Guides
Watch a port
For any service that is not a website: mail, database, SSH, a game server or your own app. Your Mac opens a TCP connection and closes it, without sending anything.
What it checks
Open or closed
A connection that is accepted is up. Refused, no answer within 10 seconds, or a name that does not resolve is down.
Speed
A connection slower than the limit (3 seconds by default) is slow.
What each status means
- UpThe port accepted the connection in time.
- Slow or degradedThe connection took longer than the slow limit.
- DownRefused, timed out, or the host was not found. Retried once after 3 seconds before it counts.
Add one, step by step
- 1
Find the host and port
For example mail.example.com and 587 for mail, or db.example.com and 3306 for MySQL.
- 2
Add the monitor
On the Mac, paste host:port, such as mail.example.com:587 (port 22 is treated as a server). On the website, choose Port.
- 3
Save
Checked every minute by default.
Every setting
The same settings appear in the Mac app and on the website. You can change them later, from either side.
- Host
- Name or IP address.
- Port
- 1 to 65535.
- Slow after (seconds)
- Above this connection time, it is slow. 3 by default; any value such as 6.
- Check, Name, Group, Tags, Notes
- As for every monitor.
Tips
- For a database or a service only your server should reach, watch it from a server monitor with “Ports that must listen” instead.
- For a website, use a website monitor: it also checks the answer, certificate and content.
Questions
Does it check that the service works?
It checks that the service accepts connections. For deeper checks, use a website monitor (http) or a server monitor (services and containers).
Add a port monitor
Your Mac starts checking it within minutes. You can change every setting later.
Add it now