Installing ServiceWatch Agent

Users can install the ServiceWatch Agent on a Virtual Server to collect custom metrics and logs.

ServiceWatch Agent

The agents required to collect custom metrics and logs for ServiceWatch on a Virtual Server can be broadly divided into two types: Prometheus Exporter and Open Telemetry Collector.

Prerequisites for Using ServiceWatch Agent

To use the ServiceWatch Agent, please refer to Prerequisite environment configuration for ServiceWatch Agent and prepare the necessary settings.

Installing Prometheus Exporter for Virtual Server (Linux)

Install the Prometheus Exporter on a Linux server following the steps below.

Installing Node Exporter

Install Node Exporter according to the steps below.

1. Create Node Exporter User
2. Node Exporter Configuration

Create Node Exporter User

Create a dedicated user to securely isolate the Node Exporter process.

sudo useradd --no-create-home --shell /bin/false node_exporter

sudo useradd --no-create-home --shell /bin/false node_exporter

Node Exporter Configuration

1. Download Node Exporter for installation. The guide uses the following version:

   • Download path: /tmp
   • Version: 1.7.0
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     cd /tmp
     wget https://github.com/prometheus/node_exporter/releases/download/v1.7.0/node_exporter-1.7.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz

     cd /tmp
     wget https://github.com/prometheus/node_exporter/releases/download/v1.7.0/node_exporter-1.7.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz

     Note

     The latest Node Exporter version can be found at Node Exporter > Releases > Latest, and specific versions are available at Node Exporter > Releases.

2. Install the downloaded Node Exporter and set permissions on the executable.

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   cd /tmp
   sudo tar -xvf node_exporter-1.7.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz -C /usr/local/bin --strip-components=1 node_exporter-1.7.0.linux-amd64/node_exporter

   cd /tmp
   sudo tar -xvf node_exporter-1.7.0.linux-amd64.tar.gz -C /usr/local/bin --strip-components=1 node_exporter-1.7.0.linux-amd64/node_exporter

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   sudo chown node_exporter:node_exporter /usr/local/bin/node_exporter

   sudo chown node_exporter:node_exporter /usr/local/bin/node_exporter

3. Create a service file. Configure Node Exporter to collect memory (meminfo) or block storage (filesystem) metrics.

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   sudo vi /etc/systemd/system/node_exporter.service

   sudo vi /etc/systemd/system/node_exporter.service

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   [Unit]
   Description=Prometheus Node Exporter (meminfo only)
   Wants=network-online.target
   After=network-online.target
   
   [Service]
   User=node_exporter
   Group=node_exporter
   Type=simple
   ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/node_exporter \
     --collector.disable-defaults \    # Disable default collectors
     --collector.meminfo \             # Enable memory metrics
     --collector.filesystem            # Enable block storage filesystem metrics
   
   Restart=on-failure
   
   [Install]
   WantedBy=multi-user.target

   [Unit]
   Description=Prometheus Node Exporter (meminfo only)
   Wants=network-online.target
   After=network-online.target
   
   [Service]
   User=node_exporter
   Group=node_exporter
   Type=simple
   ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/node_exporter \
     --collector.disable-defaults \    # Disable default collectors
     --collector.meminfo \             # Enable memory metrics
     --collector.filesystem            # Enable block storage filesystem metrics
   
   Restart=on-failure
   
   [Install]
   WantedBy=multi-user.target

   Note

   • Collectors can be enabled or disabled using flags.

     • <code>--collector.{name}</code>: Enables a specific metric collector.
     • <code>--no-collector.{name}</code>: Disables a specific metric collector.
     • To disable all default metrics and enable only specific collectors, use <code>--collector.disable-defaults --collector.{name} ...</code>.

   • Below is a description of the main collectors.

   Collector	Description	Labels
   meminfo	Provides memory statistics	-
   filesystem	Provides filesystem statistics such as used disk space	device: Physical or virtual device path where the filesystem is located (e.g., /dev/sda1) fstype: Filesystem type (e.g., ext4, xfs, nfs, tmpfs) mountpoint: Path where the filesystem is mounted on the host OS; serves as an intuitive way to distinguish disks (e.g., /, /var/lib/docker, /mnt/data)

   Table. Description of main Node Exporter collectors

   • For detailed information on available metrics and configuration, see the Node Exporter > Collector page.
   • Available metrics may vary depending on the version of Node Exporter you use. See the Node Exporter repository.

4. Enable and start the service. Register the Node Exporter service and verify the registered service and configured metrics.
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   sudo systemctl daemon-reload
   sudo systemctl enable --now node_exporter

   sudo systemctl daemon-reload
   sudo systemctl enable --now node_exporter

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   sudo systemctl status node_exporter

   sudo systemctl status node_exporter

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   curl http://localhost:9100/metrics | grep node_memory

   curl http://localhost:9100/metrics | grep node_memory

Installing Prometheus Exporter for Virtual Server (Windows)

Install the Prometheus Exporter on a Windows server following the steps below.

Installing Windows Exporter

Install the Windows Exporter according to the steps below.

1. Windows Exporter Configuration

Windows Exporter Configuration

1. Download the Windows Exporter installation file.

   • Download path: C:\Temp
   • Test version: 0.31.3
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     $ mkdir /Temp
     $ Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://github.com/prometheus-community/windows_exporter/releases/download/v0.31.3/windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe" -OutFile "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe"

     $ mkdir /Temp
     $ Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://github.com/prometheus-community/windows_exporter/releases/download/v0.31.3/windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe" -OutFile "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe"

     Note

     Windows Exporter versions and installation files can be found at Windows Exporter > Releases.

2. Test the Windows Exporter execution. By default, Windows Exporter enables all collectors, but to collect only desired metrics, enable the following collectors:

   • Memory metrics: memory
   • Block storage metrics: logical_disk
   • Host name: os
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     $ cd C:\Temp
     $ .\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --collectors.enabled memory,logical_disk,os

     $ cd C:\Temp
     $ .\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --collectors.enabled memory,logical_disk,os

3. Register the service and verify.

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   $ sc.exe create windows_exporter binPath= "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --collectors.enabled memory,logical_disk,os" DisplayName= "Prometheus Windows Exporter" start= auto
   $ Start-Service windows_exporter

   $ sc.exe create windows_exporter binPath= "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --collectors.enabled memory,logical_disk,os" DisplayName= "Prometheus Windows Exporter" start= auto
   $ Start-Service windows_exporter

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   # Verify service
   $ Get-Service windows_exporter
   
   # Verify metrics
   $ Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://localhost:9182/metrics" | Select-String memory

   # Verify service
   $ Get-Service windows_exporter
   
   # Verify metrics
   $ Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://localhost:9182/metrics" | Select-String memory

4. Set configuration file.

   • Use the --config.file option to specify a YAML configuration file.
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     $ .\windows_exporter.exe --config.file=config.yml
     $ .\windows_exporter.exe --config.file="C:\Program Files\windows_exporter\config.yml" # When using an absolute path, wrap it in quotes

     $ .\windows_exporter.exe --config.file=config.yml
     $ .\windows_exporter.exe --config.file="C:\Program Files\windows_exporter\config.yml" # When using an absolute path, wrap it in quotes

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     collectors:
       enabled: cpu,net,service
     collector:
       service:
         include: windows_exporter
     log:
       level: warn

     collectors:
       enabled: cpu,net,service
     collector:
       service:
         include: windows_exporter
     log:
       level: warn

• Refer to the official example config file at Windows Exporter > Example config file.

$ sc.exe create windows_exporter binPath= "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --config.file=C:\Temp\config.yml" DisplayName= "Prometheus Windows Exporter" start= auto
$ Start-Service windows_exporter

$ sc.exe create windows_exporter binPath= "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --config.file=C:\Temp\config.yml" DisplayName= "Prometheus Windows Exporter" start= auto
$ Start-Service windows_exporter

Node Exporter Metrics

Main Node Exporter metrics

The following are the collector and metric information available through Node Exporter. Collectors can be enabled, and specific metrics can be activated.

Node Exporter collector and metric collection settings

Node Exporter enables most collectors by default, but you can enable or disable specific collectors as needed.

Enable specific collectors only

• When you want to use only memory and filesystem collectors:
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  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.meminfo            # Enable memory collector
    --collector.filesystem         # Enable filesystem collector

  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.meminfo            # Enable memory collector
    --collector.filesystem         # Enable filesystem collector

• When you want to disable all default collectors and use only memory and filesystem collectors:
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  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.disable-defaults    # Disable default metrics
    --collector.meminfo             # Enable memory collector
    --collector.filesystem          # Enable filesystem collector

  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.disable-defaults    # Disable default metrics
    --collector.meminfo             # Enable memory collector
    --collector.filesystem          # Enable filesystem collector

• Enable filesystem collector for specific mount points:
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  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.disable-defaults \
    --collector.filesystem.mount-points-include="/|/data"          # Enable filesystem collector for / (root) and /data mount points

  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.disable-defaults \
    --collector.filesystem.mount-points-include="/|/data"          # Enable filesystem collector for / (root) and /data mount points

• Enable filesystem collector excluding specific mount points:
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  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.disable-defaults \
    --collector.filesystem.mount-points-exclude="/boot|/var/log"    # Exclude /boot and /var/log mount points

  ./node_exporter \
    --collector.disable-defaults \
    --collector.filesystem.mount-points-exclude="/boot|/var/log"    # Exclude /boot and /var/log mount points

Disable specific collectors (no-collector)

When you do not want to use the filesystem collector:

./node_exporter --no-collector.filesystem

./node_exporter --no-collector.filesystem

Configure collector as a systemd service (recommended)

[Unit]
Description=Node Exporter
After=network-online.target

[Service]
User=nodeexp
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/node_exporter \
  --collector.disable-defaults # Disable all default metric collectors
  --collector.meminfo
  --collector.filesystem

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

[Unit]
Description=Node Exporter
After=network-online.target

[Service]
User=nodeexp
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/node_exporter \
  --collector.disable-defaults # Disable all default metric collectors
  --collector.meminfo
  --collector.filesystem

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Filter specific metrics

Using the Open Telemetry Collector configuration, you can select only the required metrics collected by Node Exporter.
For guidance on pre‑configuring the Open Telemetry Collector for ServiceWatch, see Prerequisite Open Telemetry Collector configuration for ServiceWatch.

Windows Exporter Metrics

Main Windows Exporter metrics

The following are the collector and metric information available through Windows Exporter. Collectors can be enabled, and specific metrics can be activated.

Windows Exporter collector and metric collection settings

Windows Exporter enables most collectors by default, but you can configure only the desired collectors.

Enable specific collectors only

If you want to use only CPU, memory, and logical disk collectors:

# The --collector.enabled option disables defaults and enables only the listed collectors
.\windows_exporter.exe --collectors.enabled="memory,logical_disk"

# The --collector.enabled option disables defaults and enables only the listed collectors
.\windows_exporter.exe --collectors.enabled="memory,logical_disk"

Configure collector as a service (recommended)

# Register windows_exporter as a service
sc.exe create windows_exporter binPath= "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --config.file=C:\Temp\config.yml" DisplayName= "Prometheus Windows Exporter" start= auto
# Start the service
Start-Service windows_exporter

# Register windows_exporter as a service
sc.exe create windows_exporter binPath= "C:\Temp\windows_exporter-0.31.3-amd64.exe --config.file=C:\Temp\config.yml" DisplayName= "Prometheus Windows Exporter" start= auto
# Start the service
Start-Service windows_exporter

# Note this is not an exhaustive list of all configuration values
collectors:
  enabled: logical_disk,memory # Set collectors to enable
collector:
  service:
    include: "windows_exporter"
  scheduled_task:
    include: /Microsoft/.+
log:
  level: debug
scrape:
  timeout-margin: 0.5
telemetry:
  path: /metrics
web:
  listen-address: ":9182"

# Note this is not an exhaustive list of all configuration values
collectors:
  enabled: logical_disk,memory # Set collectors to enable
collector:
  service:
    include: "windows_exporter"
  scheduled_task:
    include: /Microsoft/.+
log:
  level: debug
scrape:
  timeout-margin: 0.5
telemetry:
  path: /metrics
web:
  listen-address: ":9182"

Filter specific metrics

Using the Open Telemetry Collector configuration, you can select only the required metrics collected by Windows Exporter.
For guidance on pre‑configuring the Open Telemetry Collector for ServiceWatch, see Prerequisite Open Telemetry Collector configuration for ServiceWatch.