Paessler Tools has released IPCheck which is designed to continuously monitor one or more servers. It alerts webmasters if a webserver is not working correctly because the web service is down, CGI scripts return errors or the SQL server is not reachable. IPCheck analyzes the results and notifies the administrator when problems are identified. Additionally it can constantly monitor servers by attempting to connect through a PING command or through a specific port (e.g. HTTP=80, SMTP=25). It runs as an NT service. When IPCheck detects a change in network status, several notification mechanisms can be launched:

• Write a logfile entry
• Show a popup-window on the screen
• Issue a NET SEND Command (sends a message to all or specific users on the local network)
• Execute any EXE-File or BATCH-File, e.g. for external page-software etc.
• Play a sound (WAV-File)
• Send a SMTP-Mail with the problem's data to a mailbox, pager or mobile phone
• Reboot the machine (Remote reboot on NT networks)
• Hard-reset the server via a powerswitch that can be controlled via a RS-232 port
• Send notifications to cell phones and pagers using Pagegate from Notepage Inc.

The product is shareware for only $50 (at time of tip writing). The version you can download for free supports up to 2 servers. The licensed version removes the limitation. Although there are commerical services and internet services to do similar functions, the costs are quite high if you are on a restricted budget. Try it. The features are impressive.