#Apache

Plugin: go.d.plugin Module: apache

#Overview

This collector monitors the activity and performance of Apache servers, and collects metrics such as the number of connections, workers, requests and more.

It sends HTTP requests to the Apache location server-status, which is a built-in location that provides metrics about the Apache server.

This collector is supported on all platforms.

This collector supports collecting metrics from multiple instances of this integration, including remote instances.

Apache can be monitored further using the following other integrations:

• Web server log files
• HTTP Endpoints
• Applications

#Default Behavior

#Auto-Detection

By default, it detects Apache instances running on localhost that are listening on port 80. On startup, it tries to collect metrics from:

• http://localhost/server-status?auto
• http://127.0.0.1/server-status?auto

#Limits

The default configuration for this integration does not impose any limits on data collection.

#Performance Impact

The default configuration for this integration is not expected to impose a significant performance impact on the system.

#Setup

You can configure the apache collector in two ways:

Method	Best for	How to
UI	Fast setup without editing files	Go to Nodes → Configure this node → Collectors → Jobs, search for apache, then click + to add a job.
File	If you prefer configuring via file, or need to automate deployments (e.g., with Ansible)	Edit go.d/apache.conf and add a job.

:::important

UI configuration requires paid Netdata Cloud plan.

:::

#Prerequisites

#Enable Apache status support

• Enable and configure status_module.
• Ensure that you have ExtendedStatus set on (enabled by default since Apache v2.3.6).

#Configuration

#Options

The following options can be defined globally: update_every, autodetection_retry.

Config options

| Group | Option | Description | Default | Required | |:------|:-----|:------------|:--------|:---------:| | **Collection** | update_every | Data collection interval (seconds). | 1 | no | | | autodetection_retry | Autodetection retry interval (seconds). Set 0 to disable. | 0 | no | | **Target** | url | Target endpoint URL. | http://127.0.0.1/server-status?auto | yes | | | timeout | HTTP request timeout (seconds). | 1 | no | | **HTTP Auth** | username | Username for Basic HTTP authentication. | | no | | | password | Password for Basic HTTP authentication. | | no | | | bearer_token_file | Path to a file containing a bearer token (used for `Authorization: Bearer`). | | no | | **TLS** | tls_skip_verify | Skip TLS certificate and hostname verification (insecure). | no | no | | | tls_ca | Path to CA bundle used to validate the server certificate. | | no | | | tls_cert | Path to client TLS certificate (for mTLS). | | no | | | tls_key | Path to client TLS private key (for mTLS). | | no | | **Proxy** | proxy_url | HTTP proxy URL. | | no | | | proxy_username | Username for proxy Basic HTTP authentication. | | no | | | proxy_password | Password for proxy Basic HTTP authentication. | | no | | **Request** | method | HTTP method to use. | GET | no | | | body | Request body (e.g., for POST/PUT). | | no | | | headers | Additional HTTP headers (one per line as key: value). | | no | | | not_follow_redirects | Do not follow HTTP redirects. | no | no | | | force_http2 | Force HTTP/2 (including h2c over TCP). | no | no | | **Virtual Node** | vnode | Associates this data collection job with a [Virtual Node](https://learn.netdata.cloud/docs/netdata-agent/configuration/organize-systems-metrics-and-alerts#virtual-nodes). | | no |

#via UI

Configure the apache collector from the Netdata web interface:

1. Go to Nodes.
2. Select the node where you want the apache data-collection job to run and click the :gear: (Configure this node). That node will run the data collection.
3. The Collectors → Jobs view opens by default.
4. In the Search box, type apache (or scroll the list) to locate the apache collector.
5. Click the + next to the apache collector to add a new job.
6. Fill in the job fields, then click Test to verify the configuration and Submit to save.
   • Test runs the job with the provided settings and shows whether data can be collected.
   • If it fails, an error message appears with details (for example, connection refused, timeout, or command execution errors), so you can adjust and retest.

#via File

The configuration file name for this integration is go.d/apache.conf.

The file format is YAML. Generally, the structure is:

update_every: 1
autodetection_retry: 0
jobs:
  - name: some_name1
  - name: some_name2

You can edit the configuration file using the edit-config script from the Netdata config directory.

cd /etc/netdata 2>/dev/null || cd /opt/netdata/etc/netdata
sudo ./edit-config go.d/apache.conf

#Examples

#Basic

A basic example configuration.

jobs:
  - name: local
    url: http://127.0.0.1/server-status?auto

#HTTP authentication

Basic HTTP authentication.

Config

```yaml jobs: - name: local url: http://127.0.0.1/server-status?auto username: username password: password ```

#HTTPS with self-signed certificate

Apache with enabled HTTPS and self-signed certificate.

Config

```yaml jobs: - name: local url: https://127.0.0.1/server-status?auto tls_skip_verify: yes ```

#Multi-instance

Note: When you define multiple jobs, their names must be unique.

Collecting metrics from local and remote instances.

Config

```yaml jobs: - name: local url: http://127.0.0.1/server-status?auto - name: remote url: http://192.0.2.1/server-status?auto ```

#Alerts

There are no alerts configured by default for this integration.

#Metrics

Metrics grouped by scope.

The scope defines the instance that the metric belongs to. An instance is uniquely identified by a set of labels.

All metrics available only if ExtendedStatus is on.

#Per Apache instance

These metrics refer to the entire monitored application.

This scope has no labels.

Metrics:

Metric	Dimensions	Unit	Basic	Extended
apache.connections	connections	connections	•	•
apache.conns_async	keepalive, closing, writing	connections	•	•
apache.workers	idle, busy	workers	•	•
apache.scoreboard	waiting, starting, reading, sending, keepalive, dns_lookup, closing, logging, finishing, idle_cleanup, open	connections	•	•
apache.requests	requests	requests/s		•
apache.net	sent	kilobit/s		•
apache.reqpersec	requests	requests/s		•
apache.bytespersec	served	KiB/s		•
apache.bytesperreq	size	KiB		•
apache.uptime	uptime	seconds		•

#Troubleshooting

#Debug Mode

Important: Debug mode is not supported for data collection jobs created via the UI using the Dyncfg feature.

To troubleshoot issues with the apache collector, run the go.d.plugin with the debug option enabled. The output should give you clues as to why the collector isn't working.

• Navigate to the plugins.d directory, usually at /usr/libexec/netdata/plugins.d/. If that's not the case on your system, open netdata.conf and look for the plugins setting under [directories].

  cd /usr/libexec/netdata/plugins.d/

• Switch to the netdata user.

  sudo -u netdata -s

• Run the go.d.plugin to debug the collector:

  ./go.d.plugin -d -m apache

To debug a specific job:

  ./go.d.plugin -d -m apache -j jobName

#Getting Logs

If you're encountering problems with the apache collector, follow these steps to retrieve logs and identify potential issues:

• Run the command specific to your system (systemd, non-systemd, or Docker container).
• Examine the output for any warnings or error messages that might indicate issues. These messages should provide clues about the root cause of the problem.

#System with systemd

Use the following command to view logs generated since the last Netdata service restart:

journalctl _SYSTEMD_INVOCATION_ID="$(systemctl show --value --property=InvocationID netdata)" --namespace=netdata --grep apache

#System without systemd

Locate the collector log file, typically at /var/log/netdata/collector.log, and use grep to filter for collector's name:

grep apache /var/log/netdata/collector.log

Note: This method shows logs from all restarts. Focus on the latest entries for troubleshooting current issues.

#Docker Container

If your Netdata runs in a Docker container named "netdata" (replace if different), use this command:

docker logs netdata 2>&1 | grep apache