Install Cacti Spine Poller on Ubuntu 20.04 and get started with seamless network monitoring. From pulling data at a flexible scale to resolving poller timeout errors, you can do a whole lot of things once the tool is installed.
With Cacti, you’re looking at a free industry-standard network monitoring tool, while Spine is a multi-thread data collector that works with Cacti as a replacement for cmd.php. Both offer promising support for next-level data acquisition methods alongside advanced graph templating.
How to Install Cacti Spine Poller on Ubuntu 20.04
Easy Step-by-Step Guide to Install Cacti Spine Poller on UbuntuNow that you’ve got some idea of what the tool is about, it is the perfect time to learn how to install Cacti Spine Poller on Ubuntu 20.04.
Step 1: Upgrade Your System Packages
Before installing anything, dedicating a few minutes of your time to getting the available packages on your updated system is always a good idea. Here is what you’ll need to do:
Launch the Terminal by using the “Ctrl+Alt+T” key combination
Input the following command:
In case your Ubuntu 20.04 is password-protected, the Terminal will ask for the passcode. Simply supply it and proceed.
Step 2: Reboot your System
Once you’re done upgrading the system packages, perform a quick reboot. You can get the job done right from the Terminal by simply running the command:
$ sudo reboot
Step 3: Downloading Cacti Spine Poller on Ubuntu 20.04
When your system is ready to go, jump right into downloading Cacti Spine Poller. However, the most straightforward way of doing this is using the apt install command since it doesn’t pack the latest version automatically, so it’s more convenient to employ the wget command that way.
Using the apt install command is simple. Launch the Terminal and run the command in the following format:
To run the wget command, you’ll need the link, and it should look like this:
$ sudo apt install wget
$ wget [Link]
Step 4: Install the Required Package
In case you don’t know, it is crucial to have a few associated packages installed on your system so as to ensure you can run Cacti Spine smoothly. To do that, simply type in the following command:
Step 5: Install Cacti Spime Poller on Ubuntu 20.04
Once you’re done downloading, the next thing you should do is, install Cacti Spine Poller. Start the process by extracting the downloaded package by using the command of this format:
$ tar zxvf [name of the downloaded file with .tar.gz extension]
After that, go to the extracted directory by running the cd command.
$ cd cacti-spine-*/
Creating the Configure Script
Once you get inside the Cacti Spine directory, you’ll need to create a configure script with the help of a bootstrap file.
$ sudo ./bootstrap
Running the Configure Script
Are you done creating the configuration script? If yes, run it and check what’s available by studying the received output.
$ sudo ./configure
Install Cacti Spine
Finally, you can now install Cacti Spine Poller on Ubuntu 20.04. But make sure you do that on the default directory named /usr/local/spine.
$ sudo make
$ sudo make install
Step 6: Assigning Ownership to the Root
Remember, you need to assign the spine binary ownership to the root so that you can drive full advantage. Doing that is pretty simple just invoke the chown and chmod commands below:
$ sudo chown root: root [location], i.e. /usr/local/spine/bin/spine
$ sudo chmod +s [location], i.e. /usr/local/spine/bin/spine
Step 7: Create and Edit Spine Configuration File
Creating and editing the Spine configuration file is as important as assigning ownership to the root. For setting up the configuration file, run the following command:
$ sudo cp [location], i.e. /usr/local/spine/bin/spine.conf.dist [location]; for instance /usr/local/spine/bin/spine
Editing the configuration file and adding the desired database to it is also a straightforward process and just needs the vi command alongside sudo privileges.
$ sudo vi [location],i.e. /usr/local/spine/bin/spine.conf
Lastly, add the database details in the following manner:
DB_Host 'localhost' DB_Database 'cacti-file' DB_User 'cacti_user1' DB_Pass 'Password123' DB_Port '[Desired Port]'
How to Use Cacti Spine Poller
Now, you might’ve been familiar with the Cacti Spine Poller installation process on Ubuntu 20.04. Let’s now find out how to use the program. First, launch it and do the following steps:
Step 1: Get Yourself Logged In
The first task is getting yourself logged inside the Cacti Spine site. As soon as you do that, navigate to the Configuration file and then head over to the Settings menu.
Step 2: Updating the Cacti Configuration File
When you’re inside the settings menu, proceed and update the Cacti configuration file by doing something like this:
Spine Binary File Location: [location used earlier. here, in this case, it’s /usr/local/spine/bin/spine]
Spine Config File Path: [location used earlier. here in this case it’s /usr/local/spine/bin/spine].conf
Step 3: Save Changes and Proceed
Once you’re done updating, look for the Save button at the very bottom of the page and click it.
Step 4: Enabling Poller
Next up is enabling the Poller so that it can collect the data from the desired monitored devices. For that, add a new crontab. It will allow you as a user to query devices directly via SNMP.
Step 5: Bring Necessary Edits
Pick any editor(like vim) and add the following lines to the script:
Wait for a few minutes, and you should be able to see collected data under the Graphs menu which sits within the Default Tree.
With that, I’m done helping you kickstart Cacti Spine Poller on your Ubuntu 20.04. In this article, you’ve not only learned the installation process but have also figured out the best approach to start working with this specific program. And that’s about it.
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