[WhatsUp Forum] Not so White Paper: HTTP Content check to monitor dynamic web ser versz

Sam McKenzie Thu, 15 Jul 2004 12:39:58 -0700

Question/Problem: How do I do HTTP Content check to monitor dynamic web servers?

I found the white-paper that should have helped. It does not.

I can actually put any false hostname/dynamic site in place of the www.MYVirtual.site.COM and the service still shows as being up! It seems to accept ANY name. It does not matter what you put in there.

Is something wrong with the syntax in the document?

Here is the white paper from ipswitch:

White Paper Solution -

Some web servers that host multiple domains on one server use content within the HTTP headers to identify which site the user wants. To do this, you would have to create a custom monitor to specifically monitor that one site. The pertinent information to accomplish this would be

"Host: www.yoursite.com" where yoursite.com represents the dynamic site.

Here is the line you would enter in the Send Command on Connect field:

GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nHost:www.yoursite.com\r\nUser-Agent:Ipswitch_Whatsup/5.0\r\n\r\n

For versions 7 or later, use the following script:

Send=GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nAccept: */*\r\nHost:www.MYVirtual.site.COM\r\nUser-Agent:Ipswitch_Whatsup/7.0\r\n\r\

Expect=HTTP/1.1 200 OK

Note: You will be sending 2 lines; the Send and the Expect. So, it is important that the SEND line is one line in the Script body of the service and the Expect is the second line.

You could copy the service example (Dynamic Site) directly into the SERVICES.INI file located in your Whatsup directory. And change the "www.MYVirtual.com" to your Host.

Send=GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nAccept: */*\r\nHost:www.MYVirtual.site.COM\r\nUser-Agent:Ipswitch_Whatsup/7.0\r\n\r\

[Dynamic Site]

CLSID={72B6D231-D71E-11d2-8F74-0040054D7C1D}

Lines=2

Line000=Send=GET / HTTP/1.1\r\nAccept: */*\r\nHost:www.MYVirtual.com\r\nUser-Agent:Ipswitch_Whatsup/8.0\r\n\r\n

Line001=Expect=HTTP/1.1 200 OK

TYPE=0

PORT=80

TIMEOUT=15

Send=GET /about.html HTTP/1.1\r\nAccept: */*\r\nHost:www.MYVirtual.site.COM\r\nUser-Agent:Ipswitch_Whatsup/8.0\r\n\r\

Expect=HTTP/1.1 200 OK

If you want to check for a sub page on the Host, like "about.html" for instance then the script will look like this:

Send=GET /about.html HTTP/1.1\r\nAccept: */*\r\nHost:www.MYVirtual.site.COM\r\nUser-Agent:Ipswitch_Whatsup/8.0\r\n\r\

Expect=HTTP/1.1 200 OK

(Notice the "about.html" is placed behind the "GET /...")

NOTE: If ICMP is blocked to the web server, i.e. you cannot ping the Host, then choose Polling Method: TCP/IP (or in version 8 you would choose Services).

Thanks!

Charles R. Alexander

System Administrator

Quantum Corporation

719-536-6405

8301-6405

-----Original Message-----

From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of Anthony Franklin

Sent: Friday, June 18, 2004 10:06 AM

To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Subject: RE: [WhatsUp Forum] HTTP Content Scan when Web Sites use the same IP

Good Morning Charles,

I am surprised. I know what you are talking about. There is a way to fix that. Mike Patterson of Somix published a document a few years ago that illustrates how to do http content scans in detail. You might want review that document. It might be in the Ipswitch knowledge base. That should solve that issue.

If it does not, you can try the alternate solution.

Anthony Franklin, Network Engineer

Information Technology Services

University of West Florida

Pensacola, Florida 32514

850.474.3243

-----Original Message-----

From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of Charles Alexander

Sent: Friday, June 18, 2004 10:00 AM

To: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]'

Subject: RE: [WhatsUp Forum] HTTP Content Scan when Web Sites use the same IP

I am not getting an error. If I use the site name, it still just looks at the IP address and checks the default page instead of the website I want to check.

Thanks!

Charles R. Alexander

8301-6405

-----Original Message-----

From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of Anthony Franklin

Sent: Thursday, June 17, 2004 4:34 PM

To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Subject: RE: [WhatsUp Forum] HTTP Content Scan when Web Sites use the same IP

Try using the site name.

If the sites do redirects that keep returning an error, send me a message and I will share a solution. It will require installing a 500k language on the WUG server or any server you like, for that matter (any development web server is fine, and all you will have to do is reference it from the What's Up Gold server. You don't have to install it actually; you will only need to copy it to a folder of your choice.

The same thing can be done with Perl; But You will have to figure it out.

It creates a static html file of whatever site you are referencing every poll. You choose wherever you want to store the file (in a "static" web folder that will not be a redirect). On each poll, it overwrites that previously produce static page to give you exactly what a user will see in a browser during that poll cycle.

So if your production site does not display the content, the reproduced page does not display the content either. If your production site displays the content, the reproduced page will display the content and your scan passes successfully.

You can place all of your sites in the same folder. The reproduced page for each site needs to have a different name.

The language is called Rebol -- Pronounced like Rebel.

www.rebol.com

I will then pass my script to you. The script is a flat text file.

Several months ago I said it would support https scans, but I was incorrect. So, you need to make a http connection available to your what's up gold server. If the site requires https, allow http for your what's up gold server only in the IIS IP security of your Production web server.

I have not checked to see if there is a new version of rebol that supports https.

-----Original Message-----

From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of Charles Alexander

Sent: Thursday, June 17, 2004 4:57 PM

To: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]'

Subject: [WhatsUp Forum] HTTP Content Scan when Web Sites use the same IP

Hi!

How can I do an HTTP Content Scan on Web Sites when they are all using the same IP address?

Thanks!

Charles R. Alexander

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