Understanding Monitoring Alerts and Notifications

Understanding Monitoring Alerts and Notifications

Effective alert management ensures you are notified of issues without being overwhelmed by notifications. This guide explains how Faciotech's monitoring alerts work and how to configure them for your needs.

Types of Alerts

Downtime Alerts

Triggered when your website becomes unavailable:

• Down notification — Sent when your site goes offline.
• Up notification — Sent when your site recovers.
• Still down reminder — Periodic reminder while the site remains offline (configurable repeat interval).

Performance Alerts

Triggered by slow response times:

• Slow response warning — Site is loading slower than expected.
• Performance recovered — Speed has returned to normal.

SSL Alerts

• Certificate expiring — Warning before your SSL certificate expires.
• Certificate error — Invalid or misconfigured SSL certificate detected.

Alert Channels

The Faciotech Server Monitor supports two alert channels, both configurable from the Alerts tab in the Server Monitor.

Email Notifications

The default alert method. Each email notification includes:

• Monitor name and URL
• Current status (Down or Up)
• Response time (if applicable)
• Error details
• Time of incident

SMS Notifications

For critical alerts requiring immediate attention:

• Shorter message format with key details
• Faster delivery than email
• Ideal for on-call staff and critical services

Configuring Alert Settings

All alert configuration is done from the Alerts tab in the Server Monitor.

Alert Contacts

1. Open the Alerts tab.
2. Click Add Contact.
3. Enter a name and email address.
4. Optionally enter a phone number for SMS alerts.
5. Assign the contact to the monitors that should send alerts to them.

Alert Threshold

How many consecutive failures before an alert is sent:

• 1 failure — Immediate alert (may produce false positives from brief network issues).
• 2-3 failures — Recommended (balances speed and accuracy).
• 4+ failures — Very conservative (may delay real alerts).

Repeat Interval

How often to resend alerts while the issue persists:

• Never — Only alert once per incident.
• 15-30 minutes — Regular reminders.
• 1 hour — Less frequent reminders for non-critical monitors.

Maintenance Windows — Suppressing Alerts

When you have planned maintenance that will temporarily take services offline, you can schedule a maintenance window to suppress alerts and prevent unnecessary notifications. This is managed from the Maintenance tab in the Server Monitor.

1. Open the Maintenance tab.
2. Click Schedule Maintenance.
3. Select the affected monitors.
4. Set the start and end date/time.
5. Save the maintenance window.

During the maintenance window:

• Monitoring continues (data is still collected).
• Alerts are suppressed — no email or SMS notifications are sent for the selected monitors.
• If you have a status page, a maintenance notice is displayed to your users.
• Once the window ends, normal alerting resumes automatically.

Alert Management Best Practices

Avoid Alert Fatigue

• Set appropriate thresholds (2-3 failures) to prevent false positives.
• Use maintenance windows to suppress alerts during planned work.
• Choose a repeat interval that keeps you informed without overwhelming your inbox.
• Review and tune alert settings regularly.

Alert Escalation

For critical systems, consider setting up multiple alert contacts with escalation:

1. First alert — Primary contact via email.
2. After 15 minutes — Primary contact via SMS.
3. After 30 minutes — Secondary contact via email and SMS.
4. After 1 hour — Alert management team.

Reading Alert Details

Down Alert Example

[DOWN] Main Website - yourdomain.com

Status: DOWN
URL: https://yourdomain.com
Error: Connection timeout
Time: 2026-02-21 14:32:00 UTC
Duration: Ongoing

Check your server status or contact support.

Recovery Alert Example

[UP] Main Website - yourdomain.com

Status: UP
URL: https://yourdomain.com
Response Time: 450ms
Time: 2026-02-21 14:47:00 UTC
Downtime Duration: 15 minutes

Your website is back online.

Responding to Alerts

When You Receive a Down Alert

1. Verify the issue by trying to access your site from a different network or device.
2. Check the Overview tab in the Server Monitor for additional context.
3. Review recent changes that might have caused the issue.
4. Contact our support team if you cannot identify or resolve the problem.

When You Receive a Slow Response Alert

1. Check if it is a temporary spike by reviewing the Reports tab.
2. Review server resource usage in your hosting control panel.
3. Check for unusual traffic spikes.
4. Consider optimization or a hosting upgrade if the issue persists.

Need Help?

If you need assistance configuring alerts or responding to issues, contact our support team. You can manage all alert settings from the Server Monitor.