WebSphere MQ Local Queues Test

This test connects to a WebSphere MQ server, auto-discovers the local queues that have been configured for this server, and monitors the status of each of the local queues.

Target of the test : A WebSphere MQ server

Agent deploying the test : An internal agent

Outputs of the test : One set of results for every local queue configured for the WebSphere MQ server

Configurable parameters for the test
Description	Parameter
Test period	How often should the test be executed .
Host	The host for which the test is to be configured.
Port	The port number at which the specified host listens.
User	If you want to login as a specific MQ user to execute this test, then specify a valid user name in the User text box. The test will fail if an invalid user name is specified here. If no such authentication is required, then this parameter can be set to 'none'.
Password	If a specific User is entered, then the password of that user has to be specified in the Password text box.
Confirm Password	Confirm the password by retyping it in the Confirm Password text box.
ServerConnChannel	The name of the server connection channel for the WebSphere MQ server. The default value is "SYSTEM.DEF.SVRCONN". If you prefer not to use this default server connection channel for monitoring purposes, then you can create a custom channel in the WebSphere MQ server and use it for monitoring. The steps for achieving this have been detailed in Creating a Custom Channel topic.
SSL Cipher Spec	This parameter is applicable only if SSL-enabled channel is used for communication to the target MQ server, if not, set this parameter to none. A cipher suite is a set of cryptographic algorithms that are used before a client application and server exchange information over an SSL/TLS connection. It consist of sets of instructions on how to secure a network through SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) or TLS (Transport Layer Security). In this text box, provide the cipher suite that is allowed for SSL/TLS connection to the target server. By default, this parameter is set to none. To know if SSL-enabled channel is used for communication, refer to Pre-Requisites for Monitoring IBM WebSphere MQ Servers
Two Way SSL	This parameter is applicable only if SSL-enabled channel is used for communication to the target MQ server, if not, set this flag to No. If two-way SSL authentication is used then set this flag to Yes. Set this flag to No if one-wy SSL communication is used.
Truststore	This parameter is applicable only if SSL-enabled channel is used for communication to the target MQ server, if not, set this parameter to none. Truststore is used to store certificates from Certified Authorities (CA) that verify and authenticate the certificate presented by the server in an SSL connection. Therefore, the eG agent should have access to the truststore where the certificates are stored to authenticate and connect with the target server and collect metrics. For this, first extract the certificates from the server into the following default location /opt/egurkha/jre/lib/security/egmqsslstore.jks. To know how to create and extract the certificate into the truststore, refer toPre-Requisites for Monitoring IBM WebSphere MQ Servers. Then, provide the truststore file name in this text box. For example: egmqsslstore.jks. However, if you are using a different location to store the certificate then, provide the full path to this file in this text box. By default, none is specified against this text box.
Truststore Password	This parameter is applicable only if SSL-enabled channel is used for communication to the target MQ server, if not, set this parameter to none. If a Truststore File name or file path is provided, then, in this text box, provide the password that is used to obtain the associated certificate details from the Truststore File.
Confirm Password	This parameter is applicable only if SSL-enabled channel is used for communication to the target MQ server, if not, set this parameter to none. Confirm the password by retyping it in this text box.
Keystore	This parameter is applicable only if two-way SSL authentication is used, if not, set this parameter to none. Keystore contains the private keys for the certificates that the client can provide to the server upon request. eG agent requires access to the keystore where client certificate is stored to send that to the server so that the server validates the certificate against the one contained in its trustore. For this purpose, first create the client certificate in the following default location /opt/egurkha/jre/lib/security/egmqsslstore.jks. To know how to create the certificate, refer to Pre-Requisites for Monitoring IBM WebSphere MQ Servers. Then, provide the keystore file name in this text box. For example:egmqsslstore.jks. However, if you are using a different location to store the certificate then, provide the full path to this file in this text box. By default, none is specified against this text box. If you are using one-way SSL authentication, this parameter is set to none.
Keystore Password	This parameter is applicable only if two-way SSL authentication is used, if not, set this parameter to none. If a Keystore File name or file path is provided, then, in this text box, provide the password that is used to obtain the associated certificate details from the Keystore File.
Confirm Password	This parameter is applicable only if two-way SSL authentication is used, if not, set this parameter to none. Confirm the password by retyping it in this text box.
IgnoreSystemQueues	If SYSTEM queues are to be monitored, then set the IgnoreSystemQueues flag to No. If not, set the flag to Yes.
IncludeQueues	Specify a comma-separated list of queue names or queue name patterns to be monitored. For example, your specification can be: VIDEO_,.NDURABLE.,_TDS_IN. In this case, the test will monitor only those queues with names that begin with “VIDEO_”, names that contain the string “.NDURABLE.”, and names that end with “_TDS_IN”. Note: If a SYSTEM queue or a pattern that matches a SYSTEM queue is configured in the IncludeQueues text box, then this test will monitor such SYSTEM queues, even if the IgnoreSystemQueues flag is set to Yes.
IgnoreQueues	Takes a default value of "none". If so, none of the queues (other than the SYSTEM queues) are ignored while monitoring an MQ server. Otherwise, this parameter represents a comma separated list of queue names or queue name patterns. Any queue name that matches one of the patterns specified for this test is not considered for monitoring by the eG agent. For example, your specification can be:.MQSC.,*_XML_IN. In this case, the test will not monitor those queues with names that begin with that contain the string “.MQSC.”, and names that end with “_XML_IN”.
Detailed Diagnosis	To make diagnosis more efficient and accurate, the eG Enterprise embeds an optional detailed diagnostic capability. With this capability, the eG agents can be configured to run detailed, more elaborate tests as and when specific problems are detected. To enable the detailed diagnosis capability of this test for a particular server, choose the On option. To disable the capability, click on the Off option. The option to selectively enable/disable the detailed diagnosis capability will be available only if the following conditions are fulfilled: The eG manager license should allow the detailed diagnosis capability Both the normal and abnormal frequencies configured for the detailed diagnosis measures should not be 0.

Measurements made by the test

Measurement

Description

Measurement Unit

Interpretation

Current queue depth

Reports the current number of messages in the local queue.

Number

This measure will not be available if the queue is not available.

The detailed diagnosis this measure provides information on the messages in a queue. Using the detailed diagnosis, an operator can determine which applications are currently putting messages into the queue, the number of messages for each application that are in the queue, the average time that a message from an application spends in the queue, and the size of messages in the queue distributed across applications accessing the queue.

Max queue depth

Reports the maximum number of messages that can be held at any instant of time in the local queue.

Number

Messages in queue

Reflects the current percentage occupancy of the queue, and is computed as the ratio of the current queue depth to the maximum queue depth.

Percent

Since messages may be lost when the queue occupancy exceeds 100%, this value should be less than 100% at all times.

Open inputs

The current number of handles that are currently valid for removing messages from the queue

Number

This measure will not be reported if the queue is not available.

An unusually large number of input handles could imply either an unexpectedly large number of readers.

Open outputs

The current number of handles that are currently valid for adding messages to the queue.

Number

This measure will not be reported if the queue is not available.

Message get status

Indicates whether/not get operations are allowed for this queue.

This measure will not be reported if the queue is not available.

The values that this measure can report and their corresponding numeric values are listed in the table below:

Measure Value	Numeric Value
Allowed	0
Inhibited	1

Note:

By default, this measure reports the Measure Values listed in the table above to indicate whether/not get operations are allowed for a queue. In the graph of this measure however, the same is represented using the numeric equivalents only.

Message put status

Indicates whether/not put operations are allowed for this queue.

This measure will not be reported if the queue is not available.

The values that this measure can report and their corresponding numeric values are listed in the table below:

Measure Value	Numeric Value
Allowed	0
Inhibited	1

Note:

By default, this measure reports the Measure Values listed in the table above to indicate whether/not put operations are allowed for a queue. In the graph of this measure however, the same is represented using the numeric equivalents only.

Queue status

Indicates the current status of this queue.

The values that this measure can report and their corresponding numeric values are listed in the table below:

Measure Value	Numeric Value
Available	100
Not available	0

Note:

By default, this measure reports the Measure Values listed in the table above to indicate the current status of each queue. In the graph of this measure however, the same is represented using the numeric equivalents only.

If the queues are not available, The detailed diagnosis of this measure, lists the Completion code, Reason code and the Error message.