Plugin: SageAlert

[Slugger]

@wayner Just noticed you're not running the SRE v2.2.0 official build. You'll need to upgrade SRE to v2.2.0.628 as well. So you need SRE 2.2.0.628 and SageAlert 1.0.0.625 (or newer, v1.0.1.xxx is also fine). If it continues not to work then post some SRE logs that show the failures when attempting to contact SageAlert.

[wayner]

OK, now running SRE 2.2.0.628 and SageAlert 1.0.1.635 so hopefully this notifies me that SRE is monitoring tonights Leafs-Nucks game.

[wayner]

Still no notifications. I have told SRE that it should notify SageAlert and SageAlert is supposed to send Remote Info, Warning and Error Alerts to one of my Twitter accounts. Do I look in the regular Sage log for info? If not which log? I don't see anything in the SRE logs.

My Sagealert URL is: http://192.168.1.90:8081/sagealert/ - I have now deleted the trailing slash - is that the only error I have to fix?

Here is what I have in my SRE logs:

2009-10-24 19:05:00,739 ERROR [FireRemoteEvent]: Invalid SageAlert URLjava.net.MalformedURLException: SageAlert URL must end with '/sagealert' and no trailing slash! at com.google.code.sagetvaddons.sagealert.rpc.RemoteEventLauncher.<init>
(RemoteEventLauncher.java:58) at com.google.code.sagetvaddons.sre.server.FireRemoteEvent.fireRemoteEvent(FireRemoteEvent.java:58) at com.google.code.sagetvaddons.sre.server.SageRecordingExtender.run
(SageRecordingExtender.java:224) at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source)

Slugger - one more thing. The size of my SRE logs seems to be way too big as when I click on logs it freezes my web browser for about 30 secs. How do you have the logs clear out more frequently - mine currently go back about 10 days.

[Slugger]

Yeah, removing the trailing slash should make everything work.

To reduce the size of the log edit the sre.log4j.properties file in the root sagetv dir. Edit the size in that file. You will need to restart SageTV (not just SRE, unfortunately) for the settings to take effect.

[wayner]

It looks like it is working now - perhaps it would make Sagealert more robust if you checked for and threw away trailing slashes?

[Slugger]

Originally Posted by wayner

It looks like it is working now - perhaps it would make Sagealert more robust if you checked for and threw away trailing slashes?

Perhaps I'll make that change in a future build. An issue ticket would help remind me.

In the meantime, I think the error message is verbose enough such that users can correct the issue if/when they run into it.

[madas]

Any chance we could use Sagealert to issue alerts based on shows in the EPG?

I.e. Alert whenever "Program X" appears in the guide?

For if you are waiting for a show to be repeated

[Peter_h]

Hey Slugger,

I have a feature request. Is there a way for SageAlert to monitor the Sageservice.exe to make sure it is running and trigger an email alert when it is not?

I went on vacation and had a house sitter. Somehow they crashed something and the sageservice stopped and we missed all our recordings. An alert for this would have been awesome.

I'm also thinking that V3 of SJQ might be able to get this email alert and restart the service?

What do you think?

[Slugger]

Originally Posted by madas

Any chance we could use Sagealert to issue alerts based on shows in the EPG?

I.e. Alert whenever "Program X" appears in the guide?

For if you are waiting for a show to be repeated

Not impossible, but I think the RSS feeds from the web server are just as effective (and more importantly, already written and working)?

[Slugger]

Originally Posted by Peter_h

Hey Slugger,

I have a feature request. Is there a way for SageAlert to monitor the Sageservice.exe to make sure it is running and trigger an email alert when it is not?

I went on vacation and had a house sitter. Somehow they crashed something and the sageservice stopped and we missed all our recordings. An alert for this would have been awesome.

Unfortunately, SageAlert runs as part of the SageService so even if I did monitor that situation, the alerts would never be triggered (since the event that causes the alert would also halt SageAlert itself).

I'm also thinking that V3 of SJQ might be able to get this email alert and restart the service?

What do you think?

Same thing, if SageService dies, then so, too, does SageAlert and SJQ. What you really want is some kind of external monitor process running on your server or LAN that monitors the SageService process itself. If I'm not mistaken, the service configuration tool has an option to recover (restart) the service should it stop running (at least I see that option on my XP box; checkbox at bottom of SageTV service control app).

[Peter_h]

Originally Posted by Slugger

Unfortunately, SageAlert runs as part of the SageService so even if I did monitor that situation, the alerts would never be triggered (since the event that causes the alert would also halt SageAlert itself).



Same thing, if SageService dies, then so, too, does SageAlert and SJQ. What you really want is some kind of external monitor process running on your server or LAN that monitors the SageService process itself. If I'm not mistaken, the service configuration tool has an option to recover (restart) the service should it stop running (at least I see that option on my XP box; checkbox at bottom of SageTV service control app).

I see. Can you recommend something that would monitor services? I'm really just looking for an email notification.

After re-reading your post, I looked under services menu and saw that recovery was not configured sagetvservice.exe. It has now been fixed. I wish I would have done that a long time ago.

[Slugger]

Originally Posted by Peter_h

I see. Can you recommend something that would monitor services? I'm really just looking for an email notification.

After re-reading your post, I looked under services menu and saw that recovery was not configured sagetvservice.exe. It has now been fixed. I wish I would have done that a long time ago.

I'm not a windows sysadmin by trade, so not really sure what to use. But I'm sure someone on these forums will have an answer.

EDIT: For systems I monitor at work, I've used Nagios in the past with good success. I know it doesn't run on Windows, but if you have a Linux box on your LAN, I believe it will monitor Windows machines (but the nagios server itself runs on Linux).

[Peter_h]

So now that I have that all fixed. Is there a way to send a message when the sageservice is started or when Sagealert is started? For example, if the machine is rebooted or the sageservice is restarted, a system message is generated and sent out? Basically, if it crashes, windows should restart it and then Sagealert will send the message.

[evilpenguin]

Hey, mostly OT, but would it be possible to merge SJQ and SageAlert so that you can customize you're own tweeting scenarios or is that technically infeasible?

[Slugger]

Originally Posted by Peter_h

So now that I have that all fixed. Is there a way to send a message when the sageservice is started or when Sagealert is started? For example, if the machine is rebooted or the sageservice is restarted, a system message is generated and sent out? Basically, if it crashes, windows should restart it and then Sagealert will send the message.

That's doable... and snapshot 649 contains the new event (App Started Alert). I've tested it quickly and it sends notifications to Twitter, Email, and SMS just fine so should be good to go. Of course, you will have to configure event receivers after upgrading (so you won't get notified the first time after you install it).

[Slugger]

Originally Posted by evilpenguin

Hey, mostly OT, but would it be possible to merge SJQ and SageAlert so that you can customize you're own tweeting scenarios or is that technically infeasible?

Not so much off topic... I am incorporating SageAlert into SJQ so you will be able to trigger info, warning or error alerts based on conditions or as a result of a successful or failed task run. No ETA on that, but it's coming.

EDIT: Of course, this is a new feature that will only be available in SJQv3 (not going to backfit it to SJQv2).

[Peter_h]

Originally Posted by Slugger

That's doable... and snapshot 649 contains the new event (App Started Alert). I've tested it quickly and it sends notifications to Twitter, Email, and SMS just fine so should be good to go. Of course, you will have to configure event receivers after upgrading (so you won't get notified the first time after you install it).

Wow! Thanks!

[evilpenguin]

Excellent, as of last weekend i'm a happy SJQ user so I look forward to any enhancements you may make in the future

[jerryt]

Originally Posted by eric3a

Sure.

The main part is a remotely controllable power strip. I have one of these.
It can be controlled via a web interface or a command line program.

Run SageAlert (no fiuher intro needed!).
Run Growler for Windows. See here.
I run Growler on the same machine as SageTV and SageAlert so SageAlert connects to growler on 127.0.0.1

Get Scripty, a display method for Growler here. (bottom of the page).

Now set up SageAlert to send the ERRORS you want to Growler, and setup Growler to display them using Scripty as the display.
Scripty comes with a sample bat file which will extract the type of message, title, description of the error and a few other bits of info.
I was only concerned with the description so my bat file is:



As you see fairly simple.
HDPVR1.bat and HDPVR2.bat are 1 liner bat files that cycle each unit, using the command line interface from my remotely controllable power strip.



Renamer.bat is also very simple file which renames the Scripty bat file for 5 minutes so it becomes inaccessible to SageAlert/Growler for that period of time to avoid an infinite loop.



Wait is a classic one:


That's it!
The sad part is it took me the best part of an afternoon to get it going. In my defense the testing is slow once you get to actual testing as it takes minutes every time you crash an HDPVR on purpose.

I hope this helps.
If any one sees way to make this cleaner/faster/better, I'm game!

In particular a way to positively identify each tuner when one is called:
"Hauppauge HD PVR Capture Device Component"
and the other one:
"Hauppauge HD PVR Capture Device #2 Component"
I can only figure a way to negatively recognize the first, as not being the second.
Maybe counting the number of characters between quotes?

Eric

@ Eric3a

Could someone use Devcon.exe with a batch file like;
"devcon disable USB\(Hardware id of HD-PVR)
w 300
devcon enable USB\(Hardware id of HD-PVR)"

and accomplish the reset of the HD-PVR without the cost of the remotely controlled power strip?

[eric3a]

I don't know if that would work.

When my units lock-up (still hesitating to use a past tense after 2 weeks without doing so and counting!) I HAD to reset them via power off/on and simply disabling /re-enabling USB port was rarely the solution.
If you can solve your lock-ups manually with disabling/enabling your USB port, then it might be the solution for you.

I travel a fair amount so I already had installed a remotely controlled power strip a while back anyway. Finding out I could use it programmatically to solve HDPVR lock-ups was just icing on the cake.

Eric