors' channels and add horizontal lines at specific vertical positions.

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

The Sensor Factory sensor does not show values in the Downtime channel because they cannot be calculated for this sensor.