Documentation forIpMonitor

Manually configure the ADO User Experience monitor

The Test Parameters dialog box specifies the parameters used by the ADO User Experience Monitor to open a data source connection.

The following example describes how to configure the ADO User Experience monitor to test the connection to a supported Microsoft SQL Server database server.

See the ipMonitor Installation Guide for a list of supported SQL Server versions.

Database Type

Select a database type from the ADO - User Experience monitor list of supported OLE DB providers.

Credential for Monitoring

Based on the data source configured for the ADO - User Experience monitor, some form authentication will be required to connect and log in.

Typically, a credential is created and assigned to the ADO - User Experience monitor to impersonate the account information required to access and query the data source. If a monitoring credential is not assigned, ipMonitor uses the login privileges of the current Windows account assigned to the ipMonitor service.

To select a credential, click Select and select an existing credential from the Windows category. To create a new credential, click New Credential to start the wizard.

Run this test from an external process

Enable this option to continue monitoring the database even if a temporary OLE DB connection problem occurs.

The following example configures the ADO User Experience monitor to a test Microsoft SQL Server database server. The following authentication methods are possible.

SQL Authentication

Using SQL Authentication or Mixed Mode:

  • Provider = sqloledb
  • Data Source = ServerName
  • Initial Catalog = DatabaseName

Create and assign a credential for monitoring that includes the user name and password required to authenticate. Select the May be used with ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) option in the Usage Restrictions section of the credential settings.

Integrated Windows Authentication

Using Integrated Windows Authentication or Trusted Connection:

  • Provider = sqloledb
  • Data Source = ServerName
  • Initial Catalog = DatabaseName
  • Integrated Security = SSPI

Click AND to specify the additional Integrated Security = SSPI parameter.

A monitoring credential is required if the ipMonitor service account does not have sufficient rights to connect to the database server. Only select the May be used with Windows Impersonation for use with RPC option within the Usage Restrictions section of the credential settings.

For specific configuration details about configuring a credential for the ADO - User Experience monitor, see Credentials Manager.

Additional Connection Types

The ADO - User Experience monitor supports both the Named Instance and TCP/IP connection options.

Named Instance

To connect to a named instance:

  • Provider = sqloledb
  • Data Source = ServerName\InstanceName
  • Initial Catalog = DatabaseName

If the named instance uses SQL authentication, a credential for monitoring will need to be created. If the named instance uses integrated Windows authentication, a credential may be required as noted above.

Click AND to specify the Integrated Security = SSPI parameter.

To connect to an SQL Server 2000 named instance, the ipMonitor host machine must have MDAC 2.6 or later installed.

TCP/IP Connection to SQL Server 2000

To connect to SQL Server 2000 using an IP address:

  • Provider = sqloledb
  • Data Source = xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx, 1433
  • Initial Catalog = DatabaseName
  • Network Library = DBMSSOCN

where:

  • xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP address of the database server.
  • 1433 is the default port number for the SQL Server. The IP address and port are separated by a comma.

Click AND to enter Network Library = DBMSSOCN, indicating that TCP/IP should be used instead of named pipes, and to enter Encrypt = yes, indicating that encryption will be used.

SQL Statement

Enter the query statement that will be issued to the database server or data source.

Do not end the SQL statement with a semicolon. The semicolon is automatically added by ipMonitor.

Locking Method

Use the Locking Method menu to specify the locking mechanism that will be placed on the query statement issued to the database server or data source. By default, the locking method is set to Optimistic.

Listed below are the locking method options.

Option Description
Optimistic Simultaneously edit a record, locking it only when an update is attempted.
Batch Optimistic Required only when updating records in batches.
Pessimistic Locks a record when the retrieval process is initiated.
Read Only Prevents data from being modified.

Analysis of Test Results

This section is used to validate the query results. It controls the number of rows that will be retrieved and the type of analysis the monitor performs on the result set.

Success can be determined strictly by retrieving up to a maximum of x number of rows. Examine the row count and row content for further analysis.

Retrieve a Maximum of "x" Rows

The Retrieve Maximum Rows parameter controls the maximum number of rows that the query is permitted to return to the ADO - User Experience monitor for analysis. This allows you to:

  • Control the impact on the SMP Server or data source being monitored.
  • Reduce the network bandwidth consumed.
  • Reduce the required amount of processing for ipMonitor.

Examine the Row Count

Use this option to validate your results based on your configured numeric equation.

Number of Rows Retrieved Must Be

Select an operator and enter a number used to test the number of rows returned by the query.

Examine the Row Content

Use this option to perform textual or numeric analysis on the data contained in the specified column.

When the query result set returns more than one row, each row in the result set is examined sequentially from first to last. All configured tests are performed on your specified column.

The test passes if any condition you specify is met.

Examine Column Number

When you specify the column number to examine, note that column 1 is the first column. Counting is 1-based, not 0-based.

Column Will

This equation determines success if the test passes.

Several text comparison methods are available including regular expression and string matches.

ipMonitor includes a RegEx wizard to help create regular expressions.

Click AND or OR to increase the flexibility of the test.