Documentation forServer & Application Monitor
Monitoring your applications and environment is a key capability of Hybrid Cloud Observability and is also available in a standalone module, Server & Application Monitor (SAM). Hybrid Cloud Observability and SAM are built on the self-hosted SolarWinds Platform.

Server sizing

SolarWinds SAM is capable of monitoring networks of any size, ranging from small corporate LANs to large enterprise and service provider networks. Most SAM systems perform well with a Quad core processor or better with at least 10 GB of RAM using default polling engine settings. However, when monitoring larger networks, you should give additional consideration to the hardware used and the system configuration.

There are three primary variables that affect scalability. The most important consideration is the number of monitored components. Monitoring more than 1,000 components may require fine tuning for optimal performance. The second variable is polling frequency. For instance, if you collect statistics more frequently than the default, the system must work harder and system requirements increase. Finally, the number of simultaneous users accessing SAM directly impacts system performance.

When planning a SAM installation, there are four main factors to consider regarding polling capacity:

  • CPU
  • Memory
  • Number of polling engines
  • Polling engine settings

If you plan to monitor 10,000 or more components, SolarWinds recommends installing Additional Polling Engines (APEs) on separate servers to distribute the work load. To learn more, see Server sizing recommendations and Scalability Engine Guidelines.