Nagios Plugin: check_esxi_hardware.py

Last Update: April 24, 2013

This script is a Nagios plugin to monitor the hardware of ESX and ESXi servers. It can also be used as standalone script to check the hardware - Nagios isn't necessary to run it. The plugin is written in python, so you need to have python installed. See Requirements for more information.

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Download
Version History
FAQ
Requirements
Definition of parameters
Usage / Command-line usage
Command definition examples
Service definition examples
Using username/password in file
Screenshots

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Download

check_esxi_hardware.py Download plugin and save it in your Nagios plugin folder (e.g. /usr/local/nagios/libexec) 20920 downloads so far...

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Version History
20080820 Initial release by David Ligeret
20080821 Add verbose mode by David Ligeret
20090219 Add try/except to catch AuthError and CIMError by Joshua Daniel Franklin
20100202 Added HP Support (HealthState) by Branden Schneider
20100512 Combined different versions (Joshua and Branden) and added hardware type switch
20100628 Outputs server model, s/n and bios version and set Unknown as default exit code by Samir Ibradzic
20100702 GlobalStatus was incorrectly getting (re)set to OK with every CIM element check by Aaron Rogers
20100705 After last version all Dell servers return UNKNOWN instead of OK, added Aaron's logic for Dell checks as well
20101028 Changed text in Usage and Example so people dont forget to use https://
20110110 If Dell Blade Servers were used, Serial Number of Chassis instead of Blade was returned - by Ludovic Hutin
20110207 Bugfix/new feature for Intel server systems by Carsten Schoene
20110215 Plugin now catches Socket Error (Timeout Error) and added a timeout parameter by Ludovic Hutin
20110221 Removed recently added timeout parameter due to incompatibility on Windows systems
20110221 Changed plugin name from check_esxi_wbem.py to check_esxi_hardware.py
20110426 Added 'ibm' hardware type (compatible to Dell output). Tested by Keith Erekson on an IBM x3550
20110503 Plugin rewritten, added automatic hardware detection, opt params, perfdata and much more by Phil Randal
20110504 Some minor code changes, removed typo, bugfix for voltage sensors on IBM server by Phil Randal
20110505 Added possibility to use first line of a file as password (file:) by Fredrik Åslund
20110507 A lot of bugfixes and enhancements from Phil Randal (see changelog in plugin for details)
20110520 Bugfix for IBM Blade Servers by Bertrand Jomin
20110614 Rewrote external file handling, file can now be used for password AND username
20111003 Added ignore option to ignore certain elements by Ian Chard
20120402 Making plugin GPL compatible (Copyright) and preparing for OpenBSD port
20120405 Fix lookup of warranty info for Dell by Phil Randal
20120501 Bugfix in manufacturer discovery when cim entry not found or empty by Craig Hart
20121027 Workaround for Dell PE x620 for Riser Config Err 0: Connected element (wrong return code)
20130424 Another workaround for Dell systems "System Board 1 LCD Cable Pres 0: Connected"

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FAQ
Take a look at this article to find some frequently asked questions and their answers:
http://www.claudiokuenzler.com/blog/308/check-esxi-hardware-faq-frequently-asked-questions

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Requirements
- Python must be installed
- The Python extension pywbem must be installed
Windows users click here for a step-by-step guide how to install Python and PyWBEM on a Windows server.
- If there is a firewall between your monitoring and ESXi server, open ports 443 and 5989

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Definition of the parameters

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Usage

./check_esxi_hardware.py -H esxi-server-ip -U username -P mypass [-V -i -v -p -I xx]

./check_esxi_hardware.py --host esxi-server-ip --user username --password mypass [--vendor --ignore --verbose --perfdata --html xx]

./check_esxi_hardware.py -H esxi-server-ip -U -P file:/path/to/.passwdfile [--vendor --ignore --verbose --perfdata --html xx]

./check_esxi_hardware.py -H esxi-server-ip -U file:/path/to/.passwdfile -P file:/path/to/.passwdfile [--vendor -i -v -p --html xx]

Examples:

./check_esxi_hardware.py -H 10.0.0.200 -U root -P mypass -V dell -p -I de
./check_esxi_hardware.py --host esxiserver1 --user root --password mypass --vendor hp --perfdata
./check_esxi_hardware.py --host esxiserver2 --user root --password mypass --vendor dell --html us
./check_esxi_hardware.py -H esxiserver1 -U root -P file:/root/.esxipass -V dell
./check_esxi_hardware.py -H esxiserver1 -U file:/root/.esxipass -P file:/root/.esxipass -V dell
./check_esxi_hardware.py -H esxiserver1 -U root -P mypass -V dell -i "IPMI SEL"

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Command definition in your commands.cfg:

# 'check_esxi_hardware' command definition
define command{
command_name check_esxi_hardware
command_line $USER1$/check_esxi_hardware.py -H $HOSTADDRESS$ -U $ARG1$ -P $ARG2$ -V $ARG3$
}

Command definition in your commands.cfg with optional parameter:

# 'check_esxi_hardware' command definition
define command{
command_name check_esxi_hardware
command_line $USER1$/check_esxi_hardware.py -H $HOSTADDRESS$ -U $ARG1$ -P $ARG2$ -V $ARG3$ $ARG4$
}

Command definition in your commands.cfg with password read from file:

# 'check_esxi_hardware' command definition
define command{
command_name check_esxi_hardware
command_line $USER1$/check_esxi_hardware.py -H $HOSTADDRESS$ -U $ARG1$ -P file:$ARG2$ -V $ARG3$ $ARG4$
}

Command definition in your commands.cfg with user and password read from file:

# 'check_esxi_hardware' command definition
define command{
command_name check_esxi_hardware
command_line $USER1$/check_esxi_hardware.py -H $HOSTADDRESS$ -U file:$ARG1$ -P file:$ARG2$ -V $ARG3$ $ARG4$
}

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Service check on a HP Server:

# Check HP Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi1
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!root!mypass!hp
}

Service check on a DELL Server:

# Check DELL Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi2
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!root!mypass!dell
}

Service check on a DELL Server with perfdata:

# Check DELL Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi2
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!root!mypass!dell!--perfdata
}

Service check on a DELL Server with password read from file:

# Check DELL Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi2
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!root!/home/nagios/.esxipass!dell
}

Service check on a HP Server with user and password read from file:

# Check HP Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi1
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!/home/nagios/.esxipass!/home/nagios/.esxipass!hp
}

Service check on an IBM Server:

# Check IBM Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi3
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!root!mypass!ibm
}

Service check on an IBM Server where System Event Log alerts should be ignored :

# Check IBM Server hardware
define service{
use generic-service
host_name esxi3
service_description Hardware
check_command check_esxi_hardware!root!mypass!ibm!-i "IPMI SEL"
}

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File handling for user and password (for better security!)
Since version 20110505 it is possible to use a file as password-source. The string in the given file is used as password.
Since version 20110614 the file can be used for both username and password.
This is a big security advantage, because the process on the Nagios server won't show the username or password in cleartext. If no file is used, these values will be shown in cleartext in the processlist.

Please watch out for the correct usage!

Example 1: You want to use a file (/home/nagios/.esxipass) which contains username and password. Note that two strings are separated by a space:

# cat /home/nagios/.esxipass
root mypass123

# ./check_esxi_hardware.py -H 172.17.16.131 -U file:/home/nagios/.esxipass -P file:/home/nagios/.esxipass -V dell

Example 2: You only want to use a file for the password. Note that there is only one string in the file:

# cat /home/nagios/.esxipass
mypass123

# ./check_esxi_hardware.py -H 172.17.16.131 -U root -P file:/home/nagios/.esxipass -V dell

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Nagios Screenshots

DELL: Status Critical: Disk Fault/Raid degraded

DELL: Status Critical: IPMI SEL (=System Event Log)

HP: Status Warning: Storage Battery

HP: Status OK