We interview Daniel Rodríguez, head of QA at Pandora FMS

Today, in the intriguing adventures of the Pandora FMS blog, we are finally going to discover and reveal the secret behind the initials “QA”. For this investigation we will have the help of Daniel Rodríguez, the very celebrated head of the QA team at Pandora FMS.

Thanks to him we will get rid of all doubts, as we did with other enigmatic investigations on acronyms, such as UFO, CD or, how to forget!, WTF, which made us work for months on the day-to-day of the streets and in the deepest parts of the net.

If you want to follow us again in this reading, go ahead, you will feel like someone who came out of an adventure: satisfied and eager to tell it.

How did you end up in a company like Pandora FMS?

I knew some people who worked here at the time and they recommended the company. They started by saying that “it’s the best”, “come here”, “we would make a great team, you’ll see how much you will like these people and how well they will treat you”… And, you know, I couldn’t resist.

For the inexperienced: What does QA mean?

Don’t worry, I will solve your ancestral doubt. “QA” is equal to “Quality Assurance”. My brand, my crew.

What exactly do you do in the QA team?

We run batteries of tests on the tools we offer every time something is fixed or a new feature is added to find bugs. So customers can have versions that are as stable as possible.

And you as the head of this team, what are you in charge of?

As head of QA, I am in charge of managing the team’s work, maintaining the test environment, and testing the most difficult or demanding tests.

What are the most satisfying tasks of your day to day?

Uhhh, when the release is out without any trouble and in a convenient way, it gives me a high all over my body…

And the most stressful or terrible ones?

Final pre-release testing. They tend to be very stressful because we have a release date and unforeseen events always arise at the last minute, as you can imagine.

What do you think is the most important lesson you have learned working for this company?

Adapting to situations where work is developed differently, in this case with remote working due to the current situation. Yes, that could be an example.

Any remarkable/unspeakable anecdotes at this time in Pandora FMS?

Many, almost all of them unspeakable.

What hobbies drive you crazy?

Video games and music. They blow me away.

Tell me the first thing that comes to mind when I say these words:

* Pandora: Collaboration
* Friday night: Friends
* Bugs: Work
* Sunday evening: Movie

Three funny facts that you may not have known: 1) Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash were colleagues. 2) Jean-Claude Van Damme was Chuck Norris’s security staff. 3) Pandora FMS has a plugin for WordPress. That’s right! Pandora FMS has a monitoring plugin for WordPress that has been totally renewed and prepared for you! Get to know Pandora FMS WP!

Get to know Pandora FMS WP, our plugin for WordPress

100% free and OpenSource Pandora FMS WP arrives, a monitoring plugin for WordPress. What is it for? Collect basic information from your WordPress and allow Pandora FMS to retrieve it remotely through a REST API.

Some examples of basic information you might collect: new posts, comments from followers, or user logins in the last hour. At the same time, it also monitors whether new plugins or themes have been installed, if a new user has been created or if a login attempt has been made by brute force. 

Also, if desired, it can be easily extended by defining custom SQL queries to monitor other plugins or create your own SQL to collect information and send it to Pandora FMS.

This plugin has been developed by the laborious and specialized hands of Pandora FMS team and the source code is available at https://github.com/articaST/pandorafms-wp/

Pandora FMS WP sections

Dashboard

This is where you may see a detailed summary of the monitored elements. You know, updated plugins, WP version and whether they need to be updated, total number of users, new posts in the last 24 hours, new answers also in the last 24 hours… and other similar checks.

Audit records

Here a table will be displayed before you with the access data of the users, IP, whether the login has been correct or incorrect and how many times, the date of the last access… You will also be able to check whether new plugins or themes have been installed, and the date these changes took place.

General Setup

Here you may configure the general options:

• Configuration of the API
• List of IPs with access to the API
• Set the time to display new data in the API
• Log deletion time
• Clean fields of table filesystem with deleted status on data older than X days
• Delete the status “new”from the filesystem table fields in data older than X days
• Custom SQL queries

Prerequisites

1. Pandora FMS WP optionally requires a plugin for the REST API, called “JSON REST API”. It is only necessary if you want to integrate the monitoring/status information of the WP in a central management console with Pandora FMS. As we have already pointed out, this is an optional feature, you may manage all the information from WordPress itself.

2. If your WordPress version is below 4.7, you must have the WP REST API (v2) plugin installed in order to use the API.

Some limitations

• WP Multisiteis not supported in this version.
• To use WordPress REST API, you need version 4.6 or higher.

Some cool screenshots

So that you may get an idea of the brand new aspect of the plugin, we leave you a couple of screenshots as an appetizer.

Resources:

Pandora FMS WP

Pandora FMS plugin library

2022, the world is the technological paradise you always dreamed of. Space mining, smart cities, 3D printers to make your own Darth Vader mask… Just a little problem, society is based on digitization and communications and you have no idea about the visibility of distributed networks. Something of vital importance considering the rise of cybercrime. Well, don’t worry, we’ll help you.

 Do you know everything about distributed network visibility?

Well, the first thing you need to be aware of is the importance of this distributed network visibility. After all, companies around the globe say that the biggest blind spots in their security come from the network, so all their efforts are focused on safeguarding their data by reinforcing this trench. That’s why visibility is key. Even more so if we talk about Managed Service Providers (MSP), the professionals in charge of protecting customer data.

But, what is distributed network visibility? 

To put it simply, distributed network visibility supposes having full knowledge of the different components running within your network to be able to analyze, at will, aspects such as traffic, performance, applications, managed resources and many more, which will depend on the capabilities offered by your monitoring tool. In addition to increasing visibility into your customers’ networks, a comprehensive solution can give you more leverage to strategize based on the metrics you’re monitoring.

For example, MSPs can, with a good visibility solution, help improve the security of their customers by revealing signs of network danger or, through better analytics, make more informed and rigorous decisions about data protection.

As we have warned before, cybercrime is our daily bread in this almost science fiction future that we have earned, and blind spots in network security, along with what will become of the cd, is one of our great concerns.

Monitor traffic, look for performance bottlenecks, provide visibility thanks to a good monitoring tool and alert on irregular performance… That’s what we need. In addition, these super important alerts draw attention and notify technicians and system administrators, who will immediately take the appropriate measures to solve our problem.

If you are an MSP in this post-apocalyptic future that we are living in, it is very likely that you use several applications as part of your services, well, another of the obvious advantages of improved visibility is the ability to participate in application supervision. So, for example, when granular network visibility is set, you may get unquestionable insight into how applications are affecting performance and connectivity. Once you are aware of this, you may choose to filter critical app traffic to the right tools and monitor who is using which app and when. You may even make application performance more practical, reducing processor and bandwidth work by ensuring, for example, that email traffic is not sent to non-email gateways. 

Some challenges to consider

Not everything is having fun and joking around, rolling on the carpet and having crises saved by your expertise, there are several challenges for MSPs associated with network visibility.

Cloud computing has increased and mobile traffic has increased too, this only adds, to our inconvenience capacity, more blind spots to watch out for as MSP. The end has come for the magnanimous and bucolic days of lying on the grass simply monitoring traffic over MPLS links. We are in the future, and WANs are a deadlock for Internet-based VPNs, Cloud services, MPLS, and mobile users. Something complex that many rudimentary monitoring tools cannot offer full visibility of. There are many components to address. To deal with this Gordian knot and its dense complexity, MSPs must be demanding and rigorous when choosing a monitoring tool to work with.

Another of the great challenges that MSPs may face in this field is the fact that the most traditional monitoring methods are closely linked to on-premise devices. This means that all WAN locations need their own set of applications, and these must have their own sources and be properly maintained. Optionally, all traffic can be retrieved and inspected from a WAN location. This inefficient method can have a performance impact.

Due to this inefficiency, it becomes difficult to apply the traditional approach to distributed network visibility. For enterprises with many applications, networking becomes too obtuse and convoluted, with a variety of individual configurations and policies difficult to support. Additionally, there is the capacity restrictions of the devices, which limit the amount of traffic that can be analyzed without the need to update the hardware. This without noticing that at some point the devices will have to be completely patched or replaced. Damn, even if your company grows, which is what we want, network visibility will quickly be constrained and more security vulnerabilities will go unnoticed.

Conclusions and good wishes

I gave you a very bad prospect. But don’t worry, it was only an adverse in crescendo until reaching the great catharsis: While there are many traditional monitoring tools that cannot address distributed network visibility challenges, there are, thank heavens, other monitoring tools that can.  This is the example of Pandora FMS, a monitoring software that is up to the challenges such as those raised and that helps technicians manage complex networks and much more. Pandora FMS allows you to control, manage and customize the tool through a centralized interface. Thanks to its scalability you will be able to manage networks with hundreds of devices and give IT providers what they need to increase security and maximize efficiency. You don’t believe it? Try it now for 30 days for free. You see, not everything was going to be bad in this post apocalyptic future!

In our daily life we can face different difficulties. From spilling coffee on our clean shirt just before leaving home to not finding an emoji that satisfies us to answer that someone we like. Stupid little things compared to how difficult it is sometimes to identify network problems for an external IT provider.

Steps to identify network problems

As we pointed out, finding network problems is, due to its transient nature, a hassle. And IT vendors often have to stay on site to monitor firsthand for signs that often signal network problems. This is not cool at all. Being able to monitor network devices or cloud services from a remote location should be part of our rights, something fundamental in the life of someone who wants to be a good Managed Service Provider (MSP). For this reason, we wanted, from our blog, to help these poor people with a list of steps to identify network problems. We are that kind and philanthropic. Take note!

One: Supervise, supervise and supervise

Today we know that there are many tools that help MSPs to monitor servers and others, but today’s networks are something much more complex and difficult to deal with. In the past, you had to make do with simple routers or switches, but now you can monitor with the help of all kinds of IoT devices, cameras, VoIP phones/systems, etc. There is no reason to complain. Make use of all of them to carry out your supervision work. Manage with a good monitoring tool from routine ping tests to the most complicated SNMP queries. With the right weapons, professionals can do their job remotely, taking advantage of the information provided by network devices.

Two: Pay attention to the Cloud

We have mentioned it more than once in this blog, the Cloud has become of key importance for companies, whether they are small or large.  Adopting more services based on the cloud for the functions that are vital to your business. The bad thing? Sometimes the Internet speed is not the ideal one we would like, and there are even interruptions in our services. Usually the IT provider is advised to diagnose and bring the problem to light. However, without accurate historical data to verify what was happening at the time the outage occurred, it is very difficult for the technician to make a good diagnosis.

With Pandora FMS, for example, by constantly monitoring the connection between your clients’ devices and your services in the Cloud and creating, in turn, a collection of historical data that you could return to in the event of a failure, you wouldn’t have that problem.

And three:  Go for the unusual

You should investigate any unusual activity on your devices like a police sleuth, because it could mean a potential security risk, even when segmented into your own VLAN or physical network.

Network monitoring is an indispensable part of any IT provider tool. Troubleshooting, proactive monitoring, security… Efficiency and responsibility can help you earn money, or at least help you save it, thanks to this additional service.

It will never be “We have to keep an eye on this until it happens again”. With a good monitoring tool, you will have the data at hand to determine what happened, why it happened and what the steps should be now so that it does not happen again. Because as we’ve seen, network problems can be harder to find than a sober intern at a company dinner, but with the right tools, you can get enough help to get by on your feet.

Conclusions:

If there are any conclusions to be drawn from this article, they are:

1. Change your shirt, quickly, by one that has not been stained with coffee before leaving the house.
2. All emojis are good if she, or he, likes you too. Well, except for the one with the poo. That emoji is hideous!
3. Incorporating Pandora FMS to your team can help you do your job more efficiently and for your clients’ networks to be always safe.

Whether you are a DIY ace or a master at roast beef, a decorated luthier or the best seamstress in the neighborhood, we all love to work with good tools, right? This includes, of course, good IT professionals. Because IT monitoring tools are fundamental when it comes to supervising a network infrastructure and applying the corresponding policies and security measures. Even so, not every monitoring tool is perfect, in fact some could even get to the point of harming us. Let’s take a look!

Better monitoring tools, better monitoring

It’s instinctively basic: you have to find the right monitoring tool for each job. Indeed, although it may seem unheard of, it is quite difficult for IT teams to find comprehensive and outstanding monitoring tools. Some of them are too specialized or do not support all applications because they might lack certain features. This dilemma can lead IT teams to use hundreds of disparate monitoring tools, due to the need to attend to all monitoring tasks. I know what you are thinking: “That must be expensive”. Yes, it is, plus it slows down the working pace due to the huge amount of reports, each with their own features, to be inspected and checked.

That is why we must avoid tool proliferation, as we avoid the proliferation of gremlins or herniated discs.  Preventing it through individual monitoring solutions, even if this requires significant changes, such as the implementation of integrated tools, conceived to support multiple applications, or special network configurations.

The most efficient thing would be to go for IT monitoring tools that include updates to support today’s most respected applications and provide IT administrators with a single management board.

Simplifying is the key

If you have to choose a monitoring platform, you should be aware beforehand that different IT sectors require different types of solutions. Try, with a single solution, to address as many sections as possible, thus adding further depth to monitoring activities. Such a single solution will give you a greater ability to automate responses and locate irregular events in any system you are monitoring.

For this reason, IT departments often look for a suite of fully integrated IT tools offered by centralized system management and monitoring companies. These companies often promise to reduce the license and maintenance costs of their software, as well as the use of their monitoring tool integrated in the corresponding environment to help manage the company.

The IT department will reduce costs thanks to these integrated tools, among other things because they already have a strong response to any problem that may arise. In fact, one of the direct benefits is the reduction of incidents that require the action of the support teams. Also general performance visibility and system availability, thus increasing the total productivity of the company.

But hold on there, before you go running to look for a monitoring tool that suits your company’s requirements and even your zodiac sign, it is TOTALLY NECESSARY to define what justifies monitoring in your company. Remember that each piece of your IT department will have something to say and contribute, there are different features regarding each function, information flow and security clauses. Once you have a full and clear idea of what you and your company need, you may start with a good monitoring strategy.

Application monitoring tools

Application monitoring is, broadly speaking, monitoring activity logs to see how applications are being used. You know, looking at the access roles of the users, the data that is accessed, how this data is used… If your monitoring tool is good, it even shows a window to the log data and an exhaustive view of all the data elements that make up a healthy application: response times, data traces…

Any self-respecting application monitoring tool has to offer these kinds of features, as well as being integrated with database and network monitoring. Thus, together, they will be able to improve application response times through active and immediate solutions to performance problems that arise.

Network monitoring tools

DNS host monitoring, IP address management, packet tracking… This is more or less what all network monitoring tools usually offer. They usually fall short, however, when it comes to supervising everything related to network traffic, whether internally or externally. What they should always provide, under oath, is full surveillance of all devices connected to the network.

Compliance control monitoring

Don’t worry, if you haven’t yet managed to justify implementing a full monitoring tool, compliance monitoring will make up your mind.

Compliance monitoring solutions will provide you with templates based on types of regulations, allowing you to conveniently design and implement a comprehensive compliance monitoring strategy, including the ability to monitor log data, in real time, from any type of device connected to your network, including routers and switches.

Thanks to compliance control monitoring tools you will be able to collect, correlate and export any necessary registration information for the IT team. Report templates will be able to align with formats common to regulatory agencies. In addition to providing exhaustive analysis in the case of internal audits.

Conclusions

If we have made something clear today, it is that the system management and monitoring solution you choose must meet a small series of requirements: be integrated into several systems, be accessible to the IT team through an intuitive interface based on a control panel, be scalable, and stay constantly evolving so that its ability to help you maintain your services can go forward and transcend when you need it.  

If doubt and anxiety overcome you, do not worry, what you are looking for is not far away. Pandora FMS is capable of monitoring all these IT areas that we talked about and much more. Thanks to its more than 16 features and more than 500 Enterprise plugins available. Also, if you are not very knowledgeable in this matter, do not worry, we manage it for you with our MaaS solution.