beefing up email alerts customization

[bokus70]

I am just testing ONE v8 application with a strong intent to put it into production. We have a specific demand for this kind of software which is to distinguish email alerts for warnings and errors, in terms of different text content in email subject or body. The reason is that our ticketing system email parser should look for some "cues" inside that email and raise a proper priority for the ticket immediately.
So, here are the questions I have compiled so far:
- Any plans for letting us customize the email body?
- How can I make different email messages for warnings and errors? I don't see how it can be done. Any plans for this feature in your roadmap?
- Any plans for making alarm rules use "AND" clause in the alarm rules settings? Currently it's "OR" i.e. any rule hit will raise the alarm, if I got it right.

Thanks for listening. I am using your software for several weeks only and already I can see you have a first class support. Forum and ticketing system provides a great help.

[Vitaliy S.]

Hi,

We have a specific demand for this kind of software which is to distinguish email alerts for warnings and errors, in terms of different text content in email subject or body.

You can customize email subject via SMTP settings.

- Any plans for letting us customize the email body?

How would you like to customize it?

- How can I make different email messages for warnings and errors? I don't see how it can be done. Any plans for this feature in your roadmap?

It is not possible to change email notification per each alarm severity, but you can parse email body for error or warning states and then raise an alert in your system.

- Any plans for making alarm rules use "AND" clause in the alarm rules settings? Currently it's "OR" i.e. any rule hit will raise the alarm, if I got it right.

Yes, you got it right. In our next release (v9) there will be an option to use AND in alarm rules.

Thanks!

[bokus70]

Email body customization: for instance adding my own text and the end of the message. Nothing fancy, you can continue as it is, maybe just this possibility to add few things at the end.

Thanks for clearing up warn/error thing in the parser. I was thinking of the same thing now, so we are on the same page.

Any other change regarding alarms in v9?

[Vitaliy S.]

Veeam ONE v9 will have over 100 new features, so there is a lot of things coming. As to the changes in alarms engine, then we will provide more options in alarms suppress period and we will add a couple of additional columns that can be included in alarms email notification.

Do you want to include the same text for all alarms? If this is the case, then you can try to use "External" section in the alarms KB to include your own text to the notification. To do that, please navigate to alarms management tab, pick any alarm and take a look at knowledge base tab.

[Shestakov]

Email body customization: for instance adding my own text and the end of the message. Nothing fancy, you can continue as it is, maybe just this possibility to add few things at the end.

Just curious what you may want to add there. Could you give an example, please?

Any other change regarding alarms in v9?

There are lots of them. E.g. Cluster-level alarms, Rules combined by “AND/OR” logical operators, Combo-alarms (create alarms based on existing alarms by combining them under the alarm rules configuration) and much more.

[bokus70]

Sounds very good about the v9 alarm related features. So I will be able to make a rule that will contain combination of AND/OR operators?

As for the email body, we were thinking to add a custom description that will make things easier for our parser. I mean, I can always ask our ticketing guys to make a srcipt that will adjust to veeam alarm output contents, but you will understand that the first option is much easier for them. The scripts tend to get bigger and bigger and why not ask for a simpler option, if possible. But this is not a must-have feature even for us, if the body contains the wording "warning" or "error" for distinction. The custom description is helpful because we can fill our ticketing system automatically with something our guys are used to. That's about it, just to make things easier.

[Vitaliy S.]

So I will be able to make a rule that will contain combination of AND/OR operators?

Yes, that was the goal to introduce this logical operator in alarm settings.

As for the email body, we were thinking to add a custom description that will make things easier for our parser. I mean, I can always ask our ticketing guys to make a srcipt that will adjust to veeam alarm output contents, but you will understand that the first option is much easier for them. The scripts tend to get bigger and bigger and why not ask for a simpler option, if possible. But this is not a must-have feature even for us, if the body contains the wording "warning" or "error" for distinction. The custom description is helpful because we can fill our ticketing system automatically with something our guys are used to.

Got your point! Email notification body does include state of the alarm as well as the custom field from the alarm, so it should be fine for now. Thanks for clarification.

[Shestakov]

Sounds very good about the v9 alarm related features. So I will be able to make a rule that will contain combination of AND/OR operators?

We are happy to inform you that Veeam ONE v9 has been released and as was discussed it includes the new alarm rules.
Thanks again for your input! Enjoy new release with its great features!

[William Bohn]

Hello, we are looking to customize the email body more for a lean output. We would like the same way to customize in the body as there is for the subject line.

thanks
-Bill

[wishr]

Hi Bill,

Welcome to Veeam Community Forums and thank you for the request.

Have you been able to check the current functionality in Update 4? If so, could you please specify, what is the use-case, what changes you'd like to be able to make to the current body schema, and how you'd like this process to look like? Please share as many details as possible.

Thanks in advance,
Fedor

[Shestakov]

Hello Bill,
We have the customization of email notification format in the roadmap, so please share how do you see the feature.
Thanks!

[William Bohn]

That's great news it is in the roadmap.
We would like to be able to customize the format for easier at a glance viewing.

Example:

Being able to change the second line 'Server:' to the 'Object:' and put the Status color bar on that line instead of the always Blue. (So there wouldn't be an extra status line, the background color of the 'Object' would be the status color yellow, green, etc. The bigger size is nice, so having control of the sizing of each line would be useful as well)

That way it is instant to know what is affected and how.

The 'Server:' name isn't needed for us since that is just the VeeamOne server which is constant.

Then we would adjust the rest of the body to be:

Alarm:
Time:
Details:
Location:

Then the KB Article at the end.


-Thanks
Bill

[Shestakov]

Thanks for the feedback, Bill.
We didn't think about font size, but it makes sense.
Rest was already in plans, however, it's always good to know we are on the right track.