Monitoring Groove Server Relay
Applies to: Groove Server 2010
Topic Last Modified: 2011-06-03
Several Groove Server Relay and Windows platform tools can help you monitor server disk space and troubleshoot unplanned Groove Relay service interruptions if they occur. Microsoft Groove Server 2010 Relay provides access to administrative Web pages of Relay server statistics and queue information, and logs activity to the Windows Event Log. As a Windows service, Groove Relay service status information is reported in the service properties dialog box. In addition, Relay server resource and performance information is available in the Windows Task Manager and Performance Monitor.
Daily or more frequent monitoring of Relay server disk space is recommended because disk overload is one of the most common obstacles to continuous Relay server operation. You can monitor disk space availability and usage by examining Relay-based events reported through the Windows Event Viewer. Regular monitoring of other Relay server resources is less necessary if you configured the system according to product instructions.
The following sections explain the tools that are available for accessing difference types of Relay server resource information.
In this section:
Monitoring Groove Server Relay resources
Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay
Using Groove Server Relay administrative Web pages
For reference information about Groove Server Relay statistics, see Groove Server Relay statistics reference
Monitoring Groove Server Relay resources
Groove Server Relay reports events in the Windows Event Log and in log files in the Groove Relay Data\Diagnostics directory. In addition, the Groove Server Relay resource monitor subsystem runs once a minute to track disk space usage and I/O, and HTTP and SSTP connections. Each resource status change can trigger one of the following Relay server responses, in the event of an important resource change:
Log an event message (error, warning, or informational event), viewable from the Windows Event Viewer. After the first event occurrence for a resource, the next events are logged in 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 60-minute intervals.
Shut down and restart the Groove Relay service.
Shut down and disable the Groove Relay service.
No action.
Groove Relay Resource Monitor EventIDs fall within the range of 8000-8999 in the Windows Event Log and are described in Groove Server Relay errors and events. For more information about how to use the Windows Event Viewer for Relay-related events, see Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay.
Relay server log files reside by default in the Groove Relay Data\Diagnostics directory. The Relay server reports to the Event Log continuously but this information is dynamic, with new data steadily displacing older events within days or weeks, depending on log size. The Groove Relay log files archive this information, so that you can examine Relay server event history for trends and anomalies. Regular server purging of files from the Groove Relay Data\Diagnostics directory is recommended for best system maintenance.
The Groove Relay log file in the Data\Diagnostics directory contains the following Relay server diagnostic information:
Event Log events (also viewable from the Groove Server Relay administrative Web pages)
Trace messages (most useful traces are also viewable in the Relay server administrative Web pages)
State changes
The Data\Diagnostics\PurgeInfo directory contains the following information:
Purge logs (also viewable from the Relay server administrative Web pages)
Queue reports (also viewable from the Relay server administrative Web pages)
Trace logs and other supplemental logs are primarily used by Microsoft Support.
The following table describes where you can find information about important Relay server resources.
| To find the following information: | Use these tools: |
|---|---|
Disk Space |
Disk Properties (click My Computer, right-click the disk name, and select Properties). Performance Monitor, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
File Input/Output (I/O) |
Task Manager with I/O Reads/Writes columns selected from the Processes tab, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
Queue size |
Relay Administrative Web Pages, as described in Using Groove Server Relay administrative Web pages and Groove Server Relay statistics reference. Performance Monitor, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
CPU usage |
Performance Monitor, described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. Task Manager from the Performance tab, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
Network connections and I/O (bytes received/sent) |
Relay administrative Web pages, as described in Using Groove Server Relay administrative Web pages. Performance Monitor, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. NetStat from Windows Command Prompt. |
Memory usage |
Task Manager from Performance tab, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. Performance Monitor, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
Bandwidth usage |
Relay administrative Web pages, as described in Using Groove Server Relay administrative Web pages and Groove Server Relay statistics reference. |
Process |
Task Manager - from Processes tab, find Relay.exe, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
Service |
Services Manager – the Task Manager on the Performance tab, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
Relay resource limits and indicators of system overload, including the following: Low disk space Connection limits exceeded SSTP connections HTTP connections |
Event Viewer, as described in Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay. |
Using Windows system tools for Groove Server Relay
You can use Windows administrative tools to check the status of the Groove Relay service, status of Relay server connections, and Relay server performance. The following table summarizes how to find this information by using Windows administrative tools:
| Use this Windows Tool: | To see information about the following: | Take this action on the Relay server that you are monitoring: | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Services tool |
Relay availability |
Go to Start>Programs> Administrative Tools>Services to verify that the Groove Relay service has started. |
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Task Manager |
Relay process |
Open the Windows Task Manager by right-clicking the taskbar and selecting Task Manager. To check process status, click the Processes tab and look for Relay.exe to verify that the Groove Relay process is running. To view more columns in the Processes tab, click the View menu, click Select Columns, and then select I/O Reads/Writes or other column options. To see CPU usage and memory information, click the Performance tab. |
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Performance Monitor |
Performance-related traces, including information about network input/output (I/O), memory usage, CPU usage, disk usage, and flow control. This information can help you detect warning conditions before they become problems. |
Open Start>Programs>Control Panel>Administrative Tools->Reliability and Performance>Performance Monitor. Right-click Objects, select Add counter, and then select the Relay server or one of the other counter objects prefixed with Groove Relay. Select individual counters that you want to track (such as Relay server connections, Fanout sessions, or Flow Control state), then click the Add button. A graph of the selected counters appears. The Relay server resets these counters whenever it starts or stops. In support of the Groove Server 2010 Relay memory-based flow control mechanism, the following Perfmon counters indicate whether or not flow control is active (1) or inactive (0) for each state, as follows:
Note Memory states are additive. For example, when red flow control is active (1, Green and Yellow will also be 1. Note Flow control monitoring applies only to Groove Server 2010 Relay installations with over 8 gigabytes of memory. For more information about whether action is required to enable memory-based flow control, see the description of flow control events in Groove Server Relay errors and events. |
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Event Viewer |
Relay server error, warning, and informational events |
Open Start>Programs->Control Panel>Administrative Tools->Event Viewer. Select an event category, sort events by Source, and then search for Groove Relay events in the Source column. A list of all messages appears in the main window, unless you define filters to customize the display. The Event Viewer lets you integrate third-party monitoring tools to use as monitoring aids. See Groove Server Relay errors and events for descriptions of Relay server flow control events. |
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Netstat |
Status of Relay server connections |
From a Windows Command Prompt, enter the following: netstat -an You should see a display similar to the following: C:\>netstat -an Active Connections Proto Local Address Foreign Address State TCP 0.0.0.0:80 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING TCP 0.0.0.0:2492 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING TCP 127.0.0.1:8009 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING TCP 0.0.0.0:8010 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING TCP 0.0.0.0:443 0.0.0.0:0 LISTENING |
Using Groove Server Relay administrative Web pages
The Groove Server Relay collects information that you can view through your browser, after you have set up and secured the site by using the Groove Relay configuration Control Panel item, as described in Install and configure Groove Server 2010 Relay. Relay server statistics and related information in the administrative Web pages can help you maintain the ongoing health of Relay servers and troubleshoot problems.
The Relay server’s administrative Web pages are made available over HTTP on the Relay server’s SSL port 8010, as configured in the Groove Relay Control Panel item. Authorized administrators can access these pages through the URL that is specified in the Control Panel item or through localhost:8010, as described in Starting and stopping Groove Server Relay. For information about Relay server statistics and administrative information available from the Relay server Web pages, see Groove Server Relay statistics reference.
The following table lists the types of information available from the Groove Server Relay pages.
| Relay server administrative Web pages | Description |
|---|---|
Statistics |
Lists Groove Server Relay connection statistics. |
Accounts |
Lists and provides details about user accounts registered with the Relay server. |
Bandwidth |
Displays bandwidth usage for devices registered with the Relay server. |
Devices |
Lists and provides details about devices registered with the Relay server. |
Identities |
Lists and provides details about user identities registered with the Relay server. |
Queues |
Lists and provides details about queues defined on the Relay server. Single queues can also be purged from this page. |
Stores |
Lists Relay server queue stores. |
UserIDs |
Lists user IDs that are assigned to the Relay server from the associated Groove Server Manager system and provides links to user account information. |
Relay Connections |
Lists connections to foreign Relay servers and provides connection status and session information. |
Trace Log |
Displays log of Groove Relay trace messages, primarily for use in troubleshooting by Microsoft Support. |
Event Log |
Displays Windows Event Log. Most of this information is also viewable using the Windows Event Viewer. For a description of Groove Relay Event Viewer events, see Groove Server Relay errors and events. |
Maintenance |
Generates database Purge and Queue Information reports that can be viewed in a spreadsheet or report viewer. You can also trigger Queue purges from this page, as follows:
|