Users can customize and expand the functionality of PRTG via the following options:

• HTTP API: Access monitoring data and manipulate monitoring objects via HTTP requests.
• Custom Sensors: Create your own sensors for customized monitoring.
• Custom Notifications: Create your own notifications to send alarms to external systems.
• Mini Probe API: Create your own mini probes to get monitoring data from any platform.

Technical support for API features

All API features mentioned here are not covered by our usual next-business-day support. Therefore, it may take a few days before you receive an answer. Note that we can neither provide support for web design issues that involve your own CSS and HTML nor for implementing or adjusting mini probes. 

HTTP API

This section gives you a brief overview over the functionalities of the API interface. The HTTP API offers the following functionality: 

• Authentication, error handling, and optional encryption.
• Functions for getting live object and status data and live graphs.
• Functions for getting historic sensor data and graphs.
• Functions for manipulating objects (for example edit, add, delete).

You can use it via simple HTTP GET requests (either HTTP or HTTPS). Sample call:

http://yourserver/api/table.xml?content=sensortree

Detailed HTTP API documentation

Find a detailed documentation of all HTTP API functions in the PRTG Manual: Application Programming Interface (API) Definition. There, you also find information about the interactive query builder.

Custom sensors

Custom sensors allow a number of monitoring tasks that go far beyond the capabilities of standard sensors. Apart from parameterized versions of SNMP, packet sniffer sensors, and NetFlow sensors, you can create your own sensors via WQL (WMI Query Language) and by compiling an .exe file, with any Windows software development tool.

Learn more about custom sensors:

• PRTG Manual: Additional Sensor Types (Custom Sensors)
• PRTG Sensor Hub
• Ready-to-use custom sensors at PRTG Tools Family
• Tag set "custom-sensor" in this Knowledge Base
• Tag set "custom-script-exe" in this Knowledge Base

Note: With custom sensors, you can use placeholders.

Custom notifications

Custom notifications allow you to run any script or program as a notification. When connected to a sensor, you can trigger not only notifications, but also other actions. This is a powerful tool to react to specific situations in your network.

Learn more about what you can do with custom notifications:

• How can I reboot a computer with a WMI call?
• How can I script SMS text message notifications for PRTG with Windows PowerShell?
• How can I send SMS text message notifications via a modem or a mobile phone with PRTG?
• How can I execute a batch file as notification?

Note: With PRTG notifications, you can use placeholders.

Mini Probe API

Mini probes gather monitoring data from platforms where it is not possible or not suitable to use the common local and remote probes. This gives you a broad range of possibilities to implement amazing functions.

See the following article for a collection of mini probe implementations:

• Where can I find PRTG mini probes which are ready to use?

Share your script/program

Write your own Knowledge Base article and provide your script. See this article for more information: How can i share my self-written PRTG script/program with other PRTG users?