From 7ae513a1ecdae8779bbea5bc299bb8e62b2396d1 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka Date: Fri, 21 Nov 2025 09:48:50 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 1/9] feat(): write customer story about Semax project --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 0 1 file changed, 0 insertions(+), 0 deletions(-) create mode 100644 src/content/customers/semax.md diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md new file mode 100644 index 00000000..e69de29b From bc8ea12d4331374058b8b77d6c32f91aad8449ae Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka Date: Fri, 21 Nov 2025 09:49:20 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 2/9] feat(): write customer story about Semax project --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 68 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 68 insertions(+) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index e69de29b..dadf1e81 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -0,0 +1,68 @@ +--- +title: Cloudifying Airport Software AERO +company: Xovis +logo: ../../assets/customers/xovis.svg +date: 2024-01-10 +results: + - Zabbix integration with already existing monitoring stack + - Deployment using OpenShit native features + - Introduction to Zabbix monitoring in a form of a workshop +quote: "" +authorName: "" +authorTitle: "" +authorImage: ../../assets/customers/xovis-joerg.jpeg +--- + +## Customer + +[Semax AG](https://semax.ch/) was founded in 2011 and is based in Cham, Switzerland. The company operates as a specialized system integrator for intelligent metering systems in the Swiss energy sector. + +As a system integrator, Semax provides comprehensive services spanning the entire smart metering ecosystem—from meter parameterization and communication infrastructure to head-end system integration and digitalization of metering processes. The company offers Software-as-a-Service or on-site installations, emphasizing compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. + +## Background + +Semax approached our team seeking expertise in deploying Zabbix on their existing OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN. While Zabbix offers deployment options that align well with cloud-native architectures, the customer lacked the in-house expertise to implement such a solution effectively within their managed OpenShift environment. + +With that, our team faced 2 challanges: finding a reliable and cost-effective deployment approach, and establishing a maintenance model that their operations team could sustain in the long-term. + +Our experts had to understand both Zabbix's capabilities and OpenShift's operational patterns to deliver additional monitoring tool without creating unnecessary complexity or ongoing dependencies. + +## Dual Monitoring stack + +Cloud native environment has its heros. It is hard to argue about Grafana role in popularizing Kubernetes by providing simple and relible monitoring solution - Prometheus. Today, many use it and consider an industry standard. + +Zabbix plays role of a newcomer in Cloud native town. With its well established position in classic datacenters, Zabbix mantainers decided to expand into Kubernetes space as well. in February 2022, Version 6.0 brought Kubernetes support, which has been significantly improved few years later in version 7.0. + +It comes as no surprise that Semax's OpenShift cluster was already equipped with Prometheus for metrics collection,. Deploying Zabbix in its default configuration would require Zabbix Agent 2 as an additional metrics collector, effectively creating two parallel monitoring stacks performing identical tasks across the same infrastructure. + +Fully duplicated monitoring stack posed significant operational challenges: increase complexity, resource consumption, and the potential for configuration drift to name a few. + +### When Perfect Isn't the Goal + +Decisions are not always easy and obvious. Unlike main narrative of literature classics - there's no good and evil, but everything in between. + +Zabbix offers multiple options to collect data. Tightly integrated Zabbix Agent 2 offers great user experience, but it's not the only way to achieve this. + +Zabbix can collect metrix thru basic HTTP pulling as well and with Prometheus already in place, that's not such bad option. But, it's harder and less intuitive to configure in Zabbix UI. + +Our double stack problem couldn't get solved without going on comporomise. Either we increase complexity on the infrastructure side, or on the Zabbix side. + +## bespinian's Role + +We began our cooperation by learning about existing infrastructure and morales behind Zabbix initiative. Broader perspective and understanding of client's need allowed our team to allign with the customer and step into his shoes. The project was not only about installing yet another peace of software - but solving a particular bussines need. + +Over spread of 10 days we have discussed, planned and executed Zabbix installation. First, by assessing already installed tools. OpenShift's build-in option to manage Helm releases worked perfectly for our use-case. Simple with room for future improvements, like migration to full GitOps setup. + +In shared circle including customer, cluster administrators and our team - dual monitoring stack problem has been solved by reusing existing Prometheus installation. It was a joined decision taking into account interest of every involved party. To address cubersome configuration of metrics pulled over HTTP - our Zabbix expert proposed 2 days workshop. During that workshop, the customer could test the final product and learn how to take the most out of it. + +## Project's summary + +Each customer is different in terms of culture, expectations and technical stack. For Zabbix intallation at Semax, we emphesized communication and clarity, we understand that best practices work only as a guidence, and that sometimes, you just have to go on compromises and get the job done. + +We hope that it was not our last initiative with Semax and we hope that theirs Zabbix dashboard will always stay green! + +## Technologies Used + +- **Infrastructure**: Red Hat OpenShift +- **Deployment**: Helm / OpenShift Platform +- **Monitoring**: Zabbix From 25d98733791aa8d63469b30433fceca124ae1e8d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka Date: Fri, 21 Nov 2025 10:41:18 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 3/9] feat(): refactor and align with other customer stories --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 63 ++++++++++++++-------------------- 1 file changed, 25 insertions(+), 38 deletions(-) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index dadf1e81..9bcccd30 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -1,68 +1,55 @@ --- -title: Cloudifying Airport Software AERO -company: Xovis -logo: ../../assets/customers/xovis.svg -date: 2024-01-10 +title: Deploying Zabbix Monitoring on OpenShift +company: Semax +logo: ../../assets/customers/semax.svg +date: 2025-11-21 results: - - Zabbix integration with already existing monitoring stack - - Deployment using OpenShit native features - - Introduction to Zabbix monitoring in a form of a workshop + - Deployed Zabbix on existing OpenShift cluster + - Configured monitoring for Kubernetes workloads and external databases + - Optimized operational costs by reusing existing Prometheus infrastructure + - Enabled operations team for independent Zabbix management quote: "" authorName: "" authorTitle: "" -authorImage: ../../assets/customers/xovis-joerg.jpeg +authorImage: "" --- ## Customer -[Semax AG](https://semax.ch/) was founded in 2011 and is based in Cham, Switzerland. The company operates as a specialized system integrator for intelligent metering systems in the Swiss energy sector. - -As a system integrator, Semax provides comprehensive services spanning the entire smart metering ecosystem—from meter parameterization and communication infrastructure to head-end system integration and digitalization of metering processes. The company offers Software-as-a-Service or on-site installations, emphasizing compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. +[Semax AG](https://semax.ch/) was founded in 2011 and is based in Cham, Switzerland. The company operates as a specialized system integrator for intelligent metering systems in the Swiss energy sector. As a system integrator, Semax provides comprehensive services spanning the entire smart metering ecosystem, from meter parameterization and communication infrastructure to head-end system integration and digitalization of metering processes. The company offers Software-as-a-Service or on-site installations, emphasizing compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. ## Background -Semax approached our team seeking expertise in deploying Zabbix on their existing OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN. While Zabbix offers deployment options that align well with cloud-native architectures, the customer lacked the in-house expertise to implement such a solution effectively within their managed OpenShift environment. - -With that, our team faced 2 challanges: finding a reliable and cost-effective deployment approach, and establishing a maintenance model that their operations team could sustain in the long-term. - -Our experts had to understand both Zabbix's capabilities and OpenShift's operational patterns to deliver additional monitoring tool without creating unnecessary complexity or ongoing dependencies. - -## Dual Monitoring stack - -Cloud native environment has its heros. It is hard to argue about Grafana role in popularizing Kubernetes by providing simple and relible monitoring solution - Prometheus. Today, many use it and consider an industry standard. +Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which already included Prometheus for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native monitoring stack. The company needed to deploy Zabbix as an additional monitoring solution to address specific requirements not covered by their existing setup, particularly for monitoring external databases and providing a more traditional monitoring interface familiar to their operations team. -Zabbix plays role of a newcomer in Cloud native town. With its well established position in classic datacenters, Zabbix mantainers decided to expand into Kubernetes space as well. in February 2022, Version 6.0 brought Kubernetes support, which has been significantly improved few years later in version 7.0. +However, Semax lacked the in-house expertise to effectively implement Zabbix in a cloud-native environment. The challenge was twofold: finding a deployment approach that would integrate well with their existing infrastructure without creating unnecessary duplication, and establishing a sustainable maintenance model that their operations team could manage independently. A traditional Zabbix deployment with Zabbix Agent 2 would have created a fully duplicated monitoring stack, collecting the same metrics through two parallel systems and significantly increasing operational complexity and resource consumption. -It comes as no surprise that Semax's OpenShift cluster was already equipped with Prometheus for metrics collection,. Deploying Zabbix in its default configuration would require Zabbix Agent 2 as an additional metrics collector, effectively creating two parallel monitoring stacks performing identical tasks across the same infrastructure. +## Project Goal -Fully duplicated monitoring stack posed significant operational challenges: increase complexity, resource consumption, and the potential for configuration drift to name a few. +The goal of the project was to deploy Zabbix monitoring on Semax's existing OpenShift cluster while integrating it intelligently with the already established Prometheus-based monitoring infrastructure. Specific objectives included configuring Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster, enabling the team to monitor their OpenShift workloads and external databases, and ensuring the operations team could independently manage and operate the Zabbix deployment. A key requirement was to avoid unnecessary infrastructure duplication and keep operational costs optimized by reusing existing monitoring components where possible. -### When Perfect Isn't the Goal - -Decisions are not always easy and obvious. Unlike main narrative of literature classics - there's no good and evil, but everything in between. - -Zabbix offers multiple options to collect data. Tightly integrated Zabbix Agent 2 offers great user experience, but it's not the only way to achieve this. +## bespinian's Role -Zabbix can collect metrix thru basic HTTP pulling as well and with Prometheus already in place, that's not such bad option. But, it's harder and less intuitive to configure in Zabbix UI. +bespinian played a key role in the following areas: -Our double stack problem couldn't get solved without going on comporomise. Either we increase complexity on the infrastructure side, or on the Zabbix side. +### Planning and Architecture -## bespinian's Role +We began by thoroughly assessing Semax's existing infrastructure and understanding the business drivers behind the Zabbix initiative. This broader perspective allowed us to align with the customer's actual needs rather than simply installing another piece of software. We evaluated the already installed tools and determined that OpenShift's built-in Helm release management capabilities would work well for this use case, providing a simple solution with room for future improvements such as migration to a full GitOps setup. -We began our cooperation by learning about existing infrastructure and morales behind Zabbix initiative. Broader perspective and understanding of client's need allowed our team to allign with the customer and step into his shoes. The project was not only about installing yet another peace of software - but solving a particular bussines need. +### Solving the Dual Monitoring Challenge -Over spread of 10 days we have discussed, planned and executed Zabbix installation. First, by assessing already installed tools. OpenShift's build-in option to manage Helm releases worked perfectly for our use-case. Simple with room for future improvements, like migration to full GitOps setup. +A critical architectural decision involved addressing the dual monitoring stack problem. Zabbix typically deploys with Zabbix Agent 2 as a tightly integrated metrics collector, which would have created parallel monitoring infrastructure alongside the existing Prometheus setup. Through collaborative discussions with the customer and cluster administrators, we proposed and implemented a solution that reused the existing Prometheus infrastructure. Rather than deploying Zabbix Agent 2 across the cluster, we configured Zabbix to collect metrics via HTTP from Prometheus exporters already in place, particularly leveraging the existing Node Exporter deployment. This approach balanced infrastructure simplicity with monitoring capability, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and configuration drift. -In shared circle including customer, cluster administrators and our team - dual monitoring stack problem has been solved by reusing existing Prometheus installation. It was a joined decision taking into account interest of every involved party. To address cubersome configuration of metrics pulled over HTTP - our Zabbix expert proposed 2 days workshop. During that workshop, the customer could test the final product and learn how to take the most out of it. +### Zabbix Deployment and Configuration -## Project's summary +We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it with OpenShift's native platform features. We configured monitoring items specifically for Semax's Kubernetes workloads and external databases, ensuring that the monitoring setup addressed their actual operational requirements. The configuration was designed to be maintainable by the customer's team while following monitoring best practices. -Each customer is different in terms of culture, expectations and technical stack. For Zabbix intallation at Semax, we emphesized communication and clarity, we understand that best practices work only as a guidence, and that sometimes, you just have to go on compromises and get the job done. +### Knowledge Transfer Workshop -We hope that it was not our last initiative with Semax and we hope that theirs Zabbix dashboard will always stay green! +To address the more complex configuration required when collecting metrics via HTTP rather than through dedicated agents, we conducted a comprehensive two-day workshop with the Semax operations team. The workshop covered practical Zabbix usage, including how to create and customize widgets, configure discovery rules for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, and apply basic monitoring practices. This hands-on training ensured the team could effectively use Zabbix and extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. ## Technologies Used - **Infrastructure**: Red Hat OpenShift - **Deployment**: Helm / OpenShift Platform -- **Monitoring**: Zabbix +- **Monitoring**: Zabbix / Prometheus / Node Exporter From 271edf32616ca0758dbc3af5b80264c3dbccc7f9 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka Date: Fri, 21 Nov 2025 10:42:27 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 4/9] fix(): format --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 72 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++----- 1 file changed, 63 insertions(+), 9 deletions(-) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index 9bcccd30..249b8448 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -16,17 +16,44 @@ authorImage: "" ## Customer -[Semax AG](https://semax.ch/) was founded in 2011 and is based in Cham, Switzerland. The company operates as a specialized system integrator for intelligent metering systems in the Swiss energy sector. As a system integrator, Semax provides comprehensive services spanning the entire smart metering ecosystem, from meter parameterization and communication infrastructure to head-end system integration and digitalization of metering processes. The company offers Software-as-a-Service or on-site installations, emphasizing compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. +[Semax AG](https://semax.ch/) was founded in 2011 and is based in Cham, +Switzerland. The company operates as a specialized system integrator for +intelligent metering systems in the Swiss energy sector. As a system integrator, +Semax provides comprehensive services spanning the entire smart metering +ecosystem, from meter parameterization and communication infrastructure to +head-end system integration and digitalization of metering processes. The +company offers Software-as-a-Service or on-site installations, emphasizing +compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. ## Background -Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which already included Prometheus for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native monitoring stack. The company needed to deploy Zabbix as an additional monitoring solution to address specific requirements not covered by their existing setup, particularly for monitoring external databases and providing a more traditional monitoring interface familiar to their operations team. - -However, Semax lacked the in-house expertise to effectively implement Zabbix in a cloud-native environment. The challenge was twofold: finding a deployment approach that would integrate well with their existing infrastructure without creating unnecessary duplication, and establishing a sustainable maintenance model that their operations team could manage independently. A traditional Zabbix deployment with Zabbix Agent 2 would have created a fully duplicated monitoring stack, collecting the same metrics through two parallel systems and significantly increasing operational complexity and resource consumption. +Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which already included +Prometheus for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native +monitoring stack. The company needed to deploy Zabbix as an additional +monitoring solution to address specific requirements not covered by their +existing setup, particularly for monitoring external databases and providing a +more traditional monitoring interface familiar to their operations team. + +However, Semax lacked the in-house expertise to effectively implement Zabbix in +a cloud-native environment. The challenge was twofold: finding a deployment +approach that would integrate well with their existing infrastructure without +creating unnecessary duplication, and establishing a sustainable maintenance +model that their operations team could manage independently. A traditional +Zabbix deployment with Zabbix Agent 2 would have created a fully duplicated +monitoring stack, collecting the same metrics through two parallel systems and +significantly increasing operational complexity and resource consumption. ## Project Goal -The goal of the project was to deploy Zabbix monitoring on Semax's existing OpenShift cluster while integrating it intelligently with the already established Prometheus-based monitoring infrastructure. Specific objectives included configuring Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster, enabling the team to monitor their OpenShift workloads and external databases, and ensuring the operations team could independently manage and operate the Zabbix deployment. A key requirement was to avoid unnecessary infrastructure duplication and keep operational costs optimized by reusing existing monitoring components where possible. +The goal of the project was to deploy Zabbix monitoring on Semax's existing +OpenShift cluster while integrating it intelligently with the already +established Prometheus-based monitoring infrastructure. Specific objectives +included configuring Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster, enabling the team +to monitor their OpenShift workloads and external databases, and ensuring the +operations team could independently manage and operate the Zabbix deployment. A +key requirement was to avoid unnecessary infrastructure duplication and keep +operational costs optimized by reusing existing monitoring components where +possible. ## bespinian's Role @@ -34,19 +61,46 @@ bespinian played a key role in the following areas: ### Planning and Architecture -We began by thoroughly assessing Semax's existing infrastructure and understanding the business drivers behind the Zabbix initiative. This broader perspective allowed us to align with the customer's actual needs rather than simply installing another piece of software. We evaluated the already installed tools and determined that OpenShift's built-in Helm release management capabilities would work well for this use case, providing a simple solution with room for future improvements such as migration to a full GitOps setup. +We began by thoroughly assessing Semax's existing infrastructure and +understanding the business drivers behind the Zabbix initiative. This broader +perspective allowed us to align with the customer's actual needs rather than +simply installing another piece of software. We evaluated the already installed +tools and determined that OpenShift's built-in Helm release management +capabilities would work well for this use case, providing a simple solution with +room for future improvements such as migration to a full GitOps setup. ### Solving the Dual Monitoring Challenge -A critical architectural decision involved addressing the dual monitoring stack problem. Zabbix typically deploys with Zabbix Agent 2 as a tightly integrated metrics collector, which would have created parallel monitoring infrastructure alongside the existing Prometheus setup. Through collaborative discussions with the customer and cluster administrators, we proposed and implemented a solution that reused the existing Prometheus infrastructure. Rather than deploying Zabbix Agent 2 across the cluster, we configured Zabbix to collect metrics via HTTP from Prometheus exporters already in place, particularly leveraging the existing Node Exporter deployment. This approach balanced infrastructure simplicity with monitoring capability, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and configuration drift. +A critical architectural decision involved addressing the dual monitoring stack +problem. Zabbix typically deploys with Zabbix Agent 2 as a tightly integrated +metrics collector, which would have created parallel monitoring infrastructure +alongside the existing Prometheus setup. Through collaborative discussions with +the customer and cluster administrators, we proposed and implemented a solution +that reused the existing Prometheus infrastructure. Rather than deploying Zabbix +Agent 2 across the cluster, we configured Zabbix to collect metrics via HTTP +from Prometheus exporters already in place, particularly leveraging the existing +Node Exporter deployment. This approach balanced infrastructure simplicity with +monitoring capability, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and +configuration drift. ### Zabbix Deployment and Configuration -We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it with OpenShift's native platform features. We configured monitoring items specifically for Semax's Kubernetes workloads and external databases, ensuring that the monitoring setup addressed their actual operational requirements. The configuration was designed to be maintainable by the customer's team while following monitoring best practices. +We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it +with OpenShift's native platform features. We configured monitoring items +specifically for Semax's Kubernetes workloads and external databases, ensuring +that the monitoring setup addressed their actual operational requirements. The +configuration was designed to be maintainable by the customer's team while +following monitoring best practices. ### Knowledge Transfer Workshop -To address the more complex configuration required when collecting metrics via HTTP rather than through dedicated agents, we conducted a comprehensive two-day workshop with the Semax operations team. The workshop covered practical Zabbix usage, including how to create and customize widgets, configure discovery rules for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, and apply basic monitoring practices. This hands-on training ensured the team could effectively use Zabbix and extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. +To address the more complex configuration required when collecting metrics via +HTTP rather than through dedicated agents, we conducted a comprehensive two-day +workshop with the Semax operations team. The workshop covered practical Zabbix +usage, including how to create and customize widgets, configure discovery rules +for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, and apply basic monitoring +practices. This hands-on training ensured the team could effectively use Zabbix +and extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. ## Technologies Used From 774dbe71b9293d49dca8f97e9882e7e1f48942b0 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka <40759761+norbertgruszka@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2025 13:33:30 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 5/9] Update src/content/customers/semax.md Co-authored-by: remmen-io <118854388+remmen-io@users.noreply.github.com> --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 24 +++++++++--------------- 1 file changed, 9 insertions(+), 15 deletions(-) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index 249b8448..a341fbf6 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -27,21 +27,15 @@ compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. ## Background -Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which already included -Prometheus for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native -monitoring stack. The company needed to deploy Zabbix as an additional -monitoring solution to address specific requirements not covered by their -existing setup, particularly for monitoring external databases and providing a -more traditional monitoring interface familiar to their operations team. - -However, Semax lacked the in-house expertise to effectively implement Zabbix in -a cloud-native environment. The challenge was twofold: finding a deployment -approach that would integrate well with their existing infrastructure without -creating unnecessary duplication, and establishing a sustainable maintenance -model that their operations team could manage independently. A traditional -Zabbix deployment with Zabbix Agent 2 would have created a fully duplicated -monitoring stack, collecting the same metrics through two parallel systems and -significantly increasing operational complexity and resource consumption. +Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which included Prometheus for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native monitoring stack. While this setup worked well for cloud-native workloads, the company needed to deploy Zabbix as an additional monitoring solution for specific requirements: monitoring external databases and providing a traditional monitoring interface familiar to their operations team. + +The company faced several key challenges: + +**Limited In-House Expertise**: Semax lacked the internal knowledge to effectively implement Zabbix in a cloud-native environment and integrate it with their existing OpenShift infrastructure. + +**Infrastructure Efficiency**: A standard Zabbix deployment using the Kubernetes API integration would create a parallel monitoring system, collecting the same metrics twice and significantly increasing operational complexity and resource consumption. + +**Sustainable Operations**: The solution needed to be maintainable by Semax's operations team without requiring deep Zabbix expertise for day-to-day management. ## Project Goal From 31d23509fd428e1aa9599e67bda52d84c752d06b Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka <40759761+norbertgruszka@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2025 13:33:39 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 6/9] Update src/content/customers/semax.md Co-authored-by: remmen-io <118854388+remmen-io@users.noreply.github.com> --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 16 +++------------- 1 file changed, 3 insertions(+), 13 deletions(-) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index a341fbf6..5f7af8b1 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -63,19 +63,9 @@ tools and determined that OpenShift's built-in Helm release management capabilities would work well for this use case, providing a simple solution with room for future improvements such as migration to a full GitOps setup. -### Solving the Dual Monitoring Challenge - -A critical architectural decision involved addressing the dual monitoring stack -problem. Zabbix typically deploys with Zabbix Agent 2 as a tightly integrated -metrics collector, which would have created parallel monitoring infrastructure -alongside the existing Prometheus setup. Through collaborative discussions with -the customer and cluster administrators, we proposed and implemented a solution -that reused the existing Prometheus infrastructure. Rather than deploying Zabbix -Agent 2 across the cluster, we configured Zabbix to collect metrics via HTTP -from Prometheus exporters already in place, particularly leveraging the existing -Node Exporter deployment. This approach balanced infrastructure simplicity with -monitoring capability, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and -configuration drift. +### Intelligent Infrastructure Reuse + +Rather than using Zabbix's Kubernetes API integration—which would have created a second, parallel metrics collection system—we configured Zabbix to leverage the existing Prometheus infrastructure. We set up Zabbix to query Prometheus directly using PromQL, allowing us to select only the specific metrics needed in Zabbix. This architectural decision balanced monitoring capability with infrastructure simplicity, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and configuration drift. ### Zabbix Deployment and Configuration From d27fb1fb84640dee9bad08d20fecbe7ea3ed56dd Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka <40759761+norbertgruszka@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2025 13:33:45 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 7/9] Update src/content/customers/semax.md Co-authored-by: remmen-io <118854388+remmen-io@users.noreply.github.com> --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 8 +------- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 7 deletions(-) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index 5f7af8b1..26200b67 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -78,13 +78,7 @@ following monitoring best practices. ### Knowledge Transfer Workshop -To address the more complex configuration required when collecting metrics via -HTTP rather than through dedicated agents, we conducted a comprehensive two-day -workshop with the Semax operations team. The workshop covered practical Zabbix -usage, including how to create and customize widgets, configure discovery rules -for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, and apply basic monitoring -practices. This hands-on training ensured the team could effectively use Zabbix -and extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. +To ensure the Semax operations team could effectively manage the PromQL-based metrics collection, we conducted a comprehensive workshop. The hands-on training covered practical Zabbix usage, including creating and customizing widgets, configuring discovery rules for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, and applying fundamental monitoring practices. This training empowered the team to extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. ## Technologies Used From 031ce9d38844eba3cb18e2aef6716b26888efd9a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka <40759761+norbertgruszka@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2025 13:33:53 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 8/9] Update src/content/customers/semax.md Co-authored-by: remmen-io <118854388+remmen-io@users.noreply.github.com> --- src/content/customers/semax.md | 11 +++-------- 1 file changed, 3 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/semax.md index 26200b67..c565c21d 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/semax.md @@ -67,14 +67,9 @@ room for future improvements such as migration to a full GitOps setup. Rather than using Zabbix's Kubernetes API integration—which would have created a second, parallel metrics collection system—we configured Zabbix to leverage the existing Prometheus infrastructure. We set up Zabbix to query Prometheus directly using PromQL, allowing us to select only the specific metrics needed in Zabbix. This architectural decision balanced monitoring capability with infrastructure simplicity, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and configuration drift. -### Zabbix Deployment and Configuration - -We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it -with OpenShift's native platform features. We configured monitoring items -specifically for Semax's Kubernetes workloads and external databases, ensuring -that the monitoring setup addressed their actual operational requirements. The -configuration was designed to be maintainable by the customer's team while -following monitoring best practices. +### Implementation and Configuration + +We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it seamlessly with OpenShift's native platform features. The configuration addressed Semax's specific operational requirements, including monitoring for Kubernetes workloads and external databases. Throughout the implementation, we designed the setup to be maintainable by the customer's team while following monitoring best practices. ### Knowledge Transfer Workshop From a7a528b89e1525f81881d4b9a0c0006751cbc884 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Gruszka Date: Mon, 24 Nov 2025 13:35:09 +0100 Subject: [PATCH 9/9] fix(): format --- src/content/customers/{ => en}/semax.md | 44 ++++++++++++++++++++----- src/pages/rss.xml.ts | 2 +- 2 files changed, 37 insertions(+), 9 deletions(-) rename src/content/customers/{ => en}/semax.md (61%) diff --git a/src/content/customers/semax.md b/src/content/customers/en/semax.md similarity index 61% rename from src/content/customers/semax.md rename to src/content/customers/en/semax.md index c565c21d..73ca5b73 100644 --- a/src/content/customers/semax.md +++ b/src/content/customers/en/semax.md @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ title: Deploying Zabbix Monitoring on OpenShift company: Semax logo: ../../assets/customers/semax.svg -date: 2025-11-21 +pubDate: 2025-11-21 results: - Deployed Zabbix on existing OpenShift cluster - Configured monitoring for Kubernetes workloads and external databases @@ -27,15 +27,27 @@ compliance with Swiss legal requirements and data security standards. ## Background -Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which included Prometheus for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native monitoring stack. While this setup worked well for cloud-native workloads, the company needed to deploy Zabbix as an additional monitoring solution for specific requirements: monitoring external databases and providing a traditional monitoring interface familiar to their operations team. +Semax operates an OpenShift cluster managed by VSHN, which included Prometheus +for metrics collection as part of the standard cloud-native monitoring stack. +While this setup worked well for cloud-native workloads, the company needed to +deploy Zabbix as an additional monitoring solution for specific requirements: +monitoring external databases and providing a traditional monitoring interface +familiar to their operations team. The company faced several key challenges: -**Limited In-House Expertise**: Semax lacked the internal knowledge to effectively implement Zabbix in a cloud-native environment and integrate it with their existing OpenShift infrastructure. +**Limited In-House Expertise**: Semax lacked the internal knowledge to +effectively implement Zabbix in a cloud-native environment and integrate it with +their existing OpenShift infrastructure. -**Infrastructure Efficiency**: A standard Zabbix deployment using the Kubernetes API integration would create a parallel monitoring system, collecting the same metrics twice and significantly increasing operational complexity and resource consumption. +**Infrastructure Efficiency**: A standard Zabbix deployment using the Kubernetes +API integration would create a parallel monitoring system, collecting the same +metrics twice and significantly increasing operational complexity and resource +consumption. -**Sustainable Operations**: The solution needed to be maintainable by Semax's operations team without requiring deep Zabbix expertise for day-to-day management. +**Sustainable Operations**: The solution needed to be maintainable by Semax's +operations team without requiring deep Zabbix expertise for day-to-day +management. ## Project Goal @@ -65,15 +77,31 @@ room for future improvements such as migration to a full GitOps setup. ### Intelligent Infrastructure Reuse -Rather than using Zabbix's Kubernetes API integration—which would have created a second, parallel metrics collection system—we configured Zabbix to leverage the existing Prometheus infrastructure. We set up Zabbix to query Prometheus directly using PromQL, allowing us to select only the specific metrics needed in Zabbix. This architectural decision balanced monitoring capability with infrastructure simplicity, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and configuration drift. +Rather than using Zabbix's Kubernetes API integration—which would have created a +second, parallel metrics collection system—we configured Zabbix to leverage the +existing Prometheus infrastructure. We set up Zabbix to query Prometheus +directly using PromQL, allowing us to select only the specific metrics needed in +Zabbix. This architectural decision balanced monitoring capability with +infrastructure simplicity, avoiding unnecessary resource consumption and +configuration drift. ### Implementation and Configuration -We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it seamlessly with OpenShift's native platform features. The configuration addressed Semax's specific operational requirements, including monitoring for Kubernetes workloads and external databases. Throughout the implementation, we designed the setup to be maintainable by the customer's team while following monitoring best practices. +We deployed Zabbix server on the OpenShift cluster using Helm, integrating it +seamlessly with OpenShift's native platform features. The configuration +addressed Semax's specific operational requirements, including monitoring for +Kubernetes workloads and external databases. Throughout the implementation, we +designed the setup to be maintainable by the customer's team while following +monitoring best practices. ### Knowledge Transfer Workshop -To ensure the Semax operations team could effectively manage the PromQL-based metrics collection, we conducted a comprehensive workshop. The hands-on training covered practical Zabbix usage, including creating and customizing widgets, configuring discovery rules for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, and applying fundamental monitoring practices. This training empowered the team to extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. +To ensure the Semax operations team could effectively manage the PromQL-based +metrics collection, we conducted a comprehensive workshop. The hands-on training +covered practical Zabbix usage, including creating and customizing widgets, +configuring discovery rules for automated monitoring of dynamic infrastructure, +and applying fundamental monitoring practices. This training empowered the team +to extend the monitoring configuration as their needs evolved. ## Technologies Used diff --git a/src/pages/rss.xml.ts b/src/pages/rss.xml.ts index 4b3fdfc5..8e786b73 100644 --- a/src/pages/rss.xml.ts +++ b/src/pages/rss.xml.ts @@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ export async function GET(context: { site: string }) { title: story.data.title, link: `/en/customers/${story.id}`, pubDate: story.data.pubDate, - description: story.data.description, + description: story.data.quote, })), );