Not Valid for PRTG Version 12 or Later!

PLEASE NOTE: The information in this article does not apply to PRTG Network Monitor 12 or later!

For details about cluster setup in PRTG 12 or later, please see:

PRTG Manual: Failover Cluster Configuration

This article applies to PRTG Network Monitor 8

10 Steps to Set Up a PRTG Cluster—Introduction

This article explains how to set up a cluster of two servers (master node and failover node) with PRTG Network Monitor 8.

Before Getting Started

Configuring a cluster with one failover node is the most common way to set up a seamless network monitoring with PRTG. You will need two servers running any Windows version (XP/2003 or later); your servers can be real hardware or virtual machines.

Please make sure the following:

• Your servers must be up and running
• Your servers must be similar in regard to the system performance and speed (CPU, RAM memory, etc.)
• Check What are the bandwidth requirements for running a PRTG 8 Cluster?
• In a cluster setup, each of the cluster nodes will individually monitor the devices added to the Cluster Probe. This means that monitoring load will increase with every cluster node. Please make sure your devices and network can handle these additional requests. Often, a larger scanning interval for your entire monitoring is a good idea. For example, you could set a scanning interval of 5 minutes in the Root group's settings.
• We recommend installing PRTG on dedicated systems for best performance
• Please bear in mind that a server running a cluster node may sometimes be rebooted automatically without notice (e.g. for special software updates)
• Both servers must be visible for each other through the network
• Communication between the two servers must be possible in both directions. Please make sure that no software- or hardware firewall is blocking communication. All communication between nodes in the cluster is directed through one specific TCP port. You will define it during cluster setup (by default, it is TCP port 23570).
• Make your servers safe! From every cluster node, there is full access to all stored credentials as well as other configuration data and the monitoring results of the cluster. Also, PRTG software updates can be deployed through every node. So, please make sure you take security precautions to avoid security attacks (hackers, Trojans, etc.). You should secure every node server the same careful way as the master node server.
• Download the PRTG Network Monitor Setup program onto both of your servers.

The Three Scenarios

There are instructions for setting up a cluster from different starting points:

Scenario 1: You do not have a PRTG 8 installation yet

Make a fresh installation of two PRTG version 8 servers as a cluster or integrate one existing PRTG version 7 server into a cluster of two PRTG version 8 installations.

— Get instructions on this scenario

Scenario 2: You’ve set up one PRTG 8 installation in single mode already

Integrate an existing PRTG version 8 server into a failover cluster with two PRTG version 8 installations.

— Get instructions on this scenario

Scenario 3: You've set up two PRTG 8 installations already, each running in single mode

Combine two existing PRTG version 8 servers into one failover cluster. The cluster will take over the configuration of *one* server (the future master server); the configuration of the other server (the future failover node) will be discarded.

— Get instructions on this scenario

See Also

What is the Clustering Feature in PRTG 8?

Not Valid for PRTG Version 12 or Later!

PLEASE NOTE: The information in this article does not apply to PRTG Network Monitor 12 or later!

For details about cluster setup in PRTG 12 or later, please see:

PRTG Manual: Failover Cluster Configuration