Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about UpScout and website monitoring
What is website uptime monitoring?
Website uptime monitoring is a service that regularly checks your website to ensure it's accessible and functioning properly. UpScout sends requests to your website at regular intervals (as frequent as every 30 seconds) and alerts you if your site becomes unavailable or experiences performance issues.
Why do I need uptime monitoring?
Website downtime can significantly impact your business through lost sales, damaged reputation, and decreased customer trust. With UpScout's monitoring, you'll be the first to know when issues occur, allowing you to resolve problems before they affect your users. This proactive approach helps maintain high availability and user satisfaction.
How does UpScout's monitoring work?
UpScout uses a network of servers across multiple regions to check your website's availability. We send HTTP/HTTPS requests to your specified URLs and verify the response. If we detect any issues (like timeout, error responses, or SSL problems), we immediately notify you through your chosen notification channels (email, SMS, etc.).
What types of notifications does UpScout offer?
UpScout provides multiple notification options: email alerts (included in all plans), SMS alerts (Pro and Enterprise plans), and integrations with popular services like Slack, Discord, and webhook support for custom integrations (Enterprise plan). You can customize notification settings for different types of events and severity levels.
How quickly will I be notified of downtime?
Our system sends notifications within seconds of detecting an issue. To prevent false alarms, we verify the downtime by checking from multiple locations before sending alerts. This process typically takes less than a minute, ensuring you receive accurate and timely notifications.
What metrics does UpScout track?
UpScout tracks several key metrics including response time, uptime percentage, downtime duration, and SSL certificate validity. Our Pro and Enterprise plans provide additional metrics like historical performance trends, detailed incident reports, and custom status pages for your customers.
Do I need to install anything on my server?
No, UpScout works without requiring any installation on your servers. Our external monitoring system checks your website just like a regular visitor would. This means there's no performance impact on your servers and no security risks from third-party software.
Can I try UpScout before committing?
Yes! We offer a free plan that includes basic monitoring features. You can also start a 14-day trial of our Pro plan with full features, no credit card required. This allows you to experience the full capabilities of UpScout before making a decision.