Synthetic Bot Monitoring

Synthetic Bot Monitoring is a generic term applied to many different types of website and server monitoring solutions. Synthetic monitors operate like bots that connect to websites, web services, APIs, and servers to verify availability, function, and performance using a network of checkpoints external to the website’s own servers from various parts of the network or world.

Considered an “active” or “proactive” approach to testing, Synthetic Bot Monitoring and conducts the test on a schedule in contrast to passive monitoring solutions (like Real User Monitoring) that require user action to initiate the test. With passive monitoring, an issue can go unnoticed for quite some time during periods of reduced site traffic. Because Synthetic Monitoring’s active approach to testing a website or service, most consider it the first line of defense against outages and slowdowns.

Types of Synthetic Monitoring

Although the list of monitor types is large, most monitors fall into one of three categories: availability, performance, and Transaction Monitoring. The more advanced monitors such as Web Application monitors and Full-Page Checks cover two or more of the categories.

How does Synthetic Bot Monitoring work?

As described earlier, Synthetic Bot Monitoring involves other computers or checkpoints that attempt on a regularly scheduled basis to interact with a web or network entity (Inside or outside the firewall). The process requires four or five steps depending on whether an error occurred during the test.

1. The monitoring system chooses a checkpoint to do the check and sends the instruction to the checkpoint.
2. The checkpoint initiates contact, checks the response, and proceeds based on the type of check the monitor requires.
3. The checkpoint reports its results and findings back to the monitoring system.
4. The system records the information for reporting, if the check resulted in an error, the service immediately requests a new test from another checkpoint. If the checkpoint reports the same error, the system declares the error confirmed.
5. The system sends out an alert for the confirmed error based on the escalation settings and duty schedules.

Depending on the type of test, this process may occur as frequently as every minute or up to once an hour. Most brands check for availability ever minute, performance every five minutes, and transactions every 15 minutes.

Geographic distribution of checkpoints

Synthetic Bot Monitoring requires simulating the end user experience, and testing from the same geographic locations as the end users is key to successful monitoring. Because errors may only affect some users, the more granular the testing, the more likely the monitoring system will capture a regionalized error. The size and distribution of the checkpoint network becomes increasingly more important with a global audience.

Why use Synthetic Monitoring?

Any company or brand that provides content or services through a network or the Internet needs Synthetic Bot Monitoring to protect productivity, revenue, and reputation. When availability and performance are mission critical, a brand can’t wait for end-users to notify them of a problem. By the time end users begin to complain, it is too late. The brand has taken on damage due to the problems, and until the problem is resolved, the brand’s reputation and revenue suffer.

Conclusion

With Synthetic Monitoring, a brand can proactively monitor web and network assets and receive alerts when things do not work as expected. Because of the flexibility offered from Synthetic Monitoring, a brand should consider Synthetic Bot Monitoring their first line of defense to protect availability, performance, and function.