You can configure status messages in a
variety of ways. For the most part, the default configuration of the
status message system will serve the average site quite well and
generate a sufficient number of messages to facilitate reporting and
troubleshooting. However, you might need to modify or enhance the reporting
of status messages. One way to control the way messages are displayed
in the SMS Administrator Console is by using status summarizers.
Status summarizers
provide a mechanism to consolidate the copious amounts of data
generated by status messages into a succinct view of the status of a
component, a server, a package, or an advertisement. In the Component
Status window,
for example, you’re presented with a single entry for each component
that indicates the component’s status (OK, Warning, or Error), its
state (Started or Stopped), and the number of error, warning, and info
messages that have been generated. Remember that behind each of these
entry summaries can be a host of detailed messages. Let’s explore some
techniques for modifying how the status summarizers consolidate and
display the data you see in the SMS Administrator Console.
1. Display Interval
The
status messages that are displayed are filtered first by a display
interval. By default, only status messages generated since midnight are
displayed. This limitation doesn’t mean that all previous status
messages have been deleted. On the contrary, all status messages are
written to the SMS database by default. The display interval merely facilitates your
view of recent messages. You can modify the display interval for status
summaries displayed in the Component Status node and the Advertisement
Status node. Since summaries displayed in the Site System Status node
and the Package Status node are based solely on state, you can’t modify
the display interval for these status messages.
To
modify the display interval, right-click the Component Status node or
the Advertisement Status node and choose Display Interval from the
context menu to display a list of interval options, as shown in Figure 1.
Select
the interval option that best suits your viewing needs. Be aware that
choosing an interval such as Since Site Installation is likely to net
you a significant number of messages to scroll through when you choose
Show All Messages from the context menu.
Strictly
speaking, the display interval is not so much an attribute of the
status summarizer mechanism as it’s a way to facilitate your view of
the status messages kept in the database.
2. Status Message Thresholds
A status message threshold
is a limit that defines when the status summary for a component or site
system should indicate OK, Warning, or Critical status. This threshold
is set by determining the number of actual OK, Warning, and Critical
messages that have been generated for each component or site system.
When a predetermined number of messages has been collected, the status
changes from OK to Warning or from Warning to Critical.
For example, consider the Status Threshold Properties dialog box shown in Figure 2,
which you can get to by right-clicking a status summary entry in the
Component Status window and choosing Properties. The Status Message
Threshold settings indicate that if one error type status message is
generated for SMS Site Component Manager, the status summarizer will
change the component’s status from OK to Warning. If five error type
status messages are generated, the component’s status will change from
Warning to Critical. Similarly, if 2000 informational type status
messages are generated for SMS Site Component Manager, the status
summarizer will change the status of SMS Site Component Manager from OK
to Warning, and if 5000 informational type status messages are
generated, the status will change from Warning to Critical.
Status
thresholds for site system status are calculated similarly, but are
based on available free space in the SMS site system and the site and
software metering databases. Figure 3
shows the Free Space Thresholds Properties dialog box, which you can
access by right-clicking any status summary entry in the Site System
Status window and choosing Properties. Notice that the free space
thresholds for all site systems generate a warning status message if
free space falls below 20 MB (20,480 KB) and a critical status message
if free space falls below 10 MB (10,240 KB).
Other
thresholds are specific to the databases based on a percentage of the
database size. You’ll learn how to modify these values or add new
threshold values in the next section.
