Server Monitoring Challenges and Their Solutions

Why does Server Monitoring Matter?

Servers are computers/applications that run software services for other computers connected to the network. The server takes the request from the client computer and executes the required task, such as providing content, processing data, etc.

If a server system is running slow, faces performance issues, or gets offline, it can compromise the whole operational system of an organization. However, a well-structured server monitoring system can continuously monitor the server operations and test their accessibility and response time. It can promptly send alerts of issues to take instant measures.

The following reasons further clarify why monitoring or managing server infrastructure is essential:

• It provides a bird's-eye preview of the server performance and workload.
• It helps to remain proactive in troubleshooting server-related issues.
• It helps to optimize the performance and utilization of server resources.
• It reduces downtimes and keeps costs low.
• It can detect unusual activities to identify security threats in real time.

In short, server monitoring is the key to keeping your organization's servers active, efficient, and secure.

5 Common Server Monitoring Challenges and Their Solutions

Server monitoring comes with challenges that vary from organization to organization. However, below are the five common infrastructure monitoring challenges that most organizations have to tackle:

1.      Ever-growing Monitoring Size

One of the most common challenges in server monitoring is the ever-growing size of infrastructure. The number of devices and networks is directly linked to the organization's growth. This makes it challenging to keep track of all the devices/apps that are linked to the IT infrastructure.

Solution: The best solution to tackle the growing monitoring size is to use the scalable server monitoring solution. The tool should be able to monitor/trace services end-to-end. Moreover, the tool should be able to autonomously discover and catalog all applications, servers, and network devices. In addition, you can also divide your infrastructure into manageable segments. This way, you can better monitor your servers and easily prioritize monitoring for critical systems/services.

2.      Rising Costs

Not all organizations have the capital to address the growing infrastructure costs. In fact, many organizations implementing server monitoring tools have the main agenda to improve their infrastructure efficiency and lower costs. For instance, timely handling of server issues will lower the chances of downtimes or revenue loss and increase uptime. However, budget constraints can hinder an organization's ability to ensure top-notch infrastructure and server monitoring.

Solution: If your organization is concerned with rising costs, opting for serverless computing can be beneficial. Serverless computing is a pay-as-you-use service that eradicates provisioning and management and provides scalability/flexibility. Simply put, it's the purchase of back-end services from cloud services vendors on the demand base.

3.      Multiple Monitoring Tools

Many organizations use multiple infrastructure monitoring tools for specific aspects of their infrastructure. The use of multiple monitoring tools brings many challenges. They require separate unique logins and may provide findings in different formats. In addition, there are more chances of false positive alerts.

Solution: There are now advanced monitoring tools that can provide single, scalable, and comprehensive solutions. However, if your organization wants to keep using multiple monitoring tools, then you can implement single sign-on (SSO) to have a unified login to all tools. In addition, you can create a centralized dashboard that extracts data from different tools.

4.      Tackling Security Threats

Server monitoring is not only about ensuring the servers' operationality but also requires effective handling of security threats. However, the growing security threats with new tactics can be overwhelming to address. For example, the impact of ransomware on organizations reached an all-time high in 2023, as around 10% of the world's organizations were targeted by an attempted ransomware attack.

Solution: To tackle security threats, you need to become proactive. You have to deploy advanced security tools and tactics and keep them up-to-date with changing security dynamics. For that, it is recommended to opt for managed IT security services like CARE that can handle all your security needs, whether it is assessment, implementation, testing, recovery, or anything else. This way, you can have peace of mind that expert cybersecurity professionals are proactively monitoring and protecting your infrastructure from security threats.

5.      Distributed Networks

As the organization's size grows, the servers, IoT devices, networks, and personnel get distributed across different geographies and time zones. Many times, they connect to disparate cloud services and may have the authority to manage their local network segments. Therefore, the dozens of independent server monitoring teams will lead to higher costs/downtimes per issue and lots of duplicate efforts.

Solution: A centralized monitoring dashboard is essential for monitoring distributed networks. Today, there is a wide range of server/network monitoring tools that can centralize control of multiple remote sites and offer an intuitive central dashboard. Therefore, if your organization is expanding, make sure to opt for monitoring tools that can scale and centralize all those remote sites.

Wrapping Up

Server monitoring needs will keep evolving with the growing technological advancements. This means that organizations need more advanced monitoring tools and strategic planning to ensure effective server monitoring.

That's why it is important to have a dedicated server monitoring team on board that can lay off strong and up-to-date infrastructure monitoring practices. This is what you can get with CARE server monitoring and support services. So, check out our comprehensive server monitoring services and let us help you maximize your server monitoring efforts.

 📞🚀 Interested in maximizing your server monitoring efforts? Contact us to see how our services can boost your organization's efficiency and security! 🌐💼