In this topic, we will illustrate some possible approaches with Zabbix in each area within our company.
For example, if we are a retail company, we have several things that can be monitored:
- Product update process: In any retail company, there is a need to update products, prices, stock, and so on. In other words, the stores need the lists of updated products, and this replication is certainly made by the company's enterprise resource planning (ERP). But is this process monitored? Do we know the average time of each update? Is the throughput used? Or is it required for the upgrade?
- Point of sale (POS): This is another item on any existing retail network. Does it matter how many outlets have opened? How many are involved in the transaction? What's the average time between transactions? We can, and must, lead users so that they indicate which metrics are relevant at this point.
- Data replication: Does the store need to update the matrix about the volume of sales, the products that are out of stock, and so on? Should this be monitored? Is it relevant?
- Electronic payments: Are buyers in the store making payments by credit cards? What is the average time of each transaction?
In another example, if we are a logistics company, we have other metrics that can be collected by Zabbix, such as these:
- Fleet state: Any logistics company has the fleet. How is the fleet going? How many trucks have stopped? Who's running it? Average speed?
- Location: Is the GPS on or off? Is there any route deviation?
In a hospital, these are what we can consider:
- Reception: Average waiting time for care, queue service by priority, and so on
- Beds: Patients calling for nurses, empty beds and occupied beds, and so on
In an e-commerce site, we should consider the following:
- Store: Online users, users making payments, users choosing products, withdrawals, the purchasing time, and user experience (Zabbix web monitoring)
- Stock: Low-stock products, the most sold product in the last hour, and so on
Of course, many of these metrics are already provided, or will be provided, by ERP or the existing management system, but this information can be cross-referenced with the availability of IT services. This makes it simpler to realize the impact of a service on a host whatsoever. The prioritization of the incident can be made based on its impact on the business.
The preceding list is only one example of the business metrics that can be collected and evaluated by Zabbix. Our role is to know our business to the point of provoking users of other areas to make them realize the importance of collecting and evaluating business data.
Each reader is definitely going to imagine what metrics are relevant and can be collected, either with a query in the applications database, or simulating user action with Zabbix web monitoring. The important thing is not to forget to engage users from other areas in search of new metrics.