netdata_netdata/docs/alerts-and-notifications/creating-alerts-with-netdata-alerts-configuration-manager.md

Creating Alerts with Netdata Alerts Configuration Manager

The Netdata Alerts Configuration Manager lets you create and fine-tune alerts directly from the Netdata Cloud Dashboard.
To use this feature, you’ll need an active Netdata subscription. → View subscription plans

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Creating Alerts: Quick Guide

1. Navigate to Metrics in your Netdata Cloud Dashboard and locate your target chart.
2. Click the alert icon (🔔) in the chart's right corner, then select Add alert from the popup menu.
3. Set your thresholds and watch the definition update in real-time.
4. When finished configuring your alert, click the Submit to nodes button.

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Alert Detection Types

Netdata supports different ways of triggering alerts:

Type	Description
Standard	Fires when a metric crosses a set value
Metric Variance	Fires based on variation in values over time
Anomaly Rate	Fires when the anomaly rate exceeds a certain threshold

Choose the type that best suits the behavior you want to monitor.

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Metrics Lookup & Filters

Click Show advanced in the Alert Configuration Manager to access these options.

Metrics Lookup

You can define how Netdata should query the data before triggering an alert:

Parameter	Description
method	How values are aggregated (avg, min, max, etc.)
duration	Time window used for the check
dimensions	Which metric dimensions to include
options	Modify how values are interpreted (e.g., percentage, absolute)

Filtering Targets

Limit the alert to specific infrastructure components:

• Hosts
• Nodes
• Instances
• Operating systems
• Chart labels

Formulas

Use a custom formula to manipulate values before comparing against thresholds.

Example:

(metric1 - metric2) / 100

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Defining Alert Conditions

You can control how and when alerts are triggered, escalated, or resolved.

Setting	Purpose
Thresholds	Define values for warning and critical states
Recovery thresholds	Set when the alert should downgrade or clear
Check interval	How often the alert check runs (e.g., every 10 seconds)
Notification delay	Delay before sending notifications for state changes
Repeat notifications	How often to resend an alert if the issue persists (Agent only)
Notification recipients	Define who gets alerted (Agent only)
Custom exec script	Run a custom shell script when an alert triggers

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Naming and Documentation

Field	Description
Alert Name	A unique name for the alert
Description	What the alert does, in one or two sentences
Summary	Optional: a short summary for display in dashboards

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Final Notes

• You can apply alert definitions to Parent Agents or Standalone Child Agents
• If you need help writing custom alerts, check the full alert reference