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nrpe

Introduction​

This cheat sheet provides a quick reference for some common NRPE (Nagios Remote Plugin Executor) commands and concepts. NRPE is a Nagios plugin that allows you to remotely execute Nagios plugins on other Linux/Unix machines to monitor their local resources.

NRPE Concepts​

Installing and Configuring NRPE​

To use NRPE, you need to install and configure it on the target host.

  • Install NRPE on the target host (example for Debian/Ubuntu):

    sudo apt-get install nagios-nrpe-server

  • Configure NRPE to allow specific Nagios server(s) by editing the configuration file:

    sudo nano /etc/nagios/nrpe.cfg

Command Definitions​

NRPE configuration includes defining the commands to be executed remotely.

  • Define a new command in the nrpe.cfg file (example): 
    command[check_disk]=/usr/lib/nagios/plugins/check_disk -w 20% -c 10%

Restarting NRPE​

After making changes to the NRPE configuration, you'll need to restart the NRPE service.

  • Restart the NRPE service (example for systemd-based systems): 
    sudo systemctl restart nagios-nrpe-server

Monitoring from Nagios Server​

From the Nagios server, you can run checks on the remote host using check_nrpe.

  • Run an NRPE check (example): 
    /usr/lib/nagios/plugins/check_nrpe -H target_host -c check_disk

NRPE Command-Line​

  • Install NRPE on the target host (example for Debian/Ubuntu):

    sudo apt-get install nagios-nrpe-server

  • Configure NRPE to allow specific Nagios server(s) by editing the configuration file:

    sudo nano /etc/nagios/nrpe.cfg

  • Define a new command in the nrpe.cfg file (example):

    command[check_disk]=/usr/lib/nagios/plugins/check_disk -w 20% -c 10%

  • Restart the NRPE service (example for systemd-based systems):

    sudo systemctl restart nagios-nrpe-server

  • Run an NRPE check (example):

    /usr/lib/nagios/plugins/check_nrpe -H target_host -c check_disk

Conclusion​

This cheat sheet covers some common NRPE (Nagios Remote Plugin Executor) commands and concepts. NRPE is a valuable tool for monitoring remote Linux/Unix hosts and their resources using Nagios, making it essential for system administrators and network administrators; refer to the official NRPE documentation for more in-depth information and advanced usage.