AlertSite FAQs

In line with our goal to provide the industry's most responsive customer service, we have listed our most frequently asked AlertSite® questions below. Should your question not be listed, please feel free to contact us directly.


General FAQs   Show All | Hide All

Why does my company or organization need AlertSite's Web site monitoring services?
Your online business needs uninterrupted service 24/7. Downtime means lost revenue and dissatisfied customers.
What are AlertSite's Web site monitoring services?
The AlertSite Monitoring Suite is designed to provide a flexible set of monitoring options that measure:
  • Web site performance
  • Web site availability
  • Performance and availability of applications and servers, such as FTP and DNS
  • E-mail monitoring from an end-to-end perspective.
We notify you immediately if errors or significant slowdowns occur with any of your critical services.
How does AlertSite's free trial work?
AlertSite offers a free 30-day trial for all monitoring services. During this trial period, our performance advisors learn more about your requirements and make sure your account is properly set up.

To start your free trial, simply complete the online form, and AlertSite will start monitoring immediately.
What plans are offered?
AlertSite offers the following products and services:
Why choose AlertSite?
  • Excellent service and support
  • Detailed Web site performance measurements
  • Simultaneous measurement from multiple locations
  • Clear, concise and easy-to-use reporting
  • Superior diagnostic information
  • Flexible alerting mechanisms
What is the AlertSite service guarantee?
At AlertSite, we stand behind our services with superior customer support and a no-questions-asked, 30-day money-back guarantee to all new customers. If you are unhappy for any reason, AlertSite will provide a complete refund.
How do we sign up?
If you have a current trial account, just login and click the link in the User Control Panel to activate your account.

New client? Activate your AlertSite account now.
Which plan(s) should we choose?
AlertSite offers a variety of Web site performance plans for you to choose from, depending on your specific requirements.

Contact us today at customercare@alertsite.com or 877.302.5378. Our performance advisors will evaluate your requirements and help you select the right plans and products for your company or organization.
What services can AlertSite monitor?
AlertSite can monitor a broad array of Web-based services including:
  • Web page and Web site performance
  • Web-based business transaction performance
  • DNS and FTP servers
  • Round-trip e-mail monitoring
  • SMTP, POP and IMAP e-mail processes
  • TCP connect and ping

Technical FAQs   Show All | Hide All

I just received an alert and I am unsure what it means, where do I look?
Our Web performance monitoring system automatically produces a great deal of diagnostic information when an error occurs:
  • The alert itself contains a status code and text description of the type of problem encountered.
  • If the "include server response" checkbox is checked, any response received from the server will be included as a text attachment with the alert.
  • If it was a confirmed error that could have resulted from network connectivity issues, a TCP traceroute is automatically generated.
  • Lastly, our "drill-down diagnostics" and new "event detail" screen (available in the Detail Reports and Monitoring Console) provide a quick and easy view of current and historical events.
Why do I get notifications from only one location?
If you are only receiving alerts from one location, it is likely that that location is your primary location and your notification type is set to Primary.

You can receive alerts from all locations by using our 'Global Notify' or 'Global Verify' options. Our SLA plans allow you to correlate errors from all locations, and only receive alerts when all locations recognize an error.
How do I interpret the AlertSite status codes?
Almost anywhere we refer to AlertSite's status codes we provide a direct link to interpretations of those values. More information
Do you verify before sending alerts?
Yes, all errors are verified by repeating the monitoring sequence 5 seconds later. Unconfirmed errors are considered warnings and alerts are not issued.

You have options to configure the level of errors that trigger alerts. For example, if you use Uptime ECT, our SLA plans will only notify you when all locations are in error. If you use our Global Verify strategy, alerts are sent for all errors except localized connectivity problems.
How do you detect that my page has changed?
We support three methods:
  • Content Change Detection
    This looks first for HTTP header elements and then for the actual size of the retrieved page to determine if a page has changed. Select this method by choosing "Manage Monitored Sites".
  • Keyword Verification
    This searches for a particular keyword or phrase (that you specify) within the retrieved page and raises an alert if it cannot find the word(s). Select this method by choosing "Manage Monitored Sites".
  • Fullpage Content Change Detection Notification
    Available to customers with full-page monitoring, this can notify you when page content (images, Flash, jsp) changes in size, or content is added or deleted.
Note that some pages are "dynamic" and cannot be effectively monitored by Content Change Detection since size changes occur regularly. Your best option in this case would be to only use Keyword Verification.
What is the difference between availability and uptime?
Availability refers to whether your services are available from specific locations, whereas uptime simply indicates that your Web pages are "up and running" and available from at least some locations. For example, if you are monitored from three cities and one city cannot reach you all day you have 66% availability. But your uptime would be 100% because at least one city can access your services all day long.

Our SLA Performance plans and Uptime ECT option provide a comprehensive perspective on both availability and uptime.
I'm not sure where my daily report is located. Can I get a copy from my account?
Yes. A copy of all reports delivered over the last seven days is available in the 'Document Manager' section in your account. From your control panel, select 'Report Center', and then click the 'Document Manager' button.
How can I change who receives the Daily Monitoring Summary?
All of the e-mail addresses in the e-mail field for the account administrator will receive a copy of the daily monitoring summaries. From your control panel select 'Manage Account.' To add more recipients, simply type in additional e-mail addresses, separated by commas.
How can I be alerted when errors occur?
Our monitoring services can be configured to deliver alerts by e-mail, cellular phone, SNMP Trap, SMS message, telephone call and pager.
** Additional fees apply for SMS messages, telephone call alerts and non-toll-free paging.
How long will my data be saved?
Standard data retention is three months, and many reports can be downloaded as a *.csv file. Also, extra data retention can be purchased.
How can I send alerts to my pager?
Like cellular carriers, most pager companies have enabled their paging systems to accept e-mails. The "short e-mail to wireless" alert works great for pagers. View some examples of common pager notifiers

We offer true alphanumeric paging for customers from our Washington, DC; Boca Raton, FL and Fremont, CA locations.

After configuring your pager, please remember to contact customercare@alertsite.com so we may complete the configuration.
How can I send alerts to my cellular phone?
Most cellular phones in North America and many in Europe can now receive free alerts. Any cellular phone that can receive an e-mail from your desktop can receive the free "short e-mail to wireless" alerts.

These are compact format alerts that fit the less than 150-character limits of most carriers.

View notifier examples for most of the major carriers.

* Some European and Far East countries still require SMS messaging.

Contact your performance advisor at customercare@alertsite.com to add SMS messages to your account.

Security FAQs   Show All | Hide All

Why do we need the AlertSite Security Vulnerability Scan?
According to US-CERT (United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team), 99% of network attacks occur because of known vulnerabilities. The best way to avoid attacks is by identifying and addressing these vulnerabilities. The AlertSite Security Vulnerability Scan is updated daily and offers a hacker's eye view of your environment. Currently, AlertSite scans for over 9,000 known vulnerabilities.
What are the different scan options available?
Alertsite currently offers two types of vulnerability testing:
  • Alertsite Standard Security Scan
    A comprehensive test which scans for over 9,500 vulnerabilities which may exist on your system.
  • SANS Top 20
    A scan that addresses the 20 highest risk categories as defined by SANS and current threat trends. This faster vulnerability scan only scans for the most critical vulnerabilities.
How long does a scan take?
Scans typically take between 15 and 30 minutes to complete. However, some network configurations can increase scan duration to between one and two hours.
When running an "on-demand scan", how will I know when it has completed?
On-demand scans occur within five minutes of request. Their duration will depend on your device's particular network configuration. If a change in the security status of the device is detected, notifications will be issued. Reports will appear in the Document Manager after the scan has completed.
When are notifications sent? Do they contain sensitive information?
Notifications are only sent when a notifier is configured to receive security notifications and a change in the security status of a device is detected. (A change is either a new vulnerability detected, or a previously-detected vulnerability no longer present.)

These notifications are hacker safe; they do not contain any sensitive information that could be used by potential attackers. The hostname and IP address of the device are not displayed. Only the user-supplied label for the device appears in the e-mail.
How do I enable security device notifications?
In order to receive security device notifications, a notifier must have "Notify me when a security hole is detected" selected, and a security device must have "Notify" set to "Yes."
Can a scan bring down a server?
AlertSite scans normally have about the same impact as five or six simultaneous users. For smaller network deployments, where bandwidth or other resources are limited, it is recommended that your vulnerability scan be performed during non-peak, or non-business, hours.
What types of security reports are generated?
Two types of reports are generated automatically
  • Consolidated Reports
    These reports contain a full vulnerability assessment for all security devices in your account. View sample consolidated report.
  • Summary Reports
    These are detailed reports that contain a short summary of vulnerabilities detected on a security device, and are grouped as: newly detected vulnerabilities, recurring vulnerabilities and vulnerabilities no longer detected. View sample summary report.
When are security reports generated?
Consolidated reports are generated once per day as follows:
  1. First day of the month for monthly devices.
  2. Once per week for weekly devices.
  3. Once per day for daily devices.
Summary reports are generated only when a change in the security status of a device is detected; i.e., when new vulnerabilities are found, or when previously detected vulnerabilities are no longer detected.
Why is my security device in "pending" state?
New security devices must be authorized by Alertsite before activation.

In order to activate your new security device, please fill out our authorization form and fax it to Alertsite at 954.312.0186.
How do I add a security seal to my Web site?
Adding a security seal to your site is easy with our detailed instructions.