WhatsUp Gold v16.

2
Distributed Edition
Deployment Guide
This guide provides information about installing and configuring
WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition to central and remote sites.
 Contents

Table of Contents

Using WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition

About WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition ........................................................................................................... 1
User interfaces ................................................................................................................................................... 2
About Distributed Edition's reporting capabilities .............................................................................. 2
Installing the Distributed Edition Central and Remote Sites ............................................................ 2
System requirements ...................................................................................................................................... 4

Installing Central and Remote Sites

Installing the Central and Remote Sites ............................................................................................................... 5
Step 1: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Central Site .............................................................................................. 7
Installing the Central Site using Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition ...................... 8
Installing the Central Site using an existing Microsoft SQL Server ............................................... 10
Changing the Central Site configuration settings .............................................................................. 13
Step 2: Configuring the firewall for Remote Site connections ................................................................... 14
Step 3: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Remote Site ........................................................................................... 15
Installing the Remote Site using Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition ................... 15
Installing the Remote Site using an existing Microsoft SQL Server ............................................. 17
Changing the Remote Site configuration settings............................................................................. 21
Step 4: Using Reports for WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition ................................................................... 21
Dashboard reports: Learning about the Central/Remote dashboard reports ......................... 22
Monitor Reports: Learning about the Central/Remote Monitor Reports ................................... 30
Advantages of monitor reports ................................................................................................................. 31
Step 5: Using the Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager .............................................................................. 32
Creating and modifying user accounts............................................................................................................... 33
For More Information ................................................................................................................................................ 35

Copyright notice

i
CHAPTER 1
Using WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition
In This Chapter
About WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition ....................................................1

About WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition

WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition extends the capabilities of WhatsUp Gold to multiple
remote networks. The distributed solution includes a WhatsUp Gold central installation and a
WhatsUp Gold remote installation; the WhatsUp Gold central site installation coordinates
data feeds from multiple remote site installations. The network data collected from remote
sites can be viewed in WhatsUp Gold reports on the central site. Together, the central and
remote installations provide high visibility to multiple networks from one central location.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition Edition gives managed solution providers the ability to use
all of the features of WhatsUp Gold Premium Edition to monitor their customers' remote
networks from a central location in the managed solution provider's network operations
center. Managing multiple companies' networks at once has never been easier.

User interfaces
WhatsUp Gold offers two core user interfaces, the Windows console interface and the web
interface. You can accomplish discovery and mapping on the console or web interface, then
setup of monitors and dashboard views, users and permissions, and do day-to-day
monitoring on the web interface.
§ Windows console interface. The console is a Windows application, through which
you can configure and manage WhatsUp Gold and its database.
§ Web interface. The web interface provides access to WhatsUp Gold functionality (via
HTTP or HTTPS) from a web browser.
§ Mobile interface. You can now conveniently view your network status from a mobile
device through WhatsUp Gold Mobile interface.

About Distributed Edition's reporting capabilities

WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition lets you configure and view reports associated with
multiple monitored networks. Centralized reports, configured on the central site, gather key
data from the remote sites. With WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition's combined monitoring
and reporting capabilities, you stay informed about the overall health of all networks.

If connectivity is lost between the central and remote sites, information from the last network
scan is available on the central site. In this instance, each remote site continues to run an
independent, full-featured version of WhatsUp Gold, and network data is gathered,
regardless of the connection status between the remote and central sites.

All data communicated between the central and remote sites is transferred over secure
socket layer (SSL) protocol to ensure that transmitted data is secure and confidential.
Moreover, SSL communications between sites occur seamlessly, requiring no extra setup.

Installing the Distributed Edition Central and Remote Sites

Installation overview
The Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition is comprised of the following:
§ WhatsUp Gold Central Site component installed on a network computer to collect
data from and monitor all of the Remote Sites.
§ WhatsUp Gold Remote Site component installed on a network computer at each
remote location. Each remote site computer monitors the remote site network and
reports the network status back to the Central Site.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

§ Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager application automatically installed with the

WhatsUp Gold Central Site. After the Central and Remote Sites are set up, you can
configure this application to cycle through a series of selected WhatsUp Gold web
interface pages and other Web pages that you want to view on a regular basis. The
Dashboard is ideal to set up across multiple monitors to view multiple networks or
Remote Sites, increasing visibility to the information that is most important to you.
There are two installation programs for the Distributed Edition, one for the WhatsUp Gold
Central Site and a second for the WhatsUp Gold Remote Site. The installation programs step
you through the process of installing each part of the application.

Following are the overview steps required to install the Distributed Edition. For more detailed
installation instructions, see the Installing the WhatsUp Distributed Edition to Central and
Remote Sites deployment guide located on the Ipswitch Web site
([Link]
1 Install the Central Site application.
§ Enter the license for the Central Site.
§ Select the web server port.
§ Configure the TCP port that the Remote Sites will use to connect to the Central Site.
§ Create a User Name and Password that the Remote Sites will use when connecting to
the Central Site.
2 Make sure the firewall ports are specified and open for the inbound connections (from
the Remote Sites on Port 9394 TCP).
3 Install the Remote Site application at the remote locations.
§ Enter the license for the Remote Site.
§ Select the web server port.
§ Set up the Central Site IP Address and TCP Port that the Remote Site(s) will use to
connect to the Central Site.
§ Set the User Name and Password that the Remote Site(s) will use to gain access to the
Central Site.
§ Set up the Display Name for the Remote Site.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

§ Run the network discovery to identify devices on the network and set up Active and
Passive Monitors.

4 Create Dashboard Reports on the Central Site installation for each of the Remote Sites.
5 (Optional) Set up the Dashboard application on the Central Site.
After the above steps are complete, the application is ready to monitor, and be further
customized and expanded as required. Data will be communicated from the Remote Sites to
the Central Site. The network data is rolled up in the dashboard reports and full reports that
you set up. If you enabled access to the Remote Sites, you can drill-down from the Central
Site reports to detailed historical data on the related Remote Site.

System requirements
For WhatsUp Gold system requirements for Distributed Edition, as well as information about
the latest product features, editions, fixed in this release, and known issues, refer to the
Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold Release Notes ([Link]

4
CHAPTER 2
Installing Central and Remote Sites
In This Chapter
Installing the Central and Remote Sites ........................................................5
Step 1: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Central Site .......................................7
Step 2: Configuring the firewall for Remote Site connections ........... 14
Step 3: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Remote Site................................... 15
Step 4: Using Reports for WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition ............ 21
Step 5: Using the Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager ...................... 32
Creating and modifying user accounts ...................................................... 33
For More Information ........................................................................................ 35

Installing the Central and Remote Sites

Installation overview
Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition includes:
§ WhatsUp Gold Central Site installed on a network computer to collect data from
and monitor all of the remote sites.
§ WhatsUp Gold Remote Site installed on a network computer at each remote
location. Each remote site computer monitors the remote site network and reports
the network status back to the central site.
§ Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager automatically installed with the WhatsUp
Gold central site. After the central and remote sites are installed and configured, you
can arrange the Dashboard Screen Manager to display a series of selected WhatsUp
Gold web pages. The dashboard is ideal for multiple-monitor display; it increases
visibility of multiple remote sites. For more information, see Step 5: Using the Ipswitch
Dashboard Screen Manager application (on page 32).
There are two installation programs for the Distributed Edition, one for the WhatsUp Gold
central site and a second for the WhatsUp Gold remote site.

The following overview steps are required to install the Distributed Edition:
1 Install the Central Site application. For more information, see Step 1: Installing the
WhatsUp Gold Central Site.
§ Select the port to use to access the Central Site web interface.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

§ Enter a User Name and Password for the Remote Sites to use when connecting to the
Central Site.
§ Configure the TCP port for the Remote Sites to use for connecting to the Central Site.

2 Ensure the firewall ports are specified and open for the inbound connections (from the
Remote Sites on port 9394 TCP). For more information see, Step 2: Configuring the firewall
for Central and Remote Site connections (on page 14).

3 Install the Remote Site application at the remote locations. For more information, see
Step 3: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Remote Site.
§ Select the port to use to access the Remote Site web interface.
§ Set up the Central Site IP Address and TCP Port for the Remote Site(s) to connect to
the Central Site.
§ Set the User Name and Password for the Remote Site(s) to gain access to the Central
Site.
§ Set up the Display Name for the Remote Site.
§ (Recommended) Enter the HTTP address for the Central Site to use when accessing
this Remote Site Web interface.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

§ Run the network discovery to identify devices on the network and set up active and
passive monitors.

4 Create dashboard reports on the Central Site installation for each of the remote sites.
For more information see, Step 4: Using Reports for WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition (on
page 21).
5 (Optional) Set up the Dashboard application on the central site. For more information,
see Step 5: Using the Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager application (on page 32).
After completing the above steps, the application is ready to monitor, and further customize
and expand as required. Data is communicated from the remote sites to the central site. The
network data is rolled up in the dashboard reports and monitor reports that you configure.
For more information, see Step 4: Using Reports for WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition (on page
21). If you enabled access to the remote sites, you can drill-down from the central site reports
to detailed historical data on the related remote site.

Step 1: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Central Site

The WhatsUp Gold Central Site Central Site is the primary monitoring system responsible for
gathering important network activity data from each of the Remote Sites. After the Remote
and Central Sites are installed and configured, and reports are configured on the Central Site,
network status information from each Remote Site is communicated to the Central Site.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

You can install and configure WhatsUp Gold Central Site to use Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2
Express Edition or to use an existing instance of Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL
Server 2008 or 2008 R2, or Microsoft SQL Server 2012 as its database.

The installation steps below are for the most common WhatsUp Gold Central Site installation.
The screens and steps that display during the installation process may be slightly different
based on your license. For example, if you have an evaluator's license, fewer screens display,
allowing for a more simplified installation process.

Installing the Central Site using

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition
To install WhatsUp Gold using the default Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition
instance:
1 Log in directly to Microsoft Windows using the Administrator account (if you do not
have an account called Administrator, use an account that has full administrative
privileges to the computer).

Caution: We do not recommend using Terminal Services or Remote Desktop to install any
WhatsUp product.

2 Start the WhatsUp Setup:

§ If you downloaded an electronic version of the WhatsUp Setup, double-click the
downloaded file.
§If you purchased a WhatsUp Setup CD-ROM, insert the CD-ROM into the appropriate
drive. If it does not run automatically, click Start, select Run, then enter the CD path
followed by [Link] (for example, D:\[Link]).
3 Read the Welcome screen and click Next. The License Agreement dialog appears.
4 Read the license agreement. If you accept the terms of the license agreement, select I
accept the terms of the license agreement.
§ To print a copy of the license agreement, click Print. The license agreement is sent to
the default printer.
§ If you do not accept the terms of the license agreement, click Cancel to exit the
installation program.
5 Click Next to continue.
6 Enter your WhatsUp Gold Activation Key or select an alternative activation method.
The following is an example of an activation key, which is made up of the serial number
and UAP and the to be entered in Activation Key.
Serial Number (15
characters) UAP (8 characters) Activation Key (23 characters)
01MTBDK5TN99NQ1 XKQKC966 01MTBDK5TN99NQ1XKQKC966
7 Click Next to continue. The WhatsUp Gold Welcome screen specific to the edition you
are activating appears.
8 Read the Welcome screen and click Next. The Installation Options dialog where SQL
Server is configured appears.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

9 Select the install directories for Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition. The
application and data files are installed in default directories.

Important: Make sure that you have a large capacity drive selected for data storage. The
data files for WhatsUp Gold can reach a maximum size of 22 GB.

Important: During installation, databases are created for WhatsUp Gold Flow Monitor. These
basic databases are limited in size, but are increased the first time the Flow Monitor collector
initializes. If at least 16 GB of disk space is available when the collector initializes, the
maximum size of the Flow Monitor databases is increased to 4 GB each (16 GB total
including transaction logs). If less than 16 GB is available, the maximum size of the Flow
Monitor databases is limited proportionately to the amount of free disk space. If your license
includes WhatsUp Gold Flow Monitor, we strongly recommend that you verify that you have
at least 16 GB of free disk space before installing.

10 Click Next to continue. WhatsUp Gold creates a limited permissions 'sa' account and
password.

Important: Note the login name and password associated the 'sa' account. This information
is needed when configuring remote site WhatsUp Gold installations.

11 The Installation Options dialog, where the installation directory is set appears.
12 Select the installation directory for the WhatsUp Gold application files.
The default path is C:\Program Files\Ipswitch\WhatsUp. We recommend that you
use the default path.

Tip: The Program Files directory path may vary if on a 64 bit system (for example, Program
Files (x86)). You can install WhatsUp Gold to a different location. To select a different
location, click Change.

Note: If the installation program detects data from a previous installation of WhatsUp Gold,
the Backup Web and Report Files dialog appears. We recommend that you select Back up
the existing Web and report files, then click Next.

13 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the TCP port is selected
appears.
14 Choose a TCP port for the WhatsUp Gold web site. The installation program creates an
IIS web site using this port. The default port is 80.

Note: It is recommended that port 80 be used for the WhatsUp Gold web site. If another port
number is used, the URL for the WhatsUp Gold web site will require that port number to be
appended to the hostname or IP address when forming the URL. For example if you chose
8888 as the port number instead of 80 your URL for a WhatsUp Gold install on the local host
would be: localhost:8888/nmconsole
If port 80 is used by a current IIS web site, you must either allow WhatsUp Gold to disable
that web site and take over port 80, or choose another port.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

15 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you enter port and
credential information about the remote site appears.
16 Enter the applicable TCP port. The default value is 9394.
17 Specify a user name and password for the remote site to use to send information to the
central site.
18 Click Next to continue. The Installation Summary dialog appears.
19 Click Proceed. The WhatsUp Gold install program begins the installation. When the
installation program completes, the InstallShield Wizard Complete dialog appears.
20 Click Finish. The setup program closes. The WhatsUp Setup appears, and the WhatsUp
Gold Web interface appears.
21 Complete the installation following the instructions that appear in the web browser.

Installing the Central Site using an existing Microsoft SQL Server

You can use an existing Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2,
Microsoft SQL Server 2012, or Microsoft SQL Server Cluster 2005, 2008, 2008 R2, or 2012 to
store the data collected by WhatsUp Gold. To do this, these requirements must be met:
§ Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, Microsoft SQL
Server 2012 or Microsoft SQL Server Cluster 2005, 2008, 2008 R2, or 2012 English must
be installed on the WhatsUp Gold host computer or another computer.

Important:
- Make sure that the server level collation for the secondary/remote SQL Server matches the
current collation of the primary SQL Server installation.

- WhatsUp Gold does not support non-English versions of Microsoft SQL Server.
- Make sure that, if WhatsUp Gold and the SQL Server is not located on the same physical
machine (server), the system clocks are synchronized to the same time zone. If the system
clocks are not synchronized, inaccurate data may occur in reports.

§ Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, Microsoft SQL
Server 2012, or Microsoft SQL Server Cluster 2005, 2008, 2008 R2, or 2012 must be
configured to allow WhatsUp Gold to authenticate.
§ If Microsoft SQL Server is installed on a remote computer, remote connections must
be allowed. For more information, see How to configure Microsoft SQL Server to allow
remote connections ([Link]
[Link]).
§ Use a Microsoft SQL Server user account to connect to the database.
§ Microsoft SQL Server must be configured to have a user account that meets the
following requirements:
§ Full administrator privileges to Microsoft SQL Server, not just the WhatsUp Gold
databases. WhatsUp Gold only supports accessing the database via an account with
full administrator rights. WhatsUp Gold does not support using a limited access
database user account.
§ User's language is set to (United States) English. This can be set in the
properties for the login used by WhatsUp Gold.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

If you need assistance configuring or verifying these prerequisites, contact your database
administrator or refer to the Microsoft SQL Server documentation
([Link]

To install WhatsUp Gold using an existing Microsoft SQL Server instance:

1 Log in directly to Microsoft Windows using the Administrator account (if you do not
have an account called Administrator, use an account that has full administrative
privileges to the computer).

Caution: We do not recommend using Terminal Services or Remote Desktop to install any
WhatsUp product.

2 Start the WhatsUp Setup:

§ If you downloaded an electronic version of the WhatsUp Setup, double-click the
downloaded file.
§
If you purchased a WhatsUp Setup CD-ROM, insert the CD-ROM into the appropriate
drive. If it does not run automatically, click Start, select Run, then enter the CD path
followed by [Link] (for example, D:\[Link]).
3 Read the Welcome screen and click Next. The License Agreement dialog appears.
4 Read the license agreement. If you accept the terms of the license agreement, select I
accept the terms of the license agreement.
§ To print a copy of the license agreement, click Print. The license agreement is sent to
the default printer.
§ If you do not accept the terms of the license agreement, click Cancel to exit the
installation program.
5 Click Next to continue.
6 Enter your WhatsUp Gold Activation Key or select an alternative activation method.
The following is an example of an activation key, which is made up of the serial number
and UAP and the to be entered in Activation Key.
Serial Number (15
characters) UAP (8 characters) Activation Key (23 characters)
01MTBDK5TN99NQ1 XKQKC966 01MTBDK5TN99NQ1XKQKC966
7 Click Next to continue. The WhatsUp Gold Welcome screen specific to the edition you
are activating appears.
8 Clear Hide advanced installation options. This option must be cleared in order for you
to use the advanced installation options.
9 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you select an existing SQL
Server installation or install a new installation appears.
10 Select one of the Microsoft SQL Server Installation options.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Note: If you want to use and existing local or remote installation of Microsoft SQL Server
2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, or Microsoft SQL Server 2012 in support of
WhatsUp Gold, select the option allowing you to choose an existing Microsoft SQL Server
2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, or Microsoft SQL Server 2012 database. You
must enter the SQL Server manually as the WhatsUp Gold installer does not currently
support browsing.

11 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where existing Microsoft SQL
Server connection information is entered appears.
12 Enter the SQL Server name and associated SQL Server Authentication credentials.
13 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the WhatsUp and NetFlow
database names are set appears.
14 Type any changes you want to make to the WhatsUp database and Netflow database
names.

Note: Please note the following regarding the WhatsUp and Netflow database names:
- The database names must be in English and must use alpha-numeric characters (A-Z,a-z,0-
9 and the underscore character "_" ).
- You can only change the default database names during the initial WhatsUp Gold
installation. You cannot change the names of these databases following the initial
installation.
- The default database name for the WhatsUp Gold database is WhatsUp, and the default
name for the Flow Monitor database is Netflow.
- The Netflow Archive database will use the Flow Monitor database name with the letters 'Ar'
appended to the end. The default name for the Flow Monitor Archive database is
NFArchive.

15 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog asking if you would like to back
up your existing database appears.
16 Indicate whether you would like to back up the database you've selected for use with
WhatsUp Gold. It is recommended you back up the database.
17 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the SQL Server login is
created appears.
18 Specify and confirm a Password for WhatsUp Gold to use when accessing the database.
19 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the installation directory is
selected appears.
20 Select the installation directory for the WhatsUp Gold application files.
The default path is C:\Program Files\Ipswitch\WhatsUp. We recommend that you
use the default path.

Tip: The Program Files directory path may vary if on a 64 bit system (for example, Program
Files (x86)). You can install WhatsUp Gold to a different location. To select a different
location, click Change.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Note: If the installation program detects data from a previous installation of WhatsUp Gold,
the Backup Web and Report Files dialog appears. We recommend that you select Back up
the existing Web and report files, then click Next.

21 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the TCP port is selected
appears.
22 Choose a TCP port for the WhatsUp Gold web site. The installation program creates an
IIS web site using this port. The default port is 80.

Note: It is recommended that port 80 be used for the WhatsUp Gold web site. If another port
number is used, the URL for the WhatsUp Gold web site will require that port number to be
appended to the hostname or IP address when forming the URL. For example if you chose
8888 as the port number instead of 80 your URL for a WhatsUp Gold install on the local host
would be: localhost:8888/nmconsole
If port 80 is used by a current IIS web site, you must either allow WhatsUp Gold to disable
that web site and take over port 80, or choose another port.

23 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you set a User Name and
Password for the new Windows account appears.
24 Specify a user name and password for the new Windows user account for use with
WhatsUp Gold.
25 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you enter port and
credential information about the Remote Site appears.
26 Enter the applicable TCP port. The default value is 9394.
27 Specify a user name and password for the remote site to use when sending information
to the central site.
28 Click Next to continue. The Installation Summary dialog appears.
29 Click Proceed. The WhatsUp Gold install program begins the installation. When the
installation program completes, the InstallShield Wizard Complete dialog appears.
30 Click Finish. The setup program closes. The WhatsUp Setup will appear, and the
WhatsUp Gold Web interface will appear.
31 Complete the installation following the instructions that appear in the web browser.

Changing the Central Site configuration settings

The WhatsUp Gold Central Site installation program steps you through the configuration
options for the Central Site. You can also update the configuration settings in the WhatsUp
Gold console after installation.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

To update the Central Site configuration:

§ From the WhatsUp Gold console, click Configure > Program Options, then click
Central Site Configuration. For more information about the configuration settings,
see the application Help.

Step 2: Configuring the firewall for Remote Site

connections
Accessing the Central Site
The WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition is designed to simplify firewall connections.
Communications are outbound from each Remote Site back to the Central Site, so only one
configuration is required for all Remote Sites to communicate back to the Central Site.

After you have set up the WhatsUp Gold Central Site, you need to determine what is required
for the Remote Sites to connect across WANs, firewalls, routers, and other network security
measures to communicate back to the Central Site. This information will be required as you
install and configure each WhatsUp Gold Remote Site.

If you are not responsible for these network security configurations, contact the appropriate
network administrator to help you identify the requirements to allow the connections in to
the Central Site.

Accessing Remote Sites

Additionally, it is not required, but you can also configure the Remote Sites to be accessible
via their Web interfaces. By doing so, users can drill-down from the Central Site to specific
reports and data on a specific Remote Site. You can control access from the Central Site to the

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Remote Site by providing varying levels of user privileges to data on each Remote Site. For
more information, see Creating and modifying user accounts (on page 33).

Step 3: Installing the WhatsUp Gold Remote Site

The WhatsUp Gold Remote Site monitors devices and network activity for each remote
network site. After the Remote and Central Sites are set up and reports are configured on the
Central Site, the network status information from each Remote Site is communicated to the
Central Site.

You can install and configure WhatsUp Gold Remote Site to use Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2
Express Edition or an existing instance of Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server
2008 or 2008 R2, or Microsoft SQL Server 2012 as its database.

The installation steps below are for the most common WhatsUp Gold Remote Site
installation. The screens and steps that display during the installation process may be slightly
different based on your license. For example, if you have an evaluator's license, fewer screens
display, allowing for a more simplified installation process.

Installing the Remote Site using

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition
To install WhatsUp Gold using the default Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition
instance:
1 Log in directly to Microsoft Windows using the Administrator account (if you do not
have an account called Administrator, use an account that has full administrative
privileges to the computer).

Caution: We do not recommend using Terminal Services or Remote Desktop to install any
WhatsUp product.

2 Start the WhatsUp Setup:

§ If you downloaded an electronic version of the WhatsUp Setup, double-click the
downloaded file.
§If you purchased a WhatsUp Setup CD-ROM, insert the CD-ROM into the appropriate
drive. If it does not run automatically, click Start, select Run, then enter the CD path
followed by [Link] (for example, D:\[Link]).
3 Read the Welcome screen and click Next. The License Agreement dialog appears.
4 Read the license agreement. If you accept the terms of the license agreement, select I
accept the terms of the license agreement.
§ To print a copy of the license agreement, click Print. The license agreement is sent to
the default printer.
§ If you do not accept the terms of the license agreement, click Cancel to exit the
installation program.
5 Click Next to continue. The License Information dialog appears.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

6 Enter your WhatsUp Gold Activation Key or select an alternative activation method.
The following is an example of an activation key, which is made up of the serial number
and UAP and the to be entered in Activation Key.
Serial Number (15
characters) UAP (8 characters) Activation Key (23 characters)
01MTBDK5TN99NQ1 XKQKC966 01MTBDK5TN99NQ1XKQKC966
7 Click Next to continue. The WhatsUp Gold Welcome screen specific to the edition you
are activating appears.
8 Read the Welcome screen and click Next. The Installation Options dialog where SQL
Server is configured appears.
9 Select the install directories for Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition. The
application and data files are installed in default directories.

Important: Make sure that you have a large capacity drive selected for data storage. The
data files for WhatsUp Gold can reach a maximum size of 22 GB.

Important: During installation, databases are created for WhatsUp Gold Flow Monitor. These
basic databases are limited in size, but are increased the first time the Flow Monitor collector
initializes. If at least 16 GB of disk space is available when the collector initializes, the
maximum size of the Flow Monitor databases is increased to 4 GB each (16 GB total
including transaction logs). If less than 16 GB is available, the maximum size of the Flow
Monitor databases is limited proportionately to the amount of free disk space. If your license
includes WhatsUp Gold Flow Monitor, we strongly recommend that you verify that you have
at least 16 GB of free disk space before installing.

10 WhatsUp Gold creates a limited permissions 'sa' account.

11 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the SQL Server login is
created appears.
12 Specify and confirm a Password for WhatsUp Gold to use when accessing the database.
13 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the installation directory is
set appears.
14 Select the installation directory for the WhatsUp Gold application files.
The default path is C:\Program Files\Ipswitch\WhatsUp. We recommend that you
use the default path.

Tip: The Program Files directory path may vary if on a 64 bit system (for example, Program
Files (x86)). You can install WhatsUp Gold to a different location. To select a different
location, click Change.

Note: If the installation program detects data from a previous installation of WhatsUp Gold,
the Backup Web and Report Files dialog appears. We recommend that you select Back up
the existing Web and report files, then click Next.

15 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the TCP port is selected
appears.
16 Choose a TCP port for the WhatsUp Gold web site. The installation program creates an
IIS web site using this port. The default port is 80.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Note: It is recommended that port 80 be used for the WhatsUp Gold web site. If another port
number is used, the URL for the WhatsUp Gold web site will require that port number to be
appended to the hostname or IP address when forming the URL. For example if you chose
8888 as the port number instead of 80 your URL for a WhatsUp Gold install on the local host
would be: localhost:8888/nmconsole
If port 80 is used by a current IIS web site, you must either allow WhatsUp Gold to disable
that web site and take over port 80, or choose another port.

17 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you enter the IP address,
port, and credential information for the Central Site appears.
18 Enter the applicable TCP port. The default value is 9394.
19 Enter the Windows user name and password set during the Central Site installation.
20 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you specify a Display
Name and confirm the IP address for the Remote Site appears.
21 Enter a Display name for the Remote Site. The Central Site will display this name within
the Distributed Overview dashboard element.
22 Verify the HTTP Address of the Central Site is correct and update if needed.
23 Click Next to continue. The Installation Summary dialog appears.
24 Click Proceed. The WhatsUp Gold install program begins the installation. When the
installation program completes, the InstallShield Wizard Complete dialog appears.
25 Click Finish. The setup program closes. The WhatsUp Setup appears, and the WhatsUp
Gold Web interface appears.
26 Complete the installation following the instructions that appear in the web browser.

Installing the Remote Site using an existing Microsoft SQL Server

You can use an existing Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2,
Microsoft SQL Server 2012, or Microsoft SQL Server Cluster 2005, 2008, 2008 R2, or 2012 to
store the data collected by WhatsUp Gold. To do this, these requirements must be met:
§ Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, Microsoft SQL
Server 2012 or Microsoft SQL Server Cluster 2005, 2008, 2008 R2, or 2012 English must
be installed on the WhatsUp Gold host computer or another computer.

Important:
- Make sure that the server level collation for the secondary/remote SQL Server matches the
current collation of the primary SQL Server installation.

- WhatsUp Gold does not support non-English versions of Microsoft SQL Server.
- Make sure that, if WhatsUp Gold and the SQL Server is not located on the same physical
machine (server), the system clocks are synchronized to the same time zone. If the system
clocks are not synchronized, inaccurate data may occur in reports.

§ Microsoft SQL Server 2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, Microsoft SQL
Server 2012, or Microsoft SQL Server Cluster 2005, 2008, 2008 R2, or 2012 must be
configured to allow WhatsUp Gold to authenticate.
§ If Microsoft SQL Server is installed on a remote computer, remote connections must
be allowed. For more information, see How to configure Microsoft SQL Server to allow

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

remote connections ([Link]

[Link]).
§ Use a Microsoft SQL Server user account to connect to the database.
§ Microsoft SQL Server must be configured to have a user account that meets the
following requirements:
§ Full administrator privileges to Microsoft SQL Server, not just the WhatsUp Gold
databases. WhatsUp Gold only supports accessing the database via an account with
full administrator rights. WhatsUp Gold does not support using a limited access
database user account.
§ User's language is set to (United States) English. This can be set in the
properties for the login used by WhatsUp Gold.
If you need assistance configuring or verifying these prerequisites, contact your database
administrator or refer to the Microsoft SQL Server documentation
([Link]

To install WhatsUp Gold using an existing Microsoft SQL Server instance:

1 Log in directly to Microsoft Windows using the Administrator account (if you do not
have an account called Administrator, use an account that has full administrative
privileges to the computer).

Caution: We do not recommend using Terminal Services or Remote Desktop to install any
WhatsUp product.

2 Start the WhatsUp Setup:

§ If you downloaded an electronic version of the WhatsUp Setup, double-click the
downloaded file.
§If you purchased a WhatsUp Setup CD-ROM, insert the CD-ROM into the appropriate
drive. If it does not run automatically, click Start, select Run, then enter the CD path
followed by [Link] (for example, D:\[Link]).
3 Read the Welcome screen and click Next. The License Agreement dialog appears.
4 Read the license agreement. If you accept the terms of the license agreement, select I
accept the terms of the license agreement.
§ To print a copy of the license agreement, click Print. The license agreement is sent to
the default printer.
§ If you do not accept the terms of the license agreement, click Cancel to exit the
installation program.
5 Click Next to continue. The License Information dialog appears.
6 Enter your WhatsUp Gold Activation Key or select an alternative activation method.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

The following is an example of an activation key, which is made up of the serial number
and UAP and the to be entered in Activation Key.
Serial Number (15
characters) UAP (8 characters) Activation Key (23 characters)
01MTBDK5TN99NQ1 XKQKC966 01MTBDK5TN99NQ1XKQKC966
7 Click Next to continue. The WhatsUp Gold Welcome screen specific to the edition you
are activating appears.
8 Clear Hide advanced installation options. This option must be cleared in order for you
to use the advanced installation options.
9 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you select an existing SQL
Server installation or install a new installation appears.
10 Select one of the Microsoft SQL Server Installation options.

Note: If you want to use and existing local or remote installation of Microsoft SQL Server
2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, or Microsoft SQL Server 2012 in support of
WhatsUp Gold, select the option allowing you to choose an existing Microsoft SQL Server
2005, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 or 2008 R2, or Microsoft SQL Server 2012 database. You
must enter the SQL Server manually as the WhatsUp Gold installer does not currently
support browsing.

11 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where SQL Server is configured
appears.
12 Enter the SQL Server name and associated SQL Server Authentication credentials.
13 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where changes may be made to
the default database names appears.
14 Type any changes you want to make to the WhatsUp database and Netflow database
names.

Note: Please note the following regarding the WhatsUp and Netflow database names:
- The database names must be in English and must use alpha-numeric characters (A-Z,a-z,0-
9 and the underscore character "_" ).
- You can only change the default database names during the initial WhatsUp Gold
installation. You cannot change the names of these databases following the initial
installation.
- The default database name for the WhatsUp Gold database is WhatsUp, and the default
name for the Flow Monitor database is Netflow.
- The Netflow Archive database will use the Flow Monitor database name with the letters 'Ar'
appended to the end. The default name for the Flow Monitor Archive database is
NFArchive.

15 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the SQL Server login is
created appears.
16 Specify and confirm a Password for WhatsUp Gold to use when accessing the database.
17 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the installation directory is
selected appears.
18 Select the install directories for Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express Edition. The
application and data files are installed in default directories.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Important: Make sure that you have a large capacity drive selected for data storage. The
data files for WhatsUp Gold can reach a maximum size of 22 GB.

Important: During installation, databases are created for WhatsUp Gold Flow Monitor. These
basic databases are limited in size, but are increased the first time the Flow Monitor collector
initializes. If at least 16 GB of disk space is available when the collector initializes, the
maximum size of the Flow Monitor databases is increased to 4 GB each (16 GB total
including transaction logs). If less than 16 GB is available, the maximum size of the Flow
Monitor databases is limited proportionately to the amount of free disk space. If your license
includes WhatsUp Gold Flow Monitor, we strongly recommend that you verify that you have
at least 16 GB of free disk space before installing.

19 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog asking if you would like to back
up your existing database appears.
20 Indicate whether you would like to back up the database you've selected for use with
WhatsUp Gold. It is recommended you back up the database.
21 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the installation directory is
selected appears.
22 Select the installation directory for the WhatsUp Gold application files.
The default path is C:\Program Files\Ipswitch\WhatsUp. We recommend that you
use the default path.

Tip: The Program Files directory path may vary if on a 64 bit system (for example, Program
Files (x86)). You can install WhatsUp Gold to a different location. To select a different
location, click Change.

Note: If the installation program detects data from a previous installation of WhatsUp Gold,
the Backup Web and Report Files dialog appears. We recommend that you select Back up
the existing Web and report files, then click Next.

23 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the TCP port is selected
appears.
24 Choose a TCP port for the WhatsUp Gold web site. The installation program creates an
IIS web site using this port. The default port is 80.

Note: It is recommended that port 80 be used for the WhatsUp Gold web site. If another port
number is used, the URL for the WhatsUp Gold web site will require that port number to be
appended to the hostname or IP address when forming the URL. For example if you chose
8888 as the port number instead of 80 your URL for a WhatsUp Gold install on the local host
would be: localhost:8888/nmconsole
If port 80 is used by a current IIS web site, you must either allow WhatsUp Gold to disable
that web site and take over port 80, or choose another port.

25 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where the new Windows
account credentials are set appears.
26 Enter a User name and password for the WhatsUp Gold User account.
27 Click Next to continue. The Installation Options dialog where you enter IP address, port,
and credential information about the Central Site appears.

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28 Enter the applicable TCP port. The default value is 9394.

29 Specify a user name and password for the Remote Site to use to send information to the
Central Site.
30 Click Next to continue. The Installation Summary dialog appears.
31 Click Proceed. The WhatsUp Gold install program begins the installation. When the
installation program completes, the InstallShield Wizard Complete dialog appears.
32 Click Finish. The setup program closes. The WhatsUp Setup appears, and the WhatsUp
Gold Web interface appears.
33 Complete the installation following the instructions that appear in the web browser.

Changing the Remote Site configuration settings

The WhatsUp Gold Remote Site installation program steps you through the configuration
options for the Remote Sites. You can also update the configuration settings in the WhatsUp
Gold console.

To update the Remote Site configuration:

1 From the WhatsUp Gold console, click Configure > Program Options.
2 Click Remote Site Configuration.

Step 4: Using Reports for

WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition
After the Central and Remote Site installations are complete, and the sites are
communicating with each other, you can determine the Remote Site reports to configure to
view network health information.

There are a number of new reports available for WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition. The two
types of reports are:
§ Dashboard reports
§ Monitor reports

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Dashboard reports: Learning about the Central/Remote dashboard

reports
The WhatsUp Gold Home dashboard is the first screen you see after logging in to the
WhatsUp Gold web interface. This is your personal, customizable Home portal, or dashboard.

The WhatsUp Gold Remote/Central dashboard reports are similar to the dashboard reports
you may have used in other versions of WhatsUp Gold. The primary difference is the
Remote/Central dashboard reports let you set up dashboard reports that watch Remote Site
network status from your WhatsUp Gold Central Site. For more information, see Learning
about dashboards.

Dashboards are designed to be user-specific, and are configurable to include dashboard

reports specific to users' needs. Dashboards contain multiple views that let you organize
various dashboard reports by the type of information they display. When you begin
customizing your dashboard views, you should consider the types of information you need to
view most often, the remote sites and devices to which you need to pay closest attention,
and what level of detail you want to monitor through a particular dashboard view.

There are several Central/Remote dashboard reports included in a Remote Sites dashboard
view for WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition. They are available if you have completed a new
installation of WhatsUp Gold application. If you are upgrading from a previous version of
WhatsUp Gold, the Remote Sites reports are not added to the dashboard view for existing
users; however, you can create a new Dashboard View and add the default Central/Remote
dashboard reports to it.

Following are the default Central/Remote dashboard reports included in the Remote Sites
dashboard view:

Remote/Central reports Description

Remote Site List Lists all configured Remote Sites. The report contains:
Display Name

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Local device
Last connect time
Last refresh time
Device Status (Remote) Provides a status summary of all monitored devices on a selected
Remote Site. The report contains:
Display name
Devices up
Devices down
In maintenance
Last refresh time
Monitor Status (Remote) Provides a status summary of all monitors configured for the monitored
devices on a Remote Site. The report contains:
Display name
Monitors up
Monitors down
Last refresh time
Remote Site Overview Displays an information overview for a selected Remote Site. The report
contains:
Http address
Last connect time
Last refresh time
# of devices
# of monitors
# of queries
Display name
Device type
Host name
Address
Summary Counts (Remote) Provides a summary for a Remote Site by the total number of:
Monitored devices
Up devices
Down devices
Devices with down Active Monitors
Devices in Maintenance
Active Monitors
Down Active Monitors
Up interfaces
Down interfaces
Actions fired in the last 4 hours
Tail of Action Activity Log Provides the tail (last 10 records) of the Action Log for a device group on
(Remote) a Remote Site. The report contains:
Date
Source
Action Name
Trigger
Tail of Remote Site Log Provides the tail (last 10 records) of the Remote Site Log. The report
contains:
Date
Type
Message

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Remote Site

Active Monitor Status Lists all Active Monitors assigned to devices on the selected Remote Site
(Remote)
Threshold - Ping by Displays ping response times by threshold for devices in a specific device
Response Time Over 1 ms group on a Remote Site. The report contains:
(Remote)
Remote Site
Last snapshot
Device
Interface
Max (ms)
Avg (ms)

Adding Remote/Central dashboard reports to your Home Dashboard

You can add new Remote/Central dashboard reports, including Top 10 reports, to the home
dashboard to customize dashboard reports to best suit your needs. In the toolbar, click Add
Content.

Use the Add Content pane to add one or multiple Remote/Central dashboard reports to a
dashboard view.

Note: The Tail of Remote Site Log is the only dashboard report only available from the
Remote Site.

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To add a dashboard report:

1 Click a category folder, then click the report you want to add to your dashboard. Some
category folders contain other folders which also contain reports. A preview image for
each dashboard report is displayed after you select a report.

Tip: The Central/Remote report icons indicate that the report data originates from a
Remote Site.

2 After viewing the preview image of the report, click Add to add the report to the current
view.
3 Click Previous and Next to view previews of other reports in the same folder, or click
Close and navigate to other folders to add reports from other categories.
4 Add up to 15 reports to the view. When you have finished adding reports, click Close to
close the report preview, then click I'm Done to exit the Add Content pane.
The Home Dashboard appears with the new dashboard report added to the page. Gray
server icons display when you first add Remote Site dashboard reports. These icons
indicate that you need to select a remote site for the dashboard report.

5 In the new dashboard report, click Menu > Configure.

The Configure Remote Report dialog opens.

6 Select the Remote Site you want to add to the Home Dashboard and other options
available in the dialog (the options vary, depending upon the dashboard report you
selected), then click OK. The new dashboard report displays in the Home Dashboard.

Note: Additional options are available only for the Remote Site Overview dashboard report.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

7 After you select a Remote Site, the Local device box displays in the dialog. Click the
browse (...) button next to the Local device box. The Edit Remote Site dialog appears.

8 The Accept remote site connection option is selected by default. It allows users with
rights the ability to select or deselect (from the Central Site) the option to accept
connections from Remote Sites.
The primary reason to clear the option is to disable the Central Site from accepting
connections from this Remote Site. For example, if one of the Remote Sites connected to
the Central Site has an unusual amount of activity and is using too much bandwidth
between sites, you can use this option to disable the Central Site from accepting
connections from this Remote Site until you resolve the problem.
9 Select Local device to associate a device with the Remote Site. This device is often the
computer that is running the WhatsUp Gold software on a Remote Site. Associating a
local device allows you to view the device status from the Remote Site, keeping you
informed about the connection status with the Remote Site. It also provides easy access
to the Network Tools for the local device you selected. Click the browse (...) button, next
to the Local device box, for a list of devices on the Remote Site. The Select a Device
dialog appears.
10 Select a device that you want to associate with the Remote Site dashboard. This device
will display in the dashboard report. Click OK, then click OK again to close the Edit
Remote Site dialog. The Configure Remote Report dialog appears.
11 Click OK to save changes. The Home Dashboard opens displaying the green collecting
data icons. The icons indicate that the Remote Site has connected and is collecting data
for the Central Site.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

The Remote Site updates shortly or you can click Click to refresh to force a refresh of the
Remote Site data.

Using the Remote/Central dashboard reports

While the Remote Site dashboard reports work very much like dashboard reports in WhatsUp
Gold Standard and Premium Editions, there are a few items to note about the reports that
help you identify them as Remote/Central dashboard reports rather than local network
dashboard reports.
§ The Remote Site dashboard report header includes a network icon next to the
Remote Site name to differentiate the Remote Sites from the local network devices
(see 1).
§ When you mouse-over a Remote Site name, address, group name, status, etc., a
shortcut icon displays to indicate that you can click to drill-down through
information on the Remote Site (see 2). When you click the shortcut icon , a new
web browser window opens for the selected Remote Site.

Important: Make sure that you select the Access Remote Reports right for each user that
you want to provide access to the Remote Site reports. Also, make sure that you select
Configure Remote Sites for all users who should access and change options in the Remote
Site Configuration dialog (from the console, Configure > Program options, then select
Remote Site Configuration). For more information, see Configuring user accounts (on page
33).

§ The Last snapshot information indicates the last date and time the Remote Site data
was sent to the Central Site (see 3).
§ The date and time information turns blue if it has been longer than 5 minutes since
the remote site last updated.
§ The date and time information turns red if it has been longer than 10 minutes since
the remote site last updated.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Moving and removing Remote/Central dashboard reports

WhatsUp Gold supports drag-and-drop within the web interface. You can move a dashboard
report from one column of a dashboard view to another, or position a dashboard report
above or below another dashboard report, by selecting it and dragging it to another area of
the dashboard view. These location changes are saved: dashboard reports will appear in the
location to which you moved them after logging out from the web interface or after moving
between dashboard views.

To move a dashboard report:

1 Select the title bar of the report you want to move, then drag it to the desired location.
A blue box indicates the area where the report will appear when you release the mouse
button.
2 Release the mouse button to place the report in the new location. To cancel the move,
while the report is selected, press the Esc key on your keyboard.
To remove a report:
1 Click Menu in the report you want to remove.
2 Click Close.

Note: When you remove a report, any customizations you have made to that report are lost.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Managing dashboard views

WhatsUp Gold comes with a several pre-configured dashboard views, including one for
Default Remote Sites. You can create your own dashboard views to use along with the pre-
configured views. You can create as many as you feel necessary to organize your system for
efficient reporting. You can also edit, copy, copy to (another user), and delete these views as
needed.

From the WhatsUp Gold web interface, go to Admin > Dashboard Views. The Manage
Dashboard Views dialog appears.

Use the Manage Dashboard Views dialog to configure dashboard views:

§ Click New to configure a new dashboard.
§ Select an existing dashboard view and click Edit to change the current configuration
of a dashboard.
§ Double-click an existing dashboard to change its configuration.
§ Select a dashboard view, then click Copy to make a copy of that dashboard and add it
to the list.
§ Select a dashboard view, then click Copy to to copy an existing dashboard to another
user's list of dashboard.
§ Select a dashboard monitor view, then click Delete to remove it from the list.
To create a new dashboard view:
1 From the Manage Dashboard Views dialog, click New. The New Dashboard View dialog
appears.
2 Enter or select the appropriate information:
§ View Name. Enter a unique name for the dashboard view.
§ Start with. Select how you would like the dashboard view to begin. You may choose
one of the pre-configured views or choose An empty view to create your own
customized dashboard view.
§ Number of columns. If creating a customized view, enter the number of columns to
include in the view.
§ Column 1 width. If creating a customized view, enter the width of the first column in
the view (in pixels).
§ Column 2 width. If creating a customized view, enter the width of the second
column in the view (in pixels).
3 Click OK to save changes.
To edit a dashboard view:
1 Select a dashboard view to edit from the list in the Manage Dashboard Views dialog.
2 Click Edit. The Edit Dashboard View dialog appears.
3 Enter the appropriate information:
§ View Name. Enter a unique name for the dashboard view.
§ Number of columns. If creating a customized view, enter the number of columns to
include in the view.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

§ Column 1 width. If creating a customized view, enter the width of the first column in
the view (in pixels).
§ Column 2 width. If creating a customized view, enter the width of the second
column in the view (in pixels).
4 Click OK to save changes.
To copy an existing dashboard view:
1 Select a dashboard view to copy from the list in the Manage Dashboard Views dialog.
2 Click Copy. The Edit Dashboard View dialog appears.
3 Enter the appropriate information:
§ View Name. Enter a unique name for the dashboard view.
§ Number of columns. If creating a customized view, enter the number of columns to
include in the view.
§ Column 1 width. If creating a customized view, enter the width of the first column in
the view (in pixels).
§ Column 2 width. If creating a customized view, enter the width of the second
column in the view (in pixels).
4 Click OK to save changes.
To copy a dashboard view to another WhatsUp Gold user:
1 Select a dashboard view to copy from the list in the Manage Dashboard Views dialog.
2 Select Copy to. The Edit Dashboard View dialog appears.
3 Enter or select the appropriate information:
§ View Name. Enter a unique name for the dashboard view.
§ Copy to User. Select the user account from where you want to copy the dashboard
view.
4 Click OK to save changes.
To delete a dashboard view:
1 Select the view you want to remove in the Dashboard Views column.
2 Click Delete.
3 Click Yes to confirm the deletion.

Monitor Reports: Learning about the Central/Remote Monitor

Reports
WhatsUp Gold Distributed Edition includes two monitor reports for Remote Sites, located on
the Other Plugins tab:
§ Remote Site Log
§ Remote Site Status

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Advantages of monitor reports

§ Larger than the dashboard reports, monitor reports give you a larger data view, which
can be useful in pin-pointing the time something happened, or viewing multiple
graphed items. Many dashboard reports link to monitor reports, so that you can view
this larger data view to troubleshoot.
§ You can zoom in or zoom out on the monitor report date range, so that you get a
smaller or larger picture of what's happening in a particular area of the network. This
feature is available for the Remote Site Log.
Much of the data in monitor reports can be exported to Microsoft Excel, a formatted text file,
or a PDF.

Using the Remote Site full reports

The Remote Site Log provides a record of error messages generated by the Remote Site
connection attempts.

Click a Remote Site name to open an instance of the Remote Site WhatsUp Gold web
interface. For more information about the Remote Site Log, see the application Help.

The Remote Site Status report provides overview information about the state of the devices
and active monitors on the Remote Sites.

Click a number in one of the columns to drill-down to more detailed information about up
and down devices and monitors and devices in maintenance.

Note: The Remote Site Status report is only available from the Central Site.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Step 5: Using the Ipswitch Dashboard Screen

Manager
After you have the Central and Remote Sites working, have customized your dashboard
reports and started viewing the Remote Site full reports, you can take advantage of the
Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager capabilities. The Dashboard is installed on both the
Remote and Central Site by default. However, if you prefer to install the Dashboard on a
system other than the Central site, you can locate the .exe installation file at ..\Program
Files\Ipswitch\WhatsUp\[Link].

The Dashboard Screen Manager is a stand-alone application designed to display a series of

Web pages, or a "playlist," on one or multiple monitors.

The Dashboard was created as a complement to the Ipswitch network monitoring

application, WhatsUp Gold, and as an aid to keeping your network visible. The Dashboard
application is included in the WhatsUp Gold and WhatsUp Gold Central and Remote Site
installations.

The Dashboard can run on a display console and cycle through various pages from the
WhatsUp Gold web interface. Network administrators then have important and pertinent
network information on display at all times, cycling and changing on its own without the
need of constant configuration. It also provides the capability to view multiple networks that
you are monitoring simultaneously.

Though the Dashboard Screen Manager was created to work along-side WhatsUp Gold, it can
display virtually any Web page. For example, an Internet business providing service to a small
town in the desert glances at one screen on the Dashboard and sees that the connectivity to
the town is down. By displaying the weather for this town on another screen at the same
time, the network administrator is able to see that the extreme temperatures of the day have
likely caused problems for the cable transmitters.

Note: If you want to display a password protected page for another Web application, you
must supply a valid username and password for the page. For more information, see the
Dashboard application Help.

For more information about installing and using the Dashboard Screen Manager, see Using
the Ipswitch Dashboard Screen Manager, a document located on the WhatsUp Gold web site
([Link]

To further enhance your network activity visibility, you may also want to set up a multi-
monitor network display, for more information see Setting up a WhatsUp Multi-Monitor
Network Display, a document located on the WhatsUp Gold web site
([Link]

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

Creating and modifying user accounts

User accounts that are granted the Manage User right can create and edit user accounts.

Note: WhatsUp user accounts can only be managed from the WhatsUp Gold web interface.

To create a new or edit a WhatsUp Gold user account:

1 From the WhatsUp Gold web interface, click Admin > Manage Users. The Manage
Users dialog appears.
2 Click New. The Add User dialog appears.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

- or -
Select a user account and then click Edit. The Edit User dialog appears.

3 Enter the appropriate information.

§ User name. Enter the name of the user.
§ Authentication type. Select the method of authenticating the user.
§ Internal. Use the internal user database built in to WhatsUp Gold.
§ LDAP. Use an external LDAP database.
§ Language. Select the language to display for the user.
§ Internal password. Enter a password for the user. This option is disabled if
Authentication Type is set to LDAP.
§ Confirm password. Confirm the user's password. This option is disabled if
Authentication Type is set to LDAP.
§ Home device group. Select the device group that the user sees when logging into
the WhatsUp Gold web interface. If they have the correct group access rights, users
are able to navigate out of this group.
§ User rights. Select the rights that correspond to the actions you want to allow the
user to complete.
§ Check all rights. Select this option grant the user rights to perform all of the actions
listed.
4 Click OK to save changes.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

5 If you have enabled Group Access Rights, you will be prompted if you would like to
specify Group Access Rights for the new user account.

6 Select Yes to open the Device Group Properties dialog for the user's home group.
- or -
Select No to close the dialog and return to the Manage Users dialog.
For more information, see About User Rights in the Help.

For More Information

Now that you have your WhatsUp Gold Central and Remote installations up and running, you
can learn more about using WhatsUp Gold. Following are information resources for WhatsUp
Gold. This information may be periodically updated and available on the WhatsUp Gold web
site ([Link]
§ Release Notes. The release notes provide an overview of changes, known issues, and
bug fixes for the current release. The notes also contain instructions for installing,
upgrading, and configuring WhatsUp Gold. The release notes are available at Start >
Programs > Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold > Release Notes or on the WhatsUp Gold web
site ([Link]
§ Application Help for the console and web interface. The console and web help
contain dialog assistance, general configuration information, and how-to's that
explain how to use the features. The Table of Contents is organized by functional
area, and can be accessed from the main menu or by clicking Help in the console, or
the ? icon in the web interface.
§ Additional WhatsUp Gold resources. For a list of current and previous guides and
help available for WhatsUp Gold products, see the WhatsUp Gold web site
([Link]
§ WhatsUp Gold optional plug-ins. You can extend the core features of WhatsUp
Gold by installing plug-ins. For information on available plug-ins and to see release
notes for each plug-in, see WhatsUp Gold plug-ins documentation
([Link]
§ Licensing Information. Licensing and support information is available on the
WhatsUp Customer Portal ([Link] The web
portal provides enhanced web-based capabilities to view and manage Ipswitch
product licenses.

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

§ Technical Support. Use the WhatsUp Gold Support Site for a variety of WhatsUp
Gold product help resources. From here you can view product documentation, search
Knowledge Base articles, access the community site for help from other users, and get
other Technical Support information. The Support Site is available on the WhatsUp
Gold web site ([Link]

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WhatsUp Gold v16.2 Distributed Edition Deployment Guide

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This document was published on Tuesday, July 30, 2013 at 11:27.

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