Monitor Azure with SCOM

Requirements

  1. An agent-managed computer to act as the agent proxy. This server is used to query the Azure platform.
  2. Details of the DNS prefix, subscription ID and deployment slot of the application.
  3. A copy of the certificate, including the private key and its password.
  4. Access to the Azure platform through an unauthenticated web proxy. This includes the following URLs:
    1. https://application DNS prefix.table.core.windows.net/*, e.g.
      https://application.table.core.windows.net/*;
    2. https://management.core.windows.net/*;
    3. http://crl.microsoft.com/PKI/*; and
    4. http://www.public-trust.com/cgi-bin/crl/2018/cdp.crl
  5. The IP address and port number of the aforementioned proxy.

Configuration

  1. Create an account of type binary authentication to contain the certificate, and distribute it to the agent proxy computer.
  2. Create an account of type basic authentication to contain the password to access the certificate.
  3. Create a new Windows Azure Application object:
    1. entering the DNS prefix, subscription ID, deployment slot of the application;
    2. select the certificate and authentication accounts; and
    3. select the proxy agent and enter the IP address and port of the web proxy.
  4. Wait for the application become available under Monitoring > Windows Azure.
    Any problems connecting to the platform will be logged in the Operations Manager event log on the proxy agent.

Custom performance monitoring

  1. Import an existing management pack from SCOM into the Authoring Console.
  2. Create the rule:
    1. select Health Explorer > Rules > New > Custom Rule;
    2. enter an ID and name;
    3. select Windows Azure Role Instance as the target;
    4. create a data source module of type Windows Azure Role Instance Performance Counter Collection Simple Data Source called DS;
    5. edit the data source and configure the values as appropriate;
    6. if a specific instance is to be monitored, create a key called InstanceName;
    7. if all instances are to be monitored, create a key called AllInstances and set its value to true;
    8. create two actions:
      1. one of type Performance Data Collection Write Action called WriteToDb; and
      2. the other of type Performance Data Publisher called WriteToDw; and
    9. disable the rule.
  3. Export the management pack to SCOM.
  4. Create a group in SCOM containing the instance(s) of Azure to which the rule is to be applied.
  5. Override the rule to enable it for the group.

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