Zen alert - Why You Need and How It Works

WHY YOU NEED IT AND HOW IT WORKS
ZENALERT WHITEPAPER

ZenAlert.com - WhitePaper - Ver. 0.8
www.zenalert.com - info@zenalert.com 2
Index
Why do I need ZenAlert? 3
How it works: the Vital Signal 4
Vital Signal: the code 5
How it works: the Event Signal 6
Event Signal: the code 7
Console: manage things 8
Console: alerts 9
Data Collect 10
Case Study #1: Monitor hundreds of PCs 12
Case Study #2: Preserve food in restaurants and shops 13
Case Study #3: Improve CRM for a technical support company 14
Useful links 15

WHY DO I NEED ZENALERT?
How can I be sure that my program or my computer is doing what it should do exactly when it should do it?
!
This is one of those questions that we have always asked ourselves in information technology.
!
The most common solution is to write other programs, or add other computers, to check the ones we
need to check. We then typically add additional safety systems such as Uninterruptible Power Supply
groups and backup communication lines. The security thus improves a little, but then we often start
worrying about the security of the controller: indeed, who controls the controller?
!
The advent of the "Internet of Things" further complicates the scenario. When we have to deal with "stupid"
objects distributed in space or on the go, the "old ways" are really hard or impossible to implement.
!
Our intuition was to turn the model inside out.
!
ZenAlert uses the impossibility to communicate as its first ally in spotting problems.

HOW IT WORKS: THE VITAL SIGNAL
Your object, be it software, server, device or a "thing", will at regular intervals make an HTTP or HTTPS call
to ZenAlert's platform. These calls are the object's heartbeats. We have dubbed them the "Vital Signal”.
!
Should ZenAlert not receive a call during a set time interval (by default, 5 minutes) the platform will send a
notification to inform you.
everything is OK the microcontroller is not communicating anymore

VITAL SIGNAL: THE CODE
The implementation of the Vital Signal is very simple. Please take a look at this pseudo-code example.
while (TRUE) {
make_HttpCall(‘https://api.zenalert.com/signal?
code=alive&
thing_id=13DB5B6B-95C5-4D22-B0B5-BDEA5E22DC04&
api_key=970872FB-B5FE-40EE-A609-A5C4204ECD69&
description=I am alive
‘)
!
wait(5 minutes)
}
code is the “alive” Vital Signal
thing_id is the unique id that identifies your object
api_key is your unique security key
description is the message/text you can fill in

HOW IT WORKS: THE EVENT SIGNAL
Your items can also send the platform HTTP or HTTPS calls related to a specific event.
We have called these HTTP calls "Event Signals".
!
When the platform receives an Event Signal from one of your objects, it will send you a notification.
everything is OK the PC is communicating an event

EVENT SIGNAL: THE CODE
The implementation of an Event Signal is also very simple. Please take a look at the pseudo-code example.
if (the_event_occurs) {
!
code=warning&
description=hey, the_event has occurred!
‘)
}
code is an Event code
thing_id is the unique id that identifies your object
api_key is your unique security key
description is the message that you will receive in your notification

Call strings can be copied directly from the ZenAlert console https://www.zenalert.com
and pasted into your code.
CONSOLE: MANAGE THINGS
create a new thing
vital signal string
event signal string

You can manage your active alerts and keep an eye on the status of your "things" in the “Alerts" section of
the console.
vital signal back
CONSOLE: ALERTS
Map controls
Mark alert as
“solved”
vital signal missing
event signal
Filter alerts
“by thing” and “by
code”
Automatic and
manual reload of
alerts

DATA COLLECT
Both messages (Vital and Signal) can be used for data collection as well. You can add a list of key-value
pairs, in JSON format, to the 'data' parameter in the HTTP call. Please take a look at the following pseudo-code
code=alive&
description=I am alive&
data={“wind”:3,"temperature":30, “foo”:”footext”, … }
’)
example.
while (TRUE) {
!
wait(5 minutes)
}
Collected data can currently be dowloaded from the Activities panel for the Thing. In the future, it
will be possible to display them and analyze them directly on the website.

APPLICATION EXAMPLES

MONITOR HUNDREDS OF PCs
Problem
A company provides a digital signage service, i.e. a service that plays in-store music through media-player
PCs for a retailer with more than a hundred stores. The schedules of the programs are
generated in the central office and are then synchronized in real time with local stores throughout the
national territory. How can the company be sure about the correct functioning of both the
synchronization of the playlists and of the actual airing of the music?
!
Solution
The technical staff of the company developed a simple application that places calls via HTTP (Vital and
Event signal) to ZenAlert's platform in order to monitor all the hardware equipment and the software
involved in the distribution chain, 24/7.
!
Results
The adoption of ZenAlert allowed the company to automate the process of monitoring and sending
alarm messages to promptly report critical events, allowing technicians to intervene before the playlist
broadcast is compromised. ZenAlert integrates with any programming language thanks to ZenAlert's
HTTP API. This means that the developers wrote the software they needed using the development
tools they were already using, which made things simpler and more cost-effective.

PRESERVE FOOD IN RESTAURANTS & SHOPS
Problem
Restaurants and grocery stores use refrigerators to store and preserve food. If a power failure occurs
when the restaurant is closed food can go bad resulting substantial economic losses. How can they
be alerted of a power failure?
Solution
A simple Arduino Ethernet Board (http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardEthernet) programmed with
ZenAlert Health Monitor (open source code http://ow.ly/yr1C9), connected to the to the local network
in the premises is all that is needed to perform this task by sending an HTTP call (Vital signal) to
ZenAlert's platform.
!
Results
As ZenAlert is free forever for the first thing you connect, the only cost incurred by the business is an
Arduino board. In the event of a power failure, the owner of the business receives an alarm notification
and can intervene before the food in the fridges goes bad.

IMPROVE CRM
FOR A TECHNICAL SUPPORT COMPANY
Problem
An IT company provides technical assistance to professionals and businesses for ordinary
maintenance issues of their PCs (full HDs, backup tools etc.) which are easy to predict but which, once
they happen, can cause serious problems and waste precious time. Is it possible to monitor hundreds
of PCs to improve the service and step in before the problems occur?
!
Solution
Using the ZenAlert's client or implementing simple applications to be installed on their customers’
PCs, the IT company can develop a system of notifications which are sent directly to their technical
team.
!
Results
The IT company can improve the quality of the service they offer by being able to intervene before
their customers experience issues. The IT company can also collect information that allows their
technicians to assist their customers even remotely.

USEFUL LINKS
Quick Start with Github
Find useful scripts based on the ZenAlert Platform published by our team and other users.
https://github.com/zenalert
LinkedIn Company Page
Follow our LinkedIn Company Page to stay updated on our services and IOT News.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/zen-alert-inc
Follow us on Twitter…
… and join the conversation.
https://twitter.com/zenalert
Ask us a question at:
https://zenalert.zendesk.com

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