<%NUMBERING1%>.<%NUMBERING2%>.<%NUMBERING3%> PRTG Manual: Windows MSMQ Queue Length Sensor

The Windows MSMQ Queue Length sensor reads the number of messages in a Microsoft message queue of the parent device.

Windows MSMQ Queue Length Sensor

Windows MSMQ Queue Length Sensor

i_square_cyanFor a detailed list and descriptions of the channels that this sensor can show, see section Channel List.

Sensor in Other Languages

  • Dutch: Windows MSMQ wachtrijlengte
  • French: Windows MSMQ longueur de la file d'attente
  • German: Windows MSMQ Queue-Länge
  • Japanese: Windows MSMQ キュー長
  • Portuguese: Comprimento da fila MSMQ Windows
  • Russian: Длина очереди Windows MSMQ
  • Simplified Chinese: Windows MSMQ 队列长度
  • Spanish: Longitud de cola MSMQ Windows

Remarks

  • This sensor has a high performance impact. We recommend that you use no more than 200 of this sensor on each probe.
  • This sensor requires that the Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ) service runs on both the probe system and the target system.
  • This sensor requires .NET 4.7.2 or later from Microsoft on the probe system. If the sensor shows the error PE087, additionally install .NET 3.5 on the probe system.
  • We recommend Windows Server 2016 on the probe system for best performance of this sensor.
  • This sensor requires credentials for Windows systems in the settings of the parent device.
  • This sensor cannot monitor subqueues.
  • If no message queues are available in the Add Sensor dialog, you see a corresponding message.
  • This sensor supports IPv6.

i_podYou cannot add this sensor to the hosted probe of a PRTG Hosted Monitor instance. If you want to use this sensor, add it to a remote probe device.

Detailed Requirements

Requirement

Description

MSMQ service

For this sensor to work, the MSMQ service must be started both on the target system and on the probe system. Additionally, the MSMQ service must also be started on the target system.

To enable the service, log in to the respective system and open the services manager (for example, via services.msc). In the list, find the respective service and set its Start Type to Automatic.

Depending on your Windows version, you might first need to install the MSMQ Server.

i_round_blueWhen installing MSMQ Server, make sure that you install it including the Directory Service. Depending on your Windows installation, this might have a different name, such as:

  • MSMQ Active Directory Domain Service Integration
  • Directory Service Integration
  • Active Directory Integration

i_square_cyanFor more information, see the Knowledge Base: How do I activate Message Queuing in my Windows installation?

.NET 4.7.2 or later

This sensor requires .NET 4.7.2 or later to be installed on the probe system (on every cluster node, if on a cluster probe).

i_round_redIf the framework is missing, you cannot create this sensor.

i_square_cyanFor more information, see the Knowledge Base: Which .NET version does PRTG require?

Windows credentials

This sensor requires credentials for Windows systems in the settings of the parent device. We recommend that you use Windows domain credentials.

i_round_redIf you use local credentials, make sure that the same Windows user accounts (with the same user name and password) exist on both the probe system and the target system. Otherwise, the sensor cannot correctly connect.

Basic Sensor Settings

Basic Sensor Settings

Basic Sensor Settings

Setting

Description

Sensor Name

Enter a name to identify the sensor. By default, PRTG shows this name in the device tree, as well as in alarms, logs, notifications, reports, maps, libraries, and tickets.

i_round_blueIf the name contains angle brackets (<>), PRTG replaces them with braces ({}) for security reasons. For more information, see the Knowledge Base: What security features does PRTG include?

Parent Tags

The tags that the sensor inherits from its parent device, parent group, and parent probe.

i_round_blueThis setting is for your information only. You cannot change it.

Tags

Enter one or more tags. Confirm each tag with the Spacebar key, a comma, or the Enter key. You can use tags to group objects and use tag-filtered views later on. Tags are not case-sensitive. Tags are automatically inherited.

i_round_blueIt is not possible to enter tags with a leading plus (+) or minus (-) sign, nor tags with parentheses (()) or angle brackets (<>).

i_round_blueFor performance reasons, it can take some minutes until you can filter for new tags that you added.

The sensor has the following default tags that are automatically predefined in the sensor's settings when you add the sensor:

  • ptfsensor

Priority

Select a priority for the sensor. This setting determines the position of the sensor in lists. The highest priority is at the top of a list. Choose from the lowest priority (i_priority_1) to the highest priority (i_priority_5).

Sensor Settings

Sensor Settings

Sensor Settings

Setting

Description

Message Queue

The name of the message queue that this sensor monitors.

Message Queue Type

The type of the message queue that this sensor monitors.

Minimum Message Age

Optionally define an age in minutes that the message must be for the sensor to count it. If you set a minimum message age, the sensor does not regard messages that are younger than this age. If you leave this field empty, the sensor does not check for the message age. Enter an integer or leave the field empty.

If Value Changes

Define what the sensor does when its value changes:

  • Ignore (default): Do nothing.
  • Trigger 'change' notification: Send an internal message that indicates a change.
    i_round_blueIn combination with a change trigger, you can use this to trigger a notification if a change occurs.

Debug Options

Debug Options

Debug Options

Setting

Description

Result Handling

Define what PRTG does with the sensor result:

  • Discard result (default): Do not store the sensor result.
  • Store result: Store the last sensor result in the \Logs\sensors subfolder of the PRTG data directory on the probe system. The file names are Result of Sensor [ID].txt and Result of Sensor [ID].Data.txt. This setting is for debugging purposes. PRTG overwrites these files with each scanning interval.

i_round_blueIn a cluster, PRTG stores the result in the PRTG data directory of the master node.

Sensor Display

Sensor Display

Sensor Display

Setting

Description

Primary Channel

Select a channel from the list to define it as the primary channel. In the device tree, the last value of the primary channel is always displayed below the sensor's name. The available options depend on what channels are available for this sensor.

i_round_blueYou can set a different primary channel later by clicking b_channel_primary below a channel gauge on the sensor's Overview tab.

Graph Type

Define how different channels are shown for this sensor:

  • Show channels independently (default): Show a graph for each channel.
  • Stack channels on top of each other: Stack channels on top of each other to create a multi-channel graph. This generates a graph that visualizes the different components of your total traffic.
    i_round_redYou cannot use this option in combination with manual Vertical Axis Scaling (available in the channel settings).

Stack Unit

This setting is only visible if you select Stack channels on top of each other above.

Select a unit from the list. All channels with this unit are stacked on top of each other. By default, you cannot exclude single channels from stacking if they use the selected unit. However, there is an advanced procedure to do so.

Inherited Settings

By default, all of these settings are inherited from objects that are higher in the hierarchy. We recommend that you change them centrally in the root group settings if necessary. To change a setting for this object only, click b_inherited_enabled under the corresponding setting name to disable the inheritance and to display its options.

i_square_cyanFor more information, see section Inheritance of Settings.

Scanning Interval

Scanning Interval

Scanning Interval

i_square_cyanFor more information, see section Root Group Settings, section Scanning Interval.

Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window

i_round_blueYou cannot interrupt the inheritance for schedules, dependencies, and maintenance windows. The corresponding settings from the parent objects are always active. However, you can define additional schedules, dependencies, and maintenance windows. They are active at the same time as the parent objects' settings.

Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window

Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window

i_square_cyanFor more information, see section Root Group Settings, section Schedules, Dependencies, and Maintenance Window (default).

Access Rights

Access Rights

Access Rights

i_square_cyanFor more information, see section Root Group Settings, section Access Rights.

Channel List

i_round_blueWhich channels the sensor actually shows might depend on the target device, the available components, and the sensor setup.

Channel

Description

Downtime

In the channel table on the Overview tab, this channel never shows any values. PRTG uses this channel in graphs and reports to show the amount of time in which the sensor was in the Down status

Execution Time

The execution time

Messages

The total number of messages in the queue

i_round_blueThis channel is the primary channel by default.

More

i_square_blueKNOWLEDGE BASE

How do I activate Message Queuing in my Windows installation?

Which .NET version does PRTG require?

What security features does PRTG include?