Zabbix server is not running what to do?

Zabbix server is not running what to do?

I have seen many posts with questions about this message, especially those who are starting with monitoring or even those who have used the tool for a long time, so I decided to record some important tips to help solve this problem. In today's post I will talk about the possible causes of this error message that indicates unavailability of Zabbix Server.

To begin with, keep in mind that you will need basic Linux knowledge and privileged access to Zabbix Server by command line as root.

In this first step I will list possible causes and then a brief description to clarify better, I suggest to observe every detail calmly, because even an incorrect letter can affect the service.

Possible Causes

·         Incorrect information in the zabbix_server.conf configuration file

·         Problems in database creation and permissions

·         Problems with firewall or selinux

·         Lack of sufficient resource and processes to start the zabbix_server daemon

·         Network oscillation when using separate components

·         Virtualization with a lack of resource and without proper configuration

So far we know of some possible causes, now let's identify the problem and then make some solutions.

1. Zabbix Server Logs

This is the first step that should be checked regardless of the situation, always view the logs, from the moment the error message appeared in the zabbix web interface always view the log.

To check the Zabbix log, enter the command as shown below.

Note: The log path may change according to the installation, to be sure of the path see in the configuration file zabbix_server.conf

2. Check the Database

The database is one of the main components, in it will be stored all the information that will be collected, therefore its operation is fundamental.

• Zabbix log error message indicating that mysql is not running. This can be applied to other databases. (Postgres,Oracle,IBM DB2,SQlite)

Verify that the mysql service has started correctly or check the logs for mysql.

• Database access permissions can also be the cause after installation, if this error message appears verify that the permissions have been made

You must enable the permissions for the user "zabbix" to access the database

3. Check for possible blockages

Firewall is our first point to be verified, yes we need to check whether or not there are firewall rules preventing the use of the service, on the other hand also depending on the operating system, we can have SELINUX which by the way is an additional method of security for Linux environments Based on user and process and in most cases are disabled by some administrators, we will not go into details in this post let's just talk about possible causes.

• Firewalld running

• SELINUX active

Suggestions

• In CentOS / RedHat 6, you can disable the firewall by following these instructions: http://www.cyberciti.biz/faq/fedora-redhat-centos-5-6-disable-firewall 
• In CentOS / RedHat 7, you can disable the firewall by following these instructions: http://www.liquidweb.com/kb/how-to-stop-and-disable-firewalld-on-centos-7
• You may also need to disable SELinux on CentOS / RedHat. Please follow these instructions: http://www.revsys.com/writings/quicktips/turn-off-selinux.html ou http://aruljohn.com/info/centos-selinux/

4. Resource Allocation Issues

Initially Zabbix Server has several processes for the application to work correctly, following the screen indicating possible problems with the "CacheSize" parameter of the configuration file zabbix_server.conf.

In this case we must adjust the parameter "Cachesize" and increase in a way that the Zabbix Server application can make the most of the memory resource.

Note: Always see the log and after making any adjustments to the configuration file it is necessary to restart the zabbix-server service to validate the new configurations.

Conclusion

The purpose of this post was to convey in a simple and objective way, some and the possible cause and some steps to solve the 'zabbix is not running' error message, based on my experience and experience as a zabbix specialist over those years, if you have More questions leave your comment.

About the Autor

Hernandes Martins: Zabbix Senior Instructor and Consultant at  Unirede Soluções Corporativas, member and active contributor to official forums and Zabbix Brasil Community on Yahoo and Facebook. Minister lectures and carries out projects of implementation and consulting with Zabbix and maintains the blog with videos and collaborations for the Brazilian community http://hernandesmartins.blogspot.com.br/