Using the Synthetic monitoring user interface

The Tests tab

The Tests tab displays all the tests that you have created. For the selected interval, all the test results of the test across all the assigned locations are aggregated. The test with the lowest success rate is displayed in the beginning of the list. You can choose to sort the table by any fields in the table except the Action column. When you sort by decreasing latency, you can see which test has the worst response time in the time period across all results and assigned locations.

In addition to sorting, you can filter the table by using the Type, Locations, and Associations filters. You can also search for a test by name in the list by using the search box.

The table displays the following information:

• Name: The name of the Synthetic test.
• Status: Indicates whether the test is actively running or has been paused.
• Type: Displays the type of test and the scheduled frequency.
• Success rate: The rate of success, and is determined by comparing the number of successful test results in the time period with the total number of test results.
• Latency: The average response time of the test results in the selected time period. It includes a short graph of the response time results.
• Locations: Indicates the locations where the test is assigned and running. If more than one location is assigned, the number of locations is shown instead of the location name. In addition, the colored dots below the location text indicate the status of the test at each location.
• Associations: If the Synthetic test is associated with any applications, websites, or mobile apps, the count of associations is shown. To view the associations, click on the number of associations. A dialog is displayed with the names of the associated applications, websites, and mobile apps. To view the item, click the name. The associated page in the Applications or Websites & Mobile Apps section is shown.
• Health: Provides an indication of the overall health of the test across locations based on failing results that are compared with total results.
• Action: Contains pause and play buttons, which act as a toggle and provides a quick way to pause or resume a test. If a test is paused, it can be resumed by selecting the play button.

If a test is scheduled to run every minute, some processing time is involved. Therefore, the test results for the last hour might not reflect every test run.

The Locations tab

The Locations tab displays the following types of synthetic locations:

• Private locations are created when you deploy a self-hosted point-of-presence (PoP). You might deploy multiple self-hosted PoPs, and all of them will be displayed as Private locations.
• Managed locations are created when an Instana-hosted PoP is activated successfully. To activate a Managed location, see Enabling locations.

This tab can be helpful when you deploy a self-hosted PoP or try to activate an Instana-hosted PoP. When the PoP successfully registers with the Instana backend, the location appears in this tab. After your self-hosted PoP is running, you can use this tab to check its health. If a PoP sensor is installed, monitoring issues affect the health column. If a PoP sensor is not installed, you can check its health by going to the Kubernetes monitoring pages for the PoP. The health of Instana-hosted PoPs is monitored by Instana, and it is not displayed on this tab.

By default, the locations appear in alphabetical order, but you can choose to sort the table by using any other field in the table except the action column. No filters are provided for Locations, but you can search for a location in the list by using the search box.

The table displays the following information:

• Location Name: The name that you provided at the time when the PoP was deployed. If you also deployed the Instana Kubernetes agent and the PoP sensor, the name is shown as a link, which takes you to the PoP Sensor Physical pages where you can look at the status of the PoP and Kubernetes pods that make up the PoP.
• Display Name: The displayable name that you provided when the PoP was deployed. The display name is used on all Synthetic monitoring UI pages where the location is shown.
• Status: Indicates whether the PoP is online or offline. A PoP is considered to be offline if it does not communicate with the server for 10 minutes or more. The time (10 minutes) is not configurable.
• Type: Supports Private and Managed locations.
• No. of tests linked: The number of different Synthetic tests that are assigned to run at this location.
• Last test run on: Shows the date and time of the most recent test run.
• IP Address: The external IP addresses of the managed locations.
• Namespace: The namespace into which the PoP is deployed. For a self-hosted PoP, if you also deployed the Instana Kubernetes agent and there is no PoP Sensor installed, the name is shown as a link, which takes you to the Kubernetes monitoring pages where you can look at the status of the Kubernetes pods that make up the PoP.
• Health: Provides an indication of the overall health of the Private location reported by the PoP Sensor. If the PoP Sensor is not installed for a self-hosted PoP, then NA (Not Applicable) is displayed. For an Instana-hosted PoP, NA (Not Applicable) is displayed.
• Action: A menu of possible actions that you can take against a location. If you uninstall your self-hosted PoP, you can use the delete action to remove the location from the Instana backend. If you delete a Private location, a confirmation dialog will be displayed with the details of active tests that are assigned to the location. You must enter the text LOCATION in the field to delete the request. After a location with active tests is deleted, the tests might exist in the Instana backend without an assigned location. You can update a test by using the API to assign it to another location without creating the test again. You cannot delete a Managed location at this time. To stop using a Managed location, open an IBM support ticket to remove the location and the corresponding Instana-hosted PoP.

Viewing credentials

To view the credentials that you created, go to Synthetic Monitoring > Credentials. The Credentials tab is displayed only if you have the canUseSyntheticCredentials permission. You can sort the table by any fields in the table except the Action column.

You can view the following details in the Credentials tab.

• Name: The name of the Synthetic credential.
• Associations: If the Synthetic credential is associated with applications, websites, or mobile apps, the count of associations is shown. To view the associations, click the number of associations. A dialog is displayed with the names of the associated applications, websites, and mobile apps. To view the item, click the name. The associated page in the Applications or Websites & Mobile Apps section is shown.
• Created at: The date and time at which the Synthetic credential was created.
• Created by: The email address of the user who created the Synthetic credential, or the name of the API token which was used to create the Synthetic credential.
• Last modified by: The email address of the user who modified the Synthetic credential, or the name of the API token which was used to modify the Synthetic credential.
• Actions: Contains Edit and Delete actions that you can take against a credential. The Actions column is displayed only if you have the canConfigureSyntheticCredentials permission.
  • To edit a Synthetic credential, click the ellipsis in the Actions column, and then select Edit. Click Save to save the credential. When you edit a Synthetic credential, the name of the Synthetic credential cannot be modified.
  • To delete a Synthetic credential, complete the following steps:
  1. Click the ellipsis in the Actions column.
  2. Select Delete. A confirmation dialog is displayed.
  3. Enter the full name of the credential to confirm deletion.
  4. Click Delete credential.

The Smart Alerts tab

The Smart Alerts tab displays the Smart Alerts that are configured for all of your Synthetic tests. For each configured alert, you can see the following information:

• Name: The name of the Smart Alert.
• Time Threshold: The number of consecutive Synthetic test failures that are needed to cause the alert to fire.
• Tests Applied: The number of Synthetic tests that are configured to use this alert.
• Filter Applied: The icon that indicates whether any filtering of this list is in place.
• Pause button: The button to pause the Smart Alert. It is paused for all assigned tests.
• Ellipsis button: The button to edit, duplicate, and delete the alert.

The Instana SaaS users with the canConfigureSyntheticLocations permission can access the New Location button on the Locations tab on the Synthetic Monitoring page. To create a private or managed location, click New Location.

The Instana self-hosted users with the canConfigureSyntheticLocations permission can access the Deploy a PoP button on the Locations tab on the Synthetic Monitoring page. To create a private or managed location, click Private location**.

For more information about the New Location button, see Using an Instana-hosted PoP or Deploying a Self-hosted PoP.

For more information about the Deploy a PoP button, see Deploying a Self-hosted PoP.