[Xymon] Hand editing config files

[Ulric Eriksson]

Xymon User in Richmond skrev 2012-07-14 00:11:
> On Fri, July 13, 2012 16:27, Ulric Eriksson wrote:
>>
>> There is no benefit to running the database on the same host as Xymon,
>> for several obvious reasons.
>>
>
> I'm apparently too dense for the reasons to be obvious. It seems to me
> that the obvious benefit of having it on the same host is that he still
> has access to his configuration data in the event of a network issue on
> his path to what would otherwise be his database service.

Here are a bunch of reasons that are obvious to me, at least:

  - Load distribution: do not burden a loaded xymon server with the 
additional burden of a database.

  - Compatibility: there are many, many database vendors and nobody 
wants xymon to be dependent on whatever platforms they choose to support.

  - Management: at least in larger organisations, there is usually a dba 
group responsible for running databases, a different skillset from 
running xymon.

  - Availability: many databases have clustering, replication and other 
features that maximize availability and minimize downtime.

  - Consistency: several xymon hosts can access the same data, which 
does away with rsync scripts and other ugly hacks to keep configuration 
in sync.

I suggested in an earlier message that the configuration could be 
fetched from the database by the xymon hosts and cached locally in a 
format that can be used immediately by xymon, for example the exact same 
format that is used today. If the database becomes unavailable for any 
reason, all hosts would still have the last known configuration.

Ulric