• Blog
  • Info Support
  • Career
  • Training
  • International Group
  • Info Support
  • Blog
  • Career
  • Training
  • International Group
  • Search
logo InfoSupport
  • Latest blogs
  • Popular blogs
  • Experts
      • Alles
      • Bloggers
      • Speakers
  • Meet us
  • About us
    • nl
    • en
    • .NET
    • Advanced Analytics
    • Agile
    • Akka
    • Alexa
    • Algorithms
    • Api's
    • Architectuur
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • ATDD
    • Augmented Reality
    • AWS
    • Azure
    • Big Data
    • Blockchain
    • Business Intelligence
    • Cloud
    • Code Combat
    • Cognitive Services
    • Communicatie
    • Containers
    • Continuous Delivery
    • CQRS
    • Cyber Security
    • Dapr
    • Data
    • Data & Analystics
    • Data Science
    • Data Warehousing
    • Databricks
    • DevOps
    • Digital Days
    • Docker
    • eHealth
    • Enterprise Architecture
    • Hacking
    • Infrastructure & Hosting
    • Innovatie
    • Integration
    • Internet of Things
    • Java
    • Machine Learning
    • Microservices
    • Microsoft
    • Microsoft Bot Framework
    • Microsoft Data Platform
    • Mobile Development
    • Mutation Testing
    • Open source
    • Pepper
    • Power BI
    • Privacy & Ethiek
    • Python
    • Quality Assistance & Test
    • Quality Assurance & Test
    • Requirements Management
    • Scala
    • Scratch
    • Security
    • SharePoint
    • Software Architecture
    • Software development
    • Software Factory
    • SQL Server
    • SSL
    • Start-up
    • Startup thinking
    • Stryker
    • Test Quality
    • Testing
    • TLS
    • TypeScript
    • Various
    • Web Development
    • Web-scale IT
    • Xamarin
    • Alles
    • Bloggers
    • Speakers
Home » A lap around ServicePulse (2 of 3)
  • A lap around ServicePulse (2 of 3)

    • By Roy Cornelissen
    • Software Architecture 8 years ago
    • Software Architecture 0 comments
    • Software Architecture Software Architecture
    A lap around ServicePulse (2 of 3)

    This is part 2 of my short series about the new Particular Service Platform… specifically about ServicePulse. In my first post about ServicePulse, you can read about the overall architecture and the problems that ServicePulse solves. Now I want to focus on one specific feature: the ability to add custom checks to your services.

    After having set up ServiceControl and ServicePulse, you are able to monitor any NServiceBus service in your architecture. Just drop in the Heartbeat plugin and ServicePulse will see your service. The Heartbeat basically says: the service is there, it’s running and it’s able to send messages (since the Heartbeat is sent through a message to the ServiceControl input queue).

    In general, this will not be sufficient, as you will also want to know how the service is behaving from a functional point of view. Or maybe you even want to monitor some deeper technical dependencies, such as whether it can reach its database, whether the config is OK, whether it can reach that external web service you rely upon, et cetera.

    This is where custom checks come in, and they’re easy to implement. A custom check is very similar to the Heartbeat check: you just drop in a DLL that contains one or more checks, and the messages will be sent to ServiceControl. We end up with the following deployment overview:

    ServiceControl-Deployment-CustomChecks

    The custom check plugins will report through the same channel as the Heartbeat plugin.

    Implementing a custom check
    A custom check is pretty easy to implement, and you can choose between two scenarios: a periodic check and a one-time check.

    Either way, you need to add a reference to the ServiceControl.Plugin.CustomChecks Nuget package and you’re good to go.

    Startup check
    A Startup custom check is executed when the service starts, so basically only once. A check like this is useful if you want to check some configuration settings after deployment, or if you want to check some environment dependencies that the service needs to run properly. You implement a one-time check by inheriting from ServiceControl.Plugin.CustomChecks.CustomCheck.

    public class StartupCheck : ServiceControl.Plugin.CustomChecks.CustomCheck
    {
        public StartupCheck()
            : base("StartupCheck", "Categoryname") // the name of the check and its category are specified here 
        {
            if (ConfigurationManager.AppSettings["TestSetting"] != "1")
            {
                ReportFailed("TestSetting must be 1!");
            }
            else
            {
                ReportPass();
            }
        }
    }
    

    The default constructor passes a check name and a category to the base constructor, which bootstraps the custom check. CustomCheck is an abstract base class, so you need to implement the StartupCheck method. All you have to do is put in your check, and call either ReportPass if all is well, or ReportFailed if there’s a problem. ReportFailed accepts a fault reason, which will be visible in ServicePulse.

    Periodic check
    A periodic check runs at a self defined interval, so it’s ideally suited to monitor things that might change over time, such as the availability of certain services or databases, or functional scenarios such as: “has all Point of Sale data arrived yet?”.

    Again, implementing such a check is pretty easy. This time, inherit from ServicePulse.Plugin.CustomChecks.PeriodicCheck.

    public class CheckHealth : PeriodicCheck
    {
        public CheckHealth()
            : base("Healthcheck", "CategoryName", TimeSpan.FromMinutes(10))
        {
    
        }
    
        public override CheckResult PerformCheck()
        {
            // Fake a failure once in a while
            // TODO: think of a useful check to implement here.
            if (DateTime.Now.Second % 2 == 0)
            {
                return CheckResult.Failed("This is a sample failure report");
            }
             return CheckResult.Pass;
        }
    }
    

    Besides the check name and category name, the base constructor also excepts a TimeSpan. You can specify here at what interval the check runs. Each 10 minutes in the example.

    Next, we override the PerformCheck method, which returns a CheckResult object. Case of success, report CheckResult.Pass, otherwise use CheckResult.Failed. Again, a reason or description for the feature must be supplied.

    So what does admin/ops see?
    After a custom check is deployed and activated, we can see the results in the ServicePulse front end. On the Dashboard, it shows:

    Custom checks

    And upon further inspection on the Custom Checks screen:

    Custom checks - overview

    In my current project, we make heavy use of custom checks to monitor the health of our system, and whether customers are efficiently using it. For now, we do this through a custom built monitoring service (based on NServiceBus), but I can see these migrating to ServiceControl plugins over time.

    Next time: dealing with failed messages!

    Share this

View profile

Related IT training

Go to training website

Related Consultancy solutions

Go to infosupport.com

Related blogs

  • De kloof tussen enterprise en solution architecten word…

    De kloof tussen enterprise en solution architecten word… Raimond Brookman - 4 years ago

  • J-Fall 2016: the best one-day conference I know

    J-Fall 2016: the best one-day conference I know Hanno Embregts - 5 years ago

  • dotnetFlix: Azure Service Fabric met Mark Fussell

    dotnetFlix: Azure Service Fabric met Mark Fussell Edwin van Wijk - 6 years ago

Related downloads

  • Beslisboom voor een rechtmatig ‘kopietje productie’

  • Klantreferentie: Remmicom zet wetgeving om in intellige…

  • Klantreferentie RDW: Samenwerken voor veilig en vertrou…

  • Klantreferentie BeFrank: Strategische IT voor een innov…

  • Wie durft te experimenteren met data in de zorg?

Related videos

  • mijnverzekeringenopeenrij.nl

    mijnverzekeringenopeenrij.nl

  • Winnaar | Innovation Projects 2017

    Winnaar | Innovation Projects 2017

  • Explore | Info Support & HAN & Poliskluis

    Explore | Info Support & HAN & Poliskluis

  • LifeApps bij HagaZiekenhuis

    LifeApps bij HagaZiekenhuis

  • Info Support | Bedrijfsfilm

    Info Support | Bedrijfsfilm

Nieuwsbrief

* verplichte velden

Contact

  • Head office NL
  • Kruisboog 42
  • 3905 TG Veenendaal
  • T +31 318 552020
  • Call
  • Mail
  • Directions
  • Head office BE
  • Generaal De Wittelaan 17
  • bus 30 2800 Mechelen
  • T +32 15 286370
  • Call
  • Mail
  • Directions

Follow us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
  • Youtube

Newsletter

Sign in

Extra

  • Media Library
  • Disclaimer
  • Algemene voorwaarden
  • ISHBS Webmail
  • Extranet
Beheer cookie toestemming
Deze website maakt gebruik van Functionele en Analytische cookies voor website optimalisatie en statistieken.
Functioneel
Altijd actief
De technische opslag of toegang is strikt noodzakelijk voor het legitieme doel het gebruik mogelijk te maken van een specifieke dienst waarom de abonnee of gebruiker uitdrukkelijk heeft gevraagd, of met als enig doel de uitvoering van de transmissie van een communicatie over een elektronisch communicatienetwerk.
Voorkeuren
De technische opslag of toegang is noodzakelijk voor het legitieme doel voorkeuren op te slaan die niet door de abonnee of gebruiker zijn aangevraagd.
Statistieken
De technische opslag of toegang die uitsluitend voor statistische doeleinden wordt gebruikt. De technische opslag of toegang die uitsluitend wordt gebruikt voor anonieme statistische doeleinden. Zonder dagvaarding, vrijwillige naleving door uw Internet Service Provider, of aanvullende gegevens van een derde partij, kan informatie die alleen voor dit doel wordt opgeslagen of opgehaald gewoonlijk niet worden gebruikt om je te identificeren.
Marketing
De technische opslag of toegang is nodig om gebruikersprofielen op te stellen voor het verzenden van reclame, of om de gebruiker op een website of over verschillende websites te volgen voor soortgelijke marketingdoeleinden.
Beheer opties Beheer diensten Beheer leveranciers Lees meer over deze doeleinden
Voorkeuren
{title} {title} {title}